Heritage & Health Series Program

Celebrating NAHM • November 2025
We Are Still Here: Honoring Indigenous Voices and Traditions

Please join us throughout November for events planned around Native American history and culture, with music, food and talks with Native American artists and educators.

Wednesday, Nov. 5

NAHM Opening Ceremony: Poster Exhibit Honoring the Land and Heritage

Noon–1 p.m.
Dining Hall

Join us to kick off Native American Heritage Month with a powerful self-guided poster exhibit honoring the ancestral lands we stand on. This exhibit celebrates the resilience, history, and cultural heritage of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe. Come honor the land, reflect on history, and engage with the rich heritage of the Native communities who have shaped the Bay Area.

Complimentary traditional food and beverages will be provided. 

Wednesday, Nov. 12

Virtual Artist Talk with Kali Spitzer

Noon–1 p.m.
Join via Zoom

Kali Spitzer (Kaska Dena / Jewish) is an Indigenous, Femme, Queer artist living on the Traditional Unceded Lands of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations in Vancouver, BC.

A member of the Kaska Dena Nation from Daylu (Lower Post), BC, and of Jewish ancestry from Transylvania, Romania, Kali’s work embraces the stories of contemporary BIPOC, Queer, and Trans bodies, creating self-determined representation that challenges and rewrites colonial visual histories.

Working collaboratively and often using traditional and alternative photographic processes—including wet-plate collodion—her practice honors Indigenous culture, knowledge, and community. Kali studied photography at the Institute of American Indian Arts and Santa Fe Community College under the mentorship of Will Wilson. Her work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Hudson River Museum, Bard College, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, and the Amon Carter Museum of American Art. In 2022, she received the Aftermath Grant for her ongoing series An Exploration of Resilience and Resistance.

For more information about Kali's work, visit  kalispitzer.com 

Thursday, Nov. 13

Healing and Talking Circle with Justo Valenzuela

Noon–1 p.m.
BIPOC Center (Lower Level, Campus Center) 

Talking Circles: Honoring Indigenous Roots

Join us as we celebrate Native American Heritage Month through the sacred practice of Talking Circles, a tradition deeply rooted in Indigenous cultures. Talking Circles create a safe, respectful space for open dialogue, reflection, and healing—where every voice is valued and heard. Together, we’ll honor the wisdom of Indigenous ways of knowing, foster community connection, and reflect on the power of storytelling, listening, and shared humanity.

Talking Circle Facilitator: Justo Valenzuela Jr. is a Native American social worker with the Santa Clara County Department of Family and Children’s Services, where he also serves as Co-Chair of the Native American Employee Committee. Grounded in his Pascua Yaqui, Zapoteco, and Purépecha heritage, Justo brings a deep commitment to family, cultural identity, community healing, and social justice to his work and facilitation.

Wednesday, Nov. 19

Justice for The Ohlone Peoples Club hosts: Documentary Screening of 'Time Has Many Voices: The Excavation of a Muwekma Ohlone Village'

Noon–1 p.m.
Room 3103 

In the documentary Time Has Many Voices: The Excavation of a Muwekma Ohlone Village, the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe and archaeologists partner to conduct an intensive study at an early pre-contact site in order to uncover and preserve the history of the Muwekma Ohlone Peoples in the San Francisco Bay Area. Students will learn about the tribe’s deep ancestral connection to the land, the impact of colonization and erasure, and how archaeology can serve as a tool for Indigenous reclamation and cultural revitalization.

Monday, Nov. 24

Palestine and the Indigenous Fight for Justice:  Speaker Nadine Mansour 

12–1 p.m.
TBD

Palestine and the Indigenous Fight for Justice: 
Many people hesitate to speak out on Palestine/Israel, often told that the issue is too “complicated.” This session challenges that notion with a clear historical overview of the more than century-long Zionist project and its impact on the Palestinian people.

Framed within a global context of settler colonialism, we’ll explore the Nakba—the 1948 catastrophe that displaced hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and its ongoing reality today. Drawing connections to the experiences of Indigenous peoples in the United States, the session highlights shared histories of land theft, erasure, and resistance. 

Just as U.S. settlers slaughtered the buffalo to destroy Indigenous sovereignty in the Midwest, Zionist forces have targeted Palestinian land, agriculture, and life to sever the connection to place and self-determination. In this session, you will gain essential context for engaging with the Palestinian struggle for liberation, justice, and the right of return—while honoring the solidarities that link Indigenous peoples across the globe.

Wednesday, Nov. 26

Native American Heritage Day Celebration & NAHM Closing Ceremony

Noon–1:30 p.m.
Dining Hall

Please join us as we welcome back Miguel Gonzalez, a Native American with much to share about the Indigenous culture. 

'Songs of the Earth: Rhythm, Story, and Spirit' by Miguel Gonzalez

In honor of Native American History Month, this one-hour presentation blends ceremony, drumming, spoken word, music, and imagery to celebrate Indigenous wisdom and resilience.

Through a fusion of Native song, storytelling, poetry, and live percussion, Miguel Gonzalez invites audiences into an experience of rhythm, reflection, and connection with the Native American heritage and cultures. The performance includes a spoken word poem set to a traditional Native American song, Native flute, and original Reggae songs honoring Native culture and history.

The event concludes with an interactive drumming experience, uniting participants in rhythm, voice, and spirit.

Miguel Gonzalez is an educator and performing artist from San Jose whose work bridges Native, Afro-Latin, and contemporary traditions to promote healing, cultural pride, and community unity.

Enjoy a special meal with your Foothill College friends as we honor Native American Heritage Day. This event is meant to bring light to the plight of the Indigenous People, while celebrating our union as friends from all walks of life in the modern age. We will have an acknowledgement of Native American roots and history, along with an understanding for the true practice of gratitude. 

Complimentary meal and beverages will be provided. 

 

NAHM Planning Committee Members

Thank you to all our students, faculty and staff who helped plan our NAHM events this month.

• Alejandro (Alex) Favela
• Mia Garcia
• Vanessa Santillan-Nieto
• Lillian Pickering
• Jolina Rodriguez
• Catalina Rodriguez
• Judith Walgren
• Fatima Jinnah
• Hilda Fernandez
• Christopher Yang
• Ulysses Acevedo
• Victoria Strelnikova