Pow-Wow offers a chance for people to come together and celebrate
The Native American Student Council is bringing all tribes together “under one feather” this weekend when it hosts the 34th annual Echoing Traditional Ways Pow-wow at the Nelson Fieldhouse.
The two-day event will draw participants from all over the western United States and Canada to participate in drum and dance competitions, eat fry bread and celebrate Native American culture. Sam Curley, the Native American Program coordinator, said pow-wows were traditionally held by plains tribes, but elements of pow-wows have been adopted by many others. He said this pow-wow is all about community.
“It’s not so much about the competition. It’s about having the community together to celebrate,” Curley said.
But there is also a competition. Over $7,600 in prizes will be awarded through five age categories in the dance competition, which will be an exhibition of traditional, jingle, grass and fancy dances.
Sonny Bryant, the president of the NASC, said he used to participate in the grass dance but was sidelined this year due to a knee injury. In the grass dance, the dancers have strings hanging “from every appendage.”
“You try to move in such a way that it mimics the sway of grass in the wind,” Bryant said. “It’s elegant.”
Bryant said the grass dance was traditionally the first one performed at a pow-wow and served a double purpose as the dance steps would stomp down the grass in order to accommodate everyone else in later performances.
Curley said the dances are symbolic and usually began with a connection to mother earth, or nature. Eagle feathers, an important symbol to many Native Americans, will figure greatly in the event. He said if a feather falls to the ground during one of the dances, the dance will be stopped for a ceremony, because the feather is sacred.
“Because the eagle soars up into the heavens, it is a mediator between man and the deities,” Curley said.
Shawsheen Gardner, the secretary of the NASC, said one of her favorite symbolic dances is the men’s traditional dance.
“It kind of depicts either hunting or hiding. It’s really cool to watch the men do it. You watch them sneaking,” Gardner said. “The music makes it really intense.
“I love watching them compete. It gets very exciting, especially the men’s competition,” she said.
Many of the dances will feature the elaborate, traditional regalia, which can cost thousands of dollars and be comprised of pieces that have taken years to gather from family and other sources, Bryant said.
Gardner said once she weighed five outfits, and they weighed more than 500 pounds.
“You don’t notice it because you grow up with it,” she said. “But this is 500 pounds, and these are little kids!”
She encouraged people to come to the event even if they are not Native American.
“I love to watch non-Native Americans come and watch. It kind of makes them smile, and then they get really excited and say, ‘This is so cool!'” Gardner said. “I’d definitely recommend it. I’ve never seen anyone not like it.”
Curley said Friday’s competition will include the round dance and the intertribal dance, which are open to the audience and will teach them basic steps. He said people who want to see the intense competition should come Saturday, especially to the evening session.
Aside from dancing, there will also be a drum competition as well as the featured drum group “Red Spirit.”
The group has been together for a long time and is well known in the community, Curley said. He said the drumming is very important to the dancing.
“To the Native Americans, the drum is the heartbeat of the pow-wow,” Curley said.
Arts and crafts vendors from throughout the Intermountain West will be selling jewelry, pottery and other items. Fry bread, Navajo tacos and traditional concessions will be also available.
Bryant said the event is a good opportunity for people to learn about Native American culture diffuse and some misconceptions.
“As you share an experience with individuals that are different than you, it just makes you that much more comfortable,” Bryant said.
The pow-wow will be held in three sessions, one Friday night beginning at 7 p.m., and two Saturday, beginning at noon and 6 p.m. Students with IDs and seniors are $2, general admission is $3 and kids 7 years old and under are free. The cost of admission does not carry over from Friday to Saturday, but both Saturday sessions are covered with admission that day.
-jenbeasley@cc.usu.edu