Featured Videos

A sampling of recent films or noteworthy by Native American filmmakers or that explore Native American culture and history in Vermont and across the United States. Videos can be from the library streaming video databases: Kanopy and Films on Demand.

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Gather
2020 1 hr. 14 min.
Gather follows the stories of natives on the frontlines of a growing movement to reconnect with spiritual and cultural identities that were devastated by genocide.
Home From School: The Children of Carlisle
2021 54 min.
Home From School follows the difficult journey of Soldierwolf and tribal elders as they delve into the controversial history of Indian boarding schools, patch together the historic record and personal stories of the relatives who were shipped away, and, finally, travel to Carlisle to reunite with, and ultimately retrieve, the lost children of their tribe.
Educational Toolkit (discussion guides, etc.)
More Than a Word: Native American-Based Sports Mascots
2017 1 hr. 9 min.
An exploration of Native American-based mascots, especially the Washington R_dskins, and their impact on real-life attitudes, issues, and policies. Through interviews with scholars, tribal leaders, lawyers, policy experts, activists, and Washington R_dskins fans, the film explores the history of the slanderous term "redskin," and delves into cultural stereotypes of Native Americans and their relationship to history. Ultimately, the film argues for representations that honor and celebrate the humanity of Indigenous people.
People of a Feather: Survival in the Canadian Arctic
2011 1 hr. 32 min.
Featuring stunning footage from seven winters in the Arctic, People of a Feather takes us through time into the world of the Inuit in the northern reaches of Canada. Connecting past, present and future is the Inuit's unique relationship with the eider duck. Eider down, the warmest feather in the world, allows both Inuit and bird to survive harsh Arctic winters.
We Breathe Again: The Stories of Four Alaska Native People
2017 56 min.
For millennia, Alaska Native peoples thrived in the seasonally harsh conditions of life in the far north. They depended upon strong social, cultural and spiritual practices passed from generation to generation. In the last century, rapid and forced changes in the life ways of Alaska Native peoples created many complex, painful scars for Elders who experienced them, and for their children’s children. In a landscape as dramatic as its stories, We Breathe Again intimately explores the lives of four Alaska Native people, each confronting the impacts of inter-generational trauma and suicide.
We Shall Remain: A History of Native Americans (Series)
2009 5 1 hr. 20 min. episodes
A provocative multi-media project that establishes Native history as an essential part of American history. The centerpiece of this initiative is a television series that tells five heartbreaking, yet inspiring stories. Together they highlight Native ingenuity and resilience over the course of 300 years. The series upends two-dimensional stereotypes of American Indians as simply ferocious warriors or peaceable lovers of the land.

Additional Resources

National Museum of the American Indian
NMAI is part of the Smithsonian Institution, the world's largest museum complex. The NMAI cares for one of the world's most expansive collections of Native artifacts, including objects, photographs, archives, and media covering the entire Western Hemisphere, from the Arctic Circle to Tierra del Fuego.
Native American Heritage Month (Smithsonian Institution)
Resources from the Smithsonian Institution
Indigenous Reads Rising
From "We Need Diverse Books," a site promoting books for children and teens published by Native writers and illustrators, reflecting their cultures, Nations, and lived experiences.
Reclaiming Native Truth: A Project to Dispel America's Myths and Misconceptions
Reclaiming Native Truth is a national effort to foster cultural, social and policy change by empowering Native Americans to counter discrimination, invisibility and the dominant narratives that limit Native opportunity, access to justice, health and self-determination.
PBS LearningMedia Native American Heritage Collection
Indigenous art, history, and culture as told through the historians, artists, students, and scientists in this featured resource collection.
United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, passed by the United Nations in 2007, confirms the right of indigenous peoples to self-determination and recognizes subsistence rights and rights to lands, territories and resources.

For Reference/Background

Handbook of North American Indians, Volume 1 by Igor Krupnik (Editor)
ISBN: 9781944466534

Publication Date: 2022

The Handbook of North American Indians series was designed by the staff of the National Museum of Natural History Department of Anthropology in the 1960s and, in 2022, culminates with Volume 1. Involving more than 70 contributors, with 35 chapters and more than 7,400 bibliography entries, Volume 1 presents new perspectives on the history of North America’s indigenous societies, issues facing North American indigenous communities in the 21st century, an update of the studies of Native American indigenous peoples, and a history of the Handbook project. Download to read online. Other volumes in the series are available in print in some of the VSCS libraries.

Vermont Indigenous Peoples

Elnu Abenaki Tribe
The Elnu Abenaki Tribe is based in what is now called southern Vermont, along the Kwenitekw and Wantastekw (Connecticut and West Rivers), and the landscapes within those and connected watersheds.
Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki Nation
The Nulhegan Abenaki tribe is nestled among the lakes, rivers, and forests of N’dakinna's northern range and headquartered in the Northeast Kingdom at Barton, VT.
Abenaki Nation of Missisquoi
The Abenaki Nation of Missisquoi is a community of extended families who have inhabited the Missisquoi River and Lake Champlain (Pitawbagw) Valley for thousands of years.
Ko'asek (Co'wasuck) Traditional Band of the Sovereign Abenaki Nation
The Koasek Abenaki is an autonomous band of Abenaki families of what is now called the Western Abenaki Tribes, which have been recognized by the State of Vermont. The Koasek Abenaki people are the native inhabitants of central and northwest New Hampshire and northeast and central Vermont.

Virtual Displays

Featured Videos

Additional Resources

For Reference/Background

Vermont Indigenous Peoples