Thursday, May 23, the Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site will host a joint presentation by Professors Ari Kelman and Elliot West covering the events which led to the Sand Creek Massacre and the decades of struggle over its memory since. The presentation takes place at the Crow-Luther Cultural Events Center in Eads beginning at 6:00 p.m.

Elliott West, Alumni Distinguished Professor of History at the University of Arkansas, specializes in teaching American Western History, Environmental History, and Native American Studies. His book The Contested Plains: Indians, Goldseekers and the Rush to Colorado(1998) won several national awards, including the Francis Parkman Prize for 1998’s most outstanding book in American history. He has been recognized twice as his university’s teacher of the year.

A Chancellor’s Leadership Professor of History at the University of California, Davis, Ari Kelman’s book A Misplaced Massacrepublished in 2013 explored the problematic and sometimes contradictory history of the Sand Creek Massacre and how it has been remembered and memorialized over time. 

Thispresentation is part of an education series, hosted by Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site, on Native and Non-Native American perspectives of history.

The series of speakers and educators is scheduled throughout 2019 to present sessions that will address American history, tribal histories, and American Indian Law.