American Indian Community House (AICH) is a non-profit organization focused on supporting American Indians in New York City and the surrounding areas. The organization was founded in 1969 but originally started as “Shunatona’s American Indian Store” at the 1964 New York World’s Fair. It was the main Native social services organization in New York City when founded by Mifaunwy Shunatona Hines (Pawnee-Otoe – Wyandotte), and remains an important advocacy organization today.
AICH has had locations all over the city ranging from Union Square, Chinatown, and Governors Island, but today they are located in Midtown, just a few blocks from Grand Central. They moved into their current location just over a year ago and it has been helpful in bringing AICH back as one of the key community spaces for Indigenous people in the city.
One of AICH’s main goals is to support the mental and physical health of its members as well as artists through its residency program.
“We do bring in other organizations to help us with… getting vaccines… Back in February, we had a flu and COVID vaccine clinic here,” Emerald Byakeddy, the Executive Assistant at AICH, said. “We also do focus on the arts. We have our artists-in-residence program that usually takes place on Governor's Island. We have maybe upwards of like 2 to 3 artists a month, who do that program and they get a decent stipend.”
Byakeddy has worked at AICH for over a year now and focuses on education and youth programming. Even in her short time there, Byakeddy has goals of helping the organization get back to where it once was.
“The stories that I hear of back in the day, AICH was pretty robust. [It] basically was like a chapter house. That's the best way I can describe it. So I think it would be nice to see it in that way as a community hub and seeing it as a place where people feel welcome just hang around… but it's… difficult when you don't have the capacity to host people like that.”
As they work to reestablish their place in the Indigenous community in NYC, they are continuing to hold events and be present at different gatherings around the city.
