Pages

Tuesday, November 1, 2022

November is Adoption (beware) Awareness Month (#NAAM) AND Native American Heritage Month

 


 


















Top row (L-R): Interior Secretary Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo), the
first Native American cabinet secretary; some of the young cast members
of the breakout hit show “Reservation Dogs”; Marine Colonel Nicole
Aunapu Mann (Round Valley Indian Tribes), the first Indigenous woman in
space. Bottom row (L-R): An Indian relay rider in Buffalo, Wyoming;
Chief Lynn Malerba (Mohegan Tribe), Treasurer of the United States;
Detroit Lions rookie linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez (Cherokee).




A journalist asked me recently: What’s the one thing that mainstream media often get wrong about your community?



My answer was brief:  Unfortunately, the media still speaks about Native Americans in the past tense. 


The truth is: We are still here.










That’s part of the reason Native News Online was founded in 2011.
Because the media often portrayed Native people in a negative light:
high levels of alcoholism, poverty or as all being rich because of
Indian casinos.

In our newsroom, we work to present a balanced and accurate portrayal
of Native people living in contemporary times. We write about Native
people as we are now, and the issues that actually matter to us. 


We report on — and occasionally celebrate — Native people who, in
2022, are reaching new heights in art, science, business, and public
service.  


They’re not just doing great things in Indian Country.  They’re doing
great things that affect the entire country — and well beyond our
borders, as well. 



Throughout the month of November, Native News Online will highlight
some of the Native Americans who have made “immeasurable contributions
to the country’s progress,” as President Joe Biden noted in his proclamation
about National Native American Heritage Month yesterday. We’ll share
stories of Native Americans who have helped shape culture in Indian
Country, the United States, and around the world.


We are still here, and our presence is growing.  

In advance of
recognizing Native American Heritage Month, the U.S. Census Bureau
released the following facts about American Indians and Alaska Natives:


3.7 million


The nation’s American Indian and Alaska Native population alone in
2020. This population group identifies as AI/AN only and does not
identify with any other race.


10.1 million


The projected population of American Indian and Alaska Native alone
or in combination with other race groups on July 1, 2060, about 2.5% of
the projected total U.S. population.


324


The number of distinct, federally recognized American Indian
reservations in 2022, including federal reservations and off-reservation
trust land. 


574


The number of federally recognized Indian tribes in 2022.


120,944


The number of single-race American Indian and Alaska Native veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces in 2021.


We are still here.  We have been since time immemorial.  And we plan to be for generations to come. 

SOURCE

 

No comments:

Post a Comment

Please leave a comment.