Controversy At GON???!!!???

[sltate]

LOL, Same with me.....does your credit score count because if so.....I can't join that site either.
This site works for me, I love the pictures of other people and their regalias, their celebrations, etc. And did I forget to say...it's free? Isn't that like selling another form of "native america" by making you pay to go to a native website to see real native americans. LOL Just kidding.

[Camp7Kiowa]

Okay let's recap the problems with the Gathering Of Nations:

Security went power crazy.
It's too expensive to get in.
The lines are too long and they run out of weekend passes every year.
They should split some of the categories.
The Pit is too small for this powwow.
The money for the drum contest is a joke.
anything else?

Do you think the committee will actually listen to these complaints? Or will the "Pit" be just as packed next year with no changes in place?

Yall know darn well all this complaining aint changing a thing @ GON and everyone will still be attending. And the powwow committee wont change a thing. Its all bout the $$$$$$$$$

[quicksilverwade]

Yall know darn well all this complaining aint changing a thing @ GON and everyone will still be attending. And the powwow committee wont change a thing. Its all bout the $$$$$$$$$

Nativemah,
I think that I would've used just one $ sign to justify the importance on money because a friend of my mother's placed 5th in Southern Straight category (Barry Hamilton) and he only received $200.00!

[billyjoejimbob]

So whatever happened to that powwow magazine that came out last year?

My friend subscribed and got 1 issue, never got another.

It wasnt even that great. Most of the photos were the same dancer.

[Camp7Kiowa]

Nativemah,
I think that I would've used just one $ sign to justify the importance on money because a friend of my mother's placed 5th in Southern Straight category (Barry Hamilton) and he only received $200.00!

Dang, thats messed up. Sorry about getting carried away with the $ signs.

[*Kwe_Zee*]

From one native to another fellow well I think your native Mr. Rick O Shea, I was taught to help my fellow native brother any way I can whether its with food or change or what ever I can we are taught to give. I was approched by this person about his web-sight and I knew they are Native and I will support him because they are Native and I get my picture and bio posted.....and in the end I supported a Native owned and opperated business.....you can spend your $12.00 at Wal-mart.....and next time you want to talk negative about a Native owned business write to your local newspaper....this site is about Native perspectives...oh yeh miss.kwe zee, I know wants to see a Northern style traditional she will be checking the site out.....and save your $12.00 for a bus pass. later

This place is a free forum and I'll say what I want when I want until the mods give me the cuts. And pleez child, I don't need to save $12.00 for a bus pass, I own my own vehicle. I'm not really a Northern style traditional groupie either, but if I wanted to see a pic, I'll go check out the powwows.com gallery.

[WhoMe]

This place is a free forum and I'll say what I want when I want until the mods give me the cuts. And pleez child, I don't need to save $12.00 for a bus pass, I own my own vehicle. I'm not really a Northern style traditional groupie either, but if I wanted to see a pic, I'll go check out the powwows.com gallery.

KweZ,

Powwows.com moderators don't cut anyone off for being loyal supporters.

We praise people like you for your insightful comments and dialogue.

People come onto our sight from time-to-time to invite our tremendous readership, such as you, and you and you *LOL to join other copycat websites.


Powwows.com is an original website.


"Champion dancers and singers see theirselves in our galleries and read about theirselves in our forums!"

[Two-cents1]

I disagree with the post about the fully beaded over the cloth regalia, especially in reference to NOT voting for a dancer because they don't have fully beaded stuff.
The reason being that in southern fancy...they never wore fully beaded capes and aprons, sidedrops,etc. Only cuffs, headband, halter strips, moccasins. And several of the southern fancy STILL wear this style of regalia in Oklahoma.
So, say you have an excellent southern fancy dancer who knows the songs, has the speed...but is dressed totally southern then you have a dancer who is fully beaded, rhinestoned, and ribboned......you vote for the beaded outfit simply on that principle alone...what about the fact that this IS the original style of regalia? Alot of the "big dogs" still wear cloth capes, etc.

*sigh* I knew I should have added what I was going to, but I thought my post was getting too long.

What I was GOING to add to my previous post, is exactly this: "If you are going to dance Southern Fancy, you'd better have a fully beaded set of cuffs, harness, belt, headband, medallions, and moccasins."

I am not stupid enough to believe that MORE beadwork is better. In fact I think some beadwork in many categories is a little overboard, but I feel very strongly that you need to have the basics of your outfit complete and beaded (or like I said, sequined). I don't believe that a dancer, now let's use Southern fancy as an example since you brought it up, should be winning if all he has is a beaded headband, which is what I saw at GON. At least two dancers had only beaded headbands, maybe beaded mocs, and they both placed.

I know what the southern style fancy dance outfit is supposed to look like. You just have to look at Joe B's yellow outfit, or pictures of the late Billy McClellan, or Dwight Whitebuffalo's old white beadwork, to see what it is supposed to look like. That all have/had loomed harness, belt, side-drops, cuffs, headband, and beaded mocs and medallions and only had cloth aprons and capes. If fancy dancers are supposed to be wearing a southern style outfit, then they'd better have the whole thing.

Of COURSE if a woman dances cloth (whether it's northern or southern), DUHHHHH, she's not going to have a beaded top or TONS of beadwork. BUt I wouldn't vote for a cloth dancers who has cloth leggins and mocs if there is another dancer of comparable ability who has a complete outfit, meaning beaded leggins, mocs, and accessories - and I KNOW that some ladies who dance northern traditional use the painted parfleche style belt, bags, and purse(which I happen to love because it's so old style). Even dentalium accessories are considered part a complete outfit in my book since that's some of the original materials used in traditional outfits. (I have to make sure I cover all my bases this time!).

I didn't say in my post that a dancer needed to have rhinestones, fully beaded hats, fully beaded mittens and coat, and fully beaded underwear, to get my vote. I said that a dancer needed to have a complete outfit (according to their dance style) and not have cloth as a major portion of their outfit. I have been around powwows long enough to realize that cloth is the basis of some dance styles, such as the dresses for ladies cloth dancers, or straight dancers with their shirts, aprons and ribbonwork, or the shirts and aprons of Sioux-style traditional dancers, or the capes of southern fancy dancers (or anyone who wants to wear that style of outfit). There were too many good dancers at GON with complete outfits that are just as good in dancing ability if not better than a few of the winners and they should not have been passed over by dancers with incomplete outfits.

[quicksilverwade]

This should be a lesson to those appliqued cloth dancers that compete that they should at least attempt to upgrade their regalia. By the way did anybody place with water shoes instead of mocassins?

[*Brown Eyed Gurl*]

LOL YA...GOOD QUESTION QSW...WELL DID THEY??

[sltate]

Point well taken. Though the cloth leggings and moccasins could be argued as well LOL just kidding.
Now, the surf shoes over moccasins is totally inappropriate. LOL
I can see the point, just stating a view that some categories have cloth as part of their original regalia and should be judged accordingly to their style and regalia.
Heck, even southern cloth is becoming more "beaded" after seeing some pictures of beaded shoulder harnesses and belts and bags that are wide. LOL I will still have to be plain Jane in comparison to that.

[blacktipsfeathers]

every site has a price!!!!

To miss kwe-zee didnt ya know thats why natives never get ahead, they never get any support from other natives....they listen or are taught with the white ways of life....all our old traditional ways of life are slowly fading away. I know we must advance with society, but when we see something free we take it like the old ration days....this site is not free check there advertising prices out that aint no $12.00 they are asking for, a little steep for a guy that doesnt have a bank account...hey Rick O shea..I wont see you advertising anything on this web-site. I think every person on this site has a address, and every bank in the world has money orders, so if you wanted to join pow-wownnation.ca you go to your bank and buy a money order then send it by mail with your pictures, remember the site was made by a native..thats why its cheap...and the pictures on pow-wows.com web- site are pictures taken by who???? do you think a native took them!!I doubt it. I was at Gon I never seen one native taking pictures with a professional camera they where all other races.... and do you think they charged $12.00 for there pictures..nope it all came out of your $18.00 or $24.00 ..admission. This new web-site pow-wownnation.ca lets you choose the pictures you want posted not pictures taken by someone else, and I am sure kwe-zee wont want any pictures of her self posted on any web-site without her permission.........So in the end nothing is free in this mainly white world we live in we get pinched in one way or another thats why I would support anything a native tries to establish.....and thats why this web-site lets you send your pictures your bio or what ever you want to send......come on Kwe-zee I know you would like this northern traditional style...dont be hatin until you tried it....

[*Brown Eyed Gurl*]

......come on Kwe-zee I know you would like this northern traditional style...dont be hatin until you tried it....

YA C'MON KWE-ZEE U KNOW U WAAANT IT...LOL...J.K...

[quicksilverwade]

What is this? Informercial time?

To miss kwe-zee didnt ya know thats why natives never get ahead, they never get any support from other natives....they listen or are taught with the white ways of life....all our old traditional ways of life are slowly fading away. I know we must advance with society, but when we see something free we take it like the old ration days....this site is not free check there advertising prices out that aint no $12.00 they are asking for, a little steep for a guy that doesnt have a bank account...hey Rick O shea..I wont see you advertising anything on this web-site. I think every person on this site has a address, and every bank in the world has money orders, so if you wanted to join pow-wownnation.ca you go to your bank and buy a money order then send it by mail with your pictures, remember the site was made by a native..thats why its cheap...and the pictures on pow-wows.com web- site are pictures taken by who???? do you think a native took them!!I doubt it. I was at Gon I never seen one native taking pictures with a professional camera they where all other races.... and do you think they charged $12.00 for there pictures..nope it all came out of your $18.00 or $24.00 ..admission. This new web-site pow-wownnation.ca lets you choose the pictures you want posted not pictures taken by someone else, and I am sure kwe-zee wont want any pictures of her self posted on any web-site without her permission.........So in the end nothing is free in this mainly white world we live in we get pinched in one way or another thats why I would support anything a native tries to establish.....and thats why this web-site lets you send your pictures your bio or what ever you want to send......come on Kwe-zee I know you would like this northern traditional style...dont be hatin until you tried it....

With only 7 posts, do you really think that your sales tactics will work on us. Why don't you introduce yourself first? Last name first, okay?

[Paul G]

To miss kwe-zee didnt ya know thats why natives never get ahead, they never get any support from other natives....they listen or are taught with the white ways of life....all our old traditional ways of life are slowly fading away. I know we must advance with society, but when we see something free we take it like the old ration days....this site is not free check there advertising prices out that aint no $12.00 they are asking for, a little steep for a guy that doesnt have a bank account...hey Rick O shea..I wont see you advertising anything on this web-site. I think every person on this site has a address, and every bank in the world has money orders, so if you wanted to join pow-wownnation.ca you go to your bank and buy a money order then send it by mail with your pictures, remember the site was made by a native..thats why its cheap...and the pictures on pow-wows.com web- site are pictures taken by who???? do you think a native took them!!I doubt it. I was at Gon I never seen one native taking pictures with a professional camera they where all other races.... and do you think they charged $12.00 for there pictures..nope it all came out of your $18.00 or $24.00 ..admission. This new web-site pow-wownnation.ca lets you choose the pictures you want posted not pictures taken by someone else, and I am sure kwe-zee wont want any pictures of her self posted on any web-site without her permission.........So in the end nothing is free in this mainly white world we live in we get pinched in one way or another thats why I would support anything a native tries to establish.....and thats why this web-site lets you send your pictures your bio or what ever you want to send......come on Kwe-zee I know you would like this northern traditional style...dont be hatin until you tried it....

Ok, not to get too far off topic, but I did want to answer a couple of points you raise.

I was at GON taking photos with a professional camera (Minolta Maxxum 7D) and I posted over 130 to the site and used a camcorder to shoot over 3 hours of footage. And yes this site does have advertising. That advertising pays for the site as well as that camera, my camcorder, etc.

But the best thing about this site is that it is almost 100% user driven! Take a look at the galleries, who took those photos? The members here! They took them and submitted them. This site is great not because of who runs it but because of the member involvement!

I wish you well in your project. But I would recommend trying a different business model than charging for membership. That's a model that was used in the early stages of the web and just didn't work.

Good luck!