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Nov 22, 2022 - Politics & Policy

In photos: Indigenous Heritage Month

Aïda Amer
US artist Nicholas Galanin's piece, "Never Forget," on display in the Coachella Valley, the giant, white letters resemble the Hollywood sign, but reads "INDIAN LAND."

US artist Nicholas Galanin's piece, "Never Forget," on in the Coachella Valley, California, on March 11, 2021. Photo: Valerie Macon/AFP via Getty Images

Since 1990, November has been designated as Native American Heritage Month.

Through the lens: These photos show how Indigenous people keep their heritage, customs, and truth alive today.

2022 Miss Gallup Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial Queen Cajun Cleveland, who is Diné (Navajo), stands for a photo after the ceremonial rodeo near Gallup, New Mexico.
2022 Miss Gallup Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial Queen Cajun Cleveland, who is Diné (Navajo), after the ceremonial rodeo on Aug. 14 near Gallup, New Mexico. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images
A mural honors the famous Navajo code talkers, who are credited with American victories in World War II on September 12, 2022.
A mural honors the famous Navajo code talkers, who are credited with American victories in World War II by transmitting coded messages in their native language that the Japanese military was unable to crack, on Sept. 12. Photo: David McNew/Getty Images
People participate in the first Annual Indigenous Peoples Of the Americas Parade in Manhattan on October 15, 2022 in New York City.
People participate in the first Annual Indigenous Peoples of the Americas Parade in Manhattan on Oct. 15 in New York City. Photo: Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images
Performers at a Red Dress Powwow The 1st Annual Red Dress Powwow was held to bring awareness to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirit People.
Performers at a Red Dress Powwow held to bring awareness to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirit People in Reno, Nevada in May. Photo: Ty O'Neil/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Traditional dancers from Mexico and the U.S. perform the Danza de los Voladores (Dance of the Flyers) at the 100th Gallup Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial at Red Rock Park near Gallup, New Mexico.
Traditional dancers from Mexico and the U.S. perform the Danza de los Voladores (Dance of the Flyers) at the 100th Gallup Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial at Red Rock Park on Aug. 12 near Gallup, New Mexico. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images
Navajo artist Vanessa Bowen wears her "Make American Native Again" hat.
Navajo artist Vanessa Bowen wears her "Make American Native Again" hat in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in July 2016. Photo: Russell Contreras/Axios
Maya Eagle, an Oglala Lakota girl, takes a selfie while inside a teepee on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, on May 1, 2015.
Maya Eagle, an Oglala Lakota girl, takes a selfie while inside a teepee on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, on May 1, 2015. Photo: Russell Contreras/Axios
Kewa Pueblo Pueblo cartoonist Ricardo Caté works with Oglala Lakota youth on art in Allen, South Dakota.
Kewa Pueblo Pueblo cartoonist Ricardo Caté works with Oglala Lakota youth on art in Allen, South Dakota. Photo: Russell Contreras/Axios

Go deeper: Photo essays by Native photojournalists in collaboration with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian

Go deeper