Celebrating Native American Heritage

December 2, 2005

Kevin Locke © Pentagram 2005

The spry Locke performs a traditional hoop dance, at one point utilizing 26 hoops at a time.

by Michael Norris
Pentagram assistant editor

The Fort Myer Military Community's observance of National American Indian Heritage Month took place Wednesday at the post town hall.

The event opened with "The National Anthem," performed by a member of the Army Band, paired with the Native American piece "Flag Song," performed by the White Oak Singers, a quartet of Native Americans who sit in a circle, sing and play percussion in the style of Northern Plains Indian.

The White Oak Singers were the observance's special guests, along with Native American hoop dancer, musician and storyteller Kevin Locke, an Anishinabe Indian, originally from the Standing Rock Reservation in South Dakota.

In opening remarks, Garrison Commander Col. Thomas A. Allmon spoke about how President George H.W. Bush established the observance in 1990 to recognize the rich history and culture of Native Americans throughout the month of November. He also noted the contributions Native Americans have made to the Armed Forces.

"From the Revolutionary War Scouts to Code Talkers of World War II, Native Americans have served in all branches of America's armed forces," Allmon said.

"Today, that proud tradition continues with Native Americans bravely defending our country in Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom."

Locke took the stage, introduced himself, and advised to "pay no attention to the wild little Indian running around the auditorium." The toddler, who played peek-a-boo with various members of the audience throughout the proceedings, he said, was his daughter.

Locke, who recalled spending time in Arlington as a Wakefield High School student during the first Earth Day in 1970, played several musical selections on a wooden flute, accompanying by the White Oak Singers and then in duet with a prerecorded guitar and rhythm and blues ensemble.

He talked about the content of the songs and how the sentiments in one piece were not all that different from a Conway Twitty song about unrequited love.

In another song Locke simultaneously translated the lyrics into tribal sign language. He encouraged the audience to participate, quizzing them on the likely meaning of some gestures, and getting them to duplicate unspoken words for rock, rain and lightening.

The 52-year-old Locke amazed the audience with his peripatetic hoop dancing, where he hopped on one leg and then the other while picking up a series of wooden hoops and moved them along his body to the music of the White Oak Singers, forming a skirt with the hoops, a headdress, the opening of a flower and a sphere that represented the earth.

His dancing captivated the audience, particularly some young children attending from Child and Youth Services. He invited them up on the stage and showed them some of the rudimentary moves from his hoop dance.

Humor was an important part of Locke's presentation. He wisecracked about having a neighboring community in South Dakota play polka band music to instigate rain in the region, and when describing the symbolism of unity, transcendence and other virtues in his hoop dance, he briefly brought two hoops over his head to create a pair of giant ears, saying, "We won't be distracted by Mickey Mouse concerns."

One audience member compared Locke's folksy humor to Will Rogers.

At the conclusion of the program, Allmon awarded a plaque and certificates to the observance participants and thanked them for a job well done.