Photo by Caitlin Abrams
Big crowd at the State Fair
Indigenous Peoples’ Day is on the plate at the Minnesota State Fair this year, with a day of celebration at Dan Patch Park aiming to celebrate the wide variety of Indigenous cultures that co-exist all across Minnesota.
Sponsored by North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems (NATIFS,) a Minneapolis nonprofit, the all-day event will include something for everyone. Guest chefs will be present at the event to give cooking demonstrations on Indigenous food and drinks, such as Minnesota wild rice, heirloom corn tortillas and herbal tea.
Native drumming and dance group Kalpulli KetzalCoatlicue will also take to the stage at the event, using instruments like drums, conch shells, and seeds to pay respect to their Mexican culture and ancestors.
The event also features a panel discussing Indigenous food sovereignty and land management, highlighting Indigenous food, history, culture and arts. The panel will explore the history of Indigenous people being stripped of their food sovereignty through actions like overhunting of buffalo or the overharvesting of fish, leading to a large depletion in the population of both animal groups. The stage events will be hosted by local entertainer and Red Lake Band of Chippewa tribal member Trish Cook.
“With interest in sustainable, environmentally sensitive practices on the rise, inside and outside the Indigenous community, concepts of food sovereignty and land management are key to a new American way of eating,” said Owamni chef Sean Sherman, NATIFS founder, in a statement. “Indigenous people have had our food sovereignty stripped away through intentional disruption of food resources like buffalo; restrictions on hunting, gathering, and fishing; and commodity food programs sent to reservations that introduced unhealthy foods to our diet. Indigenous land management is the way we have cultivated and cared for the land, including controlled burns, foraging protocols, water protection and preservation. It’s important to define these terms for all so we have a shared understanding as we work toward common goals–controlling foodways to create a better future and healthier climate for all, including Indigenous communities.”
Indigenous Peoples’ Day takes place at Dan Patch Park at the State Fair, Sunday August 27, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free, included with the ticket price to get into the Fair. For more information about NATIFS, visit their website at natifs.org.
