Native American & Indigenous Resources and Events

GMercyU Land Acknowledgement

We recognize and acknowledge that Gwynedd Mercy University stands on the Indigenous territory known as “Lenapehoking,” the traditional homelands of the Lenape, also called Lenni-Lenape or Delaware Indians. These are the people who, during the 1680s, negotiated with William Penn to facilitate the founding of the colony of Pennsylvania. Their descendants today include the Delaware Tribe and Delaware Nation of Oklahoma; the Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape, Ramapough Lenape, and Powhatan Renape of New Jersey; and the Munsee Delaware of Ontario.*

Consistent with the University's commitment to Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, we will continue to develop our understanding of the historical and current experiences of all Native peoples.
*Source

Treaty Signing

Gwynedd Mercy University participated in the signing of The Treaty of Renewed Friendship with the Lenape Tribe. The Treaty states that those who sign, acknowledge the Lenape Tribe as the indigenous caretakers of these lands and agree to support the Lenape Tribe. While not a legal document, it is an agreement of heart, mind and spirit. Its words carry the integrity of our ancestors and the hope of our children.

Fall 2022 Events

Online Lenape Language Class
Tuesday evenings at 7:00 p.m. on Zoom beginning on October 4th
Register by September 24
See details here

Orange Shirt Day
Friday, September 30, 12:00 p.m. -12:30 p.m. at the Bell Tower
A gathering to memorialize the children that never came home from school and support Indigenous children and families affected by the Indian Residential Schools and all Indigenous child apprehension programs.
Event sponsored by GMercyU's Title IX office.
https://remember-me-september-30.org/
https://blogs.loc.gov/law/2021/09/orange-shirt-day/

Missing Murdered Indigenous Women - Red Dress Grove Display
Saturday, October 29, Location TBD
The National Crime Information Center reports that in 2016 there were 5,712 reports of missing American Indian and Alaska Native women and girls, though the US Department of Justice’s federal missing person database, NamUs, only logged 116 cases. Each dress displayed honors an Indigenous woman who has been victimized, ranging in age from four to 70 years old.
To learn more about MMIW, visit our compilation of resources and information.
Event sponsored by GMercyU's Title IX office.

NAHM – Conversation with Adam DePaul
Thursday, November 10, 5pm, Julia Ball Auditorium
Commemorate Native American Heritage Month by joining this conversation with Adam Waterbear DePaul, a member of Tribal Council and Storykeeper of the Lenape Nation of PA.
Event sponsored by GMercyU's CORE programs.

Spring 2023 events to be posted soon!

Additional Resources

Missing Murdered Indigenous Women Compilation

Every Child Matters, Orange Shirt Day site

Library of Congress- Orange Shirt Day

Lenape Nation Information

Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania
The Lenape people are the original inhabitants of Delaware, New Jersey, Eastern Pennsylvania, and Southern New York

The Original People and Their Land
The Lenape, Pre-History to the 18th Century Part of West Philadelphia Before the 20th Century

Fulfilling a Prophecy: The Past and Present of the Lenape in Pennsylvania
A fully collaborative exhibition, organized by the Penn Museum and the Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania. Curated by Chief Robert Red Hawk Ruth and Shelley DePaul, both of the Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania, and University of Pennsylvania graduate student Abigail Seldin, the exhibition draws from oral histories, family heirlooms, and photographs, as well as archaeology, historical and ethnographic research.

Lenape Languages
Lenape or Unami Delaware is an Algonquian language originally spoken in New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania. There are no fully fluent speakers of Lenape Delaware anymore, but the younger generation of Lenapes has undergone a resurgence of interest in reviving the Delaware language.

State of Delaware - Genealogy Trails History Group, Genealogy and History
Volunteers Dedicated to Free Genealogy