Empowerment Through Generations
Written by: Maximilian Stedman
A UW-Stevens Point student from the indigenous Ojibwe nation will receive a feather at the Stevens Point 50th annual powwow this May in honor of receiving her bachelor’s degree.
Shaniah Kagigebi, 25, will receive the high honor of receiving a feather from one of the founding members of AIRO, American Indians Reaching for Opportunities, during the 50th anniversary of the Stevens Point annual Powwow. Kagigebi will receive this high honor for receiving a bachelor’s degree in biology this spring.
”I hope that seeing me receive my feather and graduate will inspire my siblings to continue being a part of their culture and to be proud of who they are, proud Anishinaabe,” said Kagigebi, “I also hope that this will inspire them to reach for their dreams and continue their education, in whatever way that is.”
Kagigebi hopes that her family will attend this powwow, making it their third AIRO powwow. She’ll be wearing her mother, Mary Lou Taylor’s cap, which she wore to her feathering ceremony when she graduated with her Bachelor of Science degree in 2017.
The Pointer photo/Maximilian Stedman
Kagigebi will also be wearing her regalia, jingle dress, and moccasins that her grandmother made for her, as she will be dancing in this year’s powwow.
“It means a lot in a personal sense, because I wore that graduation cap to my graduation with my Bachelor of Science Degree, with me watching her graduating high school a day later, and now she’s graduating with her degree and wearing my cap that she watched me graduate in,” said Taylor.
Kagigebi is ecstatic about the powwow this year and says it will be an extra special one for her. She not only has made an impact on her family but also on the community in which she resides. She plans to continue her education further at the University of Minnesota- Twin Cities.
“This is also important to me as I have always wanted to be a role model for the youth back home in Lac Courte Oreilles. I want to show them the possibilities out there and that it is possible to achieve their dreams,” Kagigebi Said. ”I have many little eyes watching me, and I am excited to share and dedicate this achievement to all of the Indigenous boys and girls out there.”
If you want to see Shaniah Kagigebi receive her feather and dance, join her in Champions Hall on May 3 at the 50th annual Stevens Point Powwow; admission for the Powwow is $5.
Maximilian Stedman
Contributor | The Pointer
