National Library of Medicine Exhibit to Open at Chickasaw Nation
A TRAVELING EXHIBITION, NATIVE VOICES: NATIVE PEOPLES’ CONCEPTS OF HEALTH AND ILLNESS, TO OPEN WITH CHICKASAW NATION IN SULPHUR, OKLAHOMA
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Kathleen Cravedi, Director
Office of Communications and Public Liaison
National Library of Medicine
Office: 301-496-6308
Mobile: 301-379-5612
or
Tony Choate
Media Relations Director
The Chickasaw Nation
Office: 580-559-0921
Mobile: 580-421-5623
(Sulphur, Oklahoma, August 20, 2014) — A new traveling exhibition, Native Voices: Native Peoples’ Concepts of Health and Illness, which examines concepts of health and medicine among contemporary American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian people, is opening in the Chickasaw Nation ARTesian Gallery & Studios, 100 West Muskogee Street, Sulphur, Oklahoma on Tuesday, August 26, 2014. A special opening ceremony will take place in the Artesian Hotel Banquet Room at 2 p.m., featuring Chickasaw Nation officials, National Library of Medicine (NLM) Director Dr. Donald A.B. Lindberg and a musical performance by Injunuity, made up of citizens and employees of the Chickasaw Nation.
The traveling exhibition, produced by the National Library of Medicine, explores the connection between wellness, illness, and cultural life through a combination of interviews with Native people, artwork, objects, and interactive media. This is the debut of the traveling version in a location in the Lower 48 states. Native Voices will be open to the public in the ARTesian Gallery and Studios immediately following a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 3:00 p.m. on August 26, 2014 and continue through October 24, 2014. ARTesian Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Admission is free.
The National Library of Medicine has a history of working with Native communities as part of the Library’s commitment to make health information resources accessible to people no matter where they live or work. The Native Voices exhibition concept grew out of meetings with Native leaders in Alaska, Hawai`i and the Lower 48.
“This exhibition honors the Native tradition of oral history and establishes a unique collection of information,” said NLM Director Dr. Donald Lindberg. “We hope visitors will find Native Voices both educational and inspirational and we hope Native people will view it with pride.”
Chickasaw Nation Secretary of Health, Dr. Judy Goforth Parker, said that the exhibit offers important insight into indigenous views on health and healing.
“The Chickasaw Nation is honored to host the Native Voices traveling exhibition,” said Dr. Goforth Parker. “We believe it is an eye-opening experience to learn about Native American perspectives on the connections between health, heritage, culture and community included in this exhibit.”
For the media: Please contact Kathy Cravedi (cravedik@mail.nlm.nih.gov and 301-496-6308) at the National Library of Medicine or Tony Choate (Tony.Choate@chickasaw.net and 580-421-5623) of the Chickasaw Nation.
About the traveling exhibition: Native Voices: Native Peoples’ Concepts of Health and Illness examines concepts of health and medicine among contemporary American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians. The traveling exhibition features interviews and works from Native people living on reservations, in tribal villages, and in cities. Topics include: Native views of land, food, community, earth/nature, and spirituality as they relate to Native health; the relationship between traditional healing and Western medicine in Native communities; economic and cultural issues that affect the health of Native communities; efforts by Native communities to improve health conditions; and the role of Native Americans in military service and healing support for returning Native veterans.
To make the Native Voices information accessible to people even if they can’t come to the ARTesian Gallery and Studios, there is an online version of the exhibition at: www.nlm.nih.gov/nativevoices.
About the National Library of Medicine (NLM): NLM is the world’s largest library of the health sciences. The Library collects, organizes and makes available biomedical science information to scientists, health professionals and the public. NLM celebrated its 175th anniversary in 2011. For more information, visit the NLM Web site at http://www.nlm.nih.gov.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation’s medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the US Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.
About the Chickasaw Nation: With more than 50,000 citizens, the Chickasaw Nation is the 12th largest federally-recognized Indian tribe in the United States. The Chickasaw Nation had an economic impact of more than $2.4 billion in Oklahoma in 2011. The tribe is the seventh largest employer in Oklahoma, with almost 13,000 employees. A democratic republic with executive, legislative and judicial departments, the tribe’s jurisdictional territory includes all or part of 13 counties in south central Oklahoma.
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