Powwow helps to bridge cultural gap
Philip Davis sat at the drum, flanked by both older and younger members of the native community, banging the hypnotic rhythm of the welcoming song.
Dancers primed their costumes as they waited for the Grand Entry that started off the third annual powwow at the Niagara Regional Native Centre in Niagara-on-theLake.
A lifelong member of the centre from when it was located in St. Catharines, Davis recalled earlier powwows that had fallen by the wayside.
“We put the first one together in 17 days,” he said.
“The powwow is welcoming people into our community, we’re hosting them to … share with them,” he said.
“We share some songs, some history, bridging gaps with people, especially with our neighbours here in NOTL. It’s nice to make some connections and make some oneon-one relationships that we need in order to move forward as a community.”
Now in its third year, the powwow is a good event for people to learn about things they may have had curiosity in, Davis said.
“We break some bread and have a conversation, the way our people have always done.
“You’re going to experience our knowledge base of dance, some of the history of the songs you’ll hear, and some of the relationships of the communities that share that,” said Davis.
“We’re very distinct from each other in terms of different nations
of people. There are 613 here in Canada, and there’s all different languages, ways of traditional dress, foods and everything.”
He said people often categorize First Nations as one, but they are quite different and include the Anishinaabe, Cree, Lakota and Sioux.
“We know from the archeological record here in Niagara that trade existed back 9,000 years, that says something about how are our ancestors communicated and got along.
“We’ve only been removed from who we really are for around 500 years,” Davis added.
“We’re the youngest colonized group of people. It’s great to see that the kids at an event like this are proud of who they are, can speak some of the languages and can tell you what the regalia represents.
“I think they’d (our ancestors) would be pretty tickled to see us all as they were a long time ago. “btymczyszyn@postmedia.com