MARBLEHEAD— The fifth annual Indigenous Peoples’ Day celebration in Marblehead is headlined by a performance by the Eastern Suns Drummers and Dancers of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe.
The event will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 9. in the Jeremiah Lee Mansion Gardens on 161 Washington St. It is made possible through a joint effort between the Marblehead Cultural Council, the Marblehead Museum and the Marblehead Indigenous Peoples’ Day Committee.
The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe is also known as the People of the First Light. It has inhabited present-day Massachusetts and Eastern Rhode Island for more than 12,000 years. The Mashpee Wampanoag were re-acknowledged as a federally recognized tribe in 2007. The Eastern Suns are primarily composed of Mashpee Wampanoag natives, however the performers are also composed of Mashantucket Pequot and Aquinnah Wampanoag as well.
“It’s something we do on or around Indigenous Peoples’ Day,” Marblehead Museum Executive Director Lauren McCormack said. “It’s an opportunity to celebrate and share stories of native history, not just in Marblehead, but in the surrounding communities.”
