KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Students with the University of Tennessee's Native American Student Association worked with the McClung Museum to paint The Rock in honor of Indigenous Peoples' Day.
In a video posted on Instagram, Pilar Garcia, a member of the group, said the painting was meant to raise awareness for UTKNASA and for movements like Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Land Back.
"It's very important for students at UT to be aware of what's going on around them and get engaged with these indigenous groups so everyone can fully understand the cultural importance that this land has on us," Garcia said in the video.
In a post on social media, the museum thanked UTKNASA and said it is "grateful, honored, and humbled by our partnerships with Native Nations and Indigenous communities at the museum."
In August, the McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture opened an exhibition explaining the Repatriation, or return, of Native American ancestral remains and cultural items back to their proper cultural communities.
