Honoring Native American Heritage Month

Observed annually in November, Native American Heritage Month honors the significant contributions the Indigenous people of the Americas made to the establishment and growth of the United States.

---

Red Fox James, Blackfoot Native American

Before a day was nationally recognized, Red Fox James rode horseback from state to state seeking approval for a day to honor Native Americans. He presented endorsements of 24 state governments at the White House in December, 1915.

---

Mildred Loving Born of African American and Native American descent, Mildred successfully challenged Virginia’s ban on interracial marriage in the 1960s. Mildred married Richard Loving, a white man, violating Virginia’s Racial Integrity Act. In a Supreme Court case with the assistance of the American Civil Liberties Union, the court held that Virginia’s anti-miscegenation statute violated both the Equal Protection

Clause and Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

An unofficial holiday celebrates Mildred and Richard’s triumph and multiculturalism, called Loving Day, on June 12.