Rock the Native Vote Celebrates 100 Years of Indian Citizenship Act

(OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla.) June 2 marked 100 years of the Indian Citizenship Act, which ended the exclusion of Native Americans from US citizenship.

Rock the Native Vote, the Groundwork Project, AARP Oklahoma, the General Board of Global Ministries of The United Methodist Church, and the National Urban Indian Family Coalition sponsored a commemoration event at the First Americans Museum to celebrate this incredible milestone. A major factor in celebrating, though, was inspiring Native attendees to honor this anniversary by exercising their right to vote.

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Oklahoma had the lowest overall voter participation rate in the 2020 general election, according to University of Florida political science professor, Michael McDonald, who conducted election research that year. At the Indian Citizen Act anniversary event, Oklahoma State Representatives who are in office or running for office had the opportunity to speak and emphasize the importance of voting.

“Please get involved,” said Representative Arturo Alonso-Sandoval. “Whether it be in your local district or even national. If we want to see local change, we have to start at home. We have to start with local and state elections. We really [need to] make sure we are making a difference here in this great state.”

The event also made sure to celebrate Native culture, and featured Indigenous musicians such as AJ Harvey, Cecil Gray, Olivia Komahcheet, and TONEMAH.

“When people think about Indigenous artists, they think about traditional dancers or very stereotypical folks,” said Rock the Native Vote director, Ginny Underwood. “We always like to contemporize it and make sure people understand we are contributing and we are musicians on all levels. We can play the blues; we can play pop. We can do all those wonderful things.”

To learn more about Rock the Native vote, visit http://www.rockthenativevote.com/