10/12/2026
Today, we honor the Indigenous peoples of this land—their ancestors, their nations, their cultures, their languages, and their enduring presence.
We honor those who resisted colonization, defended their homelands, protected their traditions, and carried the knowledge of their ancestors through generations of upheaval and change. We recognize that Indigenous history is not confined to the past. Indigenous peoples are here, their cultures are alive, and their stories continue to shape our collective history.
We also remember the histories that exist at the intersections of African and Indigenous life. The story of the Black Seminoles is one of resistance, kinship, cultural survival, and the pursuit of freedom. It reminds us that our histories are interconnected, that our ancestors forged relationships and communities under extraordinary circumstances, and that their legacies deserve to be preserved and understood in their full complexity.
Today is an opportunity to listen, to learn, to honor the truth, and to recognize the people whose histories have too often been overlooked or erased.
We honor the ancestors. We respect the living. We protect the stories. And we carry the legacy forward.
Happy Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
