The American Indian Student Association, Native American Grad Students' Association, and Commission on Multicultural Understanding at Indiana University--Bloomington, with funding from Indiana Campus Compact, along with about 100 allies, will surprise campus passers-by with three surprise performance art pieces today.
Participants in the performance art, which is inspired by projects such as Frozen Grand Central, will engage in the performance while wearing t-shirts which educate about American Indians in higher education. Indiana University--Bloomington drew attention last summer when American Indian students protested what they believe is their omission from the university's vision of diversity. Organizers say that similar exclusion across the U.S. leads to lower enrollment and graduation rates for American Indians than for other groups, and that American Indians need better support in higher education in order to support tribal sovereignty.
The project is being called "The Columbus Day Project" because of the federal holiday. Oct. 13 was chosen to give American Indians and non-American Indians a positive way to raise awareness of American Indian issues on what is often considered a day of sadness by Native people. While many cities have moved to rename the day Indigenous People's Day, Bloomington, Indiana, has not done so and thus still officially celebrates Columbus Day.
Participant t-shirts include slogans like:
"New Freshmen This Year: 7,565. New Native American Freshmen: 16."
"I Should Not Have to Choose Between Graduating College and My Culture."
"For every 5 American Indians who start college 1 will graduate."
"13% of American Indians hold a Bachelor's degree, compared to 28% of the general population."
