The Colorado State University chapter of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society held its 39th Annual Powwow Saturday, Oct. 21, as the kick-off event for National Native American Heritage Month, which takes place in the month of November.
For the student organizers, the powwow serves as an important event to recognize and uphold traditions along with showing the broader community on campus that Native American cultures and traditions are still here.
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“It’s very important to me and our AISES chapter because powwows are a big part of our culture,” AISES President Jared Hodison said. “We like to keep everything alive, keep our traditions alive and show that our ancestors aren’t the only ones. We’re still doing this; we’re still here. So I feel like it’s very important because we’re carrying on our traditions from our elders.”
The importance of reminding people that Native American traditions are actively practiced and celebrated was exemplified in this year’s powwow theme, We are Still Here: Keeping our Traditions Alive.
“We want to make sure that you all remember that we are still here,” AISES Vice President Brianna Maxwell said while speaking at the event. “We want Colorado to know that we are still here and keeping our traditions alive.”
A preview of the event was held on The Plaza Friday, Oct. 20, with a drum group, dancers in their traditional regalia showcasing traditional dances and a stand selling frybread, a traditional Indigenous dish.
Saturday’s powwow took place from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and featured drum groups, dance exhibitions, Indigenous food, color guard ceremonies and Native American vendors. People traveled from out of state to take part in the celebration.
“A powwow is — really you can just think of it as like a cultural gathering for Native people,” Native American Cultural Center Student Success Coordinator Rasa Humeyumptewa said. “Essentially, it’s really just a gathering where Native people come to dance and also do some singing and drumming.”
CSU sophomore and NACC Liaison Grace Pratt highlighted the importance of recognizing the different tribes and traditions represented at the powwow.
“Every single tribe is different; every person’s traditions are different; every Indigenous person is different,” Pratt said. “I just want people to know that we’re not all grouped as one singular culture and one tribe because we’re all different.”
The powwow also serves as an opportunity for Native American people to recognize their history.
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“Our peoples have gone through a lot of hardships, and yet we’re still here, and we’re able to do this here,” said Cody Davenport, the spiritual advisor for the event. “We’re grateful for that.”
CSU serving as the location for the event also represents an important acknowledgment of the local Native American community.
“I think that especially being a land-grant institution and with the history of land grants, I think it’s really powerful to be able to say that CSU is able to support us in this way and really be able to add to that land grant mission in the sense that they’re able to give back to the Native community and allow us to have the space to show our cultures,” Humeyumptewa said.
The powwow provides Native American students on campus with a local connection to their cultures.
“I’m happy to have this event happening because personally, it feels like a home away from home for me,” CSU senior Hanna Medina said. “It just brings back so many memories and so much healing for me and my community.”
This year’s powwow was part of a long-standing tradition at CSU carried on by the Native students on campus.
“I think being able to have a powwow at CSU, especially one that’s run by our AISES students, it’s really huge for them to be able to do that just purely as a show that, you know, Native students are here, and we’re proud to be who we are,” Humeyumptewa said.
The powwow was open to the public, as are most of the events taking place during Native American Heritage Month, and everyone is encouraged to attend, whether they are Indigenous or not.
“Go out of your comfort zone as a non-Native person, and explore our cultures,” Pratt said. “Because our cultures are beautiful, and not a lot of people know that because there’s not a lot of education on our cultures.”
Reach Hannah Parcells at life@collegian.com or on Twitter @HannahParcells.
