Santa Clara University was one of the first institutions on the United States west coast to begin profitizing from the use of land appropriated from Native American tribes.  The school was founded in 1851 by the Society of Jesus on grounds stolen from the Ohlone people.  Indigenous homes and communities were replaced with a Catholic conquest known as Mission Santa Clara de Asis. Mission Santa Clara was the first college of higher learning in the state of California.  

Yet somehow in 2022, as other California universities take unprecedented steps toward including Native American students, Santa Clara University still fails to respect federally recognized Indigenous People's Day.   Indigenous peoples worldwide continue to face disproportionate levels of adversity, violence, and institutional barriers, all while actively advocating for their communities and creating space for their identitiy to be celebrated.  As an institution of higher education that boasts a holisitic application of Jesuit values, the least we can do is recognize our history of colonialism and honor Native Communities by reserving the second Monday of each October as an academic holiday.  

Join voices from your campus representing the Native American Coalition for Change, the Multicultural Center, IESAC and ASG to make progress today.  As these organizations draft legislation to make our demand clear and work to gain the support of Staff and Faculty Senates, they need your help.

Sign this petition to show administration that the students of Santa Clara University do not want to be complicit with the legacy of colonial violence any longer.  Add your name below to show support for adopting Indigenous People's Day as an academic and administrative holiday.