'We're Finally Being Recognized'

Procession, Festivities to Mark Opening of American Indian Museum

Bruce "Two Dogs" Bozsum of the Mohegan tribe blesses Liberty and Freedom totem poles at the Pentagon, in honor of the 184 people who died there in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The totem poles were carved by Jewell Praying Wolf James, a councilman for the Lummi Nation. (Photos Katherine Frey -- The Washington Post)

An electronic sign at the entrance can greet visitors in 150 native versions of "Welcome." The restaurant's cooks are preparing everything from the "Campfire Buffalo Burger" to "Pueblo Tortilla Soup." Beaded moccasins, feathered headdresses and woven blankets are among 8,000 artifacts on display.

After 15 years of planning and five years of construction, the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian opens tomorrow with a celebration expected to draw as many as 20,000 Native Americans to the nation's capital for what organizers are calling the largest tribal gathering in history.

From Hawaiians to Crees to Apaches, representatives of more than 400 tribes and native communities from across the Western Hemisphere are to march in an opening procession along the Mall, a ceremony infused with historic and symbolic significance for a population that has long sought national recognition.

"Finally, finally, after all these years," Kathy Wesley Kitcheyan, chairwoman of the San Carlos Apache tribe, said from her office in southeastern Arizona. "Our people throughout the nation -- not just the Apaches -- Indian people everywhere, have made all kinds of contributions, and now we're finally being recognized."

It's not just the size of the event that tribes consider important. It's the location, on the Mall, where the $219 million museum -- a curving, honey-colored limestone mass designed to resemble a southwestern rock formation -- was built on the last available parcel.

"We feel like we have a thumbprint now in Washington, D.C.," said Jacqueline Johnson, executive director of the National Congress of American Indians, a District-based organization that represents nearly 600 state and federally recognized tribes. "All other kinds of groups have representation on the Mall. We haven't had anything."

Beginning just before the start of the fall equinox, a seasonal transition normally celebrated by Native Americans, the opening day festivities are expected to draw 60,000 visitors to the Mall, the site of a noontime ceremony to dedicate the museum, as well as an evening concert that will include performances by vocalists Rita Coolidge, a Cherokee, and Buffy Sainte-Marie, who was born on the Cree reservation in Saskatchewan.

For six days, the part of the Mall between Third and Seventh streets NW will be home to the "First Americans Festival," which will feature crafts demonstrations, food booths and outdoor performances by 300 singers, dancers and storytellers representing 50 native communities.

The celebration is not confined to the Mall. A commemorative service was held yesterday at National Cathedral. Today through Friday, a congressional caucus devoted to Native Americans is to host four briefings on issues ranging from gaming to the need for federal funding in Indian communities.

And the Liberty and Freedom totem poles, carved by Jewell Praying Wolf James, a councilman for the Lummi Nation, and other master carvers, have been put up temporarily outside the Pentagon in honor of the 184 people who died there during the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Police urge people working or visiting in the Mall area tomorrow to take Metro because the festivities will close several thoroughfares, including Fourth Street between Independence and Pennsylvania avenues, and Seventh Street between Independence and Constitution avenues. In addition, Madison and Jefferson drives NW, between Third and 14th streets, will be closed from 6 a.m. to mid-afternoon, along with the 12th Street ramps between Constitution Avenue and Madison Drive.

After the dedication ceremony, the museum, across Fourth Street from the National Air and Space Museum, will open to the public at 1 p.m., with admission granted to those who have "timed-entry passes." A limited number of the passes will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis at the museum at 9 a.m. tomorrow.

To accommodate what organizers are expecting to be large crowds, the museum is scheduled to remain open all night, with no tickets required for admission between midnight and 7 a.m. Wednesday.

"Thousands of native people are traveling by bus, car and plane from all corners of our nation, so we want to do everything we can to be hospitable and extend the hours so more people can see the museum," said Thomas Sweeney, a museum spokesman.