ONEIDA (NBC 26) — Governor Tony Evers re-released a red-tailed hawk into the wild in Oneida Monday for National Indigenous Peoples' Day.
It's a time to honor the brave people who have contributed so much to our history and overall well-being but who have often been overlooked through the course of time.
There's an opportunity for people in the area to come out and learn more in person in Oneida.
"It's really heartwarming, and it gives you some hope for the future," Oneida Nation Public Relations Director Bobbi Webster said.
Webster said she looks forward to the National Indigenous Peoples' Day ceremony every year that starts with the traditional tobacco-burning event and community prayer.
"I'd like to think that people have mutual respect for one another, and Indigenous Peoples' Day is a time at which all the people can look at all the things contributing to the keepers of the land, the people who took care of this land for thousands of years, and now we have all these other different ethnic groups, and different government that exist on our communities. I think if they show that respect, it builds a healthier community and a healthier nation," Webster said.
Webster says she's looking forward to this year's big unveiling by Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary.
"They are bringing a red-tail hawk out to Oneida on Monday, and we will re-release that hawk into the wild," Webster said.
Webster said this year's ceremony will start later Monday morning at their pow-wow grounds at the Norbert Hill Center in Oneida, but she hopes the community will be able to host more events near the Veterans Wall - an area that's currently under construction.
"We're close to our Oneida Nation Veterans' Wall which reflects the Oneida Nation had warriors in every military conflict since the revolutionary war," Webster said.
National Indigenous People's Day started October 11, 1992 in opposition of Columbus Day.
If you'd like to come out and learn more about indigenous people from Oneida, you can do that in person Monday morning.
The ceremony will be 8 a.m. at the pow wow grounds in Oneida.
