Arlington Reads Together in March

The library’s annual community read program, Arlington Reads Together (ART), returns in March 2022.  This year’s selected title, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer is a New York Times bestseller focusing on indigenous peoples’ understanding of the natural world, and the intersection between indigenous and scientific knowledge.

Pick up copies of Braiding Sweetgrass at the Robbins or Fox Library, or request a copy by phone or online via the MLN catalog. The title is also available as a digital download ebook or audiobook via Hoopla. You can also download Reading Guides for the book.

Understanding our Past, Creating a Sustainable Future: An Indigenous Understanding of Climate Justice with Dr. Kyle Whyte
Sunday, March 6
2:00 p.m. 
Dr. Kyle Whyte, enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation and George Willis Pack Professor at the School for Environment and Sustainability at the University of Michigan, addresses critical issues facing  indigenous peoples and environmental justice.   Dr. Whyte asks important questions: what ethical considerations exist for indigenous people working with science organizations? What is the anthropocene and why does it matter? Learn the answers to these questions and more, and pose some of your own during the moderated Q&A. This program is made possible through generous support from the Arlington Libraries Foundation. 

Author Talk
Native Americans of New England: History, Colonial Legacies and Survival with Professor Christoph Strobel
Thursday, March 3, 2022
7:00 p.m.
Join this Zoom meeting
Presented by Christoph Strobel, Professor of History at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and the author of “Native Americans of New England,” this talk and discussion explores the history of Native Americans in New England. While we will not turn a blind eye to the impact that colonization, dispossession, and racism had on the story of indigenous peoples in the region, we will also explore Native American resistance, adaptation, and survival under often harsh and unfavorable circumstances. Moreover, we will examine some of the colonial legacies that still shape the views and (mis-) perceptions about Indigenous peoples to this day.   Co-sponsored with the Wellesley Free Library.  

Author Talk
“All the Real Indians Died Off”: And 20 Other Myths About Native Americans with Dina Gilio-Whitaker
Monday, March 14
7:00 p.m. 
Register for this Webinar
Dina Gilio-Whitaker, coauthor of All The Real Indians Died Off: And 20 Other Myths About Native Americans discusses the wide range of myths about Native American culture and history that have misinformed generations. Gilio-Whitaker will discuss how historical narrative myths like “Columbus Discovered America,” “Indians Were Savage and Warlike,” and many others are rooted in fears and prejudice of European settlers and in the larger political agendas of a setter state aimed at acquiring Indigenous land tied to narratives or erasure and disappearance. Co-sponsored with The Watertown Free Public Library.

Director’s Film Screening
We Still Live Here: As Nutayuneân, with Director Q&A with Anne Makepeace 
Tuesday, March 29
7:00 p.m.
Register for this Webinar
Director Anne Makepeace joins us for a film screening and Q&A of her award winning film, We Still Live Here: As Nutayuneân. Celebrated every Thanksgiving as the Indians who saved the Pilgrims from starvation, and then largely forgotten, the Wampanoag Tribes of Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard are now saying loud and clear, and in their Native tongue, “As Nutayuneân,” – We Still Live Here.  Spurred on by their celebrated linguist, Jessie Little Doe Baird, winner of a MacArthur `genius’ award, the Wampanoag are bringing their language home. Like many Native American stories, this one begins with a vision. Years ago, Jessie began having recurring dreams: familiar-looking people from another time speaking in an incomprehensible language. These visions sent her on an odyssey that would uncover hundreds of documents written in Wampanoag, lead her to a Masters in Linguistics at MIT, and result in an unprecedented feat of language reclamation by her people. Jessie’s daughter Mae is the first Native speaker of Wampanoag in a century. Generously supported by the Friends of Robbins Library and Plug In.