Beloit proclaims October 13th as Indigenous Peoples’ Day

BELOIT, Wis. (WTVO) — The Beloit City Council has proclaimed October 13th as Indigenous Peoples’ Day, since the federal government recently reversed a prior decision to recognize Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

While Columbus Day has been a federal holiday since 1971, Indigenous Peoples’ Day is not federally recognized.

Former President Joe Biden signed a declaration recognizing both days, but President Donald Trump reversed that last week, pledging “to reclaim his extraordinary legacy of faith, courage, perseverance, and virtue from the left-wing arsonists who have sought to destroy his name and dishonor his memory.”

“Outrageously, in recent years, Christopher Columbus has been a prime target of a vicious and merciless campaign to erase our history, slander our heroes, and attack our heritage,” Trump’s proclamation reads. “Left-wing radicals toppled his statues, vandalized his monuments, tarnished his character, and sought to exile him from our public spaces.”

However, several cities and states have taken the initiative to celebrate it, highlighting the history and culture of Indigenous communities.

The recognition of Indigenous Peoples’ Day in Beloit is part of a broader movement across the country to honor Indigenous cultures. This includes the Ho-Chunk, Sauk, and Shawnee tribes, who have historical ties to the Stateline region.

In 2020, Rockford leaders officially dedicated October 12th as Indigenous Peoples’ Day, reflecting a similar commitment to acknowledging the significance of Indigenous communities in the area.

In September, Trump’s Education Department redirected nearly $500 million in federal funding from schools serving large contingents of Hispanic students, promising the money instead for historically Black colleges and tribal colleges. This could double federal funding to roughly $108 million across the United States for tribal colleges and universities, or TCUs.

There are 35 accredited TCUS with over 90 campuses across 15 states, most of which are in Indian Country, according to the American Indian Higher Education Consortium.

All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by WTVO. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by WTVO staff before being published.