The day after Thanksgiving, Native American Heritage Day is a chance to reflect on the resilience, ingenuity and enduring legacy of Louisiana’s indigenous tribes, equivalent to the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, Cherokee and Houma. These reflections speak to their connection to the land, their communities, and their survival against great odds.
Dr. Tammy Greer, a citizen of the United Houma Nation and director of the Center for American Indian Research and Studies (CAIRES) at the University of Southern Mississippi, shared stories during a lecture at Pelican Gardens in Algiers, November 24, 2024, that make clear the cultural richness of southwestern tribes eastern and their continuing contribution to the indigenous heritage.
Creation and the Sacred Journey
Greer told the story of how the Creator formed the first humans from yellow clay in a cave called Naniah Waiya, now in Winston County, Mississippi. The groups left the cave and headed in numerous directions.
“The first group went east,” she explained, “and these are what we now call the Muskogee people. The second group tried to follow them, but their path was blocked by burnt forest, in order that they headed east alone. A 3rd group went north, becoming the Chickasaw people. The fourth group stays, and these are the Choctaw people.
Each journey, guided by spiritual meaning, emphasized trust in the Creator. In the history of the Choctaw and Chickasaw migrations, two brothers led their people out of an uninhabited land. Every night a sacred pole was driven into the ground, and each morning the direction it pointed indicated their steps.
“It was no ordinary pole,” Greer said. “He connected the three worlds – the lower world of chaos and creativity, the middle world in which we live, and the upper world of order and heaven. This pole asked the spirits of all three worlds to unite and show the way. Can you imagine? It takes a lot of trust.”
This sacred journey took them through rivers and mountains, and eventually to the Mississippi River. After crossing it on reed rafts, they reached their recent homeland, where the pole stood upright.
Mound builders and community innovators
Southeastern tribes are famous for his or her mound-building culture, constructing structures that served as ceremonial and social centers. “These mounds weren’t just about leadership or power – they were about bringing people together,” Greer explained. “These were places for ceremonies, games, speeches and even practical applications equivalent to flood prevention. What we’d like now, they built then.
These mounds also reflected a deep spiritual connection. Many of them were aligned with constellations, embodying the tribes’ reference to the higher world. “It’s like having a photo of someone you don’t see very often,” Greer said. “These constellations on earth maintained a living relationship with the stars. They remind us that we are stars and one day we will come home.”
Today, these mounds are a testament to the architectural and cultural brilliance of the indigenous people. However, a lot of them have been lost to development. Efforts to guard and preserve these places are key acts of cultural preservation, especially during Native American Heritage Month.
A legacy of adaptation and trade
Southeastern tribes adapted to their environment with extraordinary ingenuity. From using alligator garfish scales as arrowheads to creating intricate baskets from palm and river reeds, their creativity stays inspiring. Greer spoke of their extensive trade networks stretching throughout North America.
“Yaupon holly, a caffeine-containing plant, was one of our most important trade commodities,” she said. Why would not that be the case? It’s like caffeine – who would not swap it for it? These trade routes connected us with people as distant as Canada and South America.
Known for his or her deep connection to the land, the Houma people retained survival skills that are still practiced today. “I tell people,” Greer said, “you can drop a 12-year-old Houma kid off in the woods and he’ll come back fatter than he left because we still know how to live off the land.”
Reviving the tradition of sleeping
Greer talked about reviving “dormant” traditions equivalent to natural dyeing, basket weaving and the use of medicinal plants. These practices are usually not nearly conservation – they’re acts of remediation and resilience.
“When we say something is ‘sleeping,’ it means it can be woken up,” she said. “The sculpture is not dead – it is sleeping. And when someone like Miss Janie revives a tradition like the Palmetto Half-Hatch Roll-Up Basket, she awakens it for all of us.”
Native American Heritage Day and Month provide an area to reflect on these rebirths and their meaning. Greer encouraged people to reconnect with native plants and traditions. “When you construct a relationship with a plant, you make room for it and it returns the favor. This is balance and there are tons of of teachings about restoring balance in the world.
Honoring resilience
The resilience of Southeastern tribes is demonstrated by their survival during forced removals equivalent to the Choctaw Trail of Tears. Despite these difficulties, many remained and adapted, preserving their culture and traditions.
“Even my dogs know the medicine of this place,” Greer said, quoting a Choctaw elder. “They know what to eat, what to not eat and the best way to get treatment here. But they didn’t know this place [Oklahoma]”
On Native American Heritage Day, we have a good time not only the survival of indigenous peoples, but in addition their brilliance, creativity and contributions to this land. As Greer said, “Our ancestors survived because of our connections to the land and to each other. We owe it to them to continue their stories.”
