The Peoples' Crossing: Honoring Relationships with Tribal Nations

Unfortunately, the City of Boulder canceled “The Peoples’ Crossing: Honoring Relationships with Tribal Nations” event at the University of Colorado on Thursday, March 14, 2024, because of snowy conditions. This was a difficult decision to make, and we are so grateful for Tribal Nations to support an event that we know would have been extraordinary.

While the snow canceled the event, Tribal Nation Representatives and singers and dancers who were in Boulder before the snow came still celebrated their traditions, cultures and histories with songs and dancing. Watch the video.

We extend our deep appreciation to Tribal Representatives for helping us plan "The Peoples' Crossing: Honoring Relationships with Tribal Nations" and plan to discuss the possibility of rescheduling the event with Tribal Representatives. We also want to thank singers and dancers from the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes for helping the city and Tribal Representatives honor and strengthen relationships with Tribal Nations despite the weather.

“The Peoples' Crossing: Honoring Relationships with Tribal Nations" was planned with Tribal Representatives and sought to:

• Welcome Tribal Representatives to share their perspectives with the Boulder community and honor their histories, traditions and cultures that have existed since time immemorial.
• Build broader Boulder-area connections to help foster respectful and meaningful engagement with Tribal Nations and Indigenous communities.
• Continue work to fulfill the city’s Indigenous Peoples Day Resolution, which helps guide our ongoing, collaborative work with Tribal Nations.
• Thank Tribal Nations who helped the city rename Settler’s Park to The People’s Crossing – a name that honors Boulder as a crossroads for Indigenous Peoples since time immemorial. We also share our gratitude to Tribal Representatives who are helping us to include their histories and perspectives into our shared histories and are helping staff develop a collaborative stewardship plan for land that has a community connection to the Sand Creek Massacre. Learn more about ongoing city work with Tribal Nations.

The event was planned to include:

• Flag processions to open and close the public program to honor Native American veterans and Tribal Nations.
• Moderated panels with Tribal Representatives on topics, such as Tribal Sovereignty, Traditional Ecological Knowledge, cultural resource management, meaningful engagement with Tribal Nations and issues Tribal Nations are facing today.
• Dancers and singers-drummers from the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, the Jicarilla Apache Nation, the Kiowa Tribe and the Northern Arapaho Tribe.
• A reception intended to help community members and organizations meet and learn from Tribal Representatives.

The name for this program was meant to honor The Peoples Crossing – a west Boulder area that Tribal Representatives named in 2021 and honors Boulder as a crossroads for Indigenous Peoples since time immemorial. The area has become an important symbol for the city in its ongoing, collaborative work with Tribal Nations.

The City of Boulder thanks Tribal Nations for the continuing opportunity to listen to and learn from them and for their ongoing collaboration with the City of Boulder.

The Peoples' Crossing is an area in west Boulder that Tribal Representatives named and honors Boulder as a crossroads for Indigenous Peoples who have traversed and lived in the mountains and plains of the Boulder area since time immemorial. The area – formerly known as Settler's Park – has become an important symbol for the city in its ongoing work to help fulfill the Indigenous Peoples Day Resolution in collaboration with Tribal Nations.