by By Janice & Brook LaFloe
In the Twin Cities American Indian community, there’s a known legacy for what many states are now calling Indigenous People’s Day. Falling on the 2nd Monday in October, Indigenous People’s Day is federally recognized as Columbus Day. It is a controversial holiday because Christopher Columbus didn’t discoverer, but rather colonized America through the forceful taking of land, widespread genocide, & loss of Indigenous ways of life. Fortunately, Minnesota declares a statewide proclamation every year to honor Indigenous People’s Day & that fact that we are still here.
Brook LaFloe, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, grew up attending the Indigenous People’s Day Parade in the East Metro, as a child, student, teacher, & now as an organizer & member of the planning committee. The parade would lead from the American Indian Magnet School to a historically sacred site called Mounds Park. Continuing this legacy to expel Indigenous erasure, LaFloe & the Niniijaanis MMIW boys basketball team are creating a new legacy preceding Indigenous People’s Day & proceeding the reclamation work of past leaders by hosting Indigenous People’s Weekend (IPW).
Last year was the inagural Indigenous People’s Weekend Basketball expo which used the sport to support healing, further raise awareness, & engage in conversations about the Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women’s (MMIW) endemic. The public health event hosted a youth skills camp, high school & adult 3 x 3, community feast, & performances. With the support of our partners – The Montessori American Indian Childcare Center, Saint Paul Indian Education, The Science Museum of Minnesota, & Tiwahe Foundation, we were able to grow the event this year taking on an additional day to add the FAMILY 5 x 5 tournament & the Midwest Best MMIW Awareness game.
The Midwest Best MMIW Awareness game features some of the best ballers & role models representing 16 different tribes across the Midwest, all divisions of the NCAA & numerous tribal & community colleges. The game also features an intentional network of sponsors weaving public, private & tribal support including Niniijaanis One of Ones, the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota, Minnesota Missing & Murdered Indigenous Relatives (MMIR) Office, the Kiowa Tribe, & the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. Additionally, the game will reveal the new Niniijaanis MMIW boys team jerseys designed & produced by TA Sports Apparel, a Native American Owned family business. The new jerseys will tip-off against the past popular jerseys designed & produced by our local Twin Cities Native American Owned family business The Merciless. Spectators are encouraged to attend the game for free during Indigenous People’s Weekend Basketball Expo October 8th from 1-2pm at St. Paul Harding High School.
Midwest Best MMIW Awareness game players & coaches:
Darius Lasley, Meskwaki Nation, Clarke University
Amya Gourneau, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, Minot
Tayzha Buck, Mdewakanton Sioux, University of Evansville
Latesha Buck, Mdewakanton Sioux, University of New Mexico
Wayne Runnels Jr, Cheyenne & Arapaho, Creighton University
Brook LaFloe, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, Tulane University
Brady Fairbanks, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, Bemidji State University
JR Gunville, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, Bismark State College
LeRoy Fairbanks IV, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, University of Minnesota Morris
Kolby Gourneau, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, Turtle Mountain Community College
Rob McClain Jr, Muscogee Creek & Red Lake Ojibwe, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Marco Mayorga, Fond Du Lac Band of Superior Chippewa, Rainy River College
Amerin Chamberlain, Ho-Chunk Nation, South Minneapolis High School
Jesse Heart, Oglala Lakota, Central Community College-Platte Campus
Jacob Dorian, Rosebud Sioux, Minnesota West Community College
Elydashan Big Bear, Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, Isle High School
Johnny Crow, Oglala Lakota, McCook Community College
Isaiah Dow, Lower Sioux, Redwood Valley High School
Shauna Long, Standing Rock Sioux, Lamar University
Derek Tofpi, Kiowa Tribe, Carnegie High School
Tim Gill, African-American, Clarion University
A full schedule for IPW Basketball Expo can be found on the Facebook event page, or follow event updates on the Niniijaanis One of Ones Instagram. Campers, vendors & players can register until the day the of the event at: https://linktr.ee/indigenouspeoplesweekend
Thank you to our new sponsor’s this year: Nashke Native Games, Minnesota Indian Affairs Council, DuBois Cars & Construction, Selburg IT Solutions, American Indian Family Center, Native Roots Radio
