In 1961, during his inaugural address, President John F. Kennedy delivered the memorable line in which he emphasized, “Ask not what your country can do for you- ask what you can do for your country.” While he meant to apply this statement to the United States and the world at large, I feel that it also applies to Indian Country and my personal philosophy of “Think Indian.”
Native American Heritage Month is a great time to show your support for Native American students in higher education. We invite you to share in the celebration and learn more about Indian Country with the fun articles, activities and blogs we have planned this month. We hope that you will visit our blog regularly to hear from our guest writers who all bring their unique Native perspective for your enjoyment and enlightenment.
My mother is of the Water-Flows-Together Clan and I am born for the Persian People. My maternal grandfather is Towering-House Clan and my paternal grandfather is Persian. My family is originally from Lukachukai, Arizona, but I was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. I am a currently enrolled in the Higher Education Administration Educational Leadership & Policy Studies Master Program at the University of Utah. I represent the Diné Nation and the Persian people. My name is Ashley Tso.
November 1 marks the start of National American Indian Heritage Month. All month long we will we celebrate the contributions of First Americans to our great nation and providing you with information on the traditions and cultures of the students we serve.
An estimated crowd of 6,000 jammed into and around the darkened dance arena to see fire-lit knives spun-about and tossed into the night sky by members of the powwow’s featured cultural group. The Tafiti Samoan Fire Knife Dancers wowed the audience with their flaming machetes. The group was led by cultural ambassador Kap Te’O Tafti, of the Polynesian Cultural Center, Laie, Hawaii.
When a white buffalo calf, a male calf named Lightning Medicine Cloud, and its mother were slaughtered this week at Native-owned Lakota Ranch in Texas, Indian Country was outraged. This is because white buffalo are not only rare (according to the National Bison Association, just one out of every 10 million buffalo born are white), but they are considered sacred amongst many Native tribes.
Although November is Native American Heritage Month, for the American Indian College Fund, our tribal colleges, and our students, we celebrate Native heritage every day of the year. This is because our students and communities know what it means to be without Native culture, heritage, and language–because it was once U.S. government policy to assimilate American Indians, and eradicate these priceless facets of heritage. As a result, generations of American Indians were denied their birthright.
First class of baccalaureate graduates of Dine College, which marked its 30th Anniversary in 1998 as the oldest tribal college. Graduation day May 15, 1998. photo John Running. The first tribal college was Diné College, located in Tsaile, Arizona, was founded by the Navajo Nation as Navajo Community College in 1968 to educate its young people who are residents of the 26,000 square-mile Navajo Nation which is spread over Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah, while steeping them in their language, culture, and traditions.
Native cultures in what is now Mexico are credited for introducing chocolate to the world. The Mayan culture used chocolate as currency and the Aztec culture used the cacao bean as payment for tribute because it was so highly revered. The Aztecs also created xocoatl, a spicy hot chocolate drink that mixed cacoa beans, corn flour, water and chilies which was popular with the upper classes.
Please join the American Indian College Fund and the Native students and 34 tribal colleges and universities we support in celebrating Native American Heritage Month. You can get to know more about a tribal culture, history, language, and how the tribal colleges help to preserve them on our web site, Facebook and Twitter. Visit our YouTube channel, where we feature student and alumni interviews, celebrate our graduates, and provide an overview of the Fund’s work with the video Hope on the Rez.
