MorningFiled #2: Soaring Spirit Festival
MorningFiled brings you highlights of CFMU’s Morningfile. Morningfile, airing weekdays from 9-10 AM, is hosted by the Community Outreach Coordinator and features interviews on events, views, and organizations in Hamilton and the surrounding area.
Tomorrow is National Indigenous Peoples’ Day. In Hamilton, the 23rd Annual Soaring Spirit Festival will be taking place from June 21st to June 23rd, at Pier 4 park at Hamilton Harbour. The festival is organized by Branches of Native Development, a grassroots committee in Hamilton organizing Indigenous cultural and artistic events.
The Soaring Spirit Festival has two parts. On Friday, there will be a “Breaking Down Barriers & Developing for the Future” conference, which aims to educate the general public on history, but also on current issues Indigenous peoples face, such as poverty and discrimination, and what must be done to break down these barriers moving forward. Saturday and Sunday will be the Powwow event and community feast; Spirit Vision Singers will be the host drummers.
The sacred fire will be lit the evening of June 20th (this evening), there will be a sunrise ceremony every day of the event, and there will be ongoing musical performances and a trade show, all by Indigenous musicians and artists.
For this episode of Morningfile, I spoke with Yvonne Maracle, co-chair and founder of Branches of Native Development. Listen to learn more about an organization and event founded by Indigenous peoples that provides a focal point for them to preserve their culture and educate the general public directly, with their own voices.
FILED 06/19 – Yvonne Maracle
ROLE: Co-chair and founder of Branches of Native Development
BIO: Yvonne Maracle is a founder and co-chair of Branches of Native Development and has been dedicated to the committee since 1988. She has also been involved in a number of other fields, including the arts and social work, and brings these perspectives with her into her work on this committee. She has also been inducted into the Hamilton Public Library's Gallery of Distinction.
WE TALKED ABOUT: Making a difference through education on Indigenous issues; Indigenous ceremonies and their connection to nature; lived experience of urban Indigenous peoples.
LISTEN: INTERVIEW WITH YVONNE MARACLE
SOARING SPIRIT FESTIVAL OFFICAL POSTER
Olivia Fava is the Community Outreach Coordinator at 93.3 CFMU. She is the host of Morningfile and Rainbow Radio, a celebration of LGBTQ+ music airing Monday nights. She is also a musician who particularly enjoys spontaneous guitar sessions in nature.