{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://delbene.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2968", "DelBene, Torres, Bonamici, Davids, Lujan, Heinrich Introduce Legislation to Celebrate Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day", "2021-09-30", "2021", "2021-09", "Democrat", "House", "WA", "Suzan K. DelBene", "D000617", "delbene.house.gov", "delbene", "https://delbene.house.gov/news/documentquery.aspx?DocumentTypeID=27", "scraper", "Today, U.S. Representatives Suzan DelBene (WA-01), Norma Torres (CA-35), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), and Sharice Davids (KS-03), along with Senators Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n (NM) and Martin Heinrich (NM), introduced legislation to replace the term Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day in federal law and regulations and to establish Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day as a public holiday.\n\nFor many indigenous people, the celebration of Columbus Day is a painful one. Too often, it appears to be a state-sponsored celebration of the history of violence and acts of brutality inflicted upon their communities. Unfortunately, we have failed as a country to recognize that difficult history and honor the roots, traditions, and cultural contributions of our tribal nations and indigenous peoples. Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day is currently celebrated on the second Monday of October in at least 13 states and more than 100 cities.\n\nThe lawmakers released the following statements:\n\n\u201cMy Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day legislation is an opportunity to honor the true nature of our founding,\u201d said Representative Torres. \u201cThis legislation helps our federal government move beyond an outdated practice that perpetuates inaccurate teachings and devalues the history of indigenous people. This holiday should be focused on remembering the hardships that indigenous peoples have endured and honoring our country\u2019s first inhabitants.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndigenous Peoples\u2019 Day is an opportunity to commemorate Indigenous peoples' vibrant cultures and significant contributions to our nation, from before we became a union to every corner of our country today\u2014but is also a day to acknowledge the persecution and discrimination that Native peoples have faced for centuries,\u201d said Representative Davids. \u201cAs one of the first Native American women ever elected to Congress and a proud member of the Ho-Chunk Nation, I am honored to join my colleagues in calling for the national celebration of Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe must reckon with our country\u2019s long, painful history of colonization,\u201d said Congresswoman Bonamici. \u201cMaking Indigenous Peoples Day a federal holiday will provide a meaningful opportunity to celebrate the powerful history, traditions, and cultural contributions of our Indigenous communities. I am pleased to join Congresswoman Torres in this important effort.\u201d\n\n\u201cHonoring Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day is a meaningful way our country can come together to celebrate Tribal nations, cultures, and people that play an important role in our shared history. This can also be an opportunity to shed light on the dark history of colonization in the United States and how we have treated indigenous peoples in the past. I thank Representative Torres for leading this cause as we celebrate the stories, the strength, and the innumerable contributions of indigenous peoples across the country,\u201d said Congresswoman DelBene.\n\n\u201cI\u2019m proud to help lead the effort in the Senate to recognize Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day \u2013 an important recognition of Native Americans\u2019 contributions to our society, economy and history,\u201d said Senator Luj\u00e1n, a Member of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. \u201cNew Mexico, which is home to 23 Tribal Nations and Pueblos, made history in 2019 by recognizing Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day as an official holiday, and I\u2019m hopeful that Congress can make this a reality for the entire nation. Let this day serve as a celebration of our country\u2019s Tribal Nations and Native communities, and a reminder of the work ahead, to continue to strengthen and improve the federal government\u2019s relationship with Tribal governments and Indigenous peoples.\u201d\n\n\"By celebrating Indigenous Peoples' Day, we lift up the strength and resilience of America's Tribal Nations,\u201d said Senator Heinrich. \u201cI'm proud to stand with New Mexico's Tribes and Pueblos who have led the way to re-frame this national holiday to honor all of the significant contributions and diverse cultures of our Native communities.\"\n\nThe landmark piece of legislation is supported by The Navajo Nation, The Cherokee Nation, Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day Initiative, Association on American Indian Affairs, National Council of Urban Indian Health, National Congress of American Indians, and the Episcopal Church.\n\n\"If the United States chooses to recognize Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day, we acknowledge a history marked by broken promises, violence, and deprivation in hopes of creating a brighter future where we can stand by one another with cooperation and mutual respect. By knowing the story of Indigenous Peoples, we understand ourselves and others better. It binds us together and reaffirms that we are all American. The Native American experience is not separate from the American story, but is crucial to that story. It is the hope of my community that this day will help alleviate the effects of oppression and work to create future generations who understand the importance of our shared experiences in hopes of creating a stronger, more unified nation,\u201d said Dylan O. Baca, President, Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Initiative.\n\n\u201cIndigenous People\u2019s Day is long overdue as a recognized Federal holiday. We are honored that this bill recognizes American Indian/Alaska Native culture instead of celebrating the atrocities that persisted during colonization. It is pertinent that the resilient history and culture of AI/AN people is reflected correctly and is not devalued by colonial narratives.\u201d said Francys Crevier, (Algonquin) CEO National Council of Urban Indian Health.\n\nWe are grateful that Congress is taking this important step forward to acknowledge the contributions and struggles of Indigenous Peoples in the United States. Every opportunity we have to share the truth of our collective histories gives all of us a stronger foundation from which to build a true representative democracy. And we cannot know the truth without first acknowledging the original \u2013 and continuing \u2013 caretakers of this Turtle Island,\u201d said Shannon O\u2019Loughlin, Chief Executive & Attorney, Association on American Indian Affairs.\n\n\u201cWe thank Congresswoman Torres for championing the cause of Indigenous peoples. I believe the name change will create a ripple of positive transformation throughout Indian Country and allow for future Indigenous generations to reclaim their identity with pride,\u201d said President Nez, Navajo Nation.\n\n\u201cCherokee Nation supports legislation replacing \u2018\u2018Columbus Day\u2019\u2019 with \u2018\u2018Indigenous People\u2019s Day\u2019\u2019 and applauds Congresswoman Torres for her leadership on this issue. It is past time for the United States to recognize the integral role Native people play in the history, economy, and future of our country. The second Monday of October will be a day for people across the United States to celebrate and honor the significant contributions of Native tribes as well as the beautiful culture of our Native people,\u201d said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuk Hoskin, Jr.\n\n\u201cThe National Congress of American Indians applauds the efforts of Representative Torres, and Senators Heinrich and Lujan for introducing the Indigenous Peoples Day Act. NCAI believes in a true and accurate account of the history of the Americas, which must include recognition of the Indigenous peoples who have lived in these lands since time immemorial, and long before Christopher Columbus set sail. NCAI supports changing Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples\u2019 Day in order to set the historical record straight and out of respect for the culture, language and history of our Indigenous ancestors,\u201d said Dante Desiderio, CEO of National Congress of American Indians.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:17:01Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://delbene.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2968"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.798908993601799, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}