[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 117 (Friday, September 24, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1708-E1709]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




COMMEMORATING THE OPENING OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. RON KIND

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 23, 2004

  Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I rise today as a proud member of the House 
Native American Caucus, to celebrate the opening of the National Museum 
of the American Indian.
  I also extend a warm welcome to the members from Wisconsin's seven 
tribes: the Oneida, Ojibwe, Ho Chunk, Stockbridge-Munsee, Menominee, 
Brothertown, and Potawatomi who have traveled to Washington, D.C. this 
week. They join the nearly twenty-thousand Native Americans, 
representing the nearly five-hundred state and federally recognized 
tribes, who have gathered here to celebrate the opening of the museum 
in the largest tribal gathering in our nation's history.
  After 15 years of planning and five years of construction, the 
National Museum of the American Indian celebrates the traditions, 
diversity and vitality of America's first people. Located within reach 
of the Capitol dome on

[[Page E1709]]

the National Mall, the museum focuses on the art, history and culture 
of Native Americans.
  The museum's impressive design and extensive exhibits were developed 
in close consultation with nearly 150 communities from Central and 
South America, the Caribbean, Canada and the United States.
  The pieces in the collection of eight-hundred and fifty thousand 
items represent a `living history' that will take visitors on a journey 
from past to present, and show that Native Americans continue to make 
vital contributions to contemporary American culture and art.
  The National Museum of the American Indian, with its graceful 
architecture and soaring atrium sited on the country's most ceremonial 
ground is a long-overdue recognition of the many contributions made by 
tribe members. I encourage all Americans to join me in honoring them by 
experiencing the museum and learning more about their heritage.

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