'We need each other': Prairie Island, Red Wing start 'Honoring Dakota' mural
Nicky Buck is a Prairie Island Indian Community member and one of the organizers behind the Honoring Dakota project, which aims to build relationships and increase indigenous representation in Red Wing, Minn. The project is expected to culminate with the unveiling of a mural near He Mni Can/Barn Bluff on Indigenous People’s Day 2023.
Courtesy of Nicky Buck
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Red Wing’s He Mni Can, also known as Barn Bluff, has been quarried, blasted open and vandalized over the last 150 years.
The bluff along the Mississippi River is a sacred place for the Mdewakanton Dakota. The destruction of that place is a painful reminder of forced Dakota exile and assimilation.
But in the past few years, Prairie Island Indian Community and the City of Red Wing have been working to protect the bluff and more fully represent its history.
Now the two governments are partners in a mural planned for a wall near the bluff. But for organizers of the mural project, this effort is about much more than the art itself.
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They aim to improve indigenous representation in Red Wing, confront historical trauma and promote mental health. MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer talks with Prairie Island Indian Community member Nicky Buck, a leader in the Honoring Dakota project, about these goals.
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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Audio transcript
CATHY WURZER: Red Wing's Barn Bluff, also called He Mni Can by the Dakota, has been quarried, climbed upon, and vandalized over the last 150 years. It's an important place for the Dakota. And the destruction of that landmark is a painful reminder of forced Dakota exile and assimilation. In the past few years, the Prairie Island Indian community and the city of Red Wing have been working to protect the Bluff and more fully represent its history.
Now, the two governments are partners in a mural plan for a wall which is near the Bluff. Organizers of the mural project aim to improve Indigenous representation in Red Wing, confront historical trauma, and promote mental health. Prairie Island Indian community member Nicky Buck is a leader in the honoring Dakota Project. She's with us to talk about it. Nicky, thank you for joining us. Welcome.
NICKY BUCK: Thank you for having me.
CATHY WURZER: Looking at the project's website, the phrase, we are all related, if you could pronounce that in Dakota for me, is a central theme.
NICKY BUCK: [SPEAKING DAKOTAN]
CATHY WURZER: Can you talk about what that theme means to you?
NICKY BUCK: Growing up and being emerged in my culture and my traditions, it means that I'm just a part of the circle. I'm neither above or below, but part of something greater outside of myself, which would be community. And amongst community, for us as human beings, it's important that we understand our place in that circle amongst all living things.
CATHY WURZER: Do you feel as a member of the general area around Red Wing that you are part of the community of Red Wing?
NICKY BUCK: Absolutely. So I was born and raised on Prairie Island, and my parents divorced and my dad moved to Albuquerque. I was in Hager city for about 10 years then came back to Red Wing. So born and raised in I call the Mississippi River Valley area.
CATHY WURZER: Which is a gorgeous, gorgeous area. Talk about the mural and what it means to perhaps greater Indigenous representation in that area of the Mississippi River.
NICKY BUCK: So we have our way of life that is in connection with the land. So we're knowledge keepers of how to live and coexist and take care of the land. And so when you have Dakota representation by authentic Dakota people, that's a sign of acknowledgment that we're acknowledged and that they're opening the door for us to come and be a part of the community.
CATHY WURZER: I know that last week, there was, if I understand it correctly, there was all kinds of events. There was this Winter Carnival over the weekend and also some community conversations with elders. And high school students, which I think is quite interesting. What did you see in here?
NICKY BUCK: It was really interesting. So these are just the things that we do on Prairie Island. And so the idea was just to open the door to let people into our world to see how we are as Dakota people and share. Because we have a shared history and a shared land now.
And many of us, we come from both worlds, such as myself. So I'm also of Scandinavian descent. So being able to break those barriers and merge community together as a whole, I was just raised that way, and I'm a firm believer of it. So I just wanted to make it available for everybody, because we really are [SPEAKING DAKOTAN]. We're all related.
CATHY WURZER: Yeah. A lot of the events, I understand, also focused on healing from historical trauma. We just, of course, had a guest on a few minutes ago talking about trauma. And also events focusing on mental health. So for where you stand, what do you think folks in the community need more of to continue the healing?
NICKY BUCK: We need each other. Because this is a joint journey. And it's going to be hard to do that with the trauma in between. So if we learn about it and understand it and maybe slow down and move forward together, it won't be so hard or so scary, because we know we're not alone.
Because trauma isn't just limited to Indigenous people. We've all experienced it in some way, shape, or form. And when you've gone through it, perhaps one of the most lonely roads is you feel alone. You feel like you're all by yourself. And that's not the case. That's the sense of community. And that what we're trying to build and bring back, because that's the way of the land.
CATHY WURZER: Tell me about the mural. I'm familiar with the Barn Bluff area. Where will it be?
NICKY BUCK: It is going to be directly across Highway 61 from it.
CATHY WURZER: Excellent.
NICKY BUCK: It's going to be the first thing that you see when you come in the state of Minnesota from Wisconsin.
CATHY WURZER: Ah, OK. Then I think I know where it's going to be. And what do you want to see in that mural?
NICKY BUCK: Well, I guess what it's going to be is we're going to come together as a community, as Prairie Island, and decide how we want our history to be put in the mural. But the whole idea is we're going to start out with our history. Then the joint history, and then where we are today and how we can reconcile and move forward.
CATHY WURZER: What excites you about the project?
NICKY BUCK: People coming together. When people come together for good and positive, it changes things. The youth are really struggling-- well, all of our people are struggling. Youth, in particular. And our land isn't thriving very well either, as we can tell by the effects of climate change. Because this is not technically supposed to be the temperature for January in my world, because I harvest plants and I have a relationship with them.
And so, if we come together, maybe we can address these things and fix them together. So that's my hope, is to bringing the people together.
CATHY WURZER: Efforts don't stop obviously at the Bluff, right? Red Wing just received this grant to support equity and inclusion and accessibility work downtown. I know you are consulting on that project. So that's a lot of work going forward for you.
NICKY BUCK: Yes. Very exciting work. And this mural project was just like a test of how it's going to be. For the Winter Carnival, like I said, these are the things that we've already done on Prairie Island for our own community. So what we did is just, we open the doors and kind of made it bigger.
We're creating opportunities for our people to present their gifts and skills for the greater public. And it's not just Indigenous people. This grant that they receive is to diversify all of the economics of downtown Red Wing. So it includes the African American community. The Latinx community. All groups that are diverse, it's to help grow the economics, and again, include everybody at the table.
CATHY WURZER: It's going to be a lot of work. But Nicky, I appreciate you telling us about it. We're going to have to follow up with you to see how it's going. Thank you for your time.
NICKY BUCK: Thank you. I appreciate it.
CATHY WURZER: Nicky Buck is a member of the Prairie Island Indian community. She's involved in multiple initiatives in Red Wing, and that includes the creation of an Honoring Dakota mural that's expected to be unveiled on Indigenous Peoples' Day later this year.
Now, the two governments are partners in a mural plan for a wall which is near the Bluff. Organizers of the mural project aim to improve Indigenous representation in Red Wing, confront historical trauma, and promote mental health. Prairie Island Indian community member Nicky Buck is a leader in the honoring Dakota Project. She's with us to talk about it. Nicky, thank you for joining us. Welcome.
NICKY BUCK: Thank you for having me.
CATHY WURZER: Looking at the project's website, the phrase, we are all related, if you could pronounce that in Dakota for me, is a central theme.
NICKY BUCK: [SPEAKING DAKOTAN]
CATHY WURZER: Can you talk about what that theme means to you?
NICKY BUCK: Growing up and being emerged in my culture and my traditions, it means that I'm just a part of the circle. I'm neither above or below, but part of something greater outside of myself, which would be community. And amongst community, for us as human beings, it's important that we understand our place in that circle amongst all living things.
CATHY WURZER: Do you feel as a member of the general area around Red Wing that you are part of the community of Red Wing?
NICKY BUCK: Absolutely. So I was born and raised on Prairie Island, and my parents divorced and my dad moved to Albuquerque. I was in Hager city for about 10 years then came back to Red Wing. So born and raised in I call the Mississippi River Valley area.
CATHY WURZER: Which is a gorgeous, gorgeous area. Talk about the mural and what it means to perhaps greater Indigenous representation in that area of the Mississippi River.
NICKY BUCK: So we have our way of life that is in connection with the land. So we're knowledge keepers of how to live and coexist and take care of the land. And so when you have Dakota representation by authentic Dakota people, that's a sign of acknowledgment that we're acknowledged and that they're opening the door for us to come and be a part of the community.
CATHY WURZER: I know that last week, there was, if I understand it correctly, there was all kinds of events. There was this Winter Carnival over the weekend and also some community conversations with elders. And high school students, which I think is quite interesting. What did you see in here?
NICKY BUCK: It was really interesting. So these are just the things that we do on Prairie Island. And so the idea was just to open the door to let people into our world to see how we are as Dakota people and share. Because we have a shared history and a shared land now.
And many of us, we come from both worlds, such as myself. So I'm also of Scandinavian descent. So being able to break those barriers and merge community together as a whole, I was just raised that way, and I'm a firm believer of it. So I just wanted to make it available for everybody, because we really are [SPEAKING DAKOTAN]. We're all related.
CATHY WURZER: Yeah. A lot of the events, I understand, also focused on healing from historical trauma. We just, of course, had a guest on a few minutes ago talking about trauma. And also events focusing on mental health. So for where you stand, what do you think folks in the community need more of to continue the healing?
NICKY BUCK: We need each other. Because this is a joint journey. And it's going to be hard to do that with the trauma in between. So if we learn about it and understand it and maybe slow down and move forward together, it won't be so hard or so scary, because we know we're not alone.
Because trauma isn't just limited to Indigenous people. We've all experienced it in some way, shape, or form. And when you've gone through it, perhaps one of the most lonely roads is you feel alone. You feel like you're all by yourself. And that's not the case. That's the sense of community. And that what we're trying to build and bring back, because that's the way of the land.
CATHY WURZER: Tell me about the mural. I'm familiar with the Barn Bluff area. Where will it be?
NICKY BUCK: It is going to be directly across Highway 61 from it.
CATHY WURZER: Excellent.
NICKY BUCK: It's going to be the first thing that you see when you come in the state of Minnesota from Wisconsin.
CATHY WURZER: Ah, OK. Then I think I know where it's going to be. And what do you want to see in that mural?
NICKY BUCK: Well, I guess what it's going to be is we're going to come together as a community, as Prairie Island, and decide how we want our history to be put in the mural. But the whole idea is we're going to start out with our history. Then the joint history, and then where we are today and how we can reconcile and move forward.
CATHY WURZER: What excites you about the project?
NICKY BUCK: People coming together. When people come together for good and positive, it changes things. The youth are really struggling-- well, all of our people are struggling. Youth, in particular. And our land isn't thriving very well either, as we can tell by the effects of climate change. Because this is not technically supposed to be the temperature for January in my world, because I harvest plants and I have a relationship with them.
And so, if we come together, maybe we can address these things and fix them together. So that's my hope, is to bringing the people together.
CATHY WURZER: Efforts don't stop obviously at the Bluff, right? Red Wing just received this grant to support equity and inclusion and accessibility work downtown. I know you are consulting on that project. So that's a lot of work going forward for you.
NICKY BUCK: Yes. Very exciting work. And this mural project was just like a test of how it's going to be. For the Winter Carnival, like I said, these are the things that we've already done on Prairie Island for our own community. So what we did is just, we open the doors and kind of made it bigger.
We're creating opportunities for our people to present their gifts and skills for the greater public. And it's not just Indigenous people. This grant that they receive is to diversify all of the economics of downtown Red Wing. So it includes the African American community. The Latinx community. All groups that are diverse, it's to help grow the economics, and again, include everybody at the table.
CATHY WURZER: It's going to be a lot of work. But Nicky, I appreciate you telling us about it. We're going to have to follow up with you to see how it's going. Thank you for your time.
NICKY BUCK: Thank you. I appreciate it.
CATHY WURZER: Nicky Buck is a member of the Prairie Island Indian community. She's involved in multiple initiatives in Red Wing, and that includes the creation of an Honoring Dakota mural that's expected to be unveiled on Indigenous Peoples' Day later this year.
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