The John F. Reed Library at Fort Lewis College has been selected to host “Native Voices: Native Peoples’ Concepts of Health & Illness,” a traveling exhibition created by the U.S. National Library of Medicine. The interactive exhibition opened on October 16 and will be on display until January 15, 2020.
In his opening remarks, Assistant Director of the Native American Center Simon Chief said visitors will discover how Native American and Indigenous people find answers to health-related questions through connectedness to nature and the utilization of traditional and contemporary medicine.
“Health is a balance of mental, physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing,” said Chief. “If an individual is affected in one of these four areas then it affects their overall wellbeing. So as Native American and Indigenous people, it is important that health is approached holistically and that there is focus within the four areas of health.”
The exhibition examines these concepts of health and medicine among contemporary American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawai’ians, and features interviews with more than one hundred tribal leaders, healers, physicians, educators, and others.
The public opening featured a short overview video provided by the National Library of Medicine and songs performed by the FLC student drum group Skyhawk Nation.
Reed Library was chosen to host the exhibition through a competitive application process. The American Library Association, in partnership with NLM, is touring the exhibition to more than 100 libraries in the U.S. To learn more about the traveling exhibition visit www.nlm.nih.gov/nativevoices.