Gathering of Nations
Powwow is cash cow, spiritual event

A line to buy advance tickets to the Gathering of Nations Thursday at the PIT in ALbuquerque did not wind down until after lunch. Customers complained they had to wait in line for 2 1/2 hours Thursday morning. Heavy lines are expected today and Saturday for those still without tickets. The powwow's doors will open at 10am Friday and Saturday.[photo by Jim Snyder / For the Independent]

By Jim Snyder
For the Independent

ALBUQUERQUE — Tens of thousands of people, primarily tribal and pueblo members from throughout the U.S. and Canada, will pack the indoor PIT basketball arena today and Saturday at the University of New Mexico for the 25th annual Gathering of Nations powwow. They will witness thousands of Native dancers in traditional ceremonial garb during the spiritual Grand Entry as well as in dance competitions.

The doors open at 10 a.m. and events continue past midnight both days. There will be non-stop dancing competition, Gourd dancing and Grand Entries inside the basketball arena — called the PIT because it is below ground. There will also be nonstop entertainment — including comedy, blues, rock and hip-hop on Stage 49 outside.

Further, there is a football-field sized Indian Market featuring Native crafts, ranging from a few dollars to thousands of dollars, inside the white tent next to the arena.

The bonanza, which features the crowning of Miss Indian World Saturday night, is different things to different people: It is a cash cow for its non-profit organizers and for the vendors who got in before space sold out. But all of the money changing and commercialization of the Gathering did not go by unnoticed by some spectators.

“This is a different kind of powwow,” said Chuck Charleston, a half Navajo and half Crow originally from Sweetwater, Ariz.

“I’ve come to see more traditional, and community based. This powwow is a corporate version of that. It’s a good thing for what it is, but it’s definitely not as traditional as I would like to believe.”

But for other spectators and dance participants, it brings together friends from other tribes and pueblos. Further, they said the Gathering is a very spiritual event.

“It reinforces your traditional beliefs,” said Anthony Chavez, a Navajo who grew up in Farmington and has family from Nageezi. “When you see a dance going on you’re spiritually moved. There are so many Natives out there trying to keep their traditions alive through the powwow,” he said, adding the first powwow he ever saw in his life was when he attended the first Gathering of Nations 25 years ago.

“It reminds you of who are you as a Native, because a lot of us kind of get lost in the system, whether it is going to school or working,” Chavez said. “We’re so busy with life we kind of forget ourselves. And this just brings that all back out, and reminds us our traditions and religion are still there. It doesn’t matter what tribe you come from. We all live the same kind of lives, whether we’re here or across the country.”

Getting in to experience this isn’t that simple: Be prepared to wait in a line for as long as two hours just to get into the PIT. Historically, the ticket line snakes its way around the exterior of the PIT, located at the southwest corner of Caesar Chavez and University Boulevard just east of I-25. And this is after paid parking is found in one of the UNM’s parking lots surrounding the PIT.

Advance ticket purchasers, hoping to avoid lines on Friday and Saturday, complained that it took more than two hours to reach the ticket window Thursday morning. Tickets are $13 on Friday and $15 on Saturday. It is cash only and there are no refunds.

Once inside be prepared to spend a lot more: To reach the seating area one must navigate past scores of vendors selling custom-designed T-shirts, magazine-quality programs and other souvenirs too tempting to pass. Then open the wallet even further — for food and sodas. Many families bring blankets to place on the concrete bench seats near the PIT floor.

Karla Chavez, a 1998 Window Rock High School graduate, said she is excited about going to the Indian Market.

“I’m coming out here to pretty much shop for my niece. She’s going to be graduating in May from a school in Oklahoma,” she said, adding it is difficult for her niece’s family in Oklahoma to find Navajo jewelry there.

Asked about the main differences between the Gathering’s powwow and the upcoming Navajo Nation Fair’s powwow in Window Rock, Chavez said the Gathering was more organized because it had more restrooms, better parking and was indoors.

“Out there (in Window Rock) the wind kicks up and pretty much the trash blows around,” she said.