Blog written by the Indigenous Advocacy Employee Resource Group
Alameda County, where our libraries are, is on the traditional land of the Ohlone (Oh-low-nee) people. They never gave away their rights to this land. The Ohlone people have lived here for thousands of years, and their connection to the land is still strong today.
Many Native people from different tribes also live in Alameda County. Some were forced to leave their homelands and move here from other parts of the state, the country, and the world.
AC Library shares Native voices and viewpoints through our books, resources, and programs.
Explore ways to learn about and honor Indigenous knowledge, stories, and culture.
Book Giveaway featuring Indigenous Authors
This November, visit any AC Library location to get a free book by Native authors, while supplies last.
Events at AC Library
- Mákkin Mak Wárep: Muwekma Ohlone Tapestries, In Conversation at Castro Valley Library on Saturday, November 7 at 11 am
- Mákkin Mak Wárep: Muwekma Ohline Tapestries, Viewings on Site at Castro Valley Library on Saturday, November 7 and Sunday, November 8 during open hours.
- Visit and learn about Mákkin Mak Wárep at the Castro Valley Library throughout the month of November. A lobby display documents how the project was created.
- Family Craft: Cheyenne and Mexica Shields at Union City Library on Saturday, November 14 at 3:30 pm.
- Current Issues in California Native American Law at Albany Library on Sunday, November 15 at 3 pm.
Events in the East Bay
- Native American Heritage Month: Brushy Peak Hike on Sunday, November 1 at 9 am.
- Pine Nut Jewelry at Coyote Hills Regional Park on Sunday, November 1 at 11 am.
Promote Native American, Indigenous Voices
AC Library works with local Native American and Indigenous groups. We partner with them to share their knowledge, stories, and voices. These organizations include:
- Mukwema Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area
- Native American Health Center
- Intertribal Friendship House
- American Indian Child Resource Center
- Café Ohlone
- The 'ottoy Initiative
- Alameda Native History Project
Online Resources
- Diversity & Ethnic Studies eBooks: This subscription collection includes academic eBooks related to diversity, anti-racism, ethnic studies, disability studies, gerontology & age studies, migration studies, gender and sexuality studies, cultural studies, and religious studies.
- Ethnic Diversity Source: With its curated full-text materials, Ethnic Diversity Source is essential to support the study of African Americans, Arab Americans, Asian Americans, European Americans, Jewish Americans, Latinx Americans, Multiracial Americans, and Native Americans, among others, with respect to their cultures, traditions, social treatment, and lived experiences.
- hoopla BingePass: hoopla BingePass lets you, well, binge! Entire collections of streaming content are at your fingertips with just one 7-day checkout. hoopla's BingePass collection includes materials for adults, teens, and kids. Search the keyword “Native American” to view a growing collection of eBooks, movies, and music.
- Indigenous Life in America: Explore the experience and impact of Indigenous Americans as recorded by the news media, 1690 to today.
- Living Nations, Living Words: A Map of First Peoples Poetry: This ground-breaking project, launched in celebration of Native American Heritage Month, is an interactive online map that features audio recordings of 47 contemporary Native American poets, including Louise Erdrich, Natalie Diaz, and Ray Young Bear, among many others.
- Native Land: Native Land offers an interactive map of the territories of Indigenous nations and includes territories, language maps, and maps of treaties.
Booklists
These Native centered board and picture books are for the youngest of the seven generations.
These books are fiction and graphic novels by or about Native community.
This fall, why not check out books written by Native American authors? November is Native American Heritage Month, and you can get a head start on some amazing reading selections now. The following books are newly published from 2024-2025 and are a combination of cookbooks, history, memoir, mysteries, horror, and more from indigenous authors. Enjoy these suggestions? Looking for a new book to read? Book Match is a book recommendation program offered through AC Library. Check out the website at the top of the list to go to the Book Match page.
Indigenous people have been resisting the harm of U.S. colonization since settlers first arrived here. There are many ways current-day settlers can ally themselves with Indigenous communities and work for justice here and now. Learn more with these books and resources.
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