Powwow Time!

I had the pleasure of attending the 97th Annual Meskwaki Powwow on Aug. 13. It was made all the more pleasurable because I was there with my kids. Due to various factors, we only had about 4 hours to enjoy things. Not nearly enough time to really enjoy a powwow, but better than none at all (last year we were rained out on the day we went).

Powwows are interesting events. Natives understand that they are a time honored tradition in which relationships are established or strengthened and traditions maintained. They are at the very heart of our social structure, as well as (usually) holding deep spiritual signifigance.

This last part depends on the type of powwow. At competition powwows, the emphasis has come to be on the dancing, winning prizes and vendors making lots of cash. (It's important to consider that many vendors depend on a 4 to 6 month powwow season to provide the bulk of their income for the year). At a powwow such as the Proclamation Day powwow on the Meskwaki Settlement, the emphasis is on maintaing their heritage and culture and educating others about them.

Which is where the really interesting part comes in. People not familiar with powwows (read: typical non-Native tourist) think it's a show for them. It's not. They are invited to witness, and often participate in,  something that we would do anyway. (There are many powwows which are only open to members of the tribe and invited guests, and don't allow spectators).

Of course at any powwow, people are busilly snapping photos of the dancers, with all the bright colored regalia and various dance styles. In times past, I've done that. This year, I decided to take a different approach. I wanted to capture more of the emotions involved in those little moments when people aren't dancing for hundreds of spectators to see.

There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes of a powwow. The dancers are not performers, per se, because a powwow is not a "show" It's a unique cultural/social event that Native people have practiced in one form or another long before people started to pay to watch. The only reason we started charging admission to powwows was because for many years it was one of the few ways tribes could produce much needed revenue.

The dancers are average people, Native People, who want to maintain their traditional way of life as best they can. So when they aren't dancing, they are simply being human. Many powwows take place outdoors, in hot weather, and dancers who attend every session can spend 4 to 6 hours a day dancing. Depending on the style, this can be the same as running a 10K race every day. It can take a toll.

But for some reason, there are always powwow spectators who don't understand this. They think the dancers dress like that all the time. They imagine they still live in tipis, spend every night dancing around a fire and talk like Graham Greene delivering dialogue in "Dances with Wolves".

They don't.

When the powwow is over, they carefully store their regalia and go back to working their jobs, raising their kids and watching cable TV. They don't show up at the factory or office in their regalia. They may fix Hamburger Helper (goes good with fry bread!) or order pizza for dinner. While they may listen to drum groups in their off time, it could just as well be Lady Gaga, Kanye West or Travis Tritt playing on their iPods.

So here are a few shots from the powwow. They're black and white because I feel that's better at letting viewers see the people involved rather than seeing them only as performers in brightly colored regalia Not costumes, by the way. Costumes imply pretending to be something other than you are, such as a character in a play. Dancers are being themselves, participating in a social/spiritual gathering.

Regalia is carefully put together over months and years, with each component having special meaning or offering a story. Some items, such as eagle feather bustles, are passed down from one generation to the next. They are priceless heirlooms, all the more so because the federal government controls the distribution of eagle feathers, with a waiting list of about 5000 people and a wait time of 3 1/2 years.

  When you go to a powwow, whether for the first time or after many times, remember you are not watching a show or performance put on for your sake. You are a guest participating in a vital part of Native American society. A part which has been and will continue to evolve, while maintaining centuries old traditions. They are a way for us to pass down our language, culture and beliefs from one generation to the next, keeping our ways, and thus our identity as unique Nations, alive.