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Honoring Indigenous People for Heritage Month

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I am sitting here, stuck, trying to come up with the best way to honor Indigenous People for this year’s Native American Heritage Month. While not indigenous myself, I do live on their land and benefit from work they’ve done. I want to give back communities that I admire and respect. Therefore, I want to bring you along with me as I learn, purchase, and share how I am honoring Indigenous People for Heritage Month.

I’m starting off by searching for nearby tribes, businesses, and general information. Is it just me, or has search results become subpar? I feel like I can’t ever find precisely what I’m looking for.

Starting with the U.S. Department of the Interior Native Affairs website, I found which tribes are located in the Virginia area. This matters to me for a few reasons. Well, I am in Virginia. I would like to shop locally or reduce shipping distances. Also, I would also like to attend any open events. On the federal level, these are the recognized tribes:

  • Chickahominy Tribe A quote I’d like to share from their website: “As America comes to terms with issues of sustainable lifestyle, responsible energy usage, and environmental stewardship, we see our ancient ways gaining renewed respect and value. We believe that our vision of life in harmony with creation offers hope for our nation and our world. We believe that our people can help lead the way into a better future.”
  • Chickahominy Indian Tribe Eastern Division On their website, it’s mentioned that the name they prefer for themselves is: “Course ground corn people”
  • Nansemond Nation meaning “fishing point”
  • Rappahannock Tribe
  • Upper Mattaponi Tribe
  • Monacan Indian Tribe
  • Pamunkey Tribe

This list comes with the bias and red tape that comes with a United States federal government recognition. I know that there are many other tribes. Virginia recognizes more. But, again, it feels a little backward for the state to recognize people who existed here before Virginia was ever a thought.

The Virginia state website acknowledges that Native Americans were here first and that colonists forced them to be “second class citizens.” The heritage month page also features different state recognized tribes throughout the month of November. There’s a summary about each tribe and a link to the tribe’s website. Virginia recognizes 11 Native American tribes. The state recognized tribes that are on the Virginia website, and not on the national website, are:

  • Mattaponi Their tribe name means “people of the river.” A quote I wanted to share from their website: “Contemporary Mattaponi tribal life is still based deeply in the traditions of our ancestors, such as being faithful to our treaties and living in harmony with the natural world, while at the same time we have adapted to an ever-changing society.”
  • Cheroenhaka Their name means “people at the fork of the stream.” In early colonization documentation, colonizers documented their name based on what another tribe called them. The name imposed on these people by Algonquins were “Nadawa” which evolved to Nottoway. The name meant “snake” and I’m sure you can surmise that this was meant to be derogatory (meant enemy).
  • Nottoway A quote I wanted to share from their site: “It is a benefit to everyone in addition to contributing to the betterment of our environment,” she said. “It is our responsibility today to serve as keepers of the land. Even with the number of people, it was so nice to see that we had several generations working together for a common cause.” – Chief Allston excerpt from Indian Country Today Media Network
  • Patawomeck On their site, there are Volunteer opportunities and a museum Tribal Store.

Local:

The only business close enough to me, within reason, to visit in person is Abunai. A restaurant specializing in Poke with authentic Hawaiian roots. It all started as a food truck opened by a part Japanese and part Native Hawaiian woman. Abunai means “to take risks” and I’ll certainly take a risk driving there to try their food.

The next resource I consulted is the Native American Organizations website. While there are a few organizations in Virginia, the one that can be supported through volunteering, donations and memberships is American Indian Society of Washington, DC. Their work includes social advancement and well-being of American Indian communities.

National Museum of the American Indian: a two location Smithsonian museum dedicated to the preservation, education and empowerment of Native People of the Western hemisphere. One location is nearby in Washington, DC.

And, not too far away is 7 Clans Brewing in Asheville, North Carolina.

Learning:

“Documentary Genocide” is new terminology to me. It refers to the act of reclassifying people’s race in documentation. For people removed from their land and ancestors, “documentary genocide” makes it especially hard to track down one’s family, traditions, culture. Yes, I bring this up because this was done to Native people.

While I did learn about the peace treaties signed in history by Native Americans, I didn’t do much thought into the future (present) of those treaties. I see many tribes still acknowledge and honor those treaties.

In my research, I came across Dig Deep. A nonprofit working to bring running water to the millions of people living without in America. They accept donations and have products for purchase that support the project.

I started my search for businesses on NativeWeb. There are 78 Native Owned Businesses organized alphabetically. Information at a glance includes description, tribe, and location. Unfortunately, the handful of sites I attempted to visit were no longer active.

Partnership with Native Americans has a well organized list of businesses categorized by product type. Not only are there businesses to shop from, the nonprofit organization supports crucial needs of Native communities. Their mission is to serve immediate needs and support long term solutions. The vision is strong, self-sufficient Native American communities. You and I can support this work by donating directly to Partnership with Native Americans.

Poverty ranges from 38% – 63% on many reservations. That breaks my heart. It’s hard to stomach. Our neighbors, people living alongside us, are impoverished. The distribution of wealth desperately needs adjusting.

Powwows has an easy to use directory that makes finding the right businesses a breeze. It’s a great place to start when holiday shopping (or shopping in general). Categories include Art, Food, Jewelry, Beadwork, Blankets, Clothing and more.

The last resource I consulted for information is the U.S. Department of the Interior: Indian Arts & Crafts Board. There are 35 pages of registered businesses. Most of the listings have no or a defunct website. I’ve done my best to sort through them all to find more shops to add to the list.

Below is the list of shops categorized by what seemed to be the majority of their offerings. Many stores offer more than the category I’ve put them under. Next to the store name and link, I’ve summarized what they offer. I hope you find it useful and I hope you find something you love.

Shopping:

I consulted the following resources in my search for Native owned businesses. I’ve done my best to include as many as possible. Every shop I’ve listed is one that I would personally buy from. Their sites are easy to navigate, the products are interesting, and the pricing is within what I could afford.

Books, Stationary:

Clothing, Apparel:

Jewelry, Accessories:

Bath, Skincare, Bodycare:

Makeup:

Food, Drink:

Home Goods:

Other:

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