(upbeat music) - Urban Indian Center of Salt Lake is celebrating its 50th anniversary and hosting its Two-Spirit+ Powwow.

Director of Behavioral Health, Allyson Shaw, is here to tell us more.

Hi Allyson, thanks for being here.

Why don't you start by telling us the mission of the Two Spirit+ Powwow?

- Absolutely.

So our mission for this powwow is to honor and celebrate all Indigenous identities by challenging colonized ideas, removing barriers, implementing Indigenous knowledge, and amplifying two-spirit voices.

- That's great.

And for people who don't know what two-spirit+ is, can you tell us?

- Yes.

So two-spirit is an intertribal term used exclusively for Indigenous people that's used to describe gender-fluid identities and sexual orientations.

So it's kind of an umbrella term used to describe LGBTQ+ identities.

And the important thing to note is that two-spirited individuals have always been a part of our Indigenous communities.

So the term two-spirit now is a modern way that we use to describe those identities.

- That's great.

And I know that in Indigenous communities, those individuals have always been revered and celebrated.

- Yes, absolutely.

And that's one of the biggest reasons why we are holding this two-spirit powwow, is to really hold space for connection and celebration for our two-spirited relatives.

- That's great.

And tell us about the activities, you've got a lot going on.

- Yes.

So, this powwow is going to be an all-day event on October 26th.

So we have two sessions.

Our morning session is going to kick off with grand entry at 11:00 AM.

The second session has grand entry starting at 5:00 PM.

And then, in between, we are hosting a community feast starting at four o'clock, which we're super excited about.

And then throughout the day we have a vendor market.

So definitely come check out all the food, all the artwork.

And then we're also having some really great information booths hosted by our community partners.

- That's great.

Well, thank you so much for doing it, and thanks for being here.

And if you'd like to know more about that upcoming Urban Indian Center of Salt Lake Two-Spirit+ Powwow, it's October 26th from 10:30 AM to 10:00 PM at the Lifetime Activities Center at Salt Lake Community College.

Just go to uicsl.org.

uicsl.org.

I'm Mary Dickson, thanks for watching Contact.

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