Hosted by the Office of Inclusive Excellence and the Indigenous Student Union (ISU), Quinnipiac celebrated its Second Annual “Dancing in the Shadow of Sleeping Giant” Powwow Sunday, April 19 in the Burt Khan Court.
The Intertribal Powwow serves as a way of celebrating indigenous cultures and traditions through traditional dancing, singing and drumming, according to the Quinnipiac website with details on the gathering.
The event featured more than 15 unique vendors offering a variety of Indigenous regalia, jewelry, crafts and more. Small business owner Keith Rood shared his thoughts on preserving Indigenous culture and his excitement in being a part of this year’s event as one of its vendors.
“A lot of us that have the native crafts are taught by our elders, and we pass this on for the next generation,” he said. “When the dancers are out there dancing, a lot of times, the regalia that they’re wearing is made by their elders, or they’re great elders, so it goes from generation to generation, so it keeps them moving forward, and it also allows us the opportunity to teach non native people about our culture.”
There was also a section of the venue dedicated to educational opportunities for attendees, including information on Indigenous cultures, how to become involved with these communities, etc.
Powwow attendee Howell Gallagher shared some of his thoughts on the educational aspect of the event and expressed the excitement he feels in bringing his fiance, Alex Caluori to similar celebratory events.
“I think it is nice to bring people with me that aren’t indigenous. Being able to share this with my fiance is nice, and being able to teach him about the different regalia, or asking me, ‘what is that made out of, or why are they wearing a certain color, or what does this mean?’ So I think it’s a great opportunity for people to learn and share culture with anybody that wants to learn about it,” Gallagher said.
Dancing in the Powwow and member of the Mohegan tribe, Amanda Gremo explained her hopes of educating spectators on Indigenous cultures like hers.
“I just hope that they take a little knowledge more than what they walked in with,” Gremo said. “So I hope that they just feel comfortable learning about other people’s cultures, and it’s kind of opening a door to be able to do that.”
The Powwow opened playing what was presumed to be traditional Indigenous music made by drumming and singing/chanting. Chairs were scattered for attentees in a wide circle to the right of Burt Khan leaving room in the center of the circle for the scheduled dances to occur.
After some brief words from the event’s MC, the music resumed and dancers registered to perform during the event, were welcomed to the floor for the “grand entry.”
Dancers were draped in traditional Indigenous regalia including jingle dresses, ribbons shirts and moccasins, with some wearing festive headdresses and headbands.
Event Coordinator, Arena Director and founder of the Powwow Kiara Tanta-Quidgeon followed their performance with a few words about her start with the ISU at Quinnipiac and the importance of the “Dancing in the Shadow of Sleeping Giant” Powwow.
She acknowledged the importance of Indigenous cultures given that QU was given its name after the Indigenous tribe of Quinnipiac that used to inhabit the greater Southern Connecticut area.
Following Quidgeon’s words, audience members and general spectators were encouraged to participate in what is known as “the potato dance.” A lighthearted social dance often held at modern powwows in North America.
With the two remaining pairs at the end of the dance being awarded a free t-shirt, Quinnipiac University President Marie Hardin, came forward with remarks about the event. Touching on her past experiences with the Indigenous community during her time at The Pennsylvania State University.
After a brief intermission, the rest of the day was followed with festivities and dancing until the events closing at 5 p.m..
