Saturday, April 24, 2021
ESG = GREEN CAPITALI$M
Why 'greenwashing' is an issue for sustainable investments—and how to avoid it
Alicia Adamczyk
Why 'greenwashing' is an issue for sustainable investments—and how to avoid it
80% OF INVESTMENTS ARE OWNED BY THE 1%
Alicia Adamczyk
4/23/2021
Average investors want sustainable investment options. New investments in sustainable funds more than doubled in 2020 compared to 2019, reaching a record-high $51 billion, according to investment research firm Morningstar*.
Average investors want sustainable investment options. New investments in sustainable funds more than doubled in 2020 compared to 2019, reaching a record-high $51 billion, according to investment research firm Morningstar*.
© Provided by CNBC
But just how sustainable certain funds really are is a matter of debate.
But just how sustainable certain funds really are is a matter of debate.
A major critique of investments that take environmental, social and governance practices of companies into account — called ESG investing — is that there is really no such thing as a truly sustainable investment.
Instead, it's called out as "marketing hype," as Tariq Fancy, the former chief investment officer for sustainable investing at BlackRock Inc., the world's largest asset manager, recently argued in an op-ed for USA Today.
Rather than taking meaningful action against climate change, the financial industry is simply greenwashing investments, or making false claims about the sustainability of their products, to make money off of a popular trend, Fancy says.
But some funds really are more sustainable than others, says Karen Wallace, Morningstar's director of investor education. And she believes it's worth it for investors to put in effort to find investments that align with their values if that's important to them.
"It means a lot to people that their money is making an impact," says Wallace. "There are good funds out there that are good fits for people's portfolios."
If you're interested in sustainable investing, here are some things to keep in mind.
How to avoid 'greenwashing'
One factor that makes ESG investing complicated is that there aren't set regulations or definitions for what makes something "sustainable," says Wallace. That means it's up to each investor to determine for themselves what practices are most important in a fund.
Some funds are designed specifically to exclude certain industries, such as tobacco, weapons or oil and gas. A second group can be defined as sustainable sector funds, according to Morningstar, and are built around "green economy" companies in industries like renewable energy or water.
A third group of funds can be considered "core" holdings, meaning they're diversified investments for a long-term portfolio, meant to replace things like typical index funds. The new BlackRock U.S. Carbon Transition Readiness ETF (LCTU), for example, is benchmarked against — and meant to outperform — the Russell 1000. It has similar holdings to the Russell 1000, but BlackRock says it has been constructed to have "almost 50% less carbon intensity" than the index.
That said, the fund still holds companies like Chevron and Exxon, which sustainable investors might want to avoid.
Wallace recommends that, just like with any other investment, investors read the prospectus of ESG funds they're interested in, which can be fund by Googling "[fund name] + prospectus," or by simply reading about the fund's aims on its website. This will tell investors what the fund's objective is and list the companies the fund invests in. Investors can then make an informed decision about if it aligns with their values.
Morningstar itself provides a sustainability rating for stocks and funds and has an ESG Screener investors can use to search for funds based on their own sustainability preferences, such as "low carbon." It also provides a list of "stand out" funds in different categories in this blog post.
As You Sow, a nonprofit that promotes corporate social responsibility, also created the Invest Your Values search tools, which investors can use to learn more about their investments. Investors can search the name or symbol of mutual funds or ETFs in one of six search tools, including Deforestation Free Funds and Fossil Free Funds, and will be provided with a "report card" on the fund related to the issue.
No investment is going to solve climate change. But Wallace encourages investors who care about sustainability not to think cynically about the sustainable investments space. There might be some companies that misrepresent products, she says, but there are many others taking sustainability seriously.
"I'm glad sustainable investing is growing, and I think it's great people are interested in their own investments," says Wallace. "If you're mindful of your investing and where your money is going, you feel good about where it's going."
Instead, it's called out as "marketing hype," as Tariq Fancy, the former chief investment officer for sustainable investing at BlackRock Inc., the world's largest asset manager, recently argued in an op-ed for USA Today.
Rather than taking meaningful action against climate change, the financial industry is simply greenwashing investments, or making false claims about the sustainability of their products, to make money off of a popular trend, Fancy says.
But some funds really are more sustainable than others, says Karen Wallace, Morningstar's director of investor education. And she believes it's worth it for investors to put in effort to find investments that align with their values if that's important to them.
"It means a lot to people that their money is making an impact," says Wallace. "There are good funds out there that are good fits for people's portfolios."
If you're interested in sustainable investing, here are some things to keep in mind.
How to avoid 'greenwashing'
One factor that makes ESG investing complicated is that there aren't set regulations or definitions for what makes something "sustainable," says Wallace. That means it's up to each investor to determine for themselves what practices are most important in a fund.
Some funds are designed specifically to exclude certain industries, such as tobacco, weapons or oil and gas. A second group can be defined as sustainable sector funds, according to Morningstar, and are built around "green economy" companies in industries like renewable energy or water.
A third group of funds can be considered "core" holdings, meaning they're diversified investments for a long-term portfolio, meant to replace things like typical index funds. The new BlackRock U.S. Carbon Transition Readiness ETF (LCTU), for example, is benchmarked against — and meant to outperform — the Russell 1000. It has similar holdings to the Russell 1000, but BlackRock says it has been constructed to have "almost 50% less carbon intensity" than the index.
That said, the fund still holds companies like Chevron and Exxon, which sustainable investors might want to avoid.
Wallace recommends that, just like with any other investment, investors read the prospectus of ESG funds they're interested in, which can be fund by Googling "[fund name] + prospectus," or by simply reading about the fund's aims on its website. This will tell investors what the fund's objective is and list the companies the fund invests in. Investors can then make an informed decision about if it aligns with their values.
Morningstar itself provides a sustainability rating for stocks and funds and has an ESG Screener investors can use to search for funds based on their own sustainability preferences, such as "low carbon." It also provides a list of "stand out" funds in different categories in this blog post.
As You Sow, a nonprofit that promotes corporate social responsibility, also created the Invest Your Values search tools, which investors can use to learn more about their investments. Investors can search the name or symbol of mutual funds or ETFs in one of six search tools, including Deforestation Free Funds and Fossil Free Funds, and will be provided with a "report card" on the fund related to the issue.
No investment is going to solve climate change. But Wallace encourages investors who care about sustainability not to think cynically about the sustainable investments space. There might be some companies that misrepresent products, she says, but there are many others taking sustainability seriously.
"I'm glad sustainable investing is growing, and I think it's great people are interested in their own investments," says Wallace. "If you're mindful of your investing and where your money is going, you feel good about where it's going."
TALK SHOP
Summit catapults world ahead in crucial year to curb warming
ALL TALK ALL THE TIME
WASHINGTON — The world moved closer to curbing the worst of global warming after this week's climate summit. But there’s still a long way to go, and the road to a safer future gets even rockier from here.
With the world trying to prevent more than another half-degree of warming (0.3 degrees Celsius) or so to achieve the most stringent of goals set by the 2015 Paris climate accord, scientists and politicians alike say this decade is crucial for any chance of getting that done. And that means 2021 is a “make-or-break year for people and the planet,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.
Everything culminates in November with heavyweight climate negotiations in Glasgow, Scotland. While these climate meetings happen annually, every five or so years there is a weightier session of the type that in the past has led to major deals or disappointments. It's that time again.
By November, the U.N. climate negotiating process calls for 200 nations to ratchet up commitments to cut emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases by 2030. The rich countries need to come up with more money to help the poor countries develop greener power and adapt to climate change’s harsh realities. And nations need to agree on a price on carbon pollution after several years of gridlock. They must figure out essentially how to make it all work.
“Glasgow is the world’s last best hope,” said U.S. special climate envoy John Kerry.
There will be important stops in Germany in May for a minister’s level meeting, in a British seaside town in June for a meeting of leaders of big economies and a final push at U.N. headquarters in September, but everything is about what President Joe Biden called “a road that will take us to Glasgow.”
Biden’s summit, organized in less than 100 days, was designed to send the world off on a fast start toward Glasgow, and experts said it did so. They figure it pushed the globe anywhere from one-eighth to more than halfway along the journey, with mixed opinions on whether the United States did enough.
“If it were 100 miles to Glasgow, we have just done the first 12 miles on the lowlands, and we have a 88 hard miles to go, with a lot of difficult terrain to cross before we get there,” said Bill Hare, director of the German think-tank Climate Analytics. Hare said while countries showed a significant increase in ambition to fight climate change, he was “hoping for slightly more.”
Climate scientist Zeke Hausfather, who directs climate issues at the Breakthrough Institute, was more optimistic: “I’d say this gets us about half the way (say, 50 miles) to where we need to get by Glasgow.”
Nate Hultman, director of the University of Maryland’s Center for Global Sustainability, was even more optimistic: “This has ended up being a critical international moment that provided a strong boost. ... We’re now, I’d say, about 70 miles toward Glasgow.”
For his part, Kerry concluded the climate summit by saying that countries representing more than half of the world’s economic output have committed to a path that would achieve the Paris goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) since pre-industrial times. Beyond that level, environmental problems get substantially worse, with possible dangerous tipping points, scientists say. The world has already warmed 1.2 degrees Celsius (2.2 degrees Fahrenheit).
Hare’s calculations show the world didn’t quite make as much progress as Kerry claims. For example, to be on the path to limit warming to 1.5 degrees, the United States needs to cut greenhouse gas emissions 57% below 2005 levels by 2030, he said. The Biden target announced this week was 50% to 52%. The European Union’s goals also came close but didn't quite get there. The only major economy now on track with 1.5 degrees is the United Kingdom, Hare said.
But there’s disagreement on that because of the different ways calculations can be made. The Rhodium Group, a research institute, said Biden’s target puts America in line with the 1.5 degrees goal.
Climate Action Tracker, a group of scientists including Hare who monitors nations’ pledges of carbon pollution cuts, calculated that targets announced since last September cut about 12% to 14% from the emissions gap. That emissions gap is that big area between what nations promise to do and the pollution reductions needed by 2030 to limit future warming to the 1.5 degrees goal. The announcements cut somewhere between 2.9 billion and 4.1 billion tons (between 2.6 billion and 3.7 billion metric tons) of carbon from the gap, the tracker calculated.
With the new targets from the United States, the United Kingdom, European Union, Japan and Canada, the new emissions gap is 22 billion to 26 billion tons (20 billion to 24 billion metric tons) of carbon pollution. Hare chastised Australia's efforts as “really disgraceful" and said Brazil made a weaker pledge than in 2015, while Russia didn't offer anything substantive.
"The Earth Day summit substantially improved the odds of a successful global climate summit in November,” said Nigel Purvis, a climate negotiator in the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. “With new action by rich nations and new assistance for poor nations, the world should be able to make additional progress in 2021.”
Poorer nations that haven’t made big pollution cut promises yet, especially India, are waiting to see if promises about financial help become more concrete before they commit to bigger pollution cuts, Hare said. But there’s hope there because of Biden’s promise to double public climate finance available to developing countries by 2024 and Germany’s announcing 4 billion euros a year extra, Hare said.
Also important was South Korea’s promise to stop financing coal power plants in other countries, Hare said. Activists hope China and Japan will follow suit, but they haven’t yet.
Alice Hill, a senior fellow for energy and environment at the Council on Foreign Relations, said this week’s summit "did not alone lead to the kind of enormous leap toward that what we need in fighting climate change.”
While the U.N.’s Guterres noted strengthened commitments, he said, “There is still a long way to go.”
Former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg, Guterres’ special envoy for climate ambitions and solutions, told The Associated Press that “There’s no question we moved forward. ... But now comes the hard work — actually delivering results.”
___
Associated Press writers Christina Larson in Washington and Ellen Knickmeyer in Oklahoma City contributed to this report.
Seth Borenstein, The Associated Press
Summit catapults world ahead in crucial year to curb warming
ALL TALK ALL THE TIME
WASHINGTON — The world moved closer to curbing the worst of global warming after this week's climate summit. But there’s still a long way to go, and the road to a safer future gets even rockier from here.
With the world trying to prevent more than another half-degree of warming (0.3 degrees Celsius) or so to achieve the most stringent of goals set by the 2015 Paris climate accord, scientists and politicians alike say this decade is crucial for any chance of getting that done. And that means 2021 is a “make-or-break year for people and the planet,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.
Everything culminates in November with heavyweight climate negotiations in Glasgow, Scotland. While these climate meetings happen annually, every five or so years there is a weightier session of the type that in the past has led to major deals or disappointments. It's that time again.
By November, the U.N. climate negotiating process calls for 200 nations to ratchet up commitments to cut emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases by 2030. The rich countries need to come up with more money to help the poor countries develop greener power and adapt to climate change’s harsh realities. And nations need to agree on a price on carbon pollution after several years of gridlock. They must figure out essentially how to make it all work.
“Glasgow is the world’s last best hope,” said U.S. special climate envoy John Kerry.
There will be important stops in Germany in May for a minister’s level meeting, in a British seaside town in June for a meeting of leaders of big economies and a final push at U.N. headquarters in September, but everything is about what President Joe Biden called “a road that will take us to Glasgow.”
Biden’s summit, organized in less than 100 days, was designed to send the world off on a fast start toward Glasgow, and experts said it did so. They figure it pushed the globe anywhere from one-eighth to more than halfway along the journey, with mixed opinions on whether the United States did enough.
“If it were 100 miles to Glasgow, we have just done the first 12 miles on the lowlands, and we have a 88 hard miles to go, with a lot of difficult terrain to cross before we get there,” said Bill Hare, director of the German think-tank Climate Analytics. Hare said while countries showed a significant increase in ambition to fight climate change, he was “hoping for slightly more.”
Climate scientist Zeke Hausfather, who directs climate issues at the Breakthrough Institute, was more optimistic: “I’d say this gets us about half the way (say, 50 miles) to where we need to get by Glasgow.”
Nate Hultman, director of the University of Maryland’s Center for Global Sustainability, was even more optimistic: “This has ended up being a critical international moment that provided a strong boost. ... We’re now, I’d say, about 70 miles toward Glasgow.”
For his part, Kerry concluded the climate summit by saying that countries representing more than half of the world’s economic output have committed to a path that would achieve the Paris goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) since pre-industrial times. Beyond that level, environmental problems get substantially worse, with possible dangerous tipping points, scientists say. The world has already warmed 1.2 degrees Celsius (2.2 degrees Fahrenheit).
Hare’s calculations show the world didn’t quite make as much progress as Kerry claims. For example, to be on the path to limit warming to 1.5 degrees, the United States needs to cut greenhouse gas emissions 57% below 2005 levels by 2030, he said. The Biden target announced this week was 50% to 52%. The European Union’s goals also came close but didn't quite get there. The only major economy now on track with 1.5 degrees is the United Kingdom, Hare said.
But there’s disagreement on that because of the different ways calculations can be made. The Rhodium Group, a research institute, said Biden’s target puts America in line with the 1.5 degrees goal.
Climate Action Tracker, a group of scientists including Hare who monitors nations’ pledges of carbon pollution cuts, calculated that targets announced since last September cut about 12% to 14% from the emissions gap. That emissions gap is that big area between what nations promise to do and the pollution reductions needed by 2030 to limit future warming to the 1.5 degrees goal. The announcements cut somewhere between 2.9 billion and 4.1 billion tons (between 2.6 billion and 3.7 billion metric tons) of carbon from the gap, the tracker calculated.
With the new targets from the United States, the United Kingdom, European Union, Japan and Canada, the new emissions gap is 22 billion to 26 billion tons (20 billion to 24 billion metric tons) of carbon pollution. Hare chastised Australia's efforts as “really disgraceful" and said Brazil made a weaker pledge than in 2015, while Russia didn't offer anything substantive.
"The Earth Day summit substantially improved the odds of a successful global climate summit in November,” said Nigel Purvis, a climate negotiator in the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. “With new action by rich nations and new assistance for poor nations, the world should be able to make additional progress in 2021.”
Poorer nations that haven’t made big pollution cut promises yet, especially India, are waiting to see if promises about financial help become more concrete before they commit to bigger pollution cuts, Hare said. But there’s hope there because of Biden’s promise to double public climate finance available to developing countries by 2024 and Germany’s announcing 4 billion euros a year extra, Hare said.
Also important was South Korea’s promise to stop financing coal power plants in other countries, Hare said. Activists hope China and Japan will follow suit, but they haven’t yet.
Alice Hill, a senior fellow for energy and environment at the Council on Foreign Relations, said this week’s summit "did not alone lead to the kind of enormous leap toward that what we need in fighting climate change.”
While the U.N.’s Guterres noted strengthened commitments, he said, “There is still a long way to go.”
Former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg, Guterres’ special envoy for climate ambitions and solutions, told The Associated Press that “There’s no question we moved forward. ... But now comes the hard work — actually delivering results.”
___
Associated Press writers Christina Larson in Washington and Ellen Knickmeyer in Oklahoma City contributed to this report.
Seth Borenstein, The Associated Press
Canada joins U.S. in creating Net-Zero Producers Forum to reduce GHG emissions
CALGARY — Natural Resources Minister Seamus O’Regan says Canada will join the U.S. in establishing a platform for oil and gas producing countries to figure out how the sector can support implementing the Paris agreement on climate change and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
Video: Canada pledges at least 40% reduction in emissions by 2030 (cbc.ca)
On Friday, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland defended Canada's higher target in a presentation to the Canadian Club in Toronto, saying that while the energy sector is very important to Canada, it has to be part of the climate change solution because "that's where the emissions are."
O'Regan said the world is increasing climate ambitions and Canada will lead the way.
"We have hundreds of thousands of workers who know how to build energy infrastructure, and they’ll be the ones to lower emissions and build our clean energy future," O'Regan said in a statement.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 23, 2021.
Companies in this story: (TSX:PD)
The Canadian Press
CALGARY — Natural Resources Minister Seamus O’Regan says Canada will join the U.S. in establishing a platform for oil and gas producing countries to figure out how the sector can support implementing the Paris agreement on climate change and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
© Provided by The Canadian Press
Dubbed the Net-Zero Producers Forum, it is intended to develop emission reduction strategies and would include Canada, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United States, collectively accounting for about 40 per cent of global oil and gas production.
It is to discuss ways to reduce methane emissions, advance the circular carbon economy, develop and deploy clean-energy and carbon capture, use and storage technologies and diversify economies from reliance on hydrocarbon revenues.
The forum is being developed in parallel to the Leaders’ Summit on Climate hosted virtually by U.S. President Joe Biden this week.
Biden announced Thursday that the U.S. would cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 50 to 52 per cent compared with 2005 levels by 2030 and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vowed Canada would slash its GHGs by 40 to 45 per cent over the same period. The targets were called "extremely aggressive" by Precision Drilling Corp. CEO Kevin Neveu.
Dubbed the Net-Zero Producers Forum, it is intended to develop emission reduction strategies and would include Canada, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United States, collectively accounting for about 40 per cent of global oil and gas production.
It is to discuss ways to reduce methane emissions, advance the circular carbon economy, develop and deploy clean-energy and carbon capture, use and storage technologies and diversify economies from reliance on hydrocarbon revenues.
The forum is being developed in parallel to the Leaders’ Summit on Climate hosted virtually by U.S. President Joe Biden this week.
Biden announced Thursday that the U.S. would cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 50 to 52 per cent compared with 2005 levels by 2030 and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vowed Canada would slash its GHGs by 40 to 45 per cent over the same period. The targets were called "extremely aggressive" by Precision Drilling Corp. CEO Kevin Neveu.
Video: Canada pledges at least 40% reduction in emissions by 2030 (cbc.ca)
On Friday, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland defended Canada's higher target in a presentation to the Canadian Club in Toronto, saying that while the energy sector is very important to Canada, it has to be part of the climate change solution because "that's where the emissions are."
O'Regan said the world is increasing climate ambitions and Canada will lead the way.
"We have hundreds of thousands of workers who know how to build energy infrastructure, and they’ll be the ones to lower emissions and build our clean energy future," O'Regan said in a statement.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 23, 2021.
Companies in this story: (TSX:PD)
The Canadian Press
Powwows across US adapt to pandemic for a second year
The coronavirus pandemic brought powwow season largely to a screeching halt last year
.
LOST REVENUES
The financial losses have spread throughout the communities.
For the city of Albuquerque and the state of New Mexico, the Gathering of Nations Powwow is a huge source of revenue. With an economic impact of $22 million for Albuquerque annually, the pandemic planted a blow on the tourist, hotel and restaurant businesses that profit from the event.
Mathews said last year’s loss was “100 per cent.” Tickets to the event and participation fees were on sale beginning in the fall of 2019, with a cost of $19 for a one-day admission, $42 for a two-day pass and $85 for a two-day VIP pass. But when the pandemic hit, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan-Grisham ordered a pause on large events on state properties.
The Gathering of Nations team decided to put together the 2020 powwow on their website in collaboration with Powwows.com, streaming an enhanced replay of the 2019 powwow on one website and musical performances on another.
“There was no revenue. We lost it all in a sense because we use vendor fees, advanced tickets, sponsorships … to put the production together,” Mathews said. “The week going into it, you’d see tractor-trailers bringing the stage and lighting, flooring, fencing. It’s major. But people don’t understand, you can’t go into a gym, turn on the lights, get a folding table, set up a microphone and go. It’s a big, big, big production, indoors and outdoors.”
Unlike Gathering of Nations, a non-profit organization that relies on ticket sales and funding from local governments and sponsors, the Celebrating Life Pow Wow is fully funded by Central Michigan University. Admission is regularly $7, but the virtual events were free both years.
___
‘POWWOW SHOPPING NETWORK’
Vendors have also taken a financial hit.
Many virtual powwows are trying to include vendors by setting up dedicated webpages for powwow merchandise and goods. Vendors send in photos of their products to be featured on the page in a typical online shopping format.
After the 2020 in-person powwow was cancelled, Gathering of Nations did not offer refunds because of pre-paid production costs, but invited the vendors to attend the virtual market and offered a free spot to the next in-person trader’s market, currently scheduled for 2022.
The Gathering of Nations’ Virtual Traders’ Market this year will live on a separate page on the website, in a classic online shopping format. Products will also be featured and promoted during the event.
Last year, the Celebrating Life Pow Wow did the same thing. But this year they decided to go with a “QVC-style,” traders’ market they coined the “Powwow Shopping Network,” Green said.
Green said vendors were enthusiastic about taking cues from the QVC Network, showing close-ups of their products and going into great detail about their offerings.
“The vendors were just amazing to work with. When I said QVC, they’re like, ‘OK, I got you,’” Green said.
The vendor videos were played from noon to 3 p.m. on Sunday, March 21, during the virtual powwow, drawing an audience of about 1,500. When it was their turn, vendors were directed to hop onto the Facebook Live chat to interact with customers and answer any questions.
“It was definitely a brand-new idea,” Zapata said. “Our committee members wanted to get the vendors more involved. This year was more interactive. So that worked out pretty well.”
The Celebrating Life Pow Wow issued refunds last year, while allowing vendors to sell their products without paying a fee. Green said the group waived the vendor fee for this year, too.
“The day we were told we’re shutting the university down we literally refunded everybody by 5 o’clock,” Green said. “We want to make sure that you get some recognition as well.”
But virtual powwows and trader’s markets haven’t been successful for everybody.
“With no events I had to re-evaluate and evolve my way of doing business very quickly,” said DeHoyos, the bead and shell artist. “It really was a sink-or-swim type of situation as I rely on my sales to help make ends meet and put food on the table for my five kids.”
Before the pandemic, DeHoyos would do at least four powwows a year along with other tribal events. She has participated in two West Coast virtual powwows and two online marketplaces, but found them confusing, difficult to navigate, and felt alone after giving the co-ordinators her information.
“The ones I participated in, to me, seemed like a list of resources posted to their main pages,” she said. “So, I’m certain that my social media following did increase because of the exposure, but I’m not completely convinced that I got new customers from those venues.”
Social media, rather than powwows, has been the main source of income for many Native vendors during the pandemic, DeHoyos said.
“I hate to say it but right now my social media following is everything,” she said.
___
WHERE'S THE BEEF?
The smell of powwow food is missing from the virtual events, however, and so, largely, are the food vendors.
Even socially distanced powwows pose problems. Poor availability of crews and wary customers are difficult to overcome, vendors said.
“People are easily grossed out by food, even though we would be wearing masks, gloves and are clean,” said food vendor Jolene Mangilinan, Cahuilla/Luiseno/Paiute.
Mangilinan, who regularly cooks food at funerals, had planned to get more into the powwow scene last year but the pandemic stopped her plans.
“Me and my crew thought about a food truck or a trailer, but since COVID we’ve all split up,” she said. “I’ve got kids in online school. My friend has to work the graveyard shift. My crew is not a crew anymore. We’ve had to move on. We can’t wait for jobs.”
Now that food vendors who relied on the powwow circuit and other tribal events have had to find other opportunities, Mangilinan is worried there will be no one left to do the job.
“This isn’t just stuff you learn in a day, it’s something you need to learn all of your life,” she said. “There’s a lot that goes into cooking and it’s not for everybody.”
With the overhead costs, licensing fees, vendor fees and sheer competition, it’s a difficult business to break into, she said.
Working in-person events like powwows during the pandemic can have additional costs, including increased sanitation, to-go boxes and individually wrapped condiments and utensils.
Even many large, well-attended virtual powwows like Gathering of Nations have yet to perfect a way to bring food back to the powwow experience. Mathews said their team looked into partnerships with food delivery apps, but creating these partnerships and a network of local vendors across the nation proved to be too difficult.
But the Celebrating Life Pow Wow has defied the odds. After reaching out to food vendors, Green said the local Jackson Food Stand was up for the challenge. Owner Julia Jackson sold out both days of the event, with orders coming in over the phone, online and in-person. Orders were delivered and some customers came to her home, where she and her crew cooked Indian tacos, nachos, fry dogs, fry bread, soup and desserts.
“People were understanding when they would call to place an order and we said, ‘We’ll work you in when we can.’ And everyone was respectful of my home, wearing masks, and they asked before they came in,” Jackson said.
People drove from other cities, some more than two hours away, for Jackson’s food, Green said. Jackson’s team was so busy that she pulled her husband, Delmar, Saginaw Chippewa, out of retirement to aid with the cooking.
“My grandkids asked me, ‘How many … did you cook for today?’ And I said, ‘Grandma couldn’t tell you. I just know it was a lot,’’” Jackson said.
The powwow organizers were happy to give back to local Native businesses by offering free publicity for any food vendors, Green said.
“Last year, we didn’t contact the vendors for food at all, because of course, we were on complete lockdown back then. And this year, we wanted to open it up to our vendors, especially the food vendors,” Green said. “As long as we’re not held liable, you have all of your health certificates and safe-serve certifications and all of that, you can do this from your house. We’ll just publicize this for you. No cost at all.”
For Jackson, the event was well worth it. She said it was her big break back into the powwow scene, as she plans to attend two local Michigan powwows in July and August in person.
“I’m looking forward for the powwows to start back up, but there’s going to be a lot of changes,” she said. “My son is on a powwow committee. He said we can’t have bottled ketchup and mustard; it has to be individual packets. Silverware wrapped. And that’s the safest thing we can do. Respect what our committee is asking of all the traders and it will turn out OK.”
Jackson is hopeful that her 40-year-old business will succeed after the pandemic is over. Before, Jackson’s crew usually included 16 workers in shifts. But for her first pandemic powwow, she had a crew of five. With more in-person powwows coming, she is anxious to get more of her family involved again.
“It’s a family business and I want it to continue after Delmar and I are gone so we can look down and see how it continues to grow and go on,” Jackson said.
___
ZOOM COMPETITIONS
For Gathering of Nations, the Celebrating Life Pow Wow and other virtual powwows, the fees to compete in dancing, singing and drumming competitions are often waived or minimal, but prizes are still awarded.
Gathering of Nations is hosting competitions over Zoom, while others, such as the Celebrating Life Pow Wow, have asked contestants to send in pre-recorded videos.
One contestant, Cruz Perez, Saginaw Chippewa, regularly competes in the Celebrating Life Pow Wow as one of 10 he attends each year. Perez – a dancer who won $400 for second place in the Adult Men’s Traditional category this year – enjoys the healing energy and cultural connection of attending powwows over the monetary compensation for winning, though there are some who rely on powwow winnings to help make ends meet.
“I miss being able to see other people dance and to talk with them, and virtual just isn’t the same because it’s just a lot of technological use,” he said. “It’s still good, though, being able to see all my people on Facebook pages submitting their videos for competitions.”
In a normal year, the Celebrating Life Pow Wow has about 200 people competing. This year, they received 79 uploaded dance videos and five hand drum uploads. Some categories had up to eight contestants; others had one or none competing.
The number of contestants isn’t too far off the norm, Green said. What was shocking was the reach of the virtual competitions this year and last year.
“We were able to see championship dancers all across the United States and Canada the last two years as opposed to half of the United States and part of Canada,” Green said. “Prior to that, we typically get people from Oklahoma, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, parts of Canada, in Ontario, sometimes New York – pretty regional for our university powwow. This year, we had people out in British Columbia, Saskatchewan; we had people in California, New Mexico and Idaho.”
Similarly, the Gathering of Nations powwow, which normally draws close to 3,000 contestants, will have about 300 contestants from across the country and Canada, with one dancer from Europe and one from Nigeria.
A benefit to livestreaming the powwows on social media is the everlasting quality of the posts, Green and Mathews said.
“It has allowed us to reach more people and embrace their lives in some manner or another, whether it’s the music, whether it’s the phenomenal dancing. We were able to reach over 24,000 people this year. Last year, I think it was around 34,000. We’re still getting hits on our Facebook videos and pages,” Green said.
When the Gathering of Nations went virtual for the first time last year, it had nearly 400,000 views – a 10 per cent increase from their previously live-streamed powwows, Mathews said.
But the virtual powwows and competitions don’t fully replace the live events.
“I miss being there in the moment,” said Zapata, the co-chair of the Celebrating Life Pow Wow. “I was raised around the drum. Being a dancer, being there is what I miss. It’s all about community for me, being able to walk around, see family and friends, engaging and having a great time all around.”
Some contests, including some of the Native royalty pageants, are cancelled until further notice. The Miss Indian World – the largest of its kind – was cancelled in 2020, with titleholder Cheyenne Kippenberger agreeing to serve a second term.
Kippenberger will step down April 24, however, on the final day of the event, without passing on the crown; for the first time since 1983, Miss Indian World will remain unfilled until 2022.
“I really had to find a new way to be Miss Indian World essentially,” said Kippenberger, a former Miss Florida Seminole.
For Gathering of Nations, a team of 50 people will work behind-the scenes from the fairgrounds in Albuquerque and elsewhere to make the event run smoothly online. They will host the Zoom meetings, making sure all speakers and performers are ready when it’s their turn – a difficult task for people calling in from different time zones.
The team has also produced a sort of time capsule by combing through decades of footage of performances, to edit together the best performances and contest specials from previous years to play throughout the weekend, Mathews said.
“The people that have started out as tiny tots are now parents, and some of them are grandparents,” Mathews said. “And then there’s those that aren’t with us anymore, and those that we’ve lost during the Coronavirus. We saw them in these videos; they came back one more time. And so that was very, very special.”
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MISSED CONNECTIONS
For organizers, dancers, vendors and attendees, virtual powwows are still missing one key element, however: the feeling of community. They’re not a replacement for the real thing.
“Someone asked me, ‘What do you miss by not going to powwows?’” said Mathews. “I said, ‘Seeing it. Feeling it. Smelling it.’ If nothing else, those are elements. As soon as you arrive, they’re there, and you can smell leather, food; hear bells, drums, the people talking and laughing.”
DeHoyos, the vendor, misses making lifelong friends and connecting with her customers.
“There is something to be said for seeing the look on people’s faces when they are admiring my jewelry,” she said. “That really is an amazing feeling and I really miss seeing the smile on people’s faces when they get what they want and walk away wearing it.”
Jackson said powwows were always family time. Long ago, she and her husband cooked as the children danced. Now her children make regalia for their own children to participate. She recalled their first powwow after her husband had multiple bypass surgery.
“Everyone surrounded us to ask if we were OK, to tell us they prayed for us,” she said. “We were so thankful. Every day is a blessing. And every day that I can feed people is another blessing for me.”
Since the pandemic hit, many have learned not to take the experience for granted.
“I miss grand entries,” Kippenberger said. “I know I probably complained so much while we were doing them, because you’re sweating and it’s hot. But I really miss it. Here in Florida, we don’t have a very heavy Native population. When you go to a powwow in Oklahoma, you end up running into everybody that you possibly have known since you were a child.
“We’re a very tight-knit, communal people,” she said. “So it’s very difficult to be away from each other. We just miss each other. We miss hugging each other and hearing each other in person and just being able to sit and laugh and, and share stories.”
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WANT TO GO?
Here is a sampling of upcoming powwows and how their events will be handled. The list is not complete, and plans can change. A number of powwow organizations — including some of the country’s largest — are still finalizing plans; some events have already been cancelled. For more information on powwows held in person or virtually, visit Powwows.com or check out “social distance powwows” on Facebook, in addition to checking the individual websites. Bottom line? Check before you go.
— Gathering of Nations, April 23-24 (virtual, Albuquerque)
On Friday, April 23, the Gathering of Nations powwow will host a full day of free entertainment and activities. Zoom attendees can experience the Best Contest Specials from past Gathering of Nations powwows, interviews and music. From Stage 49, bands such as The Nth Power, NRG Rising and more will perform. Later, DJ Logic will host an interactive Zoom dance party. On Saturday, April 24, the event will become a $9.99 pay-per-view live stream from noon to 9 p.m. The day’s events will include a live contest, powwow and dance party where viewers can see dancers and singers Zoom in to compete from around the world. Excerpts from the Gathering of Nations Horse Parade will be played and the event’s emcees will host. Then there will be an outgoing presentation by Miss Indian World Cheyenne Kippenberger, a musical presentation from Stage 49, and another interactive Zoom party with DJ Logic. For more information, visit the Gathering of Nations website.
— Choctaw Apache Tribe of Ebarb 28th Annual Pow Wow, April 23-24 (In-person, Louisiana)
On Friday and Saturday, April 23-24, the Choctaw Apache Tribe of Ebarb will hold demonstrations, gourd dancing and a grand entry at the Choctaw Apache Tribal Grounds near Noble in southwestern Louisiana at the Texas border. The event will feature men’s and women’s dance competitions and arts, crafts and jewelry vendors. For more information, visit the tribe’s Facebook page at Choctaw-Apache Tribe of Ebarb.
— Edisto Natchez-Kusso Tribe of South Carolina’s 44th Annual Pow Wow, April 23-24 (In-person, South Carolina)
On Friday and Saturday, April 23-24, the Edisto Natchez-Kusso Tribe of South Carolina will host its 44th Annual Pow Wow with food and craft vendors. The event will include luck-of-the-draw dancers and a drum competition if enough contestants enter, and the Princess pageant. Entry fee is $8 for ages 18-64 and $5 for 65 and over, ages 6-17 and enrolled tribal members with ID. Children under 5 are free. For more information, visit the powwow’s Facebook event page.
— 31st Annual Spring Honor Dance & Powwow Celebration, April 30-May 1 (In-person, North Dakota)
On Friday and Saturday, April 30-May 1, Minot State University’s Native American Cultural Center and Native American Cultural Awareness Club will host its annual powwow with dance contests, raffles and vendors. For more information, visit the MSU - Native American Cultural Awareness Club and Center page or event on Facebook.
— Annual KBIC Maawanj’iding Pow Wow, July 23-25 (In-person, Michigan)
The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community will host its Annual KBIC Maawanj’iding Pow Wow, a three-day event on July 23-25 with dancing and drumming contests and vendors. Admission is free. For more information, visit the tribe’s website at www.kbic-nsn.gov
— Annual Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community Wacipi (Pow Wow), Aug. 20-22 (In-person, Minnesota)
The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community Wacipi (Pow Wow) is set to be held in person at the Wacipi Grounds on the reservation in Shakopee, Minnesota. For more information, visit
STILL TO BE DETERMINED
— Thunderbird Intertribal Powwow (New York)
One of the largest powwows in the country, the Thunderbird Intertribal Powwow is set to be held in person during the summer and in the fall at Queens County Farms Museum, although details are being finalized.
— Red Earth Festival (Oklahoma)
The Red Earth Festival’s annual parade and powwow in Oklahoma has been postponed until fall, according to the organization’s website. But an art market and competition is set to be held June 12-13 at the tribal-owned Grand Casino Hotel and Resort near Oklahoma City.
— Denver March Powwow (Colorado)
Organizers announced that the Denver March Powwow would not be held as scheduled in March because the Denver Coliseum was not holding events through perhaps May. It’s not clear if a date later in the year would be selected. “As soon as the state mandates are lifted, we will be able to solidify plans for 2021,” according to the powwow website.
Cancelled FOR 2021
— Shoshone-Bannock Indian Festival (Idaho)
The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes announced that the annual powwow, set for Aug. 12-15, would be cancelled for a second year because of the pandemic. “Hosting the powwow doesn’t fit within the Tribes Safety Protocols and we must keep our community safe,” Chairman Devon Boyer said in a statement. “Our community has not yet reached the vaccination rate we were hoping for and encourage tribal membership to get vaccinated.” The Indian Relay Association and Fort Hall Tour Rodeo are expected to continue as planned.
— Coeur d’Alene Casino Powwow (Idaho)
The Coeur d’Alene Casino announced recently it would cancel the powwow, originally set for July 24-26, for the second year in a row because of the pandemic. This would have been the first year the powwow was hosted on property near the casino.
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Information from: Indian Country Today, https://indiancountrytoday.com/
Natasha Brennan, The Associated Press
© Provided by The Canadian Press
Some powwows cancelled their annual events; others went online only. Some held virtual competitions and cultural events from afar, but left most of the food and art vendors and daily workers sitting on the sidelines.
And powwow season this year will not return to normal either, even with vaccines rolling out and restrictions being lifted in some states.
The Gathering of Nations – one of the largest powwows in North America set for April 23-24 – and a number of other events in Indian Country will be virtual once again this year, some free and some for a fee. Other events opted for in-person but socially distanced gatherings.
Several powwows have been cancelled for a second year, or are still up in the air. The Shoshone-Bannock Indian Festival — the largest cultural festival in Idaho — was cancelled this week for a second year, as was the Coeur d’Alene’s Julyamsh powwow, also in Idaho. The Denver March Powwow — another large event — was also cancelled but left uncertain whether it could be rescheduled for later in the year.
It’s been costly for everyone involved – the organizations that sponsor the events, participants, vendors, and the local communities that look forward to the economic boost they bring.
“As an Indigenous artist, most of my venues are powwows and other tribal-sponsored events such as conferences and sports tournaments,” bead and shell artist Jennifer DeHoyos, Payómkawichum/Cahuilla/Kumeyaay, told Indian Country Today.
“The impact was great.”
The message is: Check ahead before you go, and let’s hope next year is back to normal.
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A BEACON OF HOPE
Gathering of Nations will host its second virtual powwow the weekend of April 23-24 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Friday events will be free online but the Saturday events will be a pay-per-view showing of $9.99.
Since 1983, the event has attracted more than 750 tribes from all over the country and Canada, hosting more than 75,000 attendees. Known as the “Super Bowl of Powwows,” the event drew about 91,000 people to its last in-person powwow in 2019.
For Gathering of Nations Founder Derek Mathews, the decision to go virtual rather than cancel was the best option. He considers the Gathering of Nations a beacon of hope for Indigenous communities of the world.
“We needed to keep the bright light on because if it shuts down here, we’ve turned it off, maybe for a lot of people. Keep a light on and keep looking to the future,” Mathews told Indian Country Today in a recent interview. Mathews is of Native descent but is not affiliated with a tribe.
Additionally, it has provided an opportunity for Gathering of Nations to be a leader in health and safety for the community by using its large platform to spread information throughout the past year on the coronavirus, preventative measures and established nonprofits that can assist Natives during the pandemic, he said.
Central Michigan University’s Celebrating Life Pow Wow also opted for a virtual event for a second year on March 20-21. The student-run event is one of the first powwows of the season within the state, and draws a crowd of about 2,000 annually to see more than 200 competitors.
Students were devastated in 2020 when the annual powwow was cancelled at the beginning of the pandemic. But they proposed a virtual powwow instead, said Native American Programs Director Colleen Green, a citizen of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians.
Though some COVID restrictions were lifted in Michigan before this year’s event, local government guidelines prevented an in-person powwow, Green said.
“We are close to the reservation here, and there’s a lot of Indigenous communities within Michigan and we just didn’t want to make anyone get sick,” said Onyleen Zapata, a citizen of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi, a Central Michigan University undergraduate and co-chair for the powwow.
The National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development recently announced that its Reservation Economic Summit, RES2021, will be held both in-person and virtually this year. The event – which includes an artisan market, trade show and business networking – will be held July 19-21 in Las Vegas.
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Some powwows cancelled their annual events; others went online only. Some held virtual competitions and cultural events from afar, but left most of the food and art vendors and daily workers sitting on the sidelines.
And powwow season this year will not return to normal either, even with vaccines rolling out and restrictions being lifted in some states.
The Gathering of Nations – one of the largest powwows in North America set for April 23-24 – and a number of other events in Indian Country will be virtual once again this year, some free and some for a fee. Other events opted for in-person but socially distanced gatherings.
Several powwows have been cancelled for a second year, or are still up in the air. The Shoshone-Bannock Indian Festival — the largest cultural festival in Idaho — was cancelled this week for a second year, as was the Coeur d’Alene’s Julyamsh powwow, also in Idaho. The Denver March Powwow — another large event — was also cancelled but left uncertain whether it could be rescheduled for later in the year.
It’s been costly for everyone involved – the organizations that sponsor the events, participants, vendors, and the local communities that look forward to the economic boost they bring.
“As an Indigenous artist, most of my venues are powwows and other tribal-sponsored events such as conferences and sports tournaments,” bead and shell artist Jennifer DeHoyos, Payómkawichum/Cahuilla/Kumeyaay, told Indian Country Today.
“The impact was great.”
The message is: Check ahead before you go, and let’s hope next year is back to normal.
___
A BEACON OF HOPE
Gathering of Nations will host its second virtual powwow the weekend of April 23-24 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Friday events will be free online but the Saturday events will be a pay-per-view showing of $9.99.
Since 1983, the event has attracted more than 750 tribes from all over the country and Canada, hosting more than 75,000 attendees. Known as the “Super Bowl of Powwows,” the event drew about 91,000 people to its last in-person powwow in 2019.
For Gathering of Nations Founder Derek Mathews, the decision to go virtual rather than cancel was the best option. He considers the Gathering of Nations a beacon of hope for Indigenous communities of the world.
“We needed to keep the bright light on because if it shuts down here, we’ve turned it off, maybe for a lot of people. Keep a light on and keep looking to the future,” Mathews told Indian Country Today in a recent interview. Mathews is of Native descent but is not affiliated with a tribe.
Additionally, it has provided an opportunity for Gathering of Nations to be a leader in health and safety for the community by using its large platform to spread information throughout the past year on the coronavirus, preventative measures and established nonprofits that can assist Natives during the pandemic, he said.
Central Michigan University’s Celebrating Life Pow Wow also opted for a virtual event for a second year on March 20-21. The student-run event is one of the first powwows of the season within the state, and draws a crowd of about 2,000 annually to see more than 200 competitors.
Students were devastated in 2020 when the annual powwow was cancelled at the beginning of the pandemic. But they proposed a virtual powwow instead, said Native American Programs Director Colleen Green, a citizen of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians.
Though some COVID restrictions were lifted in Michigan before this year’s event, local government guidelines prevented an in-person powwow, Green said.
“We are close to the reservation here, and there’s a lot of Indigenous communities within Michigan and we just didn’t want to make anyone get sick,” said Onyleen Zapata, a citizen of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi, a Central Michigan University undergraduate and co-chair for the powwow.
The National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development recently announced that its Reservation Economic Summit, RES2021, will be held both in-person and virtually this year. The event – which includes an artisan market, trade show and business networking – will be held July 19-21 in Las Vegas.
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LOST REVENUES
The financial losses have spread throughout the communities.
For the city of Albuquerque and the state of New Mexico, the Gathering of Nations Powwow is a huge source of revenue. With an economic impact of $22 million for Albuquerque annually, the pandemic planted a blow on the tourist, hotel and restaurant businesses that profit from the event.
Mathews said last year’s loss was “100 per cent.” Tickets to the event and participation fees were on sale beginning in the fall of 2019, with a cost of $19 for a one-day admission, $42 for a two-day pass and $85 for a two-day VIP pass. But when the pandemic hit, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan-Grisham ordered a pause on large events on state properties.
The Gathering of Nations team decided to put together the 2020 powwow on their website in collaboration with Powwows.com, streaming an enhanced replay of the 2019 powwow on one website and musical performances on another.
“There was no revenue. We lost it all in a sense because we use vendor fees, advanced tickets, sponsorships … to put the production together,” Mathews said. “The week going into it, you’d see tractor-trailers bringing the stage and lighting, flooring, fencing. It’s major. But people don’t understand, you can’t go into a gym, turn on the lights, get a folding table, set up a microphone and go. It’s a big, big, big production, indoors and outdoors.”
Unlike Gathering of Nations, a non-profit organization that relies on ticket sales and funding from local governments and sponsors, the Celebrating Life Pow Wow is fully funded by Central Michigan University. Admission is regularly $7, but the virtual events were free both years.
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‘POWWOW SHOPPING NETWORK’
Vendors have also taken a financial hit.
Many virtual powwows are trying to include vendors by setting up dedicated webpages for powwow merchandise and goods. Vendors send in photos of their products to be featured on the page in a typical online shopping format.
After the 2020 in-person powwow was cancelled, Gathering of Nations did not offer refunds because of pre-paid production costs, but invited the vendors to attend the virtual market and offered a free spot to the next in-person trader’s market, currently scheduled for 2022.
The Gathering of Nations’ Virtual Traders’ Market this year will live on a separate page on the website, in a classic online shopping format. Products will also be featured and promoted during the event.
Last year, the Celebrating Life Pow Wow did the same thing. But this year they decided to go with a “QVC-style,” traders’ market they coined the “Powwow Shopping Network,” Green said.
Green said vendors were enthusiastic about taking cues from the QVC Network, showing close-ups of their products and going into great detail about their offerings.
“The vendors were just amazing to work with. When I said QVC, they’re like, ‘OK, I got you,’” Green said.
The vendor videos were played from noon to 3 p.m. on Sunday, March 21, during the virtual powwow, drawing an audience of about 1,500. When it was their turn, vendors were directed to hop onto the Facebook Live chat to interact with customers and answer any questions.
“It was definitely a brand-new idea,” Zapata said. “Our committee members wanted to get the vendors more involved. This year was more interactive. So that worked out pretty well.”
The Celebrating Life Pow Wow issued refunds last year, while allowing vendors to sell their products without paying a fee. Green said the group waived the vendor fee for this year, too.
“The day we were told we’re shutting the university down we literally refunded everybody by 5 o’clock,” Green said. “We want to make sure that you get some recognition as well.”
But virtual powwows and trader’s markets haven’t been successful for everybody.
“With no events I had to re-evaluate and evolve my way of doing business very quickly,” said DeHoyos, the bead and shell artist. “It really was a sink-or-swim type of situation as I rely on my sales to help make ends meet and put food on the table for my five kids.”
Before the pandemic, DeHoyos would do at least four powwows a year along with other tribal events. She has participated in two West Coast virtual powwows and two online marketplaces, but found them confusing, difficult to navigate, and felt alone after giving the co-ordinators her information.
“The ones I participated in, to me, seemed like a list of resources posted to their main pages,” she said. “So, I’m certain that my social media following did increase because of the exposure, but I’m not completely convinced that I got new customers from those venues.”
Social media, rather than powwows, has been the main source of income for many Native vendors during the pandemic, DeHoyos said.
“I hate to say it but right now my social media following is everything,” she said.
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WHERE'S THE BEEF?
The smell of powwow food is missing from the virtual events, however, and so, largely, are the food vendors.
Even socially distanced powwows pose problems. Poor availability of crews and wary customers are difficult to overcome, vendors said.
“People are easily grossed out by food, even though we would be wearing masks, gloves and are clean,” said food vendor Jolene Mangilinan, Cahuilla/Luiseno/Paiute.
Mangilinan, who regularly cooks food at funerals, had planned to get more into the powwow scene last year but the pandemic stopped her plans.
“Me and my crew thought about a food truck or a trailer, but since COVID we’ve all split up,” she said. “I’ve got kids in online school. My friend has to work the graveyard shift. My crew is not a crew anymore. We’ve had to move on. We can’t wait for jobs.”
Now that food vendors who relied on the powwow circuit and other tribal events have had to find other opportunities, Mangilinan is worried there will be no one left to do the job.
“This isn’t just stuff you learn in a day, it’s something you need to learn all of your life,” she said. “There’s a lot that goes into cooking and it’s not for everybody.”
With the overhead costs, licensing fees, vendor fees and sheer competition, it’s a difficult business to break into, she said.
Working in-person events like powwows during the pandemic can have additional costs, including increased sanitation, to-go boxes and individually wrapped condiments and utensils.
Even many large, well-attended virtual powwows like Gathering of Nations have yet to perfect a way to bring food back to the powwow experience. Mathews said their team looked into partnerships with food delivery apps, but creating these partnerships and a network of local vendors across the nation proved to be too difficult.
But the Celebrating Life Pow Wow has defied the odds. After reaching out to food vendors, Green said the local Jackson Food Stand was up for the challenge. Owner Julia Jackson sold out both days of the event, with orders coming in over the phone, online and in-person. Orders were delivered and some customers came to her home, where she and her crew cooked Indian tacos, nachos, fry dogs, fry bread, soup and desserts.
“People were understanding when they would call to place an order and we said, ‘We’ll work you in when we can.’ And everyone was respectful of my home, wearing masks, and they asked before they came in,” Jackson said.
People drove from other cities, some more than two hours away, for Jackson’s food, Green said. Jackson’s team was so busy that she pulled her husband, Delmar, Saginaw Chippewa, out of retirement to aid with the cooking.
“My grandkids asked me, ‘How many … did you cook for today?’ And I said, ‘Grandma couldn’t tell you. I just know it was a lot,’’” Jackson said.
The powwow organizers were happy to give back to local Native businesses by offering free publicity for any food vendors, Green said.
“Last year, we didn’t contact the vendors for food at all, because of course, we were on complete lockdown back then. And this year, we wanted to open it up to our vendors, especially the food vendors,” Green said. “As long as we’re not held liable, you have all of your health certificates and safe-serve certifications and all of that, you can do this from your house. We’ll just publicize this for you. No cost at all.”
For Jackson, the event was well worth it. She said it was her big break back into the powwow scene, as she plans to attend two local Michigan powwows in July and August in person.
“I’m looking forward for the powwows to start back up, but there’s going to be a lot of changes,” she said. “My son is on a powwow committee. He said we can’t have bottled ketchup and mustard; it has to be individual packets. Silverware wrapped. And that’s the safest thing we can do. Respect what our committee is asking of all the traders and it will turn out OK.”
Jackson is hopeful that her 40-year-old business will succeed after the pandemic is over. Before, Jackson’s crew usually included 16 workers in shifts. But for her first pandemic powwow, she had a crew of five. With more in-person powwows coming, she is anxious to get more of her family involved again.
“It’s a family business and I want it to continue after Delmar and I are gone so we can look down and see how it continues to grow and go on,” Jackson said.
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ZOOM COMPETITIONS
For Gathering of Nations, the Celebrating Life Pow Wow and other virtual powwows, the fees to compete in dancing, singing and drumming competitions are often waived or minimal, but prizes are still awarded.
Gathering of Nations is hosting competitions over Zoom, while others, such as the Celebrating Life Pow Wow, have asked contestants to send in pre-recorded videos.
One contestant, Cruz Perez, Saginaw Chippewa, regularly competes in the Celebrating Life Pow Wow as one of 10 he attends each year. Perez – a dancer who won $400 for second place in the Adult Men’s Traditional category this year – enjoys the healing energy and cultural connection of attending powwows over the monetary compensation for winning, though there are some who rely on powwow winnings to help make ends meet.
“I miss being able to see other people dance and to talk with them, and virtual just isn’t the same because it’s just a lot of technological use,” he said. “It’s still good, though, being able to see all my people on Facebook pages submitting their videos for competitions.”
In a normal year, the Celebrating Life Pow Wow has about 200 people competing. This year, they received 79 uploaded dance videos and five hand drum uploads. Some categories had up to eight contestants; others had one or none competing.
The number of contestants isn’t too far off the norm, Green said. What was shocking was the reach of the virtual competitions this year and last year.
“We were able to see championship dancers all across the United States and Canada the last two years as opposed to half of the United States and part of Canada,” Green said. “Prior to that, we typically get people from Oklahoma, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, parts of Canada, in Ontario, sometimes New York – pretty regional for our university powwow. This year, we had people out in British Columbia, Saskatchewan; we had people in California, New Mexico and Idaho.”
Similarly, the Gathering of Nations powwow, which normally draws close to 3,000 contestants, will have about 300 contestants from across the country and Canada, with one dancer from Europe and one from Nigeria.
A benefit to livestreaming the powwows on social media is the everlasting quality of the posts, Green and Mathews said.
“It has allowed us to reach more people and embrace their lives in some manner or another, whether it’s the music, whether it’s the phenomenal dancing. We were able to reach over 24,000 people this year. Last year, I think it was around 34,000. We’re still getting hits on our Facebook videos and pages,” Green said.
When the Gathering of Nations went virtual for the first time last year, it had nearly 400,000 views – a 10 per cent increase from their previously live-streamed powwows, Mathews said.
But the virtual powwows and competitions don’t fully replace the live events.
“I miss being there in the moment,” said Zapata, the co-chair of the Celebrating Life Pow Wow. “I was raised around the drum. Being a dancer, being there is what I miss. It’s all about community for me, being able to walk around, see family and friends, engaging and having a great time all around.”
Some contests, including some of the Native royalty pageants, are cancelled until further notice. The Miss Indian World – the largest of its kind – was cancelled in 2020, with titleholder Cheyenne Kippenberger agreeing to serve a second term.
Kippenberger will step down April 24, however, on the final day of the event, without passing on the crown; for the first time since 1983, Miss Indian World will remain unfilled until 2022.
“I really had to find a new way to be Miss Indian World essentially,” said Kippenberger, a former Miss Florida Seminole.
For Gathering of Nations, a team of 50 people will work behind-the scenes from the fairgrounds in Albuquerque and elsewhere to make the event run smoothly online. They will host the Zoom meetings, making sure all speakers and performers are ready when it’s their turn – a difficult task for people calling in from different time zones.
The team has also produced a sort of time capsule by combing through decades of footage of performances, to edit together the best performances and contest specials from previous years to play throughout the weekend, Mathews said.
“The people that have started out as tiny tots are now parents, and some of them are grandparents,” Mathews said. “And then there’s those that aren’t with us anymore, and those that we’ve lost during the Coronavirus. We saw them in these videos; they came back one more time. And so that was very, very special.”
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MISSED CONNECTIONS
For organizers, dancers, vendors and attendees, virtual powwows are still missing one key element, however: the feeling of community. They’re not a replacement for the real thing.
“Someone asked me, ‘What do you miss by not going to powwows?’” said Mathews. “I said, ‘Seeing it. Feeling it. Smelling it.’ If nothing else, those are elements. As soon as you arrive, they’re there, and you can smell leather, food; hear bells, drums, the people talking and laughing.”
DeHoyos, the vendor, misses making lifelong friends and connecting with her customers.
“There is something to be said for seeing the look on people’s faces when they are admiring my jewelry,” she said. “That really is an amazing feeling and I really miss seeing the smile on people’s faces when they get what they want and walk away wearing it.”
Jackson said powwows were always family time. Long ago, she and her husband cooked as the children danced. Now her children make regalia for their own children to participate. She recalled their first powwow after her husband had multiple bypass surgery.
“Everyone surrounded us to ask if we were OK, to tell us they prayed for us,” she said. “We were so thankful. Every day is a blessing. And every day that I can feed people is another blessing for me.”
Since the pandemic hit, many have learned not to take the experience for granted.
“I miss grand entries,” Kippenberger said. “I know I probably complained so much while we were doing them, because you’re sweating and it’s hot. But I really miss it. Here in Florida, we don’t have a very heavy Native population. When you go to a powwow in Oklahoma, you end up running into everybody that you possibly have known since you were a child.
“We’re a very tight-knit, communal people,” she said. “So it’s very difficult to be away from each other. We just miss each other. We miss hugging each other and hearing each other in person and just being able to sit and laugh and, and share stories.”
___
WANT TO GO?
Here is a sampling of upcoming powwows and how their events will be handled. The list is not complete, and plans can change. A number of powwow organizations — including some of the country’s largest — are still finalizing plans; some events have already been cancelled. For more information on powwows held in person or virtually, visit Powwows.com or check out “social distance powwows” on Facebook, in addition to checking the individual websites. Bottom line? Check before you go.
— Gathering of Nations, April 23-24 (virtual, Albuquerque)
On Friday, April 23, the Gathering of Nations powwow will host a full day of free entertainment and activities. Zoom attendees can experience the Best Contest Specials from past Gathering of Nations powwows, interviews and music. From Stage 49, bands such as The Nth Power, NRG Rising and more will perform. Later, DJ Logic will host an interactive Zoom dance party. On Saturday, April 24, the event will become a $9.99 pay-per-view live stream from noon to 9 p.m. The day’s events will include a live contest, powwow and dance party where viewers can see dancers and singers Zoom in to compete from around the world. Excerpts from the Gathering of Nations Horse Parade will be played and the event’s emcees will host. Then there will be an outgoing presentation by Miss Indian World Cheyenne Kippenberger, a musical presentation from Stage 49, and another interactive Zoom party with DJ Logic. For more information, visit the Gathering of Nations website.
— Choctaw Apache Tribe of Ebarb 28th Annual Pow Wow, April 23-24 (In-person, Louisiana)
On Friday and Saturday, April 23-24, the Choctaw Apache Tribe of Ebarb will hold demonstrations, gourd dancing and a grand entry at the Choctaw Apache Tribal Grounds near Noble in southwestern Louisiana at the Texas border. The event will feature men’s and women’s dance competitions and arts, crafts and jewelry vendors. For more information, visit the tribe’s Facebook page at Choctaw-Apache Tribe of Ebarb.
— Edisto Natchez-Kusso Tribe of South Carolina’s 44th Annual Pow Wow, April 23-24 (In-person, South Carolina)
On Friday and Saturday, April 23-24, the Edisto Natchez-Kusso Tribe of South Carolina will host its 44th Annual Pow Wow with food and craft vendors. The event will include luck-of-the-draw dancers and a drum competition if enough contestants enter, and the Princess pageant. Entry fee is $8 for ages 18-64 and $5 for 65 and over, ages 6-17 and enrolled tribal members with ID. Children under 5 are free. For more information, visit the powwow’s Facebook event page.
— 31st Annual Spring Honor Dance & Powwow Celebration, April 30-May 1 (In-person, North Dakota)
On Friday and Saturday, April 30-May 1, Minot State University’s Native American Cultural Center and Native American Cultural Awareness Club will host its annual powwow with dance contests, raffles and vendors. For more information, visit the MSU - Native American Cultural Awareness Club and Center page or event on Facebook.
— Annual KBIC Maawanj’iding Pow Wow, July 23-25 (In-person, Michigan)
The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community will host its Annual KBIC Maawanj’iding Pow Wow, a three-day event on July 23-25 with dancing and drumming contests and vendors. Admission is free. For more information, visit the tribe’s website at www.kbic-nsn.gov
— Annual Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community Wacipi (Pow Wow), Aug. 20-22 (In-person, Minnesota)
The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community Wacipi (Pow Wow) is set to be held in person at the Wacipi Grounds on the reservation in Shakopee, Minnesota. For more information, visit
STILL TO BE DETERMINED
— Thunderbird Intertribal Powwow (New York)
One of the largest powwows in the country, the Thunderbird Intertribal Powwow is set to be held in person during the summer and in the fall at Queens County Farms Museum, although details are being finalized.
— Red Earth Festival (Oklahoma)
The Red Earth Festival’s annual parade and powwow in Oklahoma has been postponed until fall, according to the organization’s website. But an art market and competition is set to be held June 12-13 at the tribal-owned Grand Casino Hotel and Resort near Oklahoma City.
— Denver March Powwow (Colorado)
Organizers announced that the Denver March Powwow would not be held as scheduled in March because the Denver Coliseum was not holding events through perhaps May. It’s not clear if a date later in the year would be selected. “As soon as the state mandates are lifted, we will be able to solidify plans for 2021,” according to the powwow website.
Cancelled FOR 2021
— Shoshone-Bannock Indian Festival (Idaho)
The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes announced that the annual powwow, set for Aug. 12-15, would be cancelled for a second year because of the pandemic. “Hosting the powwow doesn’t fit within the Tribes Safety Protocols and we must keep our community safe,” Chairman Devon Boyer said in a statement. “Our community has not yet reached the vaccination rate we were hoping for and encourage tribal membership to get vaccinated.” The Indian Relay Association and Fort Hall Tour Rodeo are expected to continue as planned.
— Coeur d’Alene Casino Powwow (Idaho)
The Coeur d’Alene Casino announced recently it would cancel the powwow, originally set for July 24-26, for the second year in a row because of the pandemic. This would have been the first year the powwow was hosted on property near the casino.
___
Information from: Indian Country Today, https://indiancountrytoday.com/
Natasha Brennan, The Associated Press
4/23/2021
SASKATCHEWAN
'Our own grey areas:' First Nations navigate hazy cannabis retail jurisdictions
More than two years after Ottawa legalized weed, Saskatchewan’s green industry has grown into a jurisdictional grey zone.
First Nations in the province's southeast are growing into the retail end of the market — running four pot shops on their reserve lands — but are foregoing the provincially-mandated permitting process.
And the feds keep leaving the ball in the province’s court, saying it’s up to Saskatchewan to regulate, while seemingly not touching the on-reserve pot shop issues.
Yet the issue is black and white for two chiefs who spoke about their communities’ recently opened stores: As signatories to Treaty 4, Pheasant Rump Nakota Nation and Zagime (Sakimay) Anishinabeck have the sovereign right to do as they wish with business on their own lands.
Now that they’re hearing interest from other First Nations about opening stores, the two chiefs — Pheasant Rump’s Ira McArthur and Zagime’s Lynn Acoose — spoke about recent development plans for a safety association, while explaining what the federal government's gap-filled weed law means for First Nations sovereignty.
****
McArthur views the provincial government as a “partner” and a “neighbour,” but says its authority has a clear endpoint.
“Once you enter Pheasant Rump, Saskatchewan no longer exists. I don’t think their jurisdiction applies to our First Nation in any regard,” he said.
He and Acoose agree that Ottawa and the province are leaving the issue in a kind of political no-man’s land, each government referencing the other when it comes to dealing with First Nations’ jurisdictional sovereignty.
Acoose believes it forces Zagime into an economic position of finding "our own grey areas” to make a livelihood. It’s a repeat, she says, of a historical pattern that began with European settlers introducing western-style economic trade.
But those poorly outlined areas also mean gaps to grow into the market.
Legislative holes have left "a niche there that needed to be filled and First Nations took advantage of that — we’re able to develop on-reserve dispensaries,” McArthur said.
Along with Pheasant Rump and Zagime, Muscowpetung Saulteaux Nation and Peepeekisis Cree Nation have opened pot shops on their lands. They remain, for now, the only bands to do so.
All of them are operating without a permit from the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA), which the province mandated when it created its Cannabis Control Act after the federal Liberals legalized pot in October 2018.
Former justice minister Don Morgan previously told the Leader-Post that Ottawa ought to “control" Indigenous-run pot shops or send in the RCMP “to deal with it.”
The Ministry of Justice declined to provide comments from Morgan’s successor, Gord Wyant. Ministry spokesman Noel Busse said in an email the province’s position is "the federal Cannabis Act and the provincial Cannabis Control (Saskatchewan) Act apply across Saskatchewan.”
Enforcement questions about unlicensed dispensaries are best answered by local police services or Health Canada, Busse added.
The Saskatchewan RCMP’s media team said Mounties here are taking a “measured approach,” including consultation and education “with stakeholders and communities, to address the unlicensed sale of cannabis while respecting the rights of First Nations communities.”
The Mounties declined to say if the province or the federal government have asked them to enforce current laws for unlicensed shops on reserve, because “we do not wish to discourage members of the public from contacting the police.”
Canadian legal and constitutional scholar Dwight Newman says Ottawa bungled up the cannabis law from the start, because they “just didn't deal with how they saw things developing with Indigenous involvement.”
Newman, a Canada Research Chair at the University of Saskatchewan, said federal legislators could have simply added a provision to the Cannabis Act to “give clarity” on two points: First Nations’ choices to open pot shops on their own lands; and the degree to which, if at all, First Nations are subject to provincial regulations, like the SLGA’s permit requirement.
He said the Liberal government also looks to be stuck in the past — in light of current duty to consult expectations — by not hearing from band leaders how the looming weed law would have affected their communities “to know they needed the clarity on these issues.”
Newman suggested Section 88 of the Indian Act, which pertains to provincial laws applicable to Indigenous people, as one place to start.
****
Looking to the past for some guidance, especially in Saskatchewan, wouldn’t have been particularly hard, either.
The provincial government and the RCMP grappled with a driven and persistent White Bear First Nation, led by former chief Bernie Shepherd, as it went all in to make Indigenous-owned casinos a thing in the 1990s.
Shepherd and White Bear thumbed their collective nose at spotty provincial gambling laws: In 1993 the band opened the Bear Claw Casino in its golf course clubhouse without a licence from the province.
University of Lethbridge Indigenous Studies scholar Yale Belanger says it's similar to today's pot problem.
In 1985, he explained, Ottawa said “the provinces can run with the (casino) licensing piece. Then First Nations showed up and said ‘we want to put casinos in.’ ”
One of his main research areas is Indigenous gaming in Canada.
Now, with federal and provincial cannabis laws established, “First Nations are ultimately going to enter in the dialogue and say ‘we would like to, not unlike casinos, establish cultivation and dispensaries within reserves,' ” Belanger said.
“The provinces are going to push back and say, 'no, that's our responsibility in terms of licensing and oversight; you must deal with us.’ ”
He suspects Pheasant Rump, Zagime, Muscowpetung and Peepeekisis will “start to face a lot of pressure from provincial authorities about licensing and demands that they come to the table so they can further clarify how a very unique jurisdictional environment, as it relates to First Nations, will develop.”
****
Zagime Chief Lynn Acoose says White Bear’s work on casinos are inspirations for her community’s foray into pot shops.
“We invoked the White Bear experience, just because that was a demonstration to us of the injustice that has been inflicted on First Nations through federal and provincial legislation,” she said.
The Indigenous-owned casino example and current cannabis laws show how, Acoose says, governments “legislate us out of participating in the larger economy on our own terms. That's a form of oppression.”
Those legislative practices have roots in Canada’s settler-colonial past, she says.
She cites promises made in Treaty 4 that sought to allow First Nations people full participation in and benefits from settlers’ newly-introduced economic activity, particularly farming.
The clause in question is often referred to as the “cows and ploughs benefit,” Acoose said, contending First Nations people aren’t allowed that full participation.
“Take it forward to today's generation. We can't all farm. Our land base is not sufficient for everyone on reserve to enjoy the benefits of those promises made in treaty.”
Like what White Bear did in 1993, her community has always had to find its own, often unclear pathways "in terms of new economies,” she says.
Thus far Zagime’s shop — called Omagakii, sitting on the band’s land just west of Regina at Pinkie Road and Dewdney Avenue — is providing some of that livelihood after opening in September 2019.
The First Nation has opened a restaurant, Moose and Bannock, next to the shop. Zagime also uses revenue from Omagakii to build its road network at the intersection, called Saulteaux Crossing.
The band owns a building in Yorkton, too, which it has since repaired, thanks to cannabis revenues.
At Pheasant Rump, McArthur said its shop employs 17 band members, still working there through the pandemic.
After Buds and Blossoms opened on Canada Day in 2019, it took about four months of operation to be “in the black,” he said. At six months, there were enough profits to fund community programs, especially for elders.
“Through the winter months, October to March this year, we paid for all of our elders' utility bills on and off the reserve. We provide quarterly allowances to our elders,” he said. “We also do provide support to our school-aged children for their lunch programs,” using the pot shop revenue.
****
The two chiefs are now starting to draft documents and provisions for a safety standards association, which would apply to all four First Nations currently running stores.
Acoose says they hope the end result is standards for testing: “How often do we test? What's the sample frequency? What can we test for? What are the standards in those tests that we can establish?”
When the pandemic subsides, Zagime wants to meet with leaders from the other three communities to work out the details.
She’s also hoping for a “legislative relationship with the federal government, through maybe an exemption in the Criminal Code for cannabis operations on reserve … Without federal legislation that recognizes our own First Nation laws, that makes it quite difficult to operate.”
Referencing White Bear and Indigenous-owned casinos, Newman, the legal scholar at the U of S, says any lack of clarity could lead to “conflict down the road … The provincial government is also going to need to think about the implications of those past lessons (from the 1990s).”
At the University of Lethbridge, Belanger predicts Ottawa will push First Nations to “negotiate with the provinces.”
“First Nations will argue they're the equivalent of provinces, jurisdictionally, and that the provinces don't have any over-arching authority within that setting, that they're relationship is with the Crown, with the feds.”
Though the current cannabis conundrum is challenging and interesting, it’s not really new, he added. “It's a very simple circus act that Canada has been performing since confederation in 1867. It will be a consistent First Nations-ask of the government to articulate clarity,” hopefully yielding sober clarity.
— with files from Arthur White-Crummey, Regina Leader-Post
eradford@postmedia.com
Evan Radford, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Regina Leader-Post, The Leader-Post
'Our own grey areas:' First Nations navigate hazy cannabis retail jurisdictions
More than two years after Ottawa legalized weed, Saskatchewan’s green industry has grown into a jurisdictional grey zone.
First Nations in the province's southeast are growing into the retail end of the market — running four pot shops on their reserve lands — but are foregoing the provincially-mandated permitting process.
And the feds keep leaving the ball in the province’s court, saying it’s up to Saskatchewan to regulate, while seemingly not touching the on-reserve pot shop issues.
Yet the issue is black and white for two chiefs who spoke about their communities’ recently opened stores: As signatories to Treaty 4, Pheasant Rump Nakota Nation and Zagime (Sakimay) Anishinabeck have the sovereign right to do as they wish with business on their own lands.
Now that they’re hearing interest from other First Nations about opening stores, the two chiefs — Pheasant Rump’s Ira McArthur and Zagime’s Lynn Acoose — spoke about recent development plans for a safety association, while explaining what the federal government's gap-filled weed law means for First Nations sovereignty.
****
McArthur views the provincial government as a “partner” and a “neighbour,” but says its authority has a clear endpoint.
“Once you enter Pheasant Rump, Saskatchewan no longer exists. I don’t think their jurisdiction applies to our First Nation in any regard,” he said.
He and Acoose agree that Ottawa and the province are leaving the issue in a kind of political no-man’s land, each government referencing the other when it comes to dealing with First Nations’ jurisdictional sovereignty.
Acoose believes it forces Zagime into an economic position of finding "our own grey areas” to make a livelihood. It’s a repeat, she says, of a historical pattern that began with European settlers introducing western-style economic trade.
But those poorly outlined areas also mean gaps to grow into the market.
Legislative holes have left "a niche there that needed to be filled and First Nations took advantage of that — we’re able to develop on-reserve dispensaries,” McArthur said.
Along with Pheasant Rump and Zagime, Muscowpetung Saulteaux Nation and Peepeekisis Cree Nation have opened pot shops on their lands. They remain, for now, the only bands to do so.
All of them are operating without a permit from the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA), which the province mandated when it created its Cannabis Control Act after the federal Liberals legalized pot in October 2018.
Former justice minister Don Morgan previously told the Leader-Post that Ottawa ought to “control" Indigenous-run pot shops or send in the RCMP “to deal with it.”
The Ministry of Justice declined to provide comments from Morgan’s successor, Gord Wyant. Ministry spokesman Noel Busse said in an email the province’s position is "the federal Cannabis Act and the provincial Cannabis Control (Saskatchewan) Act apply across Saskatchewan.”
Enforcement questions about unlicensed dispensaries are best answered by local police services or Health Canada, Busse added.
The Saskatchewan RCMP’s media team said Mounties here are taking a “measured approach,” including consultation and education “with stakeholders and communities, to address the unlicensed sale of cannabis while respecting the rights of First Nations communities.”
The Mounties declined to say if the province or the federal government have asked them to enforce current laws for unlicensed shops on reserve, because “we do not wish to discourage members of the public from contacting the police.”
Canadian legal and constitutional scholar Dwight Newman says Ottawa bungled up the cannabis law from the start, because they “just didn't deal with how they saw things developing with Indigenous involvement.”
Newman, a Canada Research Chair at the University of Saskatchewan, said federal legislators could have simply added a provision to the Cannabis Act to “give clarity” on two points: First Nations’ choices to open pot shops on their own lands; and the degree to which, if at all, First Nations are subject to provincial regulations, like the SLGA’s permit requirement.
He said the Liberal government also looks to be stuck in the past — in light of current duty to consult expectations — by not hearing from band leaders how the looming weed law would have affected their communities “to know they needed the clarity on these issues.”
Newman suggested Section 88 of the Indian Act, which pertains to provincial laws applicable to Indigenous people, as one place to start.
****
Looking to the past for some guidance, especially in Saskatchewan, wouldn’t have been particularly hard, either.
The provincial government and the RCMP grappled with a driven and persistent White Bear First Nation, led by former chief Bernie Shepherd, as it went all in to make Indigenous-owned casinos a thing in the 1990s.
Shepherd and White Bear thumbed their collective nose at spotty provincial gambling laws: In 1993 the band opened the Bear Claw Casino in its golf course clubhouse without a licence from the province.
University of Lethbridge Indigenous Studies scholar Yale Belanger says it's similar to today's pot problem.
In 1985, he explained, Ottawa said “the provinces can run with the (casino) licensing piece. Then First Nations showed up and said ‘we want to put casinos in.’ ”
One of his main research areas is Indigenous gaming in Canada.
Now, with federal and provincial cannabis laws established, “First Nations are ultimately going to enter in the dialogue and say ‘we would like to, not unlike casinos, establish cultivation and dispensaries within reserves,' ” Belanger said.
“The provinces are going to push back and say, 'no, that's our responsibility in terms of licensing and oversight; you must deal with us.’ ”
He suspects Pheasant Rump, Zagime, Muscowpetung and Peepeekisis will “start to face a lot of pressure from provincial authorities about licensing and demands that they come to the table so they can further clarify how a very unique jurisdictional environment, as it relates to First Nations, will develop.”
****
Zagime Chief Lynn Acoose says White Bear’s work on casinos are inspirations for her community’s foray into pot shops.
“We invoked the White Bear experience, just because that was a demonstration to us of the injustice that has been inflicted on First Nations through federal and provincial legislation,” she said.
The Indigenous-owned casino example and current cannabis laws show how, Acoose says, governments “legislate us out of participating in the larger economy on our own terms. That's a form of oppression.”
Those legislative practices have roots in Canada’s settler-colonial past, she says.
She cites promises made in Treaty 4 that sought to allow First Nations people full participation in and benefits from settlers’ newly-introduced economic activity, particularly farming.
The clause in question is often referred to as the “cows and ploughs benefit,” Acoose said, contending First Nations people aren’t allowed that full participation.
“Take it forward to today's generation. We can't all farm. Our land base is not sufficient for everyone on reserve to enjoy the benefits of those promises made in treaty.”
Like what White Bear did in 1993, her community has always had to find its own, often unclear pathways "in terms of new economies,” she says.
Thus far Zagime’s shop — called Omagakii, sitting on the band’s land just west of Regina at Pinkie Road and Dewdney Avenue — is providing some of that livelihood after opening in September 2019.
The First Nation has opened a restaurant, Moose and Bannock, next to the shop. Zagime also uses revenue from Omagakii to build its road network at the intersection, called Saulteaux Crossing.
The band owns a building in Yorkton, too, which it has since repaired, thanks to cannabis revenues.
At Pheasant Rump, McArthur said its shop employs 17 band members, still working there through the pandemic.
After Buds and Blossoms opened on Canada Day in 2019, it took about four months of operation to be “in the black,” he said. At six months, there were enough profits to fund community programs, especially for elders.
“Through the winter months, October to March this year, we paid for all of our elders' utility bills on and off the reserve. We provide quarterly allowances to our elders,” he said. “We also do provide support to our school-aged children for their lunch programs,” using the pot shop revenue.
****
The two chiefs are now starting to draft documents and provisions for a safety standards association, which would apply to all four First Nations currently running stores.
Acoose says they hope the end result is standards for testing: “How often do we test? What's the sample frequency? What can we test for? What are the standards in those tests that we can establish?”
When the pandemic subsides, Zagime wants to meet with leaders from the other three communities to work out the details.
She’s also hoping for a “legislative relationship with the federal government, through maybe an exemption in the Criminal Code for cannabis operations on reserve … Without federal legislation that recognizes our own First Nation laws, that makes it quite difficult to operate.”
Referencing White Bear and Indigenous-owned casinos, Newman, the legal scholar at the U of S, says any lack of clarity could lead to “conflict down the road … The provincial government is also going to need to think about the implications of those past lessons (from the 1990s).”
At the University of Lethbridge, Belanger predicts Ottawa will push First Nations to “negotiate with the provinces.”
“First Nations will argue they're the equivalent of provinces, jurisdictionally, and that the provinces don't have any over-arching authority within that setting, that they're relationship is with the Crown, with the feds.”
Though the current cannabis conundrum is challenging and interesting, it’s not really new, he added. “It's a very simple circus act that Canada has been performing since confederation in 1867. It will be a consistent First Nations-ask of the government to articulate clarity,” hopefully yielding sober clarity.
— with files from Arthur White-Crummey, Regina Leader-Post
eradford@postmedia.com
Evan Radford, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Regina Leader-Post, The Leader-Post
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