莱克星顿用音乐和舞蹈庆祝第一个原住民日
【中美创新时报2024 年 10 月 15 日编译讯】（记者温友平编译）作为美国独立战争第一场战役的发生地，莱克星顿长期以来一直在庆祝其殖民历史。但随着该镇准备明年纪念这场冲突 250 周年，许多当地人正在努力将原住民的故事作为该镇历史的核心。《波士顿环球报》记者约翰·希利亚德对此作了下述报道。
妮可·米内蒂随着手鼓的节奏舞动，她的双脚保持节奏，躯干扭动，披在肩上的彩色毯子随着动作飘动。
纳拉甘西特印第安部落成员米内蒂表演舞蹈是为了向女性致敬，庆祝她们作为生命赋予者和维持者的角色。当她移动时，她的双腿随着心跳般的砰砰声摆动，聚集在莱克星顿历史学会莱克星顿仓库大楼内的数十人都站在那里，钦佩不已。
她的舞蹈是周一该镇首次庆祝原住民日的一部分，为节日带来了音乐、舞蹈和讲故事的融合。米内蒂说，她想与社区分享她的文化和传统的一瞥，以及表演的乐趣。
“我喜欢跳舞，所以它给了我这种感觉，”米内蒂说。“这实际上是让人们接触舞蹈风格，或者你的故事。”
作为美国独立战争第一场战役的发生地，莱克星顿长期以来一直在庆祝其殖民历史。但随着该镇准备明年纪念这场冲突 250 周年，许多当地人正在努力将原住民的故事作为该镇历史的核心，莱克星顿居民、莱纳佩部落成员斯蒂芬妮·斯通菲什·瑞安 (Stephanie Stonefish Ryan) 说。
在春季的镇议会投票后，该镇加入了马萨诸塞州和全国越来越多的社区，将哥伦布日改为原住民日。
瑞安推动了节日的改变并策划了庆祝活动，他说这对社区来说是向前迈出的重要一步。
“这对我们、对我们的家庭、对我们的孩子来说真的很重要。我们这里的学校系统里都有孩子，在莱克星顿的所有学校里，他们感到被认可真的很棒，”瑞安说。“我认为现在人们有兴趣了解土著人的历史。”
根据人口普查，在马萨诸塞州，大约有 24,000 人自认为是美洲印第安人或阿拉斯加原住民。在莱克星顿，在超过 34,000 人的人口中，只有 30 名居民自认为是美洲印第安人或阿拉斯加原住民。
历史学会执行董事安妮·李 (Anne Lee) 表示，虽然该镇的大部分历史焦点都集中在美国革命上，但人们对土著人的故事越来越感兴趣。
“我认为我们的职责是确保这些声音被听到。因此，在接触原住民社区的过程中，我们正在搭建以前不存在的桥梁，”李说。“我们真的希望，反过来，我们可以建立信任。”
周一，米内蒂的舞蹈是红鹰歌手和舞者表演的长达一小时的舞蹈表演的一部分。
许多舞蹈没有正式的编舞，允许表演者通过他们的动作来诠释自己的经历。她说，每支舞蹈都因舞者而异。
她说，这些舞蹈体现了对过去的深深敬意。
“你向长辈寻求指导或学习，然后你发展自己的故事和自己的舞蹈风格，”米内蒂说。
55 岁的斯蒂芬妮·许是该镇人权委员会的成员，她说她在观看表演时感到与表演者产生了联系。
“它让你靠近它。它让你停下来，听故事，看舞蹈，”许说。 “它们如何代表了那个社区的声音。”
39 岁的 CheeNulKa Pocknett 来自马什皮万帕诺亚格部落，他在表演期间演奏了手鼓，并向观众解释了每种手鼓的重要性。
“我们只是想向其他人展示我们仍然在这里，我们正试图向人们展示正确的道路，我们是这片土地、这片水域、这片天空的真正守护者，”Pocknett 随后说道。“我们正在努力带来教育和意识。”
题图：纳拉甘西特印第安部落成员妮可·米内蒂在莱克星顿第一个原住民日庆祝活动中跳舞。Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff
附原英文报道：
With music and dance, Lexington celebrates its first Indigenous Peoples Day
By John Hilliard Globe Staff,Updated October 14, 2024
Nicole Minetti, a member of the Narragansett Indian Tribe, danced during Lexington’s first Indigenous Peoples Day celebration.Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff
LEXINGTON — Nicole Minetti moved to the rhythm of the hand drum’s beat, her feet keeping tempo, her torso twisting, a colorful blanket draped across her shoulders sweeping with the motion.
Minetti, a member of the Narragansett Indian Tribe, performed the dance to honor women and celebrate their role as life-givers and sustainers. As she moved, her legs pumping to a heartbeat-like thump, dozens gathered inside the Lexington’s Historical Society’s Lexington Depot building stood in admiration.
Her dance was part of the town’s first Indigenous Peoples Day celebration on Monday, bringing a mix of music, dancing, and storytelling to the holiday. Minetti said she wanted to share a glimpse of her culture and traditions with the community, and the joy of performing.
“I love to dance, so it gives me that,” Minetti said. “It’s really about exposing people to the style of dance, or to your story.”
As the site of the first battle of the American Revolution, Lexington has long celebrated its colonial history. But as the town prepares to honor the 250th anniversary of that conflict next year, many locals are working to feature the stories of Indigenous people as central to the town’s history, said Stephanie Stonefish Ryan, a Lexington resident and member of the Lenape tribe.
The town has joined a growing number of communities across Massachusetts and the country that have replaced Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day, following a vote by Town Meeting in the spring.
Ryan, who helped push for the holiday change and plan the celebration, said it was a vital step forward for the community.
“It’s really important to us, for our families, for our kids. We have kids in the school systems here, in all the Lexington schools, and it’s really great for them to feel recognized,” Ryan said. “I think people are interested now in learning the history” of Indigenous people.
Across Massachusetts, there are about 24,000 people who identify as American Indian or Alaska Native, according to the census. In Lexington, just 30 residents identify as American Indian or Alaska Native, out of a population of more than 34,000.
While most of the town’s historical focus has been on the American Revolution, there is growing interest in the stories of Native people, said Anne Lee, the historical society’s executive director.
“I think our part in it is to ensure that these voices get heard. And so in reaching out to the Indigenous community, we’re building bridges that weren’t really there before,” Lee said. “And we’re really hoping that in turn, we can build trust.”
On Monday, Minetti’s dancing was part of an hour-long demonstration of dances performed by the Redhawk Singers and Dancers.
Many of the dances didn’t have a formal choreography and allow performers to interpret their own experiences through their motions. Each dance varies by the dancer, she said.
The dances draw upon a deep respect for the past, she said.
“You look towards your elders to guide you, or to learn from, and then you develop your own story and own style of dancing,” Minetti said.
Stephanie Hsu, 55, a member of the town’s human rights committee, said she felt a connection with the performers as she watched.
“It brings you close to it. It makes you pause, hearing the stories and watching the dances,” Hsu said. “How they represent the voices in that community.”
CheeNulKa Pocknett, 39, of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, played a hand drum during the performances and explained the importance of each to the audience.
“We’re just trying to show everyone else that we’re still here, and that we’re trying to show people the right way, and that we are the true custodians of this land, of the water, of the sky,” Pocknett said afterward. “We’re trying to bring education and awareness.”
