Whose Lakefront: public art event
@ Downtown Chicago
Michigan Avenue between Roosevelt and Wacker
Opening Saturday, October 2nd, from 12PM - 3PM
This public art project foregrounds the occupation of Native land by marking the presence of unceded territory in the heart of Chicago’s downtown.
In 1914, the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians sued Chicago for land along the lakefront. As co-signers of the 1833 Treaty of Chicago, they had been forced to give up their land in Illinois up to the shore of Lake Michigan. Since then, the city had created land beyond the shore, including Streeterville, Lincoln Park, and Grant Park, some of the most valuable property in the city. The Pokagon Band argued for the return of this unceded land or payment for its value. The case went to the U.S. Supreme Court, where, predictably, the Potawatomi lost.
In Fall 2021, a procession of Native people and non-Native allies will mark this unceded territory by drawing a line of red sand along Michigan Avenue between Water Tower and Museum Campus, which roughly traces the original shoreline of Lake Michigan.
Join us on Saturday October 2, 2021 to witness the creation of this line.
This project is supported by The Propeller Fund and the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) Individual Artist Program.
Official Website
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Tags: Chicago, Chicago Lakefront, Loop, public art event, Whose Lakefront
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