Indigenous Peoples’ Day strikes the intersection of beauty and triumph, controversy and pain. Many have fought to reclaim its purpose and name from Columbus, to the people of the land he claimed to discover.
The history of this day has shown the power of the voices of the marginalized as we largely no longer recognize this day as Columbus Day. South Dakota became the first state to recognize what was then called “Native Americans’ Day” in 1990. The earliest known date of the celebration is in 1792 and it became a national holiday in 1934, and federal holiday in 1971, and considering those dates you can feel how recent of a change this is.
As it pertains to Alaska, what does Indigenous Peoples’ Day truly mean?
Listen to our latest episode of Hometown Alaska:
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- LIVE (RECORDED) : Monday, October 11, 2021 at 10 a.m.
- RE-AIR: Monday, October 11, 2021 at 8 p.m.
Ammon Swenson is Alaska Public Media’s Audio Media Content Producer. He was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. He graduated from UAA in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and integrated media. He’s previously worked for KRUA radio, the Anchorage Press, and The Northern Light.
