Here it Began: 2020 Hindsight or Foresight
Indigenous History Conference
A Plymouth 400 Signature Event
Nine Virtual Sessions
Oct. 3-Nov. 22, 2020
Here It Began: 2020 Hindsight or Foresight, a signature Plymouth 400 event, is an Indigenous History Conference to inspire educators to learn about creation histories and traditional life; colonization and its aftermath; and the continued resilience and life of New England Natives today.
The virtual event, sponsored by Bridgewater State University, Plymouth 400 and the Wampanoag Advisory Council, is free of charge and offers nine weekend sessions during the months of October and November that will feature well-known experts and testimonials. If you have questions or comments, please contact universityevents@bridgew.edu
Agenda
Download Conference Program of Sessions (print-friendly)
Accordion Content
10 to 10:30 AM (EDT)
Keynote: Here It Began: Introduction to the 2020 Indigenous History Conference
Linda Coombs (Aquinnah Wampanoag)
10:30 AM to 12 noon (EDT)
Panel I: Creation Histories
Moderator: Joyce Rain Anderson (Wampanoag)
Panelists:
- Bob Charlebois (Abenaki)
- Nitana Greendeer (Mashpee Wampanoag)
- Doug George (Mohawk)
12:30 to 2 PM (EDT)
Panel II: Traditional Life
This panel will discuss/describe the philosophies behind the practices that comprised our traditional lives and cultures to dispel the existing stereotypes of our cultures being backward, primitive, simplistic, etc.
Moderator: Gkisedtanamoogk (Mashpee Wampanoag)
Panelists:
- Annawon Weeden (Mashpee Wampanoag)
- Donald Soctomah (Passamaquoddy)
- Paulla Jennings (Narragansett)
- David Weeden (Mashpee Wampanoag)
10 to 10:30 AM (EDT)
Keynote: Doctrine of Discovery
Mark Charles (Navajo)
10:30 AM to 12 noon (EDT)
Panel I: Colonization in American History: Crumbling Mythological Foundations, Revealing Truths
Moderator and Speaker: Jean O’Brien (Ojibwe)
Speakers:
- Tom Wickman
- Darius Coombs (Mashpee Wampanoag)
- Jessie little doe Baird (Mashpee Wampanoag)
- Robert Miller (Shawnee)
12:30 to 2 PM (EDT)
Panel II: Colonization in American History: The “Gift” That Keeps on Taking
Moderator and Speaker: Lisa Brooks (Abenaki)
Speakers:
- Marjorie O’Toole
- Tyler Rogers (Narragansett)
- Jason Mancini
1 to 2:15 PM (EDT)
Workshop I: Reclaiming and Reviving Deep Indigenous Histories on Turtle Island
- Paulette Steeves (Cree)
Break (15 min)
2:30 to 3:45 PM (EDT)
Workshop II: Historical Trauma: The Wounds That Won’t Heal
- Gkisedtanamoogk (Mashpee Wampanoag)
- Mishi Lesser Dear Georgina film 15 minutes)
- Dawn Neptune (Penobscot)
10 AM to 11:30 PM (EDT)
Panel I: Wampum Research and Relations
Panelists:
- Marge Bruchac (Abenaki)
- Paula Peters (Mashpee Wampanoag)
Break (15 min)
11:45 to 1 PM (EDT)
Panel II: Reconnections: Bringing Family Home
Panelists:
- Paula Peters (Mashpee Wampanoag)
- Terlena Murphy (St. David’s Islander)
10 to 11:30 AM (EDT)
Panel I: Decolonizing Methodologies: Challenging Colonial Institutions
Moderator and Speaker: Lisa King (Delaware)
Speakers:
Break (30 min)
12 to 1:30 PM (EDT)
Panel II: Standing Our Ground: Resistance and the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Moderator: Rae Gould (Nipmuc)
Panelists:
- Michelle Cook (Navajo)
- Hartman Deetz (Mashpee Wampanoag)
10 to 11:30 AM (EDT)
Panel I: Finding Home: Wôpanâak Language Reclamation Project
Moderator and Speaker: Jen Weston (Hunkpapa Lakota, Standing Rock)
Panelists:
- Eleanor Coombs (Mashpee Wampanoag)
- Camille Madison (Aquinnah Wampanoag)
- Tia Pocknett (Mig’maw)
- Melanie Roderick (Assonet Wampanoag)
Break (30 min)
12 to 1:30 PM (EDT)
Panel II: Feeding Our Spirit: Indigenous Food Sovereignty
Moderator and Speaker: Elizabeth Hoover (Mohawk)
Speakers:
- Juli Vanderhoop (Aquinnah Wampanoag)
- Cassius Spears (Narragansett)
- Kristina Hook (Aquinnah Wampanoag)
- Sherry Pocknett (Mashpee Wampanoag)
10 to 11:30 AM (EDT)
Artists’ Roundtable: From the Ancestors’ Hands: New England Indigenous Artists
Moderator and Speaker: Dawn Spears (Narragansett)
Speakers:
- Jim Taylor (Abenaki/Cherokee)
- Robert Peters (Mashpee Wampanoag)
- Berta Welch (Aquinnah Wampanoag)
- Theresa Secord (Penobscot)
- Tim Shay (Penobscot)
Break (30 min)
12 to 1:30 PM (EDT)
Telling Our Own Stories: Museum Roundtable: New England Tribal Museums
Moderator and Speaker: Darius Coombs (Mashpee Wampanoag) (Wampanoag Indigenous Program/PP)
Panelists:
- Loren Spears (Narragansett) (Tomaquag Museum)
- Adriana Giles Ignacio (Aquinnah Wampanoag) (Aquinnah Cultural Center))
- David Weeden (Mashpee Wampanoag) (Mashpee Wamp Museum)
- Chris Newell (Passamaquoddy) (Abbe Museum)
- James Francis (Penobscot)
10 to 11:30 AM (EDT)
Writing Ourselves into Existence: Authors’ Roundtable: New England Native Authors and Literature
Moderator: Siobhan Senier (“Dawnland Voices”)
Panelists:
- Melissa Tantaquidgeon Zobel (Mohegan)
- Carol Dana (Penobscot)
- John Christian Hopkins (Penobscot)
- Cheryl Savageau (Abenaki)
- Linda Coombs (Aquinnah Wampanoag)
Break (30 min)
12 to 11:30 PM (EDT)
From Traditional Knowledge to Colonial Oversight to Indigenous Integration: Educator’s Roundtable Indian Education in New England
Moderator and Speaker: Alice Nash
Panelists:
- Tobias Vanderhoop (Aquinnah Wampanoag)
- Jennifer Weston (Hunkpapa Lakota, Standing Rock
- Alyssa Mt. Pleasant (Tuscarora)
Closing Plenary Sessions:
10 to 11 AM (EDT)
I: Justice for the Land
Robin Wall Kimmerer (Potawatomi)
Break (15 min)
11:15 AM to 12:15 PM (EDT)
II: Sacred Instructions
Sherri Mitchell (Penobscot)
12:15 to 12:30 PM
Ending and Continuing Thoughts
Linda Coombs and Joyce Rain Anderson
Conference Speakers
The Indigenous History Conference, Here It Began: 2020 Hindsight or Foresight? features over 50 speakers. This gathering seeks to explore a wide range of topics such as traditional life, colonization, historical trauma, family research, rights, language, food sovereignty, indigenous art, literature, education and other related topics.
View Conference Speaker Biographies.
Conference Organizers
The Indigenous History Conference was organized by Linda Coombs and Joyce Rain Anderson.
View Conference Organizer Biographies.
