Native American Heritage Day Act of 2009 Public Law 111–33 Native American Heritage Day Act of 2009 33 111–33 Statute Compilation United States House of Representatives Office of the Legislative Counsel text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain. GPO Statute Compilations USLM converter, version 20210527.1 2021-10-15 Native American Heritage Day Act of 2009 11130 111 2009-06-26 Native American Heritage Day Act of 2009 [(Public Law 111–33)] [This law has not been amended] [Currency: This publication is a compilation of the text of Public Law 111–33. It was last amended by the public law listed in the As Amended Through note above and below at the bottom of each page of the pdf version and reflects current law through the date of the enactment of the public law listed at https://www.govinfo.gov/app/collection/comps/] [Note: While this publication does not represent an official version of any Federal statute, substantial efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy of its contents. The official version of Federal law is found in the United States Statutes at Large and in the United States Code. The legal effect to be given to the Statutes at Large and the United States Code is established by statute (1 U.S.C. 112, 204).]
AN ACTTo honor the achievements and contributions of Native Americans to the United States, and for other purposes.Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the “Native American Heritage Day Act of 2009”.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. Congress finds that— (1) Native Americans are the descendants of the aboriginal, indigenous, native people who were the original inhabitants of and who governed the lands that now constitute the United States; (2) Native Americans have volunteered to serve in the United States Armed Forces and have served with valor in all of the Nation’s military actions from the Revolutionary War through the present day, and in most of those actions, more Native Americans per capita served in the Armed Forces than any other group of Americans; (3) Native American tribal governments included the fundamental principles of freedom of speech and separation of governmental powers; (4) Native Americans have made distinct and significant contributions to the United States and the rest of the world in many fields, including agriculture, medicine, music, language, and art, and Native Americans have distinguished themselves as inventors, entrepreneurs, spiritual leaders, and scholars; (5) Native Americans should be recognized for their contributions to the United States as local and national leaders, artists, athletes, and scholars; (6) nationwide recognition of the contributions that Native Americans have made to the fabric of American society will afford an opportunity for all Americans to demonstrate their respect and admiration of Native Americans for their important contributions to the political, cultural, and economic life of the United States; (7) nationwide recognition of the contributions that Native Americans have made to the Nation will encourage self-esteem, pride, and self-awareness in Native Americans of all ages; (8) designation of the Friday following Thanksgiving of each year as Native American Heritage Day will underscore the government-to-government relationship between the United States and Native American governments; (9) designation of Native American Heritage Day will encourage public elementary and secondary schools in the United States to enhance understanding of Native Americans by providing curricula and classroom instruction focusing on the achievements and contributions of Native Americans to the Nation; and (10) the Friday immediately succeeding Thanksgiving Day of each year would be an appropriate day to designate as Native American Heritage Day.
SEC. 3. HONORING NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE IN THE UNITED STATES. Congress encourages the people of the United States, as well as Federal, State, and local governments, and interested groups and organizations to honor Native Americans, with activities relating to— (1) appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities to observe Native American Heritage Day; (2) the historical status of Native American tribal governments as well as the present day status of Native Americans; (3) the cultures, traditions, and languages of Native Americans; and (4) the rich Native American cultural legacy that all Americans enjoy today.