GREENFIELD — More than 100 people danced together during the Norumbeka Project’s annual Eastern Woodlands Ballroom Dance, which showcased Native culture and history Saturday at Greenfield Community College.
The third annual event, timed to celebrate the Snowy Moon, highlighted Indigenous voices while promoting community cohesion and highlighting the importance of protecting the natural world. I did.
This year’s dance was led by Hartman Dietz and Asa Peters of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe. The event featured a variety of circle dances performed by people of all ages and a lesson explaining their meaning. Aiming to amplify Native voices, this event provides an educational platform for the community.
“Many people in this region lack a connection to Indigenous people, and perhaps their only interaction is through advertising and mascots,” said N. Narragansett educator and director of the Norumbeka Project. said one Jennifer Lee. “This gives kids a different perspective on who Indigenous people are.”
Guests of honor at the gathering included Liz Coldwind Santana Kaiser, Elder, Councilwoman and Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Chaubnagungamag Band of Nipmuc Indians, and Co-Director of the Atowi Project. and Ernu Abenaki citizen Rich Holschuh. Handmade items were also on sale.
“Ballroom dancing can serve as a prayer,” Lee explained, emphasizing that she is participating in memory of the two who were unable to dance on Saturday. She pointed out that such dances can also be called prayers to nature.
This year marked our first collaboration with Western Mass Rights of Nature, a newly founded group that started about a year ago. The group was invited to speak about rights to the Connecticut River, known as the Long River. The session, held Friday night, was led by Dietz and aimed at raising awareness.
Mr. Dietz has long been involved in the natural rights movement and has long advocated for the Charles River.
“He has traveled and lectured all over the world and in the United States. He is deeply rooted in his culture,” Lee said. “He has been clamming with his grandfather in the same place for thousands of years. That perspective is really special. His generosity in teaching us ballroom dancing is amazing.”
Rights of Nature is a worldwide movement that seeks to grant legal rights and strengthen protection based on elements of the natural world. It is rooted in indigenous knowledge systems and recognizes the interdependence of human and ecological communities and the responsibility humans have in managing the non-human world. Western Mass Rights of Nature is a grassroots member of this global movement.
“The question of ‘standing’ in our courts and legal proceedings is extremely important. It determines who can bring or participate in lawsuits and legal proceedings,” said Sarah Matthews, co-founder of Western Mass Rights of Nature. “Our legal system recognizes that individuals and corporations have rights, even large multinational corporations with no local ties. , plants and ecosystems have no status. They lack representation in courts and regulatory proceedings.”
The group has voiced opposition to the Turners Falls hydroelectric dam and Northfield pump storage, arguing that these projects are being “greenwashed” or are producing clean energy while causing environmental damage to local ecosystems. He claimed that it was falsely advertised as if it were.
Participants are encouraged to submit comments opposing these projects to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), which is currently accepting comments on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s renewal process. Applications are accepted until April 22nd.
“Our failure to recognize the inherent right of natural systems like rivers to exist, thrive, and reproduce is leading to their destruction. Many of us believe that we must change our current systems. I strongly believe that it won’t happen,” Matthews said. “We are bombarded with dire warnings about climate change, biodiversity loss and plastic pollution, and we desperately want to take action to address these problems, but we don’t know how. Often, natural rights provide the answer.”
A complete recording of Friday night’s event can be accessed on YouTube at youtube.com/watch?v=gKkzPtlUeyo.
Bella Levavi can be reached at 413-930-4579 or [email protected].