8 Ways to Celebrate Native American Heritage Month at Work

Raise your hand if you learned about and celebrated Thanksgiving in school growing up. ✋

Now, raise your hand if you learned about and celebrated Native American Heritage Month.

…

We thought so.

As we turn the calendar to November, many minds fast-forward to upcoming commercial holidays, like Thanksgiving.

Let’s pause and create space to honor an important, month-long holiday: Native American Heritage Month. It kicks off November 1st.

As we shared in our Hispanic Heritage Month piece, Bonusly is a big believer in acknowledging and celebrating diverse cultural, racial, and ethnic backgrounds—both on our team and in our communities. So let’s take the spotlight off our stuffing recipes and future PTO plans and take time to learn the history of this month and how to celebrate Native American Heritage Month in the office.

Related: 11 Diversity and Inclusion Statistics That Will Change How You Do Business 

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What is Native American Heritage Month?

People have lived in America way before the well-known date of 1492. The history and heritage of Native Americans (also Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians) are connected to all our lives—we should honor the contributions of people who were the first inhabitants of the U.S. 

This celebration can and should occur at work, too! 

Here’s some quick history: 

• Native American Heritage Month used to be a week-long celebration.
• In 1986, President Reagan proclaimed November 23-30 as American Indian Week, which would typically fall alongside American Thanksgiving. 
• Four years later, President George H. W. Bush designated the entire month of November as National American Indian Heritage Month.

Now, remember: we shouldn't celebrate and commemorate Native Americans for a single month only. However, these holidays are an important step forward to bring visibility to traditionally marginalized communities and identities.  🙌

Celebrating Native American Heritage Month in the workplace

Your entire team should be able to openly discuss and celebrate various cultural and ethnic backgrounds—and HR leaders should encourage these conversations. There are 9.7 million American Indians and Alaskan Natives in the U.S., and it’s possible your team includes folks with Native heritage. Moreover, recognizing and celebrating your team’s racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds can help build psychological safety and employee engagement.

Native Americans are the most impoverished of all ethnic communities; a recent study revealed that 1 in 3 Native American adults have experienced discrimination when applying for jobs. Moreover, a recent report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics displays that Native Americans are getting left behind in the remote work economy.

It’s about time to recognize both the rich histories of our colleagues and be aware of our own biases. 

Issues like race can be tough to talk about at work. But it’s always the hard things that are the most important to discuss. Without further ado, here are a few ways to honor and celebrate our rich Native heritage in the workplace.

Native American Heritage Month celebration ideas!

1. Acknowledge what Native land your office (or home!) is on

First thing’s first—do you know what Indigenous lands you’re living and working on? There are a handful of handy maps that will help you do just that. Simply type in your address and discover which Indigenous people lived and took care of this land before us. 

When it comes to the workplace, you can acknowledge the land you’re on in a few ways:

• Give thanks to the tribe and its land at the start of meetings.
• Tag your social media posts with Native land locations.
• Pool together funds and donate to a charity of your choice.

2. Attend an event with your team

There are a lot of fun, educational events happening this month. So why not skip your typical Zoom happy hour and attend an event to learn more about Indigenous culture?

For starters, check out the events listed on the official Native American Heritage Month website or take a peek at the National Park Service calendar. The Library of Congress and National Archives are other great places to look.

If you’re interested in something local and you’re comfortable meeting in person, check out your local institutions—libraries, schools, community organizations, and museums—for special events.

3. Get your team book club to read a work by a Native American 

Does your team have a book club? Yes? Great! If not, what better time to start one than right now? 📚

A great way to learn about Native American history and culture is to read stories authored by Native American authors. A quick Google search can go a long way, but there are some recommendations to get you started:

• Moon of the Crusted Snow, Waubgeshig Rice
• Night of the Living Rez, Morgan Talty 
• This Accident of Being Lost, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson
• Split Tooth, Tanya Tagaq
• Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer

Once you have a book in mind, head to an Indigenous-owned bookstore to make your purchase.

4. Support Native-owned business 

We get it—Amazon is convenient. But it’s important to put our money where our mouths are and consider shopping at places that support marginalized communities’ economic well-being. Bonus points if they are local, too! With the holidays coming up, it’s a great idea to source gifts from small business owners, including Native-owned shops. (Yes—you can find native-owned stores on Etsy!) 

Browse this directory of Native American-owned businesses on The American Indian Business Alliance website—you can swap your office Starbucks brew with Native-owned and operated coffee beans. Or check out these beautiful offerings from home decor to cosmetics and clothes for your upcoming office gift swap.

5. Discuss and swap podcast recommendations

Whether you’re back in the office having water cooler conversations or recreating a virtual version, here’s a question: what podcast are you listening to? Consider subscribing to a podcast that typically isn’t in your queue; the Native community has a ton of interesting podcasts that offer amazing Indigenous storytelling to share with your coworkers. Who says you can’t have a book club and podcast club?

Here are a few great listens and conversation starters: 

• All My Relations
• The Red Nation Podcast
• Toasted Sister Podcast
• NDN Collective Podcast
• The Native Seed Pod
• Coffee & Quaq
• Pow Wow Life

6. Host educational workshops

The most successful DEI initiatives in the United States bring employees together by providing them with resources to better understand one another. As such, it’s best to use this government-recognized time of acknowledgment to lead your company in educational workshops centered on Native American culture. 

Discuss significant aspects of Tribal history, key nations that existed in your state, and how tribes used natural resources to thrive. The bison, for instance, was a foundational element of tribal peoples’ survival. Bison also played a role in some tribes' spiritual activities. 

7. Organize film screenings

Your company can also arrange gatherings where you and your employees watch movies about Native American culture and history. Film screenings are a viable option for any company, and they allow your virtual employees to get in on the fun as well.

If you have an employee with a Native American heritage, consult with them about your film selection to ensure the movie is culturally sensitive and accurate. You can also check various .gov and museum websites, as many of these platforms make Native American film recommendations each year. 

8. Highlight Native American art

The federal government's move to honor Native Americans has encouraged numerous museums to do the same. Every year, the Smithsonian Museum sets up an exhibit dedicated to Native American Heritage Month. Show some of these pieces to your employees and broaden their horizons to the achievements of native peoples. 

Your next steps

It’s never too late to plan a work event or spark a thoughtful conversation to honor and commemorate Native American Heritage Month. Let us know in the comments below what you end up doing, or if there are other ways to celebrate Native culture in the workplace that we missed!

And while we have you, check out these additional ways to learn about and celebrate diverse communities in the workplace:

• 8 Great Ways to Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month at Work
• How to Celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month in the Workplace
• Why Employee Recognition is Crucial to Inclusion
• 8 Meaningful Ways to Celebrate Black History Month at Work

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FAQ

How can we celebrate Native American Heritage Month in the workplace? 

Celebrating Native American Heritage Month is a great way to promote diversity and inclusion in the workplace. It can also create a healthier work environment for everyone, especially your Native American workers. 

Introduce your team to books written by Native Americans to create a healthier work environment. Guide them as they explore films and artwork relevant to the culture. You’ll foster a sense of appreciation for the Tribal Nations that existed throughout the United States as you celebrate Native American heritage at the workplace.

When is Native American Heritage Day?

Native American Heritage Day is observed each year on the day after Thanksgiving, the fourth Friday in November each year. President Obama established the holiday to recognize the contributions of tribal nations and peoples. Native Alaskan peoples and nations are also recognized in the United States on Native American Heritage Day. 

While Thanksgiving has historical ties to Native nations, the federally recognized Native American Heritage Day provides a moment to acknowledge the resilience, traditions, and ongoing cultural influence of Tribal entities in the United States. 

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