Museum exhibit invites people to learn about Maine Native Americans

PORTLAND (WGME) -- Mainers celebrated Indigenous Peoples’ Day for the first time on Monday.

Lawmakers renamed the holiday that used to honored Christopher Columbus because of the atrocities he and other European explorers committed.

On Monday, the Maine Historical Society in Portland invited people to learn about some of the first people in Maine -- the Wabanaki.

In addition to their drumming and singing, people who attended were able to tour a museum exhibit called "Holding up the Sky."

“It looks at 13,000 years of Wabanaki history and I co-curated it with seven Wabanaki curators so you'll get their perspective and narrative of Maine history,” said Maine Historical Society Curator Tilly Laskey. “There's a really strong artistic legacy of Wabanaki people that are really based on traditions so you'll see beautiful pieces that go millennia back.”

The exhibit will be open until February 1.