Social work student Heather Wood created this T-shirt design for the 11th annual Pow Wow and American Indian Awareness Week. For more information on purchasing a shirt, call 935-4677.
By Ann Nicholson
April 6, 2001
An American Indian pow wow, traditional cuisine, story-telling, lectures, a film and a keynote address by a former official of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) are highlights of the University's American Indian Awareness Week starting Monday.
Social work student Heather Wood created this T-shirt design for the 11th annual Pow Wow and American Indian Awareness Week. For more information on purchasing a shirt, call 935-4677. |
This year's theme is "Nurturing Our Families," recognizing the significance of family to the American Indian community and American Indian culture, said joint law and social work student Ric Munoz, who is co-chairing the weeklong festivities with master of social work students and Buder scholars Heather Wood, Tescha Hawley and Dale Chavis.
Munoz, a member of the Cherokee tribe and a Kathryn M. Buder scholar at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work, said the festival is designed to celebrate and showcase American Indian culture.
"Our annual Pow Wow and Awareness Week allow Washington University's American Indian students to share something of our unique cultures with the rest of the campus and the St. Louis community," Munoz said. "The festivities are fun and informative, and we would like to invite everyone to join in them."
The Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies at the social work school, the School of Law and the American Indian Student Association are co-sponsoring the festival. Munoz said the co-chairs are grateful for the University community's support, which has translated into expanded offerings this year.
Kevin Gover, J.D., former assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs, will deliver the keynote address at noon Monday in the School of Law's W.L. Hadley Griffin Student Commons, Anheuser-Busch Hall. The BIA provides federal services to roughly 1.2 million American Indians and Alaskan natives who are members of more than 557 tribes. The bureau also administers about 43.5 million acres of tribally owned land, 10 million acres of individually owned land and 417,000 acres of federally owned land that is being held in trust.
A Pawnee tribe member, Gover served the BIA under the Clinton administration from 1997 to 2000. He earned a bachelor's degree in public and international affairs from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Government and a juris doctor from the University of New Mexico School of Law. After law school, he specialized in environmental, natural resource, federal Indian and housing law. After his BIA post, he returned to private practice, specializing in American Indian law.
The American Indian Awareness Week events, which are free and open to the public, will culminate with the 11th annual Pow Wow from noon-10 p.m. April 14 at the University Field House and Francis Field. The Pow Wow includes American Indian trading booths, arts, crafts, music, food and a dance contest, expected to draw tribal dancers from throughout the Midwest. The gourd dance will be showcased at noon and grand entries of dancers will be at 1 and 6 p.m.
Other events throughout the week are:
¥ 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesday, Brown Lounge, traditional American Indian storytelling. Dolores Santha, a national storyteller for the Seneca and Commanche tribes, will share traditional stories and teachings.
¥ Noon Wednesday, Goldfarb Student Commons, American Indian food tasting. Students and staff of the Buder Center and the American Indian Student Association will sponsor a sampling of traditional and contemporary American Indian foods.
¥ 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Brown Lounge, film "Medicine River" and discussion. Starring Graham Greene, the movie recounts the life of an Indian photojournalist taken hostage in Malawi, Africa. After his release, he rediscovers his native roots in Canada.
¥ Noon April 13, Goldfarb Student Commons, American Indian social work school alumnus guest speaker Michael Standing Soldier (Akicita Najin), M.S.W. He is a member of the Oglala Lakota tribe and will speak on strengthening the Oglala Lakota community through traditional healing methods. He also is a member of 7 Council Fires, a band of the Oceti Sakowin Nation.
For more information on the week's events, call 935-6288 or 935-4510, or visit http://gwb web.wustl.edu/Users/Buder/awareness.html.
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