Miko Peled, an activist in the struggle for human rights and a lasting peace in Palestine/Israel, and Martin Reinhardt, a citizen of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians and NMU faculty member, will present “Settler Colonialism in the ‘Promised Lands’: Similarities and Differences Between US and Israeli treatment of Indigenous Peoples.” This discussion begins at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 16, in Mead Auditorium. It is free and open to the public. 

Peled’s father was one of the key Israeli generals in the 1967 six- day war, where Israel captured the West Bank and Gaza. His grandfather was one of the founders of the state of Israel. In 1997, his niece Smadar was killed by a suicide bomber in Jerusalem. That tragedy propelled Peled on a journey of discovery, pushed him to re-examine many of the beliefs he had grown up with and transformed him into an activist.

Reinhardt is an associate professor of Native American studies NMU, where his current research focuses on revitalizing the relationship between humans and indigenous plants and animals of the Great Lakes Region. As a staunch advocate of the rights of indigenous peoples, he has conducted extensive research on American Indian treaties and is a plaintiff in a lawsuit against the State of Michigan regarding the attempted sale of treaty-ceded territory to Graymont Mining Corporation.