Native Indigenous Heritage Month
MSU Denver resides on the ancestral lands of the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Sioux, and Ute people, all of whom still are in an ongoing relationship with this land. One of the ways we fight the erasure of Indigenous peoples is by recognizing the history that brought settlers, whether voluntary or formerly enslaved, to occupy this land. Here, that history is the Colorado Gold Rush of 1858 and 1859, where settlements like Auraria and Denver as well as other land grabs for gold mining that devastated the land and interrupted Ute and Cheyenne ways of living.
In recognition of Native Indigenous Heritage Month in November, the Native Student Alliance in partnership with locally based organizations and the Center for Multicultural Engagement (CMEI) and Inclusion host a variety of events year-round to educate the campus on issues that are pertinent to the Native Indigenous communities. It is especially important to understand that Native Indigenous communities still exist and with your support, their voices can be centered and heard. Join us, to dispel preconceived notions of indigeneity, to better understand indigenous intersectional identities, and learn more about Native Indigenous achievements and identity affirmation.