Political science and pre-law senior Zadok Milner, co-chair of NAISO, expressed his appreciation for those who attended the march.

“We’re kind of made to feel very small on campus, and clearly it’s just not true — it’s a lie,” said Milner, who is a member of the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians. “Not only are we still here, but we’re still here together with everyone that is willing to come out in solidarity.”  

The march followed multiple days of advocacy from the organization, which set up camp over the weekend on campus in an effort to honor ancestors and their sacrifices that enabled MSU to become a land grant institution. 

At 3 p.m., students started marching to their first stop: the Hannah Administration Building. They held signs while chanting “Hey hey, ho ho, Columbus Day has got to go” and “MSU, rent is due!” 

NAISO Co-Chair Madison Rose Kennedy-Kuquom said that to her, Indigenous Peoples' Day exemplifies longstanding Indigenous activism. 

“Indigenous Peoples' Day has been pushed by Native activists for decades and was purposely put on so-called Columbus Day,” said Kennedy-Kequom, a senior in comparative cultures in politics. “To celebrate Indigenous People’s Day is a really beautiful thing.”

Growing up on a reservation, Kennedy-Kequom, a member of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan, has celebrated Indigenous Peoples' Day in her community since she was a kid.

“Indigenous Peoples' Day is really a way for me to connect with my community and kind of normalize (the) Indigenous Peoples' Day that I got to experience growing up across a wider community,” she said.

Kennedy-Kequom's hopes extend beyond the day's events, she said, as she wants NAISO to have meetings with university administration and continue to build community. The latter is something she and Milner have focused on in their roles as NAISO co-chairs. 

“We really wanted NAISO to be a space that’s intersectional with student organizations on campus, and I feel like we were able to pull that off today," Kennedy-Kequom said. "And I was really thankful for the support of other organizations that showed out this past weekend at the wiigwam.”

Since setting up the temporary camp, NAISO has released a list of demands for MSU. Kennedy-Kequom reiterated some of those Monday, including the request that MSU provide more on-campus housing for Indigenous students, create and maintain a work environment for Indigenous faculty and staff, and install a physical land acknowledgment plaque. 

University spokesperson Emily Guerrant said MSU is open to putting the plaque on campus.

"The Administration is open to the posting of the land acknowledgment statement," Guerrant said in a text message to The State News. "Seems like there are a few options at Peoples Park and/or the new Multicultural Center. Conversations are ongoing."

Another student organization present at the march was Timetzalimet, a Latin American Indigenous student organization that aims to show there are still Indigenous people still living in Latin America.

“(Indigenous Peoples' Day) means a day of celebrating who I am, who my community is, who my ancestors and family are and kind of like a counter holiday to what is known as Columbus Day, because that day should not be celebrated,” said Timetzalimet President Amalia Suarez, a senior in comparative cultures and politics.

Instead of celebrating Columbus Day, Suarez said people should focus attention on the impact that Columbus and colonization had on Indigenous communities.

"Even today we still see those effects," she said. 

The march made its way to the wiigwam that NAISO set up on campus over the weekend. That wiigwam was meant to call back to the original “Indian Encampment” present on the first day of classes at MSU in 1857.

Nichole Keway Biber, a tribal citizen of the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians (Waganakising Odawa), MSU alumna and the mid-Michigan campaign organizer for Clean Water Action, offered a traditional water ceremony for the Red Cedar River. The ceremony included a song thanking the river and ancestors present. 

After the ceremony, students and attendees made their way to the Rock to listen to speakers. 

One speech came from Shay Sandoval-Flores, a 1994 MSU alum who now works as an academic adviser for the university. She's also a self-described “cultural auntie,” and emphasized the roles of mothers and aunts in supporting their community.

Speaking directly to students, Sandoval-Flores discussed the historical role of Indigenous activism on campus that she said extends back to her time as a student and earlier. 

“You’re doing the work that your ancestors and everybody has been doing for years at this institution,” Flores said. 

Flores reassured students that they belong at MSU and encouraged those who don’t know the full history of the university to educate themselves.

“Sometimes you’re going to be the only person in your class, in a job, and you’re going to be like, 'Damn, is it worth the fight?'" Flores said. "It is. Because you’re worth the fight."