People gathered on Old Main lawn on Monday afternoon to celebrate and recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
Flags representing different tribal nations waved on the lawn just below the steps of Old Main, where speakers and performers stood to celebrate.
Tim Benally opened the rally with a speech which included a land acknowledgement.
Penn State’s campuses are located on the original homelands of the Erie, Haudenosaunee (Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk and Tuscarora), Lenape (Delaware Nation, Delaware Tribe, Stockbridge-Munsee), Monongahela, Shawnee (Absentee, Eastern and Oklahoma), Susquehannock and Wahzhazhe (Osage) Nations.
“We mark a historical occasion where we recognize the legacy and contributions of Indigenous peoples from around the country,” Benally, a graduate student studying recreation, parks and tourism management, said. “The very structures that once sought to erase us still persist in today’s educational systems.”
“I’ve been grateful for the opportunities that its presented, but it’s also a poignant reminder that I,” Benally said, “like most of you, are visitors to this land, and we are missing its original stewards.”
Several speakers talked about the importance of this day to the community, including Al George, a Cayuga faith keeper in the Allegany Seneca territory.
“Native Americans all over Turtle Island have a customary responsibility to give thanks to their creator for all the things that he provided us, sustain us in our lives and keep us happy as we walk this earth,” George said.
Akwesasne Women Singers, Las Cafeteras and the Jake George family performed music and traditional dances.
Errol Wizda, an assistant program director with the Millennium Scholars Program, was in attendance at the rally.
“I think this sort of thing is really important for the university (to acknowledge) everything that’s happening,” Wizda said. “I think it’s important for … advocacy to happen on campus.”
Erica Brown said “it was a really good opportunity.”
“It’s something I have never seen before, so…
Herberg students across several classes worked on getting the plaque acknowledging the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohicans as a civics project. 
Police are investigating human remains found by parks workers at Wahconah Park on Tuesday. 
