By Cara Cowan Watts, Cherokee411.com
TULSA, Okla. Gilcrease Museum will host historian and author Linford D. Fisher for an author talk and panel discussion Sept. 30 examining the history of Indigenous enslavement in what became the United States.
The 90-minute program is scheduled for 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Helmerich Center for American Research’s PACCAR Classroom and is presented as part of the museum’s America 250 programming. Fisher, a professor of history at Brown University, will discuss his book, “Stealing America: The Hidden Story of Indigenous Slavery in U.S. History,” published by Liveright in 2026.
According to the museum, Fisher’s research documents the enslavement of nearly 600,000 Native Americans in North America, tracing the practice across different regions and periods from the years following 1492 through the centuries that followed. The book connects that history to the forced dispossession of Native land, and the museum describes it as challenging conventional narratives about slavery in the United States.
Museum organizers describe the program as an invitation for audiences to consider whose stories have shaped the country’s understanding of its own past, and whose stories have gone overlooked. Attendees are encouraged to visit the museum’s “Indigenous Independence: America at 250” exhibition at the Helmerich Center before or after the talk.
Tickets are $7 for general admission and $5 for Gilcrease members. Members must log in to their accounts to purchase tickets at the member rate. Seven-dollar snack boxes and a cash bar will be available. Seating is limited, and registration is required.
Questions about the program can be directed to Gilcrease at [email protected].
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