'Powerful and meaningful': All-Nations Powwow a growing tradition at UTM
Kaitlin Phillips has fond childhood memories of her aunt and grandmother creating beaded dolls as vendors at Powwows in Kahnawà:ke Mohawk Territory in Quebec.
The gatherings were a part of her family life growing up, with dancing, singing and artistry bringing people together.
At the University of Toronto Mississauga, where Phillips works with the Office of Indigenous Initiatives, a new but similar tradition is taking shape as the fourth annual All-Nations Powwow is set to take place at UTM next week.
Phillips, who is part of the team organizing the Powwow, recalls a participant from last year’s event sharing how happy he was that the event had become an annual occurrence.
“Universities, like many western institutions, were just not originally welcoming to Indigenous people. Now, for a full day, we're taking over and able to share something like a Powwow with a greater community,” she says.
“It really feels like it's not just an OII initiative, but it's a UTM initiative.”
This year’s Powwow – set for Oct. 3, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Recreation Athletic and Wellness Centre – will feature traditional ceremonies, singing, dancing, drumming and close to 40 vendors.
The free event brings together Indigenous and non-Indigenous community members while emphasizing the importance of relationship building and providing opportunities to learn more about Indigenous culture.
Expanding the event’s vendor market this year is just one of the ways the Powwow has grown, says Phillips, a special projects officer with the Office of Indigenous Initiatives.
“We’ve been inside, we’ve been outside, and every year it’s a completely different experience,” she says. “We're learning every year and constantly improving and trying to make it better.”
Fourth-year UTM student Kaiya Thibault-Jones, who is volunteering as an assistant to the emcee and Elders at this year’s Powwow, says UTM’s connection to the Indigenous community is what drew her to apply to the campus.
“I specifically wanted UTM because of the landed territory, which is connected to the Mississaugi First Nation up north, where my grandpa is from,” says Thibault-Jones, who is Anishinaabe from Garden River First Nation (Ketegaunseebee), near Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.
“It feels like I'm being connected to him while I'm here.”
Having an annual Powwow at UTM is “powerful and meaningful,” she says.
“UTM and U of T doing this, this is a way of giving back,” she says. “This is a piece of reconciliation.”
While this is her first year working at a Powwow, Thibault-Jones has been to many Powwows as a spectator, which she says is a rewarding experience.
“Powwows aren't just about the dancers, they're also about the vendors, the watchers, who's walking around, the kids watching ... There's so many enjoyable elements,” she says.
Powwows also serve an important educational purpose, Thibault-Jones says.
“If you actually look at the visual aesthetics of how a Powwow works, people are walking the same direction in the circle, following unsaid rules and respecting one another,” she says. “It’s about community and everyone is welcome.”
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Learn more about the Powwow here and sign up for free admission.
