‘Skating on Stolen Land’

By Davis Ray
Special to the Times

Editor’s note: Davis Ray is a student at Northern Arizona University. He is the president of the NAU Skate Club.

FLAGSTAFF – On the evening of Friday, March 1, the Northern Arizona University Council of Indigenous Ambassadors and the NAU Skate Club collaboratively hosted a free, open-community event to honor Indigenous culture and the growing skateboarding community, titled “Skating on Stolen Land.”

Courtesy | Davis Ray
From left to right, NAU Indigenous Ambassador Báásé Pike, Doug Miles Jr. of Apache Skateboards, NAU Indigenous Co-Ambassador Denver Seaton, and NAU Skate Club President Davis Ray pose for a photo during the “Skating on Stolen Land” event on March 1, 2024, in Flagstaff.

The event hosted a plethora of Native American student clubs, local artists, as well as Doug Miles Jr. (professional skateboarder and representative of Apache Skateboards) as a special guest speaker and referee for the final game of S.K.A.T.E. Over 200 local community members attended the event and enjoyed Indian Tacos, live music, ramps, and rails to skate on and good times with friends and family.

This event was held to demonstrate the powerful intersection between skateboarding and Indigenous communities, as well as highlight NAU’s commitment as a “Native American Serving Institution.” This was a student-led initiative. The role present students played in hosting this event was to carve a path of change for those to come, creating a foundation for future generations of Native American students. In doing so NAU is recognized as a welcoming higher-education institution that supports their culture and identity providing exciting opportunities for recreation and community building.

The event was supported by Apache Skateboards, Aspen Sports, Snow Mountain River, Zumiez, Cowtown, Enchantment Skate Shop, The Gloo Factory, Rake It, and Affiliated Skateboard Co. which donated skateboard decks, grip tape, hoodies, T-shirts, stickers, and other merchandise which was offered through raffles, skateboarding competitions, and product tosses. Other student organizations were involved in the event, including KJack, the American Indian Science and Engineering Society, the Indigenous Art Society, and others.

The NAU Council of Indigenous Ambassadors and the NAU Skate Club are consistently hosting community events like this. For information on upcoming events, you can view their Instagram accounts: @nau_cia and @nauskate.