Name: Other Steps, Another Time: Garland Native American Awareness Day
Start: 2026-03-07T10:00:00-06:00
End: 2026-03-07T16:00:00-06:00
Location: Plaza Theatre

Other Steps, Another Time: Garland Native American Awareness Day

First American heritage and culture representative of the North Texas area and beyond will be explored during the event, "Other Steps, Another Time: Garland Native American Awareness Day", on Saturday, March 7, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Garland's Plaza Theatre.
The free program will include screenings of two feature-length films, a keynote address by a prominent historian, presentations by representatives of two tribes identified with North Texas, dance and art demonstrations, artifacts, and other exhibits.
It also will feature an original dramatic dialogue and musical number that illustrates one family's experience during The Removal in the early 1800s, when tribes had to leave behind ancestral lands and relocate to new homes elsewhere.
The event, open to the public, is sponsored by the nonprofit Friends of Garland's Historic Magic 11th Street and the Garland Library. It is designed to help Garlandites and others learn more about the region's original occupants and the Native American experience.
The feature-length films to be shown are "Te Ata" and "Montford: Chickasaw Rancher". "Te Ata" tells the story of Mary Thompson Fisher, who traversed cultural barriers to become one of the first Native American performers of all time and who used her platform to become an advocate for Native Americans. "Montford: Chickasaw Rancher" illustrates the hardships Montford Johnson overcame to establish a vast ranching empire in the American West.
Keynoting will be Joe Thomas (not Garland City Councilmember Joe Thomas Jr.), considered the Chickasaw Nation's premier authority on the Removal and on Native American Heritage. Hardships during the Removal (sometimes called the Trail of Tears) were experienced by many other tribes.
Other speakers are Derek Ross, Baylor University indigenous scholar-in-residence and premier spokesperson on the Wichita affiliated tribe, which includes the Tawakoni tribe, and Ricky Reyes, a member of the Jumanos tribe of Texas.
For more information, follow the Facebook page "Other Steps, Another Time" for regular updates. Also see the nonprofit's website, Friends of Garland's Historic Magic 11th Street, or email [email protected]
The event is funded in part by a grant from the Garland Cultural Arts Commission.