The Year in Photos: 2024

Noeledrich works tirelessly to tell and share powerful stories from Native nations and Indigenous communities across the Pacific Northwest. A critical part of what we do is visual storytelling, with our photographers traversing long distances to be where the story is: standing on the shores of sqʷuʔquʔqʷaǰali, the “place befallen with water,” as dozens of canoe families make their landing; documenting protesters as they shut down a city council meeting while demanding a ceasefire for Palestine; attending the largest Native youth gathering Nike has ever seen; and much, much more.

Here’s a look at some of the unforgettable moments from 2024. We’re excited to offer this digital collection of powerful images from our staff, freelance photographers and publishing partners — each one committed to sharing the essence of the communities we serve.

None of this would be possible without community support. It’s a privilege to be invited into these spaces and trusted with documenting such impactful and joyous moments.

Underscore is proud and honored to serve as your trusted source for Indigenous-centered, high-quality news, and we look forward to bringing you even more award-winning coverage in the year to come.

We hope you enjoy revisiting just a few of our favorite images of 2024 as much as we enjoyed creating them!

January

Patricia “Patsy” Whitefoot, Yakama, is a professional educator and Indigenous activist, and co-host for the War Cry podcast, which covers the movement to address MMIP and profiles specific cases. Ever since her sister’s disappearance, Whitefoot has dedicated much of her life to bringing awareness to the MMIP movement. She stands in front of a mural outside of the Yakamart Gas Station on the Yakama Nation Indian Reservation in Toppenish, Wash. that is dedicated to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

Over 100 community members from Portland and neighboring cities gathered at Lovejoy Fountain Park in downtown Portland for an Indigenous-led sunrise ceremony in solidarity with Palestine, on Jan 24. Two individuals hold cardboard signs that read “Free Palestine” and “Haven’t we surpassed apartheid.” Following the ceremony, dozens of community members attended the Portland city council meeting later in the day where they demanded the commissioners pass a resolution for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

February

Ed Edmo, Shoshone-Bannock, is a traditional storyteller, poet, playwright, published author, actor, performer, instructor and tour guide who lectures on cultural issues at cultural sites in the Pacific Northwest. He holds up his stuffed bald eagle puppet as he poses for his photo in front of the “A Place Called Home” mural inside the Portland International Airport, created by Portland artists Jeremy Nichols and Alex Chiu. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

Oregon State Rep. Tawna Sanchez, D-43rd District, Shoshone-Bannock, Ute and Carrizo and NAYA’s director of family services, and Rep. Annessa Hartman D-40th District, Haudenosaunee, the only two Native American women serving in the Oregon State Legislature, wave up at a row of familiar faces. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

March

Nearly 150 people from across the Northwest gathered at Chinook Winds Casino Resort in Lincoln City, Ore. to learn various weaving techniques from 12 Native American master weavers at the inaugural Gathering of Native Weavers of Oregon put on by the Portland All Nations Canoe Family. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

Akane Ironheart, 18 months, citizen of the Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe, and two other young girls wear wool shawls woven by her mother, Stephanie Ironheart, an enrolled member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

Kenneth “Kenny” Shields (center of the drum circle) is the husband of the late Barbie Shields. With his help, Future Generations Collaborative brainstormed the idea of creating Barbie’s Village as a way to honor her legacy. Shields said he and his wife dreamt about creating a safe place for Native families who, like them, had small children and needed a place to turn to when struggling to secure safe and affordable housing.(Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

April

Javelina chef and owner Alexa Numkena-Anderson is a Hopi citizen and a descendant of the Yakama, Cree and Skokomish nations. For the past year, she and her team have brought Indigenous culture and cuisine to nearly two dozen pop-up events around Portland. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

Glenn Black, adult peer support specialist for the Quinault Indian Nation’s Adult Wellness Court, with the sweat lodge dome he built on the Quinault Reservation in Taholah, Wash. on Nov. 7, 2023. Black holds Sunday sweats with wellness court participants. (Photo by Luna Reyna / ICT + Noeledrich)

May

Colleta Macy, citizen of the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation, and other members of the “Indigenous Resistance” offered a hand drum song in solidarity with Palestine. (Photo by Nika Bartoo-Smith, Noeledrich + ICT)

Polimana Joshevana, Hopi, research and evaluation lead for the Future Generations Collaborative, attended the Powwow for Palestine on May 4, showing her support for students while wearing beaded red dress earrings and a white mask with a red handprint. The red dress signifies the thousands of people impacted by violence and the red handprint symbolizes the silenced voices of missing and murdered Indigenous relatives. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

Three sheer, silk chiffon fabrics with printed images of featured artist, Mikaela Shafer, hang above an antique metal bed frame in the corner of the gallery room of the Center for Native Arts & Cultures building. (Photo by Jarrette Werk Underscore, Native News / Report for America)

Liora Hill, 14, Klamath, Modoc and Kikapoo, said prayers for each grave as she placed roses on headstones at Chemawa Cemetery – the final resting place of approximately 175 of the 270 Chemawa students who died while under the care of the school between 1880-1945. “They were just kids, they didn’t get to live their lives, and that’s just sad to me,” Hill said. “I wanted to come here to honor them because I would hope someone would do it for me.” (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America.)

June

Austin Halvorsen, Cowlitz tribal member and Cowlitz Youth Program coordinator, sits with Tyreace Ashton, 12, at the fire during the Cowlitz First Salmon Ceremony on June 2, 2024 to watch over the cooking salmon. (Photo by Nika Bartoo-Smith, Noeledrich + ICT)

A child plays on playground equipment in the courtyard of khwat yaka haws after the opening event of NAYA’s latest housing endeavor on June 25, 2024. The family housing shelter in Milwaukie will provide support to Native families experiencing homelessness. The shelter is called khwat yaka haws, which translates to “Auntie’s Place” in Chinook. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

July

Nina Vega, 3, from Goldendale, Wash. takes a sip of her drink while holding her cousin’s sleeping puppy, named Mosquito, before the Pi-Ume-Sha Treaty Days grand entry on June 29, 2024. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

Nearly 60 years ago, the Kwoneesum Dam was constructed to create a recreational lake for girls attending a summer camp, blocking over 6.5 miles of fish habitat along the Washougal River. By the end of the summer, the dam will be removed and coho salmon and summer steelhead will swim freely once again. (Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

*A boat carrying citizens of Yakama Nation traveled to the base of Willamette Falls for Pacific lamprey harvesting on July 12, 2024. (Photo by Nika Bartoo-Smith, Noeledrich / ICT)*

The Iksiks Washana’lama” or Little Swans Dancers, is a collection of girls and young women dedicated to practicing traditions, songs and dances of the Plateau Indian Tribes of the Northwest. Two young girls performed for Patricia “Patsy” Whitefoot, a key elder with the collective, during her honorary doctorate celebration held on July 12, 2024. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

August

Two young girls watch as volunteers help carry a canoe ashore as they make their landing at sqʷuʔqʷuʔqʷaǰali, the “place befallen with water” or Owen Beach, during the 2024 Tribal Journeys/Canoe Journey. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America.)

From left, Aaliyah James, 11, Pacheedaht, sits with her friend Nevaeh Sam-Charlie, 13, Pacheedaht, as they prepare for the final pull from Owen Beach to Puyallup Canoe Landing. (Photo by Carrie Johnson, Noeledrich)

The march in December 2023 to raise awareness of the disappearance of Wilma Acosta began outside of Dixie Tavern, where Acosta was last seen. Supporters sang, prayed and drummed before following the Willamette River waterfront through downtown Portland to PPB’s central precinct and City Hall. (Photo by Amanda Freeman / Noeledrich)

September

Micheal Rabang, 82, and Michelle Roberts, 59, disenrolled citizens of the Nooksack Indian Tribe, stand in front of Rabang’s home for the last 19 years on Tuesday, August 20. Rabang’s home is one of seven households facing eviction that were supported by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Native American housing dollars as well as federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program assistance. This program was meant to create a pathway to homeownership for Native people across the state. Each unit in the LIHTC Program has a lifetime of 15 years in the program. After 15 years, the unit should have been conveyed to the tenant who is residing in the unit at the time of the 15th year regardless of the amount of time the tenant lived in the unit. (Photo by Luna Reyna, Noeledrich + ICT)

Portland Harbor Community Coalition co-hosted an Indigenous-led Water Ceremony at Cathedral Park in Northeast Portland on Sunday Sept. 8, 2024. (Photos by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

Illustrator Trae Middlebrooks joined children on the floor at the feet of Shilo George, Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho descent, while they read “Cosmo, From the Stars” to those in attendance at Barbie’s Village on Sept. 14, 2024. (Photo by Jarrette Werk, Noeledrich / Report for America)

Two people spend time with different art pieces during the “Citizen Fellow: Art as Archive and Memory” exhibition opening at the Center for Native Arts & Cultures on September 19, 2024. (Photo by Nika Bartoo-Smith, Noeledrich/ICT)

October