Why do you think this is important to the Native American community?

Keeping tribal affiliations, heritage and culture alive in their families and communities is a priority for many American Indians.

This is especially true in Oklahoma, where indigenous people lived long before Europeans settled and, later, displaced tribes were concentrated in the mid - to late 1800s. Contributing to the loss of language, culture and traditions was the introduction of boarding schools, which served to assimilate native children into white Americ