To mark Native American Heritage Month, University of Texas Permian Basin Tuesday will screen the film Te Ata and host a discussion afterward. The event is from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in the Library Lecture Hall on campus.
History Professor Jeff Washburn said Te Ata is about a Chickasaw woman based on Mary Thompson fisher, also known as Te Ata.
This occurs around late 19th-early 20th century. The film itself is produced by Chickasaw Nation Productions and includes indigenous actors, indigenous people within the movie itself, Washburn said.
One of the things they wanted to provide was a movie with indigenous voices and actors and a discussion afterward with students, faculty and staff anyone who wants to join “concerning the film and both the histories of indigenous peoples and the activities of indigenous peoples in the present,” he added.
The hope is to continue Native American Heritage Month activities into the future.
“We really hope to continue this next year. I will be teaching a couple of native history courses next year. It’s something I’m really looking forward to, involving more people here at the University of Texas Permian Basin for it,” Washburn said.
He added that everyone has been “absolutely fantastic and incredibly supportive for creating, sponsoring and promoting this event.”
“I’m hoping that translates to new events in the future, as well,” Washburn said.
The film and discussion will be the primary activity this month.
He noted that the library has been phenomenal in helping him out through the entire process.
They have also created a display in the library of books about indigenous history, indigenous art and books written by indigenous authors and more.
He is encouraging students to swing by the library and look at the display and the Native American offerings the library has.
Washburn said Native American Month has been marked for a while.
“This is my second year at UTPB. My ongoing book project is focused on indigenous peoples in the late 18th and early 19th century, particularly (in) the American Southeast. During my years at the University of Mississippi, I was involved with their Native American Heritage Month activities. It was something I was really excited to … promote. It was something our students there really enjoyed and interacted with and had a great time with, especially. We’re in November; this is kind of toward the tail end of the semester. It’s always … a great time to connect with students and to find new ways to reach out to them,” Washburn said.
