- 6/9/2023
Category
😹
FunTranscript
00:00Greetings and welcome, East Hampton.
00:29South Hampton and community, welcome and thank you for tuning in to Cafe with Sandra Kay.
00:37Today we are standing in the heart of the Shinnecock Reservation in South Hampton, New
00:44York.
00:45We are celebrating the 76th Shinnecock Annual Powwow.
00:52The Powwow honors, celebrates, and preserves the rich heritage of the Native American nations.
01:01Today we look forward to song, to dance, to arts and crafts, jewelry, and music that is
01:11akin to the Native American culture.
01:14With us today we are honored to have Gnu Benton.
01:17Gnu, please join me.
01:19Gnu Benton is a singer and songwriter.
01:23He is also recognized for his award-winning short film, Looking Glass.
01:29Gnu is going to lead us through the events and the ceremonies that we look forward to
01:35celebrating today.
01:37Thank you for having me.
01:38Yes, thank you, Gnu.
01:39So Gnu, please share with us the Powwow has been going on for years.
01:44You have been attending this.
01:47Should we all look forward to it?
01:49What are some of the highlights that really speak to you about the Powwow?
01:53Well, first of all, let me explain what a Powwow is.
01:57A Powwow is a celebration of song and dance of Native American people.
02:03In this country's history, Native American people weren't actually viewed as human beings.
02:10And it was a very dark time in this country where Native American people weren't allowed
02:14to be Native American people.
02:17And in the time of the government pushing Native people onto reservations, and let me
02:24just add that the territory that we're on is not technically a reservation because a
02:28reservation is, by all definitions, a concentration camp.
02:34This is an unceded territory that the Shinnecock people have never been moved from.
02:39This has always been their territory since time immemorial.
02:43In the time when the government were pushing Native American people onto territories,
02:47the people began to become very, very sick.
02:51And there was a time when the people started getting their pride back.
02:58And Powwows became a birth of celebrating a time when we said enough is enough.
03:06We are going to sing, we're going to dance, and we're not going to be killed anymore for
03:11speaking our language.
03:13We're going to visit other communities, we're going to travel the country and share who
03:17we are.
03:18How are you?
03:19Good.
03:20How are you?
03:21Good.
03:22I'm Sandra.
03:23You are?
03:24I'm Craig Merrick.
03:25Hey, Craig.
03:26Pleasure to meet you.
03:27Nice to meet you.
03:28Yeah.
03:29Love your garb.
03:31Craig, which Native nation are you from?
03:32I'm Dakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne.
03:33I come originally from Langer, Montana.
03:34Fantastic.
03:35Yeah.
03:36Fantastic.
03:37And have you been attending this Powwow for...
03:39I have since I was a little boy.
03:41I started attending probably around age 10.
03:44So my family moved out here to the East Coast when I was just a little boy.
03:48Always came to the Shinnecock celebration every year.
03:50Okay, that's great.
03:51And I heard that you are a champion dancer.
03:54I don't know about that.
03:56I travel around and just dance as much as I can.
04:00Okay.
04:01What does dance symbolize for you?
04:04Well, I dance the Northern traditional style and that originated a long time ago when they
04:08would come back from war, when they'd come back from going on raids or stealing horses
04:15or counting coo on an enemy, they would come back and they would tell a story with their
04:18style of dance.
04:19So the men's traditional dance is one of the oldest forms of dancing that we have on the
04:22Powwow trail.
04:23That's fantastic.
04:24And we're going to see you come in at the Grand Entry, yes, and perform that dance.
04:30Yeah.
04:31Yes.
04:32Okay.
04:33And is this one of the things that you look forward to most at the Powwow?
04:36What other...
04:37This is what I do during the summertime.
04:39So during winter, I teach fifth grade out in Hoopa Valley, California, where my wife
04:43lives.
04:44My wife is also a Shinnecock, so I'm kind of married into the tribe out here.
04:48But during the summertime, this is what we do.
04:49This is kind of like how the cowboy follows the rodeo.
04:53This is how Indians follow the Powwow trail.
04:55Okay.
04:56And how often do you do the dance?
04:58Almost every weekend.
05:00So it depends on how far to Powwow is, depends on how much money we got to get there.
05:05Last week we were in Connecticut, and then the week before that, there was a small one
05:09in Mohegan.
05:10So it's kind of every week.
05:11Oh, that's fantastic.
05:12But usually, this is the last stop for me to start the school year.
05:15For the Labor Day weekend, start of the school year, big celebration.
05:19And to you, what has evolved as the Shinnecocks, and what are you really proud of and excited
05:27about that's happening now?
05:28I just think their hospitality.
05:30Their hospitality has always been a real big piece in my life.
05:35They've always treated me like family.
05:36I've always felt home.
05:37Every time I've come here, since I was a little boy, about 10 years old.
05:41So a lot of the elders have seen me grow up from a young man to a man now.
05:47But just their hospitality and their always welcoming nature has always been a thing that
05:51I've always loved coming here.
05:53Seeing the Lord's Prayer with the late Princess Chichi and all their traditions that they
05:57still have here.
05:58So that's always been something that I've always looked forward to coming here and witnessing
06:03because it makes me remember better times.
06:05It makes me remember when I was a little boy growing up and all that stuff.
06:09And all the family are here, and your friends from childhood, so there's nothing better
06:13than that.
06:14Yeah, exactly.
06:15That's great.
06:16Okay, well we are going to look forward to seeing your dance.
06:18Oh, what's that up?
06:19An honor to meet you and thank you for the interview.
06:21Pleasure.
06:22What's that?
06:23Pete, pleasure to meet you.
06:24Pleasure, ma'am.
06:25Yes.
06:26So you are one of the Master of Ceremonies here.
06:28Correct.
06:29It's a great honor to be able to serve in the CCC along with Mr. Charlie Smith who's
06:31well known here in the area.
06:33And it's just a pleasure to be able to serve in that capacity along with the other great
06:36individuals who are part of the Pow Wow staff that have been brought in by the Pow Wow Committee
06:40of course to Shinnecock Nation.
06:42And what is your responsibility?
06:43So our responsibility is really to make sure that the agenda is maintained so that the
06:48information that we provide is equivalent to what the people are seeing, hearing, and
06:53most of all feeling during the celebration.
06:56So for the spectators who are incredible supporters each and every year, that it's important that
07:01they understand what it is that's taking place in front of them.
07:04So that way it's not a form of entertainment.
07:06It's really about seeing a way of life for the Shinnecock people.
07:09So do you announce before each event, each dance, each song exactly what we're going
07:14to experience?
07:15We do.
07:16In fact, usually I'm brought in just to really provide that educational opportunity.
07:21Mr. Charlie Smith, of course, he's a wealth of knowledge and of course he can tell some
07:24great jokes and keep the people laughing.
07:26But it's really important that we have that balance of education, entertainment, things
07:30that people enjoy seeing, but most of all that they're going to leave here knowing much
07:34more than what they came to those gates with in their heads and most of all in their minds
07:38and their hearts.
07:39That's fantastic.
07:40Well, it's a pleasure, honor to meet you.
07:42And what are you, is there anything specific you're looking forward to today?
07:46Well, I'm looking forward to of course the contests, the specials that take place, and
07:51any honorings that are present.
07:53The gathering, when it comes to the contest, is always a crowd pleaser.
07:56The men's fancy, the women, the children, the elders, all being out there in the arena
08:00together.
08:01But most importantly is the reason why we're doing what we're doing.
08:04It is to honor, it is to respect, it is to remember, it is to memorialize those who are
08:09no longer with us, especially what we've all gone through.
08:12Not just tribal people, but all people have gone through for the past two, two and a half
08:15years.
08:16So most importantly, leave here with the understanding that this is a great opportunity for anyone
08:21to be a part of and to witness.
08:23The Shinnecock Nation, such a wealth of history there, and most, not most important, but equally
08:29is to understand what they're doing today and what they're looking forward to doing
08:32for tomorrow.
08:33Yes.
08:34Anything you'd like to share with us about what might be forthcoming?
08:35Well, I'm going to leave that to the trustees, and of course the Shinnecock Nation themselves.
08:40But again, come out.
08:42It's been a pleasure to meet you.
08:43Pleasure.
08:44Thank you for your time.
08:45You are Chief Sechep Elder of Council.
08:50Yes.
08:51Please, is that correct?
08:52Please, please tell us, what does that mean and what is your responsibility as Chief?
09:01Well, we have a seven-member council.
09:05Okay.
09:07And the council consists of the chairman, vice-chairman, secretary to the general council,
09:16secretary to the council of trustees, the treasurer, and my responsibility is to say
09:26to you that you have to be 60 years, 55 years of age.
09:32And the important thing of it is to carry on traditions and to give the knowledge,
09:42your knowledge of our traditions and how we have come about throughout the years.
09:54And in this day and age, this time, we have so much going on with social media and now
10:03we have Zoom meetings and texting and emails and all of that, which is a great thing because
10:13that gives us an opportunity to reach out to more people and to all of those people
10:20who are not living on territory, but also members that live off territory.
10:26And now they're able to participate in our meetings, our tribal meetings that we have.
10:32How often are the meetings?
10:34The meetings are, we have our regular meetings, we have once, four times a month.
10:41And then we have a general council meeting, which is once a year.
10:47And you are the decision-making body?
10:49Yes, we are the leadership.
10:51We are the decision-making body.
10:53We are the ones that, we are the governments of our nation.
10:58Oh, fantastic.
10:59Yes.
11:00And as I say to them, my responsibility is to try to keep that balance between modern
11:09times and traditional times.
11:14She did have one question for me earlier about the stage and a little bit of the history
11:19behind that.
11:20Yeah, the stage, it was built, originally this was formed in a different area and it
11:32was on the same premise of bringing all Indians together to visit Seneca.
11:39And as it grew, we had to expand, so the stage was put here.
11:46And that way it gives the audience a better view of what goes on, because normally at
11:54other powwows, we're not on a stage, we're in the center, you know.
11:59But this gives the spectators a little bit better view.
12:02And it was formed in the shape of a drum, to have drums.
12:07And originally it was small.
12:09It wasn't that big.
12:11And it was big enough for all the people to participate in it.
12:17But as it grew, we had to expand it.
12:20We had to make it bigger.
12:22So if you look on the outside of the painting, on the outside, you have all the rawhide stretched
12:28over the drum.
12:30So that's what this stage represents.
12:33So we say that the drum itself is a, it represents the heartbeat of the creator himself.
12:41Yes.
12:42Right?
12:43We say that it represents the thunder beings that connect the spiritual realm with the
12:49earthly realm.
12:50Fantastic.
12:51Inside all of us, it's said that it holds the drumbeat, the creator's voice within
12:57all of us.
12:58That heartbeat that we hear?
12:59Yes.
13:00And it's that voice that combined with the music that makes us want to move.
13:06And this is why music is so important to every culture.
13:08Yes.
13:09So especially to us, when we sing and we dance to that, that song, it creates this very beautiful
13:18ceremony.
13:19And combined with whatever story that we have that goes along with the dances, whatever
13:25song is being sung, because every song is different, it creates the ceremony that uplifts
13:32the spirit of the people.
13:34Yes.
13:35So when people come together, what they're saying is that we're going to celebrate who
13:43we are.
13:44And over the years, powwows have become a competitive venue where it's become also
13:51an economic opportunity for tribes to be able to make a little money, to be able to
13:56have a little success in this colonized world that we live in.
13:59There's over a hundred arts and crafts, a hundred vendors.
14:03Yes.
14:04And all of these people come from across the country to come visit the Hamptons.
14:09Yes.
14:10To come celebrate with us.
14:11This is a four-day event.
14:13Yep, this is a four-day, for all four days.
14:15And obviously they know that it's a very big opportunity for them.
14:21I don't know what they have.
14:23They have stuffed clams, they have fried clams, but they have iced tea, basically.
14:29Yeah.
14:30Yep.
14:32I do iced teas.
14:35Yes.
14:37Yeah, I'm going to come back later for some of the clams on the half-shell.
14:40There's Uncle Wayne again, having a stuffed clam.
14:43Check it out.
14:45Wow.
14:46This is great.
14:47You've got to put some hot sauce.
14:52Then you've got to take a fork.
14:54You've got to eat it slow because it's $7.
14:56That's right, you've got to get ready.
14:58It's warming.
15:00There you go.
15:01Awesome.
15:02So, Benoit, what do you think of the bar?
15:05It's a good bar.
15:06It's a good bar.
15:07It's a good bar.
15:08It's a good bar.
15:09It's a good bar.
15:10It's a good bar.
15:11It's a good bar.
15:12It's a good bar.
15:13What do you think sells the most here?
15:15I think food.
15:19Food, of course.
15:21And then, of course, jewelry, probably.
15:23Yeah.
15:24So, Sandra.
15:25Yes.
15:27For a good time in my life, I was what we call a wampum maker.
15:32And I wanted to introduce you to somebody that I mentored into the arts of creating wampum.
15:40And I'll have him explain that to you.
15:42This is my cousin, Gordell.
15:43Gordell, right?
15:44So, I want you to meet him here.
15:46Gordell.
15:47Good morning.
15:48Pleasure to meet you.
15:49Good to meet you.
15:50Yes.
15:51I love what I see here.
15:54Please talk to us about it.
15:55Yes.
15:56As Benoit said, I started making wampum about 12 years ago.
15:59He taught me the basics of how to look at the shell, how to use it.
16:03Where does the shell come from?
16:05I mean, the clam shell comes from a lot of different places.
16:09But the ones that have the best color purple that we use to make wampum come from the waters
16:13between New Jersey and Massachusetts.
16:15And here on Long Island is a prime spot where we would get the shells from and make wampum.
16:20Right.
16:21So, just very quickly, just to add, Sandra.
16:24Yes.
16:25So, wampum itself, the shell, grab that shell again real quick.
16:31So, there's this very beautiful story about the purple.
16:36And it's said that no matter where you are in the world, as he was saying, that there are shells all over the world.
16:43But only here on the northeast coast does the purple actually exist.
16:49So, what I've been told is that the purple actually represents the blood of the people
16:54and the tie of the people to the land itself.
16:58And that the purple is an indicator of how well that we treat the land.
17:04And obviously, there is scientific reasoning behind that.
17:08If there's no more purple that shows up in our time shells,
17:11we're not doing our part as Indian people to take care of our land itself, our environment.
17:16Very interesting.
17:18So, the other reason why the shell is so important is because the shell plays a very important role
17:25in the creation of human beings in our creation story.
17:28It's said that the creator actually used the shell beings to blow life into human beings themselves.
17:35To make us.
17:36Because that spirit he wanted to give us was so powerful that every time...
17:44That's my dad.
17:45That's my dad.
17:51So, every time the creator wanted to blow life into us,
17:56the earth that he used always exploded.
17:59So, he used the shell being to be able to help transfer that life so that it can be contained within us.
18:06So, in very essence, when we carry the shells, when we wear it like my cousin is here,
18:13we're considered complete and whole as human beings.
18:17So, from the basics, I just started to expand making my jewelry, making my beads.
18:24And so, where we are today, this is what I do for a living.
18:29That's beautiful. So, you've got the shells and then you've got to cut out the purple
18:34to get this beautiful array of what we're looking at here.
18:38So, what I do usually is trace whatever I'm going to make on the outside of the shell.
18:43Then I do my rough cuts.
18:45And then I do lapidary work to refine everything, polish, smooth out.
18:51And so, I try to do a lot of different shapes, sizes, so that I have a good variety.
18:58Like here, is this a spear?
19:00No, I mean a lot of shapes are just like traditional shapes, feathers, things that people like and sell well.
19:09And so, that's kind of what I do with them.
19:12Okay, and what else do you have over there? I see some necklaces and bracelets.
19:16I have some necklaces, some earrings with quill work.
19:19I like to collaborate with a lot of different artists because I don't do quill work.
19:23I don't do bead work or inlay work.
19:25So, what I do is I collaborate with other people that do do that or silver work.
19:29That's beautiful.
19:30So, I have a variety of different things that I have at my table.
19:34Fantastic. And turquoise, which is awesome.
19:38Yeah, so this is from a friend of mine. He does a lot of silver work for me.
19:42And so, he asked me to carry a few of his things.
19:46And so, just to have a lot of different varieties so people can see, pick out whatever they want.
19:53It's not just one thing.
19:54Okay, so wampum, historically, we use it in a lot of different ways.
20:00One of the main ways is if you see these purple beads here, we would make purple and white beads.
20:07And out of that, we would make wampum belts.
20:10Wampum belts is like a form of documentation.
20:13So, you have treaty belts, historical belts, prophecy belts, family belts.
20:17Anything major, significant in our community would be put into a wampum belt.
20:22And they can be from as long where you need a few people holding them to smaller ones.
20:28And so, that's one of them.
20:30Is it a recording?
20:31Yes, it's like a historical recording.
20:33Then we also use it for our personal adornment.
20:35We use it for honoring ceremonies, funerals, giveaways.
20:39And we still use that today in that same way.
20:42Many times when we go to other places, we bring gifts of wampum.
20:45We still do the wampum belt, so we still use it in our traditional way.
20:51And was it used for trade, wampum?
20:53Yeah, we also used it for trade.
20:55But a lot of people have the currency aspect of it because that's what's taught.
21:00But to us as Native people, that wasn't really here.
21:03When the colonists saw them northeast here, the value that we had for it, and it was universal here,
21:09they used it as a currency for about 20, 30, 30, 40 years because they didn't have a unified currency.
21:15It's very special.
21:16Thanks a lot, man. Appreciate it.
21:18Pleasure meeting you.
21:19Thank you very much.
21:20Good luck today, and I'll be back. I'll see you later.
21:23Gnu, I'd like to ask you about the Grand Entry, which we're going to see shortly.
21:29What is the Grand Entry?
21:32So the Grand Entry comes from a very ceremonial place.
21:36Before powwows were actually a thing in its modern-day context,
21:41the Grand Entry was a ceremonial time where our warriors, our veterans,
21:48those who have been experienced in battle,
21:52they would be gathered together in a very ceremonial fashion
21:56so that the people can know about their stories, about the battles they've been through,
22:02the hunts they've been on, and essentially—
22:05It speaks to the spirit.
22:06Yes.
22:07The spirit of the people.
22:08Yes. So that's how it began.
22:10But over the years, in this powwow sort of fashion,
22:14we still have our warriors coming in.
22:17When we see later, we'll see the Grand Entry.
22:19The men will start the procession,
22:24beginning with our flags, the representative tribes that are here.
22:28All dancers should be lining up for the Grand Entry.
22:33We are going to start in just a few minutes.
22:38You know, these last years have been really hard on all of us.
22:45And on some of us, it's been especially hard.
22:51But it's good to be back again.
22:55It's good to see all of these dancers here, strong.
23:03It's good to see all of these drummers here, strong.
23:08And it's good to see all of you spectators who have come out again
23:14to enjoy our traditions, to enjoy our lands here on Shinnecock.
23:22So we thank you all for returning, and we welcome you.
23:27This is a sacred area for us.
23:30This is where we dance.
23:31This is where we celebrate.
23:32And this is how we enter our dance arena with a Grand Entry.
23:38So we're going to ask everyone to please rise during this Grand Entry
23:43in honor of the flags that are being carried
23:46and the Eagle Staffs that are being carried.
23:50Young Blood Singers, you will have the Grand Entry.
23:55So we are ready for our 76th Annual Shinnecock Pow Wow
24:01Second Grand Entry.
24:03Young Blood Singers, take it away.
24:07♪♪♪
24:31Coming into the dance arena at this time,
24:33we have our Shinnecock leaders, our Council of Trustees.
24:38♪♪♪
24:53Following our Council, we have our staff carriers and our flag bearers.
24:59♪♪♪
25:26We have our traditional women dancers.
25:56♪♪♪
26:25Thank you dancers.
26:55♪♪♪
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