Photos from August at Urbana Free Library

The second IPH4YP event Debbie & Jean did together was close to home -- at the Urbana (IL) Free Library on August 27.

Debbie, our dear local librarian Carol Inskeep, & Jean before the talk.

Rather than giving full accounts of what goes on at these events, we'd like to focus on "moments" that had special meaning for us. For example: When we walked into the library auditorium, we were greeted by the sight of 2 display tables of books that we recommend, for adults and for younger people. That felt great, knowing that the staff had made a point of pulling those books so people at the talk could actually put their hands on them. And that means that the library has all those titles available for the public to check out, in the first place! It's so important to Native parents and kids, to be able to see books that reflect their lives, on the shelves in their community libraries.

Debbie in conversation with students from the University of
Illinois Graduate School of Library & Information Sciences (GLIS).

Debbie gets the talk started. More than 100 people attended.  

We invited the audience members to list all the Native nations they could think of in 3 minutes. We didn't have time to check the lists for accuracy, but anyone who wanted to could compare their list to the federal government's list of Indian Entities Recognized by and Eligible To Receive Services From the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs. (For a little more about that, see p. 45 in IPH4YP.) In the photo below right, people are working together to make their lists.









Jean was especially happy that her parents, Barbara and Ed Paine, were able to attend. That's her mom far left in this photo, and her dad, second from left. Her brother Bill is the guy talking to her at the signing table.

The Illini Union Bookstore from the University of Illinois campus sold copies of the book. It was a pleasant evening, and satisfying to see so many familiar faces as we talked about IPH4YP.  Thanks so much, Carol Inskeep and UFL staff, for all your work!

Thanksgiving Lesson Plan!

More good news for educators! Another lesson plan based on An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States for Young People (#iph4yp) is now available from Beacon Press:

Origin Narrative: Thanksgiving is a grade 6-8 social studies lesson, created by Dr. Natalie Martinez (Laguna Pueblo), who has also created the Indigenous People's Day lesson plan and a detailed Teachers Guide (more on that to follow). This lesson supports Chapter 3 ("Cult of the Covenant"), and focuses on origin narratives -- what they are, who tells them, what they are meant to accomplish, why they can be problematic. Students are asked to think critically about the Thanksgiving stories that are familiar to them, and to look at stories that may not be so familiar. As with the Indigenous Peoples' Day lesson, links are provided to good outside resources for teachers or students to use.

The central question is challenging enough for high school students and adults: How does the transmission of history become ingrained in collective memory?

Thanks, Dr. Natalie Martinez, for another helpful resource to go along with IPH4YP!