McMaster Professor Attends Obama Inauguration
BY DANIELLE LORENZ, MACINSIDERS
On Inauguration Day, some classes were canceled (mostly History and Political Science from what I've heard) in order to watch what has been called a historic event. Students in Indigenous Studies 3CC3 got to experience something even better: their professor actually attended the inauguration. Dawn Martin-Hill, Director of the Indigenous Studies program and Associate Professor of Anthropology at McMaster attended the event because of a letter her daughter wrote.
Makasa Lookinghorse, who turns twelve in February, wrote a letter to Obama urging him to help Natives, as reported in the
Brantford Expositer. Makasa's father, Chief Arvol Lookinghorse supported Obama and was photographed with him for a campaign brochure. Chief Lookinghorse is a Lakota chief living in South Dakota who is known as a spiritual leader, with the title of 19th Generation Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe. He is known for his activism and Makasa is following in his footsteps: stepping in for her father to complete a pipe ceremony at the United Nations.
The family attended festivities the night before the inauguration, which included a concert and a celebratory powwow, as
Susan Gamble reports. The American Indian [sic] Inauguration Ball was one of the balls visited by President Obama.
On Monday, Elijah Harper (key individual involved in the Meech Lake Accord) gave a public lecture at McMaster, as well as showed his film Elijah. For coming to McMaster, Dr. Martin-Hill presented a picture of herself with Obama in thanks.
