District 1 Gathering at Harvard’s Peabody Museum – November 8th, 2025
I’m excited to share that our first District 1 meeting will take place at Harvard’s Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Saturday, November 8th from 12:00 EST – 4:00 (or 5:00) PM EST.
For years, I’ve heard from many of our Citizen Potawatomi in the Northeast that they have felt left out or overlooked. With so many of our people living in Missouri and around Chicago, gatherings have often taken place in the western part of the district. Our previous District 1 Legislator, Alan Melot, made an effort to change that with a gathering in Reading, Pennsylvania, in 2024. This fall’s event builds on that effort.
What to Expect
We’ll start the afternoon with catered food and a short update on tribal and district news. Afterward, Peabody staff will provide guided tours of the museum. We’ll close the day with games of zhishibé, sharing of gifts, and, if possible, a drum to open and close the meeting along with a social dance.
Why the Peabody?
I want to speak directly about the choice of this venue. The Peabody Museum, like many cultural institutions, has a complicated history with tribal nations. For decades, the Peabody resisted tribal consultation and obstructed repatriation efforts under NAGPRA, holding onto ancestors and cultural items that should have been returned home. These decisions caused real harm and created deep mistrust between Native communities and the museum.
But in recent years, the Peabody has taken serious steps to change. Under the leadership of Jane Pickering, and with support of Indigenous leaders such as Kelli Mosteller (CPN) — formerly Director of the Harvard University Native American Program (HUNAP) and now Director of the First Americans Museum — the museum has acknowledged its failures, issued apologies, and committed to doing better. They have doubled their staff dedicated to repatriation, increased transparency, provided funding for tribal travel to consultations, and have been returning ancestors and sacred items to tribal nations. Leaders like Stephanie Mach (Navajo Nation) have worked alongside tribes to help shift institutional culture. These are not small gestures - they represent the beginning of a real turnaround. That turnaround is worth acknowledging. The fact that the Peabody has opened its doors to host us—not only as guests, but as partners—is a reflection of their commitment to forging a new path for the institution with help of tribal communities.
When I spoke with Jane Pickering and Stephanie Mach, they were gracious and open. Their support for our gathering reflects their dedication to a new kind of relationship with tribal communities like ours, one based on accountability, mutual respect, and collaboration.
Redemption and Bridge-Building
I believe in redemption. I believe that people, and institutions, can change when they make space for growth and are willing to do the hard work. That’s part of why I stepped into this role as your legislator—because I believe that the culture of institutions, including those comprising the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, can change. Our district encompasses nearly all of our ancestral homelands, and many of the museums and universities within it have not only established themselves in our lands, but draw their power from objects culturally significant to us as neshnabé, alongside, at worst, the very remains of our ancestors. To put it simply, we are not new to the complex matters concerning the theft of our cultural heritage. But we must do the difficult work of building connections and creating pathways for change– which includes acknowledging when change is occurring. Burning bridges and holding grudges will only lead us to more of the same.
This gathering at the Peabody is a foundation. A first step in strengthening our Nation’s relationship with this museum and other cultural institutions in our district. I hope our gathering at the Peabody will mark the beginning of many more opportunities for us to come together.
I look forward to seeing you in Boston on November 8th.
Parking & Accommodations
Parking will be challenging, and it has been recommended by the Peabody Museum to stay at hotels outside of Boston and Cambridge that are along the “Red Line” of the public transit system, in particular the large parking lot at Alewife Station. Give yourself plenty of time.
It’s recommended to find hotels that are outside of Boston/Cambridge, as that will provide more affordable options, and to use the public transit system to make your way to the museum.
Public Transit Map
Visiting the Peabody Museum <- Check here for hotels. More recommendations coming soon.
RSVP for November 8th
For more reading:
“About The Peabody Museum,” Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology, Https://Peabody.Harvard.Edu/Overview.
“NAGPRA At The Peabody: Past, Present, And Future,” Peabody Museum Of Archaeology & Ethnology, Https://Peabody.Harvard.Edu/Nagpra-Peabody.
Mary Hudetz And Ash Ngu, “Tribes In Maine Spent Decades Fighting To Rebury Ancestral Remains. Harvard Resisted Them At Nearly Every Turn,” ProPublica, December 3, 2023, Https://Www.Propublica.Org/Article/Inside-Wabanaki-Tribes-Struggle-To-Reclaim-Ancestral-Remains-From-Harvard.
Nicole Rura, “Peabody Museum Charts Progress On Repatriation: NAGPRA Project Staff Doubled To Support Three-Year Commitment For Consultation, Return Of All Ancestors And Associated Funerary Belongings,” The Harvard Gazette, October 26th, 2023, Https://News.Harvard.Edu/Gazette/Story/2023/10/Peabody-Museum-Charts-Progress-On-Repatriation/.
Jan Siliezar, “A Reckoning On Native American Remains And Cultural Objects: Peabody Museum Makes Progress And Encounters Complications In Repatriation Efforts,” The Harvard Gazette, March 30, 2021, Https://News.Harvard.Edu/Gazette/Story/2021/03/Peabody-Museums-Repatriation-Efforts-Encounter-Complications/.