American Indian Month Continues With Weekend of Open Houses

American Indian Month in Minnesota continues this May. And, this weekend’s a busy one.

The Minneapolis American Indian Center is hosting their free Open House and Family Fun Night – May 19th.

A carnival with free entry, free food, and free prizes found among their games and attractions. 

The MAIC Facebook page shows while its Franklin Avenue building renovation continues on, the Minneapolis event’s at Cedar Field Park –  the evening of Friday the 19th.

And there are other open houses throughout the weekend.

The Native American Community Clinic is opening its doors for lung cancer screenings and a community lunch Friday, in celebration of serving the community for the last 20 years.

About 4 blocks away, the Indian Health Board is also serving lunch at their open house.

It’s also Art-A-Whirl weekend in Nordeast Minneapolis. The Minnesota Indigenous Business Alliance and Mnisota Native Artists Alliance are hosting a Native arts market, showcasing several artists’ work from around the region. With a hoop dancing performance Saturday the 20th. That’s on the third floor of the Northrup King Building.

In upcoming events, you can find traditional and contemporary pow wows, workshops and the 2023 Tribal Energy Equity Summit. Native American tribal leaders and federal officials from the U.S. Department of Energy, the Department of the Interior, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will be meeting in Saint Paul. May 22nd through the 24th. The summit is not open to the public, but you can find registration information at the Minnesota Native News dot Org website.

White Earth Mental Health is also observing May – Mental Health Month, hosting the 2023 American Indian Mental Health Conference. This year’s theme is BIZINDAADIWAG – Post-COVID-19: Rebuilding Connections and Holistically Addressing Mental Health. That will be at Shooting Star Casino in Mahnomen May 24th and 25th.

If you want more details on any of these or other events, you can find info at the Metropolitan Urban Indian Directors, or MUID, website or the May issue of The Circle.

Sam Choo reporting for MN Native News

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