Join Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation (Syracuse Peace Council) and Women of Italian and Syracuse Heritage CNY at the Everson Museum of Art (MAP) for the 2023 Indigenous Peoples’ Day Community Festival and Refocus Films Screening on Onondaga Nation land. This free, day-long, indoor/outdoor celebration features Oñgwehoñweh food and craft vendors, Haudenosaunee singing and social dancing, 4 artists’ demonstrations, museum tours, family activities, speakers, community groups, and 5 short films centering dehoñtjihgwa’és (lacrosse).
The museum doors open at 10 AM! Our 3rd annual Refocus short films screening begins at 7:00 PM, and the day closes at 8:00 PM. The outdoor activities begin at 1pm with the Thanksgiving Address, “the words spoken before all others”, shared by Jake Edwards.
Featured artists include Robin Lazore (Basket-maker), Karenlyne Hill (Beader), Brandon Lazore (Muralist), Tom Huff (stone-worker), Travis Gabriel (Wooden stick maker), and Natasha Smoke Santiago (Potter). Performers include Sherri Waterman-Hopper with the Haudenosaunee Singers and Dancers and singers from the Onondaga Nation.
You can see more details and invite others on Facebook.
ADA accessible bathrooms available inside during museum hours.
Please wear a mask indoors and when you are not able to social distance. Nobody wants to get sick after a party!
If the weather is too cold or wet or windy, most of the festival moves indoors.
We are deeply grateful to CNY Community Foundation, the Everson Museum of Art, and the Haudenosaunee Environmental Task Force for their essential support and collaboration. Refocus is made possible by Urban Video Project/ LightWork (SU). Our generous film contributors are Skä•noñh Great Law of Peace Center (OHA), Stylin Strings, Frameline, Premier Lacrosse League, and PBS.
Festival sponsors are All Saints Church; Alliance for a Green Economy; American Indian Law Alliance; ArtRage; Cornell University American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program; CNY Solidarity Coalition; Indigenous Values Initiative; Nuclear Information & Resource Service; NY Civil Liberties Union; NY Public Interest Research Group; OCHD Lead Poisoning Prevention Program; Onondaga County Public Libraries; SUNY ESF Office of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access; Syracuse International Film Festival; Syracuse Cultural Workers; SU Native Student Program; Taylor Copy Services; Unchained; Veterans for Peace Chapter 51; and Workers’ Center of CNY.