Wearing a colorful Native American outfit that she made herself, 81-year-old Hilda Marietta Williams could barely walk through the crowd at Welsh-Ryan Arena without hearing greetings from her fellow members of the Indigenous community. She was a familiar face at the fourth annual Traditional Spring Pow Wow, where many other attendees also dressed in traditional handmade outfits.
The beat of drum circles on the court below nearly drowned out Williams’ words as she walked to get an Indigenous dish from the food station. She told me, raising her voice above the loud rhythms, about the eagle staff and headdress she inherited from her father – one of the founders of the American Indian Center in Chicago. These items hold cultural and symbolic significance, she explained, and she is preparing for the rituals that will return them to her father’s resting place before she passes away.
For Williams and other Native Americans in the Chicago and North Shore areas, the Pow Wows hosted by Northwestern’s Native American and Indigenous Student Alliance provide an opportunity to gather, perform traditional dance and music and sell handmade jewelry and artwork. Anyone is welcome to enjoy the festivities and learn about the many tribes and cultures represented.
“It means a lot to me because my father did this years ago,” Williams said. “It was one of our favorite things we’ve ever done in our entire lives. He took me with him because I was his little girl.”
Lisa Bernal, a member of the Sisseton and Wahpeton tribe in northeast South Dakota, sold her artwork at the Pow Wow, which blends traditional and contemporary styles with shells, glass beads, crystals and pipe bones.
Bernal took artistic inspiration from her mother, who sold her own work at the next table over. Having worked with Chicagoland’s Native American community for 30 years, Bernal said events like the Pow Wow help her connect with her Native roots.
“Because we are cultural people and we have been grounded in our teachings, being present in the community and having the ability to socialize with friends and family and share spaces with other artists – it’s really a good feeling,” she said.
The Pow Wow also featured organizations offering information about the Native American community to help both Native and non-Native people learn about the tribes and their cultures. Victoria Stewart, who sold her crystal healing jewelry, porcupine quillwork, woodburning and beadwork, said she grew up with little connection to her Native American ancestry and only recently learned about her heritage. Now, she wants to pass on her knowledge.
“If people ask me questions, I am more than happy to answer because everyone deserves to know, and there’s a lot of miseducation about Native Americans,” said Stewart, a member of the Lac Du Flambeau tribe in upper Wisconsin. “Being able to be open and share that part of our culture is great.”
Recently, she and her son, who performed at the event, have learned traditional dance, and she has begun making artwork. She wore some of this art: a dress with cone-shaped pieces of metal that jingle when she dances. The jingle dance and dress represent spiritual healing. For Stewart, the very process of immersing herself in the culture has been healing.
“I’ve cried a few times today just seeing people in my community,” Stewart said. “It’s really great to have everybody come together in such an amazing space. To be all in the circle together dancing for our culture and to keep that tradition alive, it just feels great.”
