Native American Heritage Month

Developing Stories: Native Photographers in the Field is a series of three photo essays created by Native photojournalists Donovan Quintero, Tailyr Irvine, and Russel Albert Daniels in collaboration with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. These photographers share the same desires: to break down stereotypes of Native peoples and to portray the diversity and complexity of their contemporary lives.

Each photographer explores an issue that is of deep personal interest to them and touches the lives of Native people in a specific community. Their essays feature poignant and compelling photography. Together, they provide thought-provoking insights into contemporary Native life and nuanced perspectives on an American experience that is largely invisible to mainstream society.

NATIVE
The term Native is often used officially or unofficially to describe indigenous peoples from the United States (Native Americans, Native Hawaiians, Alaska Natives), but it can also serve as a specific descriptor (Native people, Native lands, Native traditions, etc.).

U.S. District Judge Diane J. Humetewa is the first female Native American judge to serve on the federal bench.

The National Archives holds hundreds of thousands of records related to interactions between American Indian and Alaska Native communities and the U.S. government.

PBS videos