Posted on Oct 11, 2025
NLEN Honors Indigenous Peoples’ Day Monday, October 13th
NLEN is honored to recognize and celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Our campus and the beelove® cafe are closed on Monday, October 13th in recognition of the holiday.
Local Indigenous History
Chicago/Zhigaagoong is situated on the homelands of the Council of the Three Fires: the Odawa, Ojibwe, and Potawatomi Nations, and the Illinois Confederacy: the Peoria and Kaskaskia Nations.
Many other nations call this region home, including Hoocąk (Winnebago/Ho’Chunk), Jiwere (Otoe), Nutachi (Missouria), and Baxoje (Iowas), Kiash Matchitiwuk (Menominee), Meshkwahkîha (Meskwaki), Asâkîwaki (Sauk), Myaamiaki (Miami), Waayaahtanwaki (Wea), and Peeyankihšiaki (Piankashaw), Kiikaapoi (Kickapoo), Inoka (Illini Confederacy), Anishinaabeg (Ojibwe), Odawak (Odawa), and Bodéwadmik (Potawatomi).
North Lawndale was the site of multiple trade routes among indigenous tribes. While European settlers displaced many of the tribes living on Chicago’s West Side through the enactment of the 1833 Treaty of Chicago, Chicago’s indigenous history is not a point in the past: Chicago is home to the third largest urban indigenous community in the United States, with residents from 175 tribes from across the Midwest and the United States.
NLEN is dedicated to ending cycles of exploitation and disinvestment—which can be traced beyond the closure of the Sears plant all the way back to the Treaty of Chicago—because creating sustainable opportunities for families and communities is key to a thriving future.
We encourage everyone to take time on Indigenous Peoples’ Day to learn more about local indigenous history. We have included some links and resources below:
Enlace Chicago – Little Village Indigenous History