The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe had to cancel this year’s powwow because of the coronavirus pandemic, but some members are still finding ways to celebrate.
Kendall Scott, a member of the Mashpee tribe, recently participated in a social distancing powwow in which she performed the traditional Eastern blanket dance, which is often danced at powwows and is common among eastern woodland tribes.
“It’s a spiritual and cultural aspect for us that ties to our history,” Scott said. “It’s much more than just physically dancing. It’s something that fills your heart.”
Scott said the Eastern blanket dance tells the story of a woman’s life in courtship. The dancer starts with four steps, however they choose, in each direction. At the beginning of the dance, the blanket envelops the dancer, representing the person in the womb.
Then, slowly, the dancer begins to open one side, then the other, and continues to do different movements with the blanket.
“It’s representing a young woman going through life, becoming a grown woman,” Scott said.
At the end of the song, the woman lays the blanket in front of the man she is courting in hopes he will pick it up and they will be married and wrapped in the blanket, Scott said.
“I’ve never heard of us having wedding rings, but I was told the wrapping of a blanket ‘sealed the deal’ at our weddings,” Scott said.
The blanket dance also tells the story of the woman’s life, her coming of age and becoming a woman.
Scott, who has danced as long as she can remember, is also Narragansett and Pequot, and she wanted to honor her lineage with the eastern woodland tribes.
“I’ve danced every style of women’s dance over the years, but I find that my heart rests with the traditional style lately,” she said.
At powwows growing up, Scott said she would watch and learn from the older girls dancing about how to move more gracefully.
Normally in July and August, there is a powwow every weekend, she said, with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe kicking things off the first weekend of the month. She keeps her regalia hung in her closet and takes it out for powwows or special occasions, but with COVID-19 canceling events, she has not had a reason.
Her cousin, Dan Simonds, recently held a virtual powwow encouraging tribal members up and down the coast to send in videos of their Eastern blanket dance, Scott said. People could cast a vote for their favorite dancer, and the winners got cash prizes as well wampum jewelry, Scott said.
“I’m part of the Simonds family so it didn’t seem right taking part in the competitive aspect, so I danced for myself, my ancestors, my family and prayer,” she said. “It was basically for fun, the reason why I did it.”
Alana Helme, a member of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe who lives in Fairhaven, also participated in the social distancing powwow and won third place with her dance.
Helme, who is also the tribal princess, learned the dance when she was 14 or 15 from her aunt. She said the dance is a passed-down tradition in her family.
The dance allows the dancers to tell their own story, Helme said, and shows how a woman lives.
“We spin our blankets to show what we’ve been through, tough situations, things we had to just adapt to,” Helme said.
While it is a courtship dance and the woman is supposed to drop the blanket in front of the man she likes, young girls who participate in the dance will not drop their blanket, Helme said.
If the man picks up the blanket and puts it back on the woman’s shoulders, then he also wants to get married, Helme said.
“It’s important for me to practice this dance just because it originated from this area and other tribes, like out West, they don’t do these types of dances,” Helme said. “So it’s important for us in this area that we carry it on in the same way they would carry their dances on. It’s kind of just keeping the tradition going in the area.”
By Jessica Hill | Cape Cod Times
