Cal State Long Beach – Annual American Indian Pow Wow

2014 marks the 44^th annual pow wow put on by CSULB’s American Indian Student Services. It was my first ever pow wow attended so I have nothing to compare it to.
A pow wow is a northern native american gathering filled with dancing and food. That’s the general definition of a pow wow. Simple, yes?
Parking and entrance are free. If you’re not familiar to CSULB you will have difficulty navigating around. Just look for the big parking lot off of Bellflower Blvd. The pow wow was held in the central quad. Just follow the people or the drum beats :)
There were a few dozen vendors selling anything from typical beaded jewelry to moccasins to native blankets and garb. It was a good representation of native artistry. My son got a clay bird water whistle and a wooden slingshot in the shape of a wolf.
The food was pretty basic; fry bread in several variations (navajo dog, navajo cheese burger). I was standing in line to buy drinks and I couldn’t not get the fry bread especially after standing in line for so long. I got a navajo taco, veggie style. Fry bread was a big, oblong, thick, tortilla like creation and it was definitely tasty. I didn’t see much other food other than fry bread stands (I counted 3).
The dancers were all around, children and adults alike. I loved sitting and watching them strut by in their outfits. The dancers would enter the dancing area and drum circles were all around them. It was a great experience seeing so many native american tribes represented.
To be honest, I would have liked for the dance area to have been in a larger area. The dancers were difficult to view because there were several tents with drum circles and reserved spots and spectators had the option of standing behind them tents or sitting in the stands (small section). That’s my only gripe about this event.
I highly recommend bringing
— a folding chair/​beach/​lawn etx
— sunblock
— water
— cash (wells fargo ATM available nearby)
–a mellow relaxed attitude
This is a fun and free experience. Can’t wait to attend more pow wows in the future. Thanks CSULB for a great experience!

This event is altogether extraordinary with hundreds of Native Americans coming together to celebrate their heritage with dancing in traditional regalia, drumming, singing, and storytelling. I’ve always been extremely impressed with all who participate. In past years the temperature has gotten up to 103 degrees and people are still dancing their hearts out.
It’s difficult to not feel the positive energy in the air.
Here you see a great number of people taking part in dances and songs and drumming and wearing traditional regalia that has been a part of their culture for hundreds of years. It’s wonderful!
I’ve been coming for several years now, and I believe this year was the best yet.
In the past there were no seats or benches for people who wanted to observe this glorious event. You had to stand and awkwardly look through someone’s tented-​area.
Over the years, they added a couple three-​level bleachers, which people fought over for seats. This year, they brought in a large multi-​level set of bleachers, facing north (away from the sun), and they were wonderful and constantly filled with people.
And the food — the GLORIOUS food. I love fry bread tacos, and sadly they’re hard to come by in Southern California unless there’s an event. Well, they’re worth waiting for.

This annual Pow-​Wow festival is held on the Cal State Long Beach campus (since the campus is located on ancient native American burial grounds). It almost always falls on the second weekend in March.
It’s a great opportunity to observe the Native American culture and their customs. People literally come from all over for the two day event. Various tribes are present and they all get decked out (young and old) in their tribal outfits and partake in their ceremonial dances and chants all set to drum beats. It’s actually so cool I’m always tempted to get in there myself but I’m not sure if random participation is welcomed or if it would be considered rude so I’ve always opted to just admire from a distance.
I really enjoy walking around and checking out the various booths & all the miscellaneous goods. Since American Indians try to use all parts of an animal when they kill it you’ll see some booths that sell various animal parts like hide, beaks, claws, nails etc… it’s fascinating! I also peruse the art, jewelry (there are cool teal and silver pieces). In the past I’ve bought my Godson a cool Native American flute decorated with a hanging feather, picked up a few snazzy dream catchers and I never forget to sample the cuisine… Yummy Navajo tacos and fry bread!!!
This is such a unique event that’s so unlike anything else I’ve ever experienced that I try to make it out every year! It’s definitely worth checking out!