Today Is Indigenous People’s Day

Today is Indigenous People’s Day. Not yet a federal holiday, seventeen states and many localities and school systems do recognize the holiday. As the Pew Research Center documents, Columbus Day, also celebrated on the second Monday in October, has faded as an observed holiday in response to growing recognition that Christopher Columbus should not be celebrated.

In 2021, President Biden issued the first-ever presidential proclamation of Indigenous People’s Day:  “On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we honor the sovereignty, resilience, and immense contributions that Native Americans have made to the world; and we recommit to upholding our solemn trust and treaty responsibilities to Tribal Nations, strengthening our Nation-to-Nation ties.”

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