South American Powwow?

[WhoMe]

Are there any people on here who's ancestor's live south of the Mexican border?

Has anyone heard of a powwow taking place among indigenous people south of the border?

Powwows have been held throughout North America, Europe, in Russia, Japan and Iraq.

There is now interest in having a powwow in South America!
The sponsors are investigating this with great interest.

"Powwows are a celebration of culture! North American powwows are family activities that allow tribes, some who were once enemies, a place to dance to a common drum beat. Music and dance are common denominators that transcend tribal and cultural boundaries."

This alone is contagious as powwow spreads to diverse areas!!!!

[Tibiki Kinew]

A lady that I know spent 5 years in the jungle down there, talk about awakening, eating anything from plants to bugs and learning to love it! They didn't have much on clothes or anything, just living off the land, and yesss they knew how to celebrate the gifts of life. This was down in Peru!

They have now been coming up to our area a few years running and they enjoy our powwows too!

There are a few of them that are vendors and they bring some awesome crafts with them, the feathers alone are eye openers! Wait till you get to hold a condor feather!

[eap7]

Well when I went on the powwow cruise (thanks Paul!), the powwow was on the ocean somewhere between Mexico and Miami. So why not South America! I think it would be really cool. Are the sponsors trying to draw participants and spectators from the US/Canada or from local communities wherever they hold it? A lot of powwows have Aztec dance exhibitions and South American vendors too. It has the potential to be kind of "new agey" if it was marketed to the spiritual type of people looking to have a vis ion in the rain forest, but I think it could be a really unique experience.

[badmaninc]

When there was a powwow on the same time as the Commonwealth games in 1994, some athletes from New Guinea came in the Grand Entry wearing their traditional regalia. I thought it was cool but some people were offended as they were almost nude. All of their private parts were covered but just barely. It should be noted that later on after
Grand Entry, I saw a woman blow a whistle. I am not saying that was the reason but I have not seen a woman do that since. All this happened just outside of Victoria, BC

[WhoMe]

So why not South America! I think it would be really cool. Are the sponsors trying to draw participants and spectators from the US/Canada or from local communities wherever they hold it?

Yeah, why not South America?

I honestly would not take this seriously, if it wasn't for my contact who represents an alliance of South American indigenous leaders and his partner who works for a prestigious international bank.

Who knows? Maybe nothing will come of this. But then again, maybe there will. All I know is there is a great interest at this point.

There will be more feasiblity meetings in the coming months. Our next step is to attend a community powwow and a mega-contest powwow.

I would just kind of like to hear some input?

Would anyone attend this historic event south of the equator?

[WhoMe]

... some athletes from New Guinea came in the Grand Entry wearing their traditional regalia. I thought it was cool but some people were offended as they were almost nude. All of their private parts were covered but just barely.

As I become more involved with learning about South American cultures I have come to the conclusion that they are 120 years behind the American Indians.

The reason I say this is most tribes are still full bloods with over 95 percent language fluency. Intertribal warfare still occurs.

Many tribes do not have diabetes or high blood pressure yet. Tribes that have recently been contacted have died by the hundreds from foreign diseases including the common cold.

Healing is still done by medicinal plants and ceremonies initiated by community shaman.

There are no roads to many villages.

Approximately 40 Indigenous jungle cultures have not yet seen a white man.

One sad part is a transAtlantic-Pacific highway is being proposed through Indigenous lands without their consent or approval. Many Indigenous people are being murdered without accountability for opposing land theft.

And yes, most Indigenous people who inhabit hot (tropical) climates dress seminude for functional reasons just like many of our people did prior to 120 years ago.

[WhoMe]

Here are some pictures I took of Indigenous people that I met in Brazil.

[Dakota Sandz]

I guess it could happen, but it'll prolly be a smaller sized powwow, being the south american peoples aren't powwow people to begin with. I see it as prolly the size of the ones over in europe, where its basically a show or dance troupe kinda thing.
If it was a full blown powwow, I highly doubt alot of skinz could afford round trip plane tickets to peru or brazil or something like that. And if it were in mexico, us canadians or northern states people prolly couldn't afford to drive all the way down there, or spend a good 1000 for tickets round trip to meh-hee-koh.

[WhoMe]

..it'll prolly be a smaller sized powwow, being the south american peoples aren't powwow people to begin with.

"I was at the first powwow, in an area that didn't have powwows. This first powwow had less than 20 people and was held in a studio by relocated Indians who had powwow culture incommon. Today they have the biggest powwow in the world 8-miles away from this studio. . .At first the tribes in this area resisted powwow culture. Today some of these same tribes embrace powwow as their own."

WhoMe
Moving History: The Evolution of the Powwow (2nd edition)

[eap7]

I think there's a difference between the Mashantucket Pequots with Schemitzun and the South American indigenous people in wherever they are thinking about having the powwow. Its true that the Pequots and Indians in areas that traditionally or historically didn't have powwows. But, the Pequots probably see themselves as part of intertribal American Indians, all of whom can actively participate in powwows. I'm not sure if people in South America would think the same way. I do know some people here in the US whose parents or families are immigrants from non-US or Canadian tribes (Taino and indigenous Mexican tribes). They actively participate in powwows, dancing, vending, whatever, because they've grown up here and consider themselves a part of the intertribal US community or whatever you want to call it.

I agree that cost would be a big factor. While the powwow cruise was great and I'd recommend it, I honestly wouldn't have been able to afford it if I hadn't won the trip. On the cruise, the directors kept encouraging us to come back and have more dancers come with us to make the powwow bigger, but realistically international travel is a financial barrier.

[WhoMe]

I think there's a difference between the Mashantucket Pequots with Schemitzun and the South American indigenous people in wherever they are thinking about having the powwow. Its true that the Pequots and Indians in areas that traditionally or historically didn't have powwows. But, the Pequots probably see themselves as part of intertribal American Indians, all of whom can actively participate in powwows. I'm not sure if people in South America would think the same way.

Uh eap,

Schemitzun is not the "World's Biggest Powwow."

....I'm talking about the powwow where I last saw you.

[ndneyez]

My 2 cents

Don't know if this off topic or not but............
I lived in S. America for 6 months. I have been there twice. I went to Ecuador. Most of them still spoke their traditional langage of Quechua. It was the MOST AMAZING experience of my life! I took my pow-wow gear with me "just in case"....lol I got to participate in their festivals (San Juan and San Antonio). They were very welcoming and let me dance along with them.
Cost would be a huge factor in whether or not people would go. My ticket, back then, cost me $700.00 round trip. That is without having to pay for a vehicle or a place to stay. I don't know what the going rate is these days but it is expensive. Also, I did NOT take my feathers because I did not want to get hassled by customs. I don't know how strict they are, especially now. Another thing to take into consideration is the area you are proposing this pow-wow. I stayed in a villiage in the Andes Mountains called Atahualpa. It was peaceful but these people had been exposed to "modern times" (for lack of a better term). If you're thinking about hosting a pow-wow where there is still "intertribal wars" I would think twice about going (personally).
Just some things to consider.

[eap7]

Oops, I thought you were talking about Schemitzun. I know its not the biggest anymore. Well it holds true for GON and the Indians out there as well. Also, I last say you at NMAI powwow last Aug. lol

[eap7]

My question is, are the powwow organizers looking to have it as an event that draws in participants from the US and Canada or has local participants dancing different powwow styles of dance? Would the local tribes do their own traditional dances as exhibitions too? That would be cool.

[2lineCarrandMorgan]

hello yall,
this is of intrest to me,
i have been listen to a man that is a PHD and Native [i think caldo]he is speaking about the frist ppl in mexico and that meny of the ppl that are Laten are also Native American also and that 200 tribes had imgrated from the americas to mexico arount the time spanish from invashion,i go agan at the end of the month im looking farward to understanding more about this .
also i know in Oxaca thay have a gathering of dancers from all over mexico and all the ppl from all around go to this but i dont know if its Myan or Astica only .

Who me have you any more understanding on the topic.and the general location of the gathering you spoke about.