Dear UMPI Community,
On Monday, Maine will observe Indigenous Peoples Day for the eighth time, following legislation signed in April 2019 that designated the second Monday of October as Indigenous Peoples Day. As we mark the day, it is important to note that UMPI’s sites and facilities are located on the ancestral homelands of the Mi’kmaq and Maliseet nations, who are connected through kinship, alliance, and diplomacy to the other Wabanaki Tribal Nations, the Passamaquoddy and the Penobscot, on these lands that today we collectively call Maine. The Mi’kmaq Nation and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians are distinct and sovereign peoples, and it is with gratitude and humility that we share this land with those who have lived and worked on it from time immemorial.
For those who wish to mark the day by learning more about the Wabanaki Nations, there are opportunities both near and far from our campus in Presque Isle. Those able to travel might visit the Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor, which is offering a full day of Wabanaki programming on Monday with pay-what-you-can admission. Closer to home, the Mi’kmaq Museum here in Presque Isle offers a window into Mi’kmaq art and heritage. And anyone, anywhere, can explore the Abbe Museum’s online introduction to the Wabanaki Nations (https://www.abbemuseum.org/about-the-wabanaki-nations), or the University of Maine Hudson Museum’s virtual Wabanaki resources (https://umaine.edu/hudsonmuseum/?p=21808). And to hear the language of the people on whose homelands UMPI stands, the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians shares Wolastoqey language resources online, including short videos of everyday phrases and traditional songs (https://maliseets.net/language/).
Because the UMPI community encompasses people from across the country and beyond, I note below just some of the many observances nationwide open to those who cannot attend in person. On Monday evening, Santa Clara University, in partnership with the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe, will livestream the featured speaker of its Indigenous Peoples’ Day program via Zoom at 4:15 p.m. Pacific, 7:15 p.m. Eastern (https://www.scu.edu/belonging/indigenous-peoples-day/). On Tuesday, California Humanities will host a free virtual conversation on the futures of tribal sovereignty, which will be recorded for all who register (https://calhum.org/?p=82677). On Wednesday, October 14, author Traci Sorell (Cherokee) will give a free virtual talk at 6:30 p.m. Eastern on contemporary representations of Indigenous people in children’s literature (https://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/celebrate-indigenous-peoples-day-2026). And at any time, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian offers free online lessons and resources on Native histories and cultures through its Native Knowledge 360° initiative (https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360).
