Participants came from all across New England for the University of Massachusetts’ 22nd Annual Native American Pow Wow this weekend.
The event, held on Haigis Mall on Saturday and Sunday, included traditional Native American dancing and music. Recording artists Howard Lyons and Tom Obomsawin both performed. Craft vendors circled the Pow Wow tent, along with artists and political groups seeking signatures. Customary dishes, such as succotash, were served alongside more modern fare, like french fries.
“This is a cultural celebration,” said Joyce White Deer Vincent, Director of the Dr. Josephine White Eagle Cultural Center at UMass, and one of the Pow Wow’s organizers. “It’s a time for us to come together, and be who we are, as Native people. We share our traditions, and hope to bring some aspects of the Native American people to the greater society.
“Even though we come from different nations,” she continued, “the Pow Wow is an expression of our alliances with each other. It’s an extended family gathering that extends beyond the lines of distinct nationhoods.”
The Pow Wow was distinctly cross-cultural in its theme, although much of the event focused on the traditions of Northeastern Native Americans.
A Memorial Honor dance was held for those who were victims of the recent World Trade Center attacks.
“We usually have memorial dances for those who have lost somebody during the year,” said Vincent. “This is also a way of acknowledging the tragedy that occurred. We hope to find a way for human beings to get past their hatred.”
Vincent commented that, in recent weeks, many Native Americans have been mistaken for Arabs and verbally attacked.
“I would ask that people be mindful about anger and realizing that they may be lashing out at the wrong people,” she said. “It’s not going to heal.”
Francis Huntington, a Connecticut resident, worked as the arena director for the Pow Wow. Huntington, who ancestry is Oneida and Mohican – “There is no last of us,” he says, laughing – said he comes to UMass throughout the year.
“I come here to assure students that the Indian community is with them,” he said. “All of the Native community of New England is here, if they need someone to talk to.”
Huntington hopes that first time attendees of the Pow Wow “will grow to know that there’s more than one group of people in this world.
“If they come to know a little bit more about our culture,” he said, “maybe it won’t be so frightening.”
A desire to educate others about Native American culture is also a primary reason why Debbie Spears Moorehead, her daughters Jasmine and Jackie and her son Cody, travel to Pow Wows across New England, where they perform traditional Wampanoag dances.
“I hope that the people who come get a better understanding, an experience,” said Jackie.
The Mooreheads have been coming to the UMass Pow Wow for five years.
“The Native community knows what the Native community is doing, and the Native community goes to Pow Wows whenever there’s a Pow Wow in the area,” she said. “And Joyce puts on a good Pow Wow.”
There are several other Native American cultural events planned for coming weeks. On October 17, at 7 PM in the Student Union Ballroom, Ulali, a Native Woman’s Acapella group, will perform a free concert. The following day, at the same time and place, Dr. Bruce Stapelton will deliver a lecture titled, “Redskins: Racial Slur or Symbol of Success?”
