Founded 1953 | ||
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Type Non-profit cultural organization Location 1630 West Wilson Ave. Chicago Area served Chicago metropolitan area Services Archery, Social services, education, cultural programming Key people AL Eastman, Archery Director | ||
The American Indian Center (AIC) of Chicago is the oldest urban Native American center in the United States. It provides social services, youth and senior programs, cultural learning, and meeting opportunities for Native American peoples. It is located in the Uptown, Chicago community area.
Founded in 1953 by Native Americans with assistance from the American Friends Service Committee, the Center was a response to an increasing influx of native people into Chicago. This migration was largely prompted by the Indian termination policy and the Indian Relocation Act of 1956, which sought to assimilate Native Americans into urban America. As noted by the AIC, "Native people from tribes throughout the country, arrived in Chicago. In addition to the Oneida, Ojibwa, Menominee, Sac and Fox, and Potawatomi of the north woods, Lakota, Navajo, Blackfoot, Papago, and many others were represented. The result was (and is) a multi-tribal community (including members of more than 50 tribes) searching for a common social and cultural ground." The center provided, and provides, a way for the people it serves to build community organizations and support in the city.
From its start, the Center has been overseen by the Native American members, from a variety of tribes, who make up its board. One of its longest running social and educational programs is the annual pow-wow, and it has also organized study opportunities, exhibits and conferences with academic institutions. The Center has also collaborated with Chicago Public Schools to establish alternative education programs for Native American students, including Little Big Horn High School in 1971. In addition to its present center in Chicago, which opened in 1966, in 2005 it opened the Trickster Gallery in Schaumburg, Illinois, to showcase contemporary Native American artists. Trickster Gallery is no longer affiliated with AIC. The AIC is a member of the Chicago Cultural Alliance. Archery at the American Indian Center hosts a Junior Olympic and Adult Achievement program.