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Memory and Reclamation

by MaryAlice Bitts-Jackson

October 9, 2012


More than 100 Native Americans from 25 states came to campus last weekend to attend the Carlisle Symposium. Sponsored by the Central Pennsylvania Consortium of Colleges, the Community Studies Center and the School of American Studies at the University of East Anglia, the symposium was held just a few miles from a major historic landmark in Native American history.

Learn more about the Carlisle Indian School and its significance at Dickinson.


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  • An authentic Lakota-Sioux tipi was on display in the Waidner-Spahr Library atrium. Carolyn Rittenhouse, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux tribe of South Dakota, received the 20x40-foot tipi from her stepfather, Gilbert Red Dog, in 2010. After traveling to the Cheyenne River to research the tipi's significance in Lakota-Sioux history, she created this work of art memorializing the stories she gathered out West.
    Lakota-Sioux Tipi
  • Provost and Dean Neil Weissman launched an opening ceremony in honor of  tribal elders.
    Opening Ceremony
  • Pete Jemison, Seneca member of the Huron clan, delivered the opening ceremony's blessing. Jemison is a well-known advocate of American Indian artists and their works.
    Pete Jemison
  • Richard Gonzalez was among the Native-American elders who attended.
    Tribal Elders
  • The event drew leading Native American scholars, activists, artists and tribal members from across the country.
    Honored Guests
  • More than 100 Native Americans from 25 states traveled to Carlisle to attend the symposium. Above, a small group poses in front of the Anita Tuvin Schlechter Auditorium.
    ATS
  • Storytellers, artists and poets presented workshops throughout the weekend.
    Stern Center
  • Oral historian and author Daniel Castro Romero  (right) is chair of the Lipan Apache band of Texas and a United Nations representative for indigenous peoples. Above, he joins Seneca tribe member Richard Gonzalez during a traditional ceremony.
    Ceremony
  • Presenters offered a variety of thought-provoking events, including photographic and artistic displays, storytelling sessions, poetry readings, roundtables, ceremonies and lectures.
    Thought Provoking
  • Drumming is an important aspect of Native American culture, history, education, tradition and expression.
    Drumming
  • The University of New Mexico's Jennifer Nez Denetdale delivered an address about Navajo education at the Carlisle Indian School.
    Navajo Education
  • An exhibition of archival photos, compiled by historians Jacqueline Fear-Segal, Barbara Landis and Dovie Thompson, offered a glimpse into the lives of Carlisle Indian School students.
    Archival Photos
  • A symposium attendee strikes a thoughtful pose in the Anita Tuvin Schlechter (ATS) Auditorium. The symposium's main events were moved to the ATS to accommodate the more than 100 people who pre-registered. Many more—including students, faculty members and community members—also attended.
    Contemplation
  • According to tradition in many tribes, hair is worn in braids. Who wears the braids, and the way the braids are styled, can vary from tribe to tribe.
    Braids
  • The symposium was held in several locations across campus. Above, attendees enter the Stern Center.
    Stern Center
  • A Lakota dinner joined Native Americans from across the nation with members of the Dickinson community.
    Lakota Dinner
  • Professor of Sociology Susan Rose spoke prior to the screening of the documentary film "The Lost Ones: Long Journey Home." As director of the Community Studies Center (CSC), Rose was a driving force behind the conference, the CSC's largest event to date.
    Susan Rose
  • Throughout the weekend, artists and scholars shared stories of Native American culture, identity and education; forced migration; and historical, intergenerational and individual trauma and memory. Above, storyteller Margo Tamez shares her story.
    Margo Tamez
  • Barbara Landis, Carlisle Indian School biographer for the Cumberland County Historical Society, introduced keynote speaker N. Scott Momaday (right).
    Barbara Landis
  • Keynote speaker N. Scott Momaday is a Kiowa Indian and a 1969 Pulitzer Prize-winning author whose books are widely studied in American public schools.
    N. Scott Momaday
  • Because Momaday's works are studied in schools across the nation and around the world, his lecture was streamed live.
    Web Streaming
An authentic Lakota-Sioux tipi was on display in the Waidner-Spahr Library atrium. Carolyn Rittenhouse, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux tribe of South Dakota, received the 20x40-foot tipi from her stepfather, Gilbert Red Dog, in 2010. After traveling to the Cheyenne River to research the tipi's significance in Lakota-Sioux history, she created this work of art memorializing the stories she gathered out West.Prev ImageNext Image


Photos by Carl Socolow '77

Keynote Address by N. Scott Momaday: