Project 57 Week 20: Pow wow / powwow

Do you know what a pow wow is? This term is often misused to describe a meeting or gathering, but that is an example appropriation. A pow wow is a First Nations ceremony and celebration, where people from many different Nations come together to dance, sing, and drum. 

There are two types of powwow, private celebrations held within a Nation or community, and public ones that are open to non-Indigenous people. The Indian Act, a federal government law, banned the pow wow and other First Nations ceremonies between 1884 and 1951. Bee Millar writes for Indigenous Goddess Gang.com, and states that the restrictions of The Indian Act, banning First Nations from practicing their culture, “had lasting effects on [their] people” still seen in “generations today”. Even though an “amendment to the Indian Act” was made in 1951 allowing First Nations communities to hold Pow Wows and practice their culture and traditional ceremonies... it came too late”. Millar explains that the fear of practicing their culture for fear of punishment still affects Indigenous people today, some are even too “ashamed to participate and attend Pow Wows” and “because of this, numerous ceremonies and traditions and been lost and/or altered” (Millar, 2020). 
 
Today, at a public Powwow, “everyone is welcome to attend” and to “make new connections” and “to celebrate a way of life” expressed “through numerous dance styles, hearing the different songs and rums, engaging with Elders, meeting new friends and extended family, and acknowledging the lands of the region” (First Nations University of Canada Spring Celebration Powwow). Singing, dancing, and drumming are a major aspect of the Powwow, as “some songs are passed down generationally” (FNU of Canada). Often there are tradeshow style vendors for crafts, arts, and food such as bannock. And like the Canada Spring Celebration Powwow in Regina, SK illustrates in their program, there may be prizes awarded for best singing and dancing. 

Resources to learn more: 

• The Pow wow A Primer on the First Nation Pow wow Indigenous Corporate Training blog
• Use These Culturally Offensive Phrases & Questions at Your Own Risk, Indigenous Corporate Training blog
• Powwow, The Canadian Encyclopedia
• What is pow wow? Tribal Trade YouTube video, 13 minutes
• Pow wow xperience, YouTube video, 10 minutes  
• Red Path A Film by Thérèse Ottawa: NFB of Canada, 15 minutes   
• Pow Wow Series: Part One, The History & reclaiming Our Right to Dance, IndigneousGoddessGang.com