(Photo Illustration by Diana Ramirez; Photos by Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times, Matt Pawlik, Eduardo Gonzalez)
9 ways to celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day in Los Angeles all month long
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As the home to the largest Indigenous population of any county in the U.S., Los Angeles County offers a wide range of ways to honor and celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day — from all-day family festivals to extravagant fashion shows and emotive museum exhibits.
The holiday was first officially celebrated in L.A. in 2018, almost a year after the City Council and County Board of Supervisors voted to replace Columbus Day. Nowadays, more than 100 cities around the country have opted to celebrate Indigenous People’s Day instead.
The second Monday in October (this year it falls on Oct. 14) is observed as a day to recognize and learn about the Indigenous communities that once inhabited the land. In L.A., Angelenos acknowledge and honor the Tongva, Tataviam, Serrano, Kizh and Chumash tribes of Southern California’s inland valleys and coastal plains.
This year many celebrations take place in the days leading up to the holiday and even later in the month. Here are our nine ways to honor Indigenous Peoples Day throughout October.
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The Getty's annual festival
Brentwood Museum
(Getty Center)
For its third annual celebration of Indigenous Peoples Day, the Getty invites families to pay homage to Native communities through a day full of live performances, hands-on activities and guided garden tours.
Starting at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 12, the museum kicks off the festival with acts and crafts, like making cyanotype prints and traditional instruments like Tongva clapper sticks. The festivities will also include performances by youth music group Wildhorse Native American Assn. and ensemble Flower Songs.
In between sets, there will be poetry readings and garden tours that spotlight the Getty’s native vegetation.
Starting at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 12, the museum kicks off the festival with acts and crafts, like making cyanotype prints and traditional instruments like Tongva clapper sticks. The festivities will also include performances by youth music group Wildhorse Native American Assn. and ensemble Flower Songs.
In between sets, there will be poetry readings and garden tours that spotlight the Getty’s native vegetation.
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Sunland-Tujunga Forward's day of workshops
Tujunga Festival
(Mike Olivarez)
In a semi-remote area near the Big Tujunga Creek, Sunland-Tujunga Forward offers an opportunity to connect with the land during their annual Indigenous People’s Day festival. Taking place Sunday, Oct. 13, the community-driven inclusion organization will focus the day on uplifting and learning from Indigenous communities. The group has planned a schedule of presentations and workshops all about keeping native traditions alive. Hearing from local storytellers, dancers, spiritual advisors and musicians, the essence of the celebration is to create a generative dialogue about these now-decimated communities. There will be live music performances from fusion band Aztlan Underground and tree-planting nature walks scheduled throughout. Also, there is no cell service in the area, so attendees are encouraged to bring cash.
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Make a custom Indigenous remedy
Downtown L.A. Workshop
(Ringo Chiu)
Instead of turning to a typical medicine cabinet, Chelly Xicali, owner of wellness brand Xicali products, encourages people to embrace the natural remedies of Indigenous communities. Once a month, the small business owner hosts an Indigenous medicine workshop where participants make their own custom products while learning about the ingredients’ origins. Over the two-hour session, Xicali tells the history of each plant and its previous usage before facilitating the group in making their personalized products.
Each attendee will leave the session with three of their wellness remedies. The first product they make is a facial toner that uses tepezcohuite, a native Mexican plant used for treating acne scars, stretch marks and sun damage. Next participants will create an oil tincture using the maca root — a plant native to the Andes Mountains. Lastly, attendees will concoct a topical rubbing alcohol infused with the ingredient of their choice. Xicali says the most common pick for this item is a nopal-infused mixture that helps with pain management and inflammation.
“Learning about natural remedies reconnects people to their ancestors, especially through these plants,” Xicali said. “It’s so empowering because people get to take their health into their own hands.”
The next workshop is scheduled for Oct. 21.
Each attendee will leave the session with three of their wellness remedies. The first product they make is a facial toner that uses tepezcohuite, a native Mexican plant used for treating acne scars, stretch marks and sun damage. Next participants will create an oil tincture using the maca root — a plant native to the Andes Mountains. Lastly, attendees will concoct a topical rubbing alcohol infused with the ingredient of their choice. Xicali says the most common pick for this item is a nopal-infused mixture that helps with pain management and inflammation.
“Learning about natural remedies reconnects people to their ancestors, especially through these plants,” Xicali said. “It’s so empowering because people get to take their health into their own hands.”
The next workshop is scheduled for Oct. 21.
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Autry Museum of the American West
Griffith Park Museum
(Autry Museum of the American West)
The Autry Museum is home to one of largest collections of Native American artifacts in the U.S., with more than 600,000 pieces of art and cultural objects. Located across the street from the L.A. Zoo, the museum offers a variety of Native American-focused exhibitions. “Future Imaginaries: Indigenous Art, Fashion, Technology” showcases contemporary Indigenous art themed around intergenerational traumas in the realm of science fiction; the “Out of Site” gallery uncovers the intersection of the natural land and the modern-day use of technology; and “Reclaiming El Camino: Native Resistance in the Missions and Beyond” invites attendees to experience an open, artistic confrontation of the California missions from the perspective of an Indigenous person.
Additionally, the institution is holding a documentary screening of “Oyate Woyaka: The People Speak.” Told from the perspective of Lakota elders still fluent in their native language, the film follows the story of people trying to preserve the nearly extinct Lakota tongue while sharing the harmful history the community faced. The documentary investigates how the actions of the past have affected the modern-day Lakota population. The screening will take place Oct. 14 at 6 p.m., followed by a panel discussion and reception.
Additionally, the institution is holding a documentary screening of “Oyate Woyaka: The People Speak.” Told from the perspective of Lakota elders still fluent in their native language, the film follows the story of people trying to preserve the nearly extinct Lakota tongue while sharing the harmful history the community faced. The documentary investigates how the actions of the past have affected the modern-day Lakota population. The screening will take place Oct. 14 at 6 p.m., followed by a panel discussion and reception.
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A webinar about Indigenous people's use of plants
Workshop
(Denise Godbout-Avant)
The California Native Plant Society makes learning about the state’s Indigenous communities simple — participants won’t even have to leave their homes. A webinar hosted by Denise Godbout-Avant, a master gardener and docent at Modesto’s Great Valley Museum, will focus on the Yokuts, a tribe that once inhabited California’s Central Valley, and how they cared for native plants. From their complex strategies of harvesting plants for basket weaving to the controlled burns of the area, Godbout-Avant plans to honor this now-nearly extinct population by ensuring their ways of life live on. Even though the webinar will focus on the state’s Central Valley, the instructor emphasizes that this session will be useful to any Californian looking to get to know the native ecosystem better.
“History is important. The California we live in today is very different from 300 years ago. Before the Europeans came over, everything was native plants. We had endless oak trees, grasslands and rivers,” said Godbout-Avant. “Now all of these things are disappearing. We want to encourage people to plant native plants in their garden and remember the people who were here before us.”
The session will take place on Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. and will be offered in both English and Spanish.
“History is important. The California we live in today is very different from 300 years ago. Before the Europeans came over, everything was native plants. We had endless oak trees, grasslands and rivers,” said Godbout-Avant. “Now all of these things are disappearing. We want to encourage people to plant native plants in their garden and remember the people who were here before us.”
The session will take place on Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. and will be offered in both English and Spanish.
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San Dimas Canyon Nature Center's craft series
San Dimas Workshop
(San Dimas Nature Center)
Located in the natural reserve of the San Dimas Canyon Regional Park, the Nature Center Assn. is hosting a three-week series of activities to familarize residents with some of the practices of different Indigenous cultures. With the mission of reconnecting both adults and youth to nature, the volunteer-led organization is dedicated to building and teaching through the park’s animal sanctuary and nature trails.
On Oct. 16, the center will screen “Saging the World,” a documentary short about white sage, while participants can craft dreamcatchers. And on the following Wednesday, Oct. 23, guests can learn how to make their own gourd rattles.
On Oct. 16, the center will screen “Saging the World,” a documentary short about white sage, while participants can craft dreamcatchers. And on the following Wednesday, Oct. 23, guests can learn how to make their own gourd rattles.
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The Skoden Indigenous Music Festival
Monterey Park Festival
The Skoden Music Festival is a one-day event focused on the innovative blend of traditional Indigenous music and modern genres. The lineup features alternative band One Way Sky, Rez-metal performer Sage Bond, rock fusion group Yellowwolf, bluesy Levi Platero Band, experimental rapper Bobby Sanchez and hip hop singer Stella Standingbear. The daylong festival, the first event hosted by civic engagement organization California Native Vote, will also include food, informational booths and Indigenous-owned small businesses.
Admission is free for the event starting at 3 p.m. on Oct. 26 at the Barnes Park Amphitheater in Monterey Park.
Admission is free for the event starting at 3 p.m. on Oct. 26 at the Barnes Park Amphitheater in Monterey Park.
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Join the Indigenous Fashion Collective
Inglewood Party
The Indigenous Fashion Collective, a creative-focused nonprofit, is hosting three events over the weekend leading up to Indigenous Peoples Day. Starting on Oct. 12, the organization is putting on its first-ever gala at the Autry Museum of the American West. Under the theme “Still Here, Still Vibrant: Indigenous Couture Shaping the Future,” the night will consist of a fashion show centered around interpretations of Mother Earth and the looming presidential election. The night will be co-chaired by model and activist Quannah ChasingHorse and Black Eyed Peas member Taboo.
On Oct. 14, the organization has planned for a day full of fashion pop-ups and educational workshops by Indigenous designers. Held at Volume Studios in Inglewood, a model boot camp will be hosted by ChasingHorse as well as panels on Indigenous couture, streetwear, corporate merchandising and makeup masterclasses. Once the informational programming is over, the space will be transformed for a full-fledged block party, complete with DJs and dancing.
On Oct. 14, the organization has planned for a day full of fashion pop-ups and educational workshops by Indigenous designers. Held at Volume Studios in Inglewood, a model boot camp will be hosted by ChasingHorse as well as panels on Indigenous couture, streetwear, corporate merchandising and makeup masterclasses. Once the informational programming is over, the space will be transformed for a full-fledged block party, complete with DJs and dancing.
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Saturdays at the Music Center
Downtown L.A. Party
(Courtesy of metzli projects)
Located between the L.A. Opera and the Ahmanson Theatre, the Music Center brings a celebration of Indigenous culture to downtown L.A. In partnership with the Indigenous art nonprofit Chapter House, the organizations will host events for two consecutive Saturdays with programming “by and for Indigenous Peoples.”
On Oct. 12, from 2 to 6 p.m., the outdoor plaza will come alive with artist-led workshops, traditional storytelling and the sounds of Navajo country band Dirt Rhodes, Hale & Company Drum Group and Native Voices, an Indigenous theater group. On Oct. 19, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., some of the same performers and vendors will return, along with an added roster of entertainers. Workshops include ethical sage harvesting with Nolan Eskeets. Comedians and storytellers scheduled to appear include Joey Clift, Solange Aguilar and Gigi Modrich.
On Oct. 12, from 2 to 6 p.m., the outdoor plaza will come alive with artist-led workshops, traditional storytelling and the sounds of Navajo country band Dirt Rhodes, Hale & Company Drum Group and Native Voices, an Indigenous theater group. On Oct. 19, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., some of the same performers and vendors will return, along with an added roster of entertainers. Workshops include ethical sage harvesting with Nolan Eskeets. Comedians and storytellers scheduled to appear include Joey Clift, Solange Aguilar and Gigi Modrich.
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