In 1976, in response to an effort by many to gain a day of recognition for the great influence Native Americans have had upon the United States, Congress designated a week of October to celebrate Native American Awareness Week. Yearly legislation was enacted to continue the tradition until August of 1990, when President Bush approved the designation of November as National Native American Heritage Month. Each year a similar proclamation has been issued. 

Read the LWVMN blog post Honoring Elders

Learn more about Native Americans and Native American Heritage Month:

• Native American Heritage Month - Events sponsored by the Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
• Smithsonian National Museum of American Indians Online Exhibits

In Minnesota

• Visit sites in Minnesota
• Virtual exhibit of Dakota and Ojibwe treaties
• MNHS - Native Americans