Honoring Indigenous Peoples Day with PBS Wisconsin

October 6, 2023 Marci Glaus Leave a Comment

Oct. 9, 2023, will mark Wisconsin’s fifth year commemorating Indigenous Peoples Day.

Wisconsin is home to 12 sovereign Native American nations:

• Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
• Brothertown Indian Nation
• Forest County Potawatomi
• Ho-Chunk Nation
• Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians
• Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians
• Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin
• Oneida Nation
• Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians
• Sokaogon Chippewa Community
• St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin
• Stockbridge-Munsee Community Band of Mohican Indians

PBS Wisconsin Education, along with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education, Wisconsin Historical Society and the Wisconsin Act 31 Coalition provide accurate and authentic educational resources for educators, learners and anyone looking to learn more about the histories, cultures and tribal sovereignty of Wisconsin’s First Nations through the Wisconsin First Nations website.

Explore Wisconsin Indigenous lands and people through videos, booklists and learning tools, including the video collection, The Ways. PBS Wisconsin Education recently updated this free-to-use collection of language and culture stories from Native communities around the central Great Lakes that explores traditional ways and those of today. Updates include contemporary video stories, maps and educator guides with story summaries, discussion questions and supplemental essays.

Looking forward, Native American Heritage Month begins in November, with many opportunities for viewing and learning. Learn more about Native American Heritage with programs from PBS Wisconsin, and get ready for Electa Quinney Day on Nov. 1, 2023, with an exciting new release in the PBS Wisconsin Education Wisconsin Biographies collection. Electa Quinney: Mohican Teacher and Mentor will spotlight Electa Quinney of the Stockbridge-Munsee Community Band of Mohican Indians. Quinney’s story, developed in collaboration with the Stockbridge-Munsee Tribal community, will include an animated video, text biography, educator guide and more.

Quinney was Wisconsin’s first known public school teacher and a notable mentor in her community. She endured hardships and injustice to lift up Native and non-Native people through her generosity and guidance – a story that continues to inspire the Stockbridge-Munsee Community Band of Mohican Indians today. Experience her story in November on the PBS Wisconsin Education website and on your local PBS Wisconsin channel at 7:55 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 7.

American Indians Indigenous First Nations Wisconsin First Nations Electa Quinney Education Native American