MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama’s capital city is observing Indigenous Peoples’ Day for the first time Monday.
Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed told the Montgomery Advertiser the city is recognizing its “true history” and being “honest about the past in order to heal, reconcile and become an even stronger community.”
Reed, a new mayor, accepted a bid this year to recognize the day. His office says Montgomery now joins five other cities in Alabama that recognize Indigenous Peoples Day.
The group Alabama Indigenous Coalition is organizing a march in the city to commemorate Native Americans who died along the Trail of Tears, which refers to the forced removal of Native Americans from their lands in the 1800s.