The University of Maryland brought back its annual powwow — or ritual gathering of Indigenous people — Saturday for the first time since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The event, which was hosted by the Native American and Indigenous Student Union, featured Native American students celebrating their heritage and visiting tables of arts and crafts. There was drumming, dancing, renewing of friendships and restoring of spiritual connections.
“It’s a great place to meet people and to see some old friends,” said student Jeremy Harley of Waldorf, Maryland, of the Piscataway Conoy tribe. “It’s a good excuse to just see everyone again.”
The powwow caught the attention of university President Darryll J. Pines.
“It’s all about celebrating our diverse community and how everyone brings value added to the University of Maryland,” Pines said.
Rick Kelly of Virginia’s Nottoway Indian tribe, who attended the event, said it was like a “family reunion.”
“It’s our opportunity to share our culture with the people around us,” he said. Kelly also reminded people that Indigenous people are still present throughout the country.
“Quite often, people don’t recognize us unless we have on all our feathers,” he said.
Hana Zewdie, coordinator for the Multiracial and Native/Indigenous Student Involvement, wants people to support Native Americans in the D.C. area and attend their local powwows.
“There was a time where I thought that you had to be native to go to powwow, and as a non-native person, I thought, ‘Well, I guess that means I can’t go,'” Zewdie said. “In the last few years, it’s been something that I’ve come to understand better.”
