MADISON, Wis. — The City of Madison began to fly the Ho-Chunk Nation flag on Wednesday in front of the Madison Municipal Building on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, according to a release.
Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway signed a proclamation on Wednesday for the flag to be flown in honor of Ho-Chunk Day. The flag also seeks to recognize that Madison is located on the Nation’s ancestral land, the mayor said.
“I hope that flying the Nation’s flag will be a reminder to us all that our city exists on land that belonged to the Ho-Chunk,” Mayor Rhodes-Conway said. “This is a way to honor that history, and to strengthen the ties between the City and the Nation.”
Ho-Chunk Nation Day was declared the day after Thanksgiving in the City of Madison by the common council in 2018. The flag flown was presented to the mayor by Ho-Chunk Nation President Marlon WhiteEagle in a ceremony in 2019.
“The flying of the Ho-Chunk flag affirms the Ho-Chunk people’s rightful place in history, in this place from the Ice Age until now and well into the future,” said President WhiteEagle. “The Ho-Chunk people are grateful for this recognition and hopeful we can continue to work and live together, making each day better than the last.”
Alder Arvina Martin, who is a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation and was instrumental in declaring Ho-Chunk Nation Day, said that the flag is an acknowledgement of the area’s history and the Ho-Chunk contribution.
The flag was adopted in 1992 and is white with a green border. It bears an applique design across the middle and a tribal seal in the center.
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