An American Indian powwow, traditional cuisine and crafts will be among the highlights of the University’s American Indian Awareness Week April 5-10.
The theme is “Bringing Nations Together Through Education, Community and Culture.”
The annual powwow and awareness week allow the University’s American Indian students to share their unique cultures with the rest of the campus and the St. Louis community. The events are free and open to the public.
The Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work and the School of Law are co-sponsoring the festival.
On April 5, Buder Center students and staff will offer a sampling of American Indian foods — such as fry bread, wild rice and corn soup — from 3-4 p.m. in the Goldfarb Hall Student Commons.
Delores Santos, a member of the Comanche and Seneca tribes, will present traditional American Indian stories from 10-11:30 a.m. April 6 in the Goldfarb Hall Student Commons.
The movie Whale Rider will be featured from 6-9 p.m. April 7 in Goldfarb Hall, Room 359. The story follows Pai, a 12-year-old Maori girl who challenges her grandfather and embraces a thousand years of tribal traditions to fulfill her destiny as a Maori leader. A discussion will follow.
The GWB American Indian Alumni Association speaker, Patty Grant, will lecture on “Health Promotions, Spirituality, and Clinical Practices” from noon-1:30 p.m. April 9 in Brown Hall Lounge. Grant, a member of the Cherokee and Lakota tribes, works for the Cherokee Nation.
American Indian Awareness Week will culminate April 10 with the 14th annual powwow, a festival of American Indian dancing, singing, drumming, arts, crafts and food.
The powwow, from noon-10 p.m. in the Athletic Complex, attracts more than 1,500 people from 10 states. The Intertribal and Contest Dancing will begin at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m.
For more information, call the Buder Center at 935-4510 or go online to gwbweb.wustl.edu/buder.