November celebrates National Native American Heritage Month. Native American Heritage Month celebrates the traditions and culture of our historical Native American, Indian, and Alaskan tribes and ancestors that shaped our nation to become what it is today. Every year, there is a different theme for this national holiday. The theme of 2025 is “Self-Determination and Progress.” These cultures help connect our past, present, and future.

New York was the first state of the U.S. to have an official “American Indian Day,” starting in 1916. In 1990, President George H.W. Bush established November as the first month to represent this national holiday, Native American Heritage Month.

National Native American Heritage Month, which is in November, is somewhat tied to the history of Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate and recognize the cultural achievements of our native tribes that have led to what our people can do in modern-day America.

The theme of “Self-Determination and Progress” is fitting for America’s history, as our native people have made much progress in finding and organizing themselves, and in what humans are really capable of. 

In American history, Native Americans have faced many challenges of political and economic oppression. The theft of land was very detrimental to the native tribes. It led to many hardships and some cultural loss. They also happened to be removed from their religious/sacred sites, which caused them to lose spiritual connections between each other and their beliefs.