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The Other Slavery: Histories of Indian Bondage from New Spain to the Southwestern United States

Stories of enslaved Indigenous peoples have often been absent from the historical narrative. From Sept. 24–27, join the Smithsonian for a virtual symposium that explores the hidden stories of enslaved Indigenous peoples, focusing on the legacy of Spanish colonization in the Americas and Asia and its impact on what is now the southwestern United States. The event is free and will be available on demand: americanindian.si.edu/calendar  

Experts from a range of academic disciplines, including Indigenous studies, anthropology, and history, will examine untold stories of coerced labor and peonage and the long-term impact of Indian slavery. Panelists will discuss the legacies of Native American enslavement with Indigenous community leaders and cultural workers. The event will explore the different forms and complexity of human bondage that resulted in hybrid cultures, tangled economic practices, and intricate social relationships between the Spanish and Indigenous communities. Overall, this program seeks to give a comprehensive “first voice” to these hushed stories and living legacies. 

Presented by the Smithsonian Latino Center, the National Museum of the American Indian, and the National Museum of African American History and Culture in association with the Smithsonian’s initiative, Our Shared Future: Reckoning with Our Racial Past.

The Other Slavery symposium is made possible, in part, through support from the One Smithsonian Symposia Fund through the Smithsonian Institution’s Office of the Under Secretary for Museums and Culture. Bank of America is proud to be the founding partner of Our Shared Future: Reckoning with Our Racial Past.

Program

Contact and Globalization of Indian Slavery

Remarks

Symposium Welcome and Opening Remarks

Lonnie G. Bunch III, Secretary, Smithsonian 

Session 1

Global and National Contexts of Indian Bondage

Philip J. Deloria, Leverett Saltonstall Professor of History, Harvard University

Tiya Miles, Professor of History and Radcliffe Alumnae Professor, Harvard University

Andrés Reséndez, Professor of History, University of California, Davis

 

Moderator, Scott Manning Stevens, Director of Native American and Indigenous Studies, Syracuse University

Session 2

Slavery in the Spanish Empire: The Philippines and the Southwest Borderlands 

James F. Brooks, Carl and Sally Gable Distinguished Professor of History, University of Georgia 

Ramón A. Gutiérrez, Preston & Sterling Morton Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of U.S. History and the College, University of Chicago

Tatiana Seijas, Associate Professor of History, Rutgers University


Moderator, Gabrielle Tayac, Associate Professor of Public History, George Mason University 

Session 3

Living Cultures: Genízaro Traditions Today

Chavela Trujillo, Dancer, Indita del Pueblo Genízaro de Abiquiú, New Mexico

Delilah Trujillo, Dancer, Indita del Pueblo Genízaro de Abiquiú, New Mexico

Dexter Trujillo, Ceremonial Leader, Pueblo Genízaro de Abiquiú, New Mexico

Virgil Trujillo, Historian, Pueblo Genízaro de Abiquiú, New Mexico


Moderator, Patricia Trujillo, Deputy Secretary, New Mexico Higher Education Department

 

Performance

Las Inditas del Pueblo Genízaro de Abiquiú, New Mexico 

Remarks

Symposium Perspectives

Kevin Gover, Under Secretary for Museums and Culture, Smithsonian 

Legacy of Indian Slavery in the United States

Remarks

Cultural Representations of Indian Slavery

Eduardo Díaz, Director, Smithsonian Latino Center and Interim Director, National Museum of the American Latino

Session 4

Indo-Hispanos: Contemporary Indigenous and Hispanic Intersections

Ana X. Gutiérrez Sisneros, Associate Professor of Nursing, Northern New Mexico College

Isabel War Trujillo, Director and Grant Administrator, El Pueblo de Abiquiú Library and Cultural Center

Patricia Trujillo, Deputy Secretary, New Mexico Higher Education Department


Moderator, Simon Romero, National Correspondent, The New York Times

Session 5

Kinship and Genocide in California

Benjamin Madley, Associate Professor of History, University of California, Los Angeles

Erika Pérez, Associate Professor of History, University of Arizona

Helen and Christina Salazar, Descendants of Eulalia Pérez de Guillén

Gabrielino Elders, San Gabriel, California


Moderator, Anthea M. Hartig, Elizabeth MacMillan Director, National Museum of American History

Session 6

Legacies of Indian Bondage

Vanielle Blackhorse, Community Leader, Navajo Nation

Mary Elliott, Curator of American Slavery, National Museum of African American History and Culture

Brandie Macdonald, Director of Decolonizing Initiatives, Museum of Us

Royleen J. Ross, Cultural Psychologist, Consultant

The Honorable Brian D. Vallo, Governor, Pueblo of Acoma


Moderator, Michelle Delaney, Assistant Director, History and Culture, National Museum of the American Indian

Remarks

Closing Reflections

Mary Elliott, Curator of American Slavery, National Museum of African American History and Culture

 

Miguel A. Gandert, Linda Elena, Talpa, NM, 1995, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, museum purchase through the Smithsonian Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center, 2016.20.6, © 1995, Miguel Gandert

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