Mitchell Public Library will showcase a variety of speakers during November in honor of Native American Heritage Month. Each lecture will take place in the Mitchell Public Library community room. Events are free and open to all.
This speaker series is made possible through South Dakota Humanities Council grants.
At 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, November 2nd, DWU Professor Sean Flynn will speak about his studies of Lt. Col. John P “Pat” Flynn, Jr. and Congressman Benjamin Reifel, two distinguished members of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. Flynn is the author of Without Reservation: Benjamin Reifel and American Indian Acculturation.
At 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, November 9th, Brad Tennant will present his talk, “The Arikara.” Tennant will discuss the history and culture of the Arikara, their role in intertribal trade, the impact of disease, their encounter with Lewis and Clark, and their conflicts with the U.S. government from 1807 to the 1820s. The program can be adapted for any audience.
At 5:30 p.m. on Monday, November 13th, Verna K. Boyd will present her talk, “Journey Into the Past.” Boyd introduces audiences to the First Nations people who made their homes in southeastern South Dakota – Omaha, Ponca, Ioway – and discusses their traditional way of life. Farming techniques and crops are reviewed; artifacts, sample trade items, replicas of a dog travois, tools and pottery are discussed and exhibited.
At 6:00 p.m. on Monday, November 27th, Geraldine Goes in Center will present her talk, “Lakota Food and Diet.” Goes in Center will speak on the food and diet of the Lakota people, covering pre-reservation, early reservation, and present time. The presentation includes information on the types of food Lakota people consumed and how foods were preserved and prepared.
Brad Tennant, Verna K. Boyd, and Geraldine Goes in Center are part of the South Dakota Humanities Council Speakers Bureau program. Founded in 1972 by the hard work of fellow South Dakotans responding to an act of Congress, the South Dakota Humanities Council (SDHC), a 501(c)(3) non-profit, is the only cultural organization in the state whose sole mission is to deliver humanities programming to the people of South Dakota.
These lectures are free to the public. For additional information about the programs and services of Mitchell Public Library, visit www.cityofmitchell,org/library and be sure to follow the library on Facebook.
