WashU is proud to present Thursday Nights at the Museum, a weekly series featuring thought-provoking programming, extended museum hours, and activities.
Attend a screening of We will Speak (94 minutes), a 2023 documentary from filmmakers Schon Duncan and Michael McDermitt, then stay for a short discussion about the efforts of language activists, and younger generations to save the Cherokee language from the brink of extinction. The Cherokee language is deeply tied to Cherokee identity, yet assimilation efforts by the US government and anti-Indigenous stigmas forced the Tri-Council of Cherokee tribes to declare a state of emergency for the languages in 2019. While there are 430,000 Cherokee citizens in the three federally recognized tribes, it’s estimated that fewer than 2,000 fluent speakers remain–majority of whom are elderly.