November is American Indian Heritage Month
In 1986, President Reagan designated November 23-30 as American
Indian Week. Four years later, President Bush proclaimed the first
National American Indian Heritage Month. Each year since, U.S.
Presidents have proclaimed November as American Indian Heritage Month. NRCS celebrates American Indian Heritage Month in November. As part of
this celebration, an American Indian artist is chosen each year to
develop a poster.
The NRCS chose artwork by Andrew Abyo for the NRCS 2009 American
Indian/Alaska Native Heritage Month Poster. Andrew Abyo born in
Anchorage, Alaska and raised in the Bristol Bay village of Pilot Point.
Andrew Abyo is an Aleut/Alutiiq artist and carver who seeks to learn and
pass on his cultural traditions. Andrew wants everyone, especially his
four children, to have a greater understanding of the Alutiiq culture
and its rich history. "My goal is to bring out different things that you
normally don’t get to see, other than in a museum.”
The poster theme for this year’s poster is entitled Our Land, Our
Animals, Our People, We Are One. Andrew Abyo titled his artwork, “We Are
All Connected,” which depicts the relationship between land, animals,
and people. Abyo described his piece this way: “We are connected to land
and animals. We are connected by touch and feel in spirit. Our ties to
land and animals help us survive and connect to our ancestors. We are
all connected.”
Copies of this poster can be ordered free of charge from
LANDCARE. To order,
e-mail landcare@usda.gov or call
toll free (888)LANDCARE or (888) 526-3227.
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