BAR HARBOR — Organizations on Mount Desert Island and surrounding communities are coming together to celebrate and honor the sovereignty, resilience, and invaluable contributions of Indigenous people, and to facilitate healing, learning, engagement, and allyship.
Started in 2021 as a small live performance to celebrate Indigenous culture and music, this regional event has evolved into a multi-day experience offering opportunities for learning, engaging, healing, and celebrating. This year, INDIGENOUS 2024 focuses on healing and engagement, while celebrating and supporting the sovereignty of Wabanaki people, highlighting both the challenges and triumphs of recognition and respect. Through this collaborative effort, a number of inclusive experiences are planned for the week leading up to Indigenous People’s Day and the day itself. This community effort is coordinated by Firefly The Hybrid, Abbe Museum, College of the Atlantic, Friends of Acadia, Healthy Acadia, The Jackson Laboratory, and YWCA MDI. For more information, please visit www.fireflythehybrid.com/indigenous-2024.
On Wednesday, Oct. 9 from 4:30-6 p.m., join Donna Decontie-Brown for “Our Bodies Carry Our Personal Stories and the Stories of Our Ancestors: Reconciling the Harmful Effects of Historical Trauma While Focusing on our Individual Healing Journeys with Donna Decontie-Brown.” This in-person-only event will be held at YWCA MDI, 36 Mt Desert St., Bar Harbor, Maine – Pesumkuk, Wabanaki Territory.
On Thursday, Oct. 10, the community is invited to a screening of the documentary film “We Are the Warriors” with a panel discussion to follow. The film tells the story of a small Maine town deciding the fate of its American Indian mascot after facing public allegations of racist behavior at a high school football game. This event is co-presented by College of the Atlantic and the Abbe Museum, and will take place at Gates Community Center, College of the Atlantic, 105 Eden St, Bar Harbor, Maine, Pesumkuk, Wabanaki Territory. Doors open at 5:30 p.m, film starts at 6 p.m. Followed by a panelist discussion/Q & A. Film is 72 minutes long and the panel discussion lasts roughly 45 minutes. Seats are first come first served. Panelists include David Camlin and Megan Grumbling – the co-directors/producers of the film, and Christiana Becker (curator of Education at the Abbe Museum).
On Saturday, Oct. 12, the community is invited to spend a special evening with Firefly the Hybrid and Family for a live performance to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day and Everyday, at the Gates Community Center, College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine – Pesumkuk, Wabanaki Territory. Doors open at 7 p.m. and the show starts at 7:30 p.m. Akwunnu – All Are Welcome.
On Monday, Oct. 14, Indigenous Peoples’ Day, Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor – Pesumkuk, Wabanaki Territory, will offer free admission from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Explore some of the most important collections of Wabanaki cultural material and art in the world at this Native-led Smithsonian Affiliated museum in the heart of Bar Harbor, Maine at Pesumkuk in Wabanaki Territory. The Abbe Museum has developed a Wabanaki Allies Guide, focused on Sovereignty, to help attendees go deeper in the understanding and activation in support of the Wabanaki Nations. To explore this excellent source of information and pathways for action, visit https://www.abbemuseum.org/2023-allies-guide.
Also on Monday, Oct. 14, join Christiana Becker for a Sacred Medicine Printmaking Workshop from 1-3 p.m. at the Abbe Museum. During the workshop you will hear what the four sacred medicines are and can print an already carved linoleum plate of the sacred medicine, cedar, to take home with you. Christiana is a part of the Penobscot Nation and is the Curator of Education at the museum. Becker holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Studio Art with a concentration in printmaking, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art Education, and a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Intermedia from the University of Maine. The research that shapes the creation of her art practice explores the history, culture, and sociopolitical pressures of North American Indigenous peoples, using those topics as a springboard to creating art.
RSVP is strongly encouraged, though not required, for these free events. To register for one or more of the INDIGENOUS 2024 experiences, visit https://forms.gle/1xorCQrTEN7CsNHs8. All events are offered free of charge, and donations are greatly appreciated to make this work possible. To donate online go to bit.ly/support_indigenous2024.
