Clad in traditional regalia, Native American visitors gave LSU students a glimpse of dances from a variety of Native American cultures during a demonstration Wednesday in Free Speech Plaza’s Echo Circle. Hosted by the Native American Student Organization, the event drew attendees from the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, the Choctaw, and the Houma.
The dancers moved within a circle throughout the demonstration.
“The circle represents the never-ending circle of life,” said Leland Thompson, fire chief of the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, while narrating the dances. “Another life passes away, another always takes its place.”
Both adults and children participated in the dances, some involving a solitary performer while others incorporated the group. Decked in elaborate outfits, often homemade with furs, colorful ribbons, and sacred
elements such as eagle feathers.
“We ask that people don’t call them costumes,” said Coushatta member Traci Ahshapanek. “They’re not costumes, they’re pieces of our regalia.”
The dances and outfits included representations of nature and warriors on the battlefield, as well as tales from Native American cultures.
Ahshapanek danced in a women’s jingle dress with regalia covered in bells, inspired by the tale of a man who prayed for his granddaughter’s healing and received a vision of dancers. In the story, he created a copy of the dresses worn by the dancers and gave it to his granddaughter. After she danced while wearing it, the girl was healed.
Wearing the women’s jingle dress has positively changed her health, Ahshapanek said.
Popular perception of Native Americans is muddied by inaccurate information and stereotypes from movies, Thompson said. By being exposed to authentic Native American culture, non-Natives get a better understanding of the reality.
The dances were a small window into those performed when different tribes met, Thompson said. The tribes would dance and sing together to smooth language barriers and bond with one another despite their differences.
At the demonstration’s finale, audience members were invited to enter the circle and join the dancers.
“I want people to know that we’re out here, and we’re thriving,” Thompson said. “We walk two walks of life: carrying on our traditions as well as keeping up with the modern world.”

Gallery • 19 Photos

Zoe Geauthreaux

Coushatta tribe member and jingle dress dancer Traci Ahshapanek (left) assists a younger dancer with her makeup on Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015 before the Native American Student Association's dance exhibition in Free Speech Plaza.