Miss Mia

well, like i saw posted earlier "what isnt"... is exactly the question. i remember this one NA student day, and we had an elder asking the children, "what is your culture" and some of them said "pow wow" and the elder said "pow wow is not culture".....i suppose at first this statement puzzled me, but it made sense once i thought about it. we have longhouse and different native churches that are culture. so i suppose pow wow is our form of pop culture.

but dont generalize it as not having traditions. like any other pop culture, it has roots. like anything, we do not want it to be too exposed and commercialized...which is more reason to keep true to your traditions, such as, your tribes style of dancing and singing, differneces that are appreciated in the pow wow scene.

but do not mix that up w/ what your tribe does culturally, like feasts, sweat etc etc.

i suppose the only commercial aspect of pow wows i dislike are the "authentic" claims by venders and others who SELL traditional/cultural products (not including accesories like hair ties, jewelry etc etc, yall know what im talking about)

and the emphasis on time (such as rushing ceremonies and CONSTATLY reminding peeps that "we are on a schedule") ndn's like to visit and have a good time...hence the name as a "CELEBRATION" later dubbed "pow wow"....plus i dont like being rushed...

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Miss Mia :Wave