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Get to know Native Americans at today's 13th annual pow-wow

Get to know Native Americans at today's 13th annual pow-wow image
Parent Issue
Day
9
Month
April
Year
1983
Copyright
Copyright Protected
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Donated by the Ann Arbor News. © The Ann Arbor News.
OCR Text

Get to kno* "",; 'ive Americans at today's 13th annual pc'y-wow

_____________ i . . , ^

own awareness as well as the public's.

By CONSTANCE CRUMP

NEWS SPECIAL WRITER

Balber reports. *

'That makes it mo^e Indian, and we're
very happy. And we have a number of peo-
ple in Ann Arbor who consistently come to
the pow-wows. People are interested in
knowing who we are ^hen we set up appro-
priate opportunities-

"We want to open ourselves up to the
non-Indian public more in a variety of
ways," adds Balber. "We'd like to give ev-
eryone a chance to interact. We're redefin-
ing who we are and what we are. We're re-
building our population, which was 3
million a hundred years ago, then declined
to less than V4 million by 1900. Now it's
back to over 1 million."

(The Bureau of Indi sirs reports
there are a total of 283 Indian u " L '1i
U.S. with a total population of 3

"Thepow-wr

tant to view (i i ! a . , _. - - -L.
rather than piecemeal»" Balber says. "It is
the multi-generation, extended family con-
cept broadened out, which heightens our

South University streets) and the Clements
Library (909 South University) have cur-
rent i of Indian material. The Cle-
ments ^liwiary exhibit, "Voices and Im-
ages," uses historical maps and journals to
give impressions of the past.

The pow-wow is just one of many sched-
uled events by local Indian groups. An-
other is on April 16, when story-teller Basil
Johnston, an ethnographer from the Royal
Ontario Museum will ho r
kids at An^ell Hall, Aum.y..wm A, wi
"Ojibwa pewa) Ceremonies." "Not
everybody KMUWS the stories are season-
al," Balber said. "Most of the best known
stories are from wintertime. Johnston will
be telling stories of rebirth, renewal-cre-
ation stories.

"All our activities strengthe tuni-
ties for participants to learn ; ; hem-
selves and other people," he added. For
himself, today, Balber says "Look for me
outdancing."

"The pow-wow is also a community
event, a time to come back together. Spiri-
tual and physical renewals take place in a
contemporary framework, with traditional
activities, activities not usually sc •- n ' "
general public ... we've alway ii
standing participation — anywhere
1,500 to 3,000 might come."

u

'"•?

Indians are in a "time capsule" when it
comes to what people know and how
people v Larry Balber,
from the U-. iniority Student
Services. Hence, non-Indians will be given
a change to get to know Native Americans
beti traditional pow-wow today from
11 a.m. w 11 p.m. at Cleary College, Wash-
tenaw Avenue at Hewitt Road.

The 13th annual pow-wow will be "totally
different from (non-Indian) people's ex-
pectations," Balber promises. Dance, art
music and crafts mainly of the 28 Great
Lakes India s, will attract visitors
coming from as far away as Oklahoma,
Nebraska, Minnesota and Toronto, he
adds.

All pow-wow activities are free.
"We feel pretty fortunate to be able to
hold the pow-wow so that you don't need
money to go to it, or any of our activities,"

Friday, the group held a day-long semi-
nar on Indian law, co-sponsored by U-M
and the Indian Law Students Association,
focusing on the difficult^ ' ? fti f
Indian populations. Tre nc

Indian rights as a result of treaties, fishiag
rights and an examination of Indians form-
ing a sover nestic nation lead to an
exploration in tribal powers of self-govern-
ment, state and federal recognition of Indi-
. negotiate with nation-to-
il,^;^.; iber says.) and use of
tribal resources, with special reference to
fishing rights.

Dancing at pow-wow past.

NEWS ni£ PHOTO»ROCER LeUEVRE

Both the U-M Museum of Art (State at

m