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(female speaker) N is for Native Americans in South Carolina.
We're on the banks of the Congaree River in Cayce,
where Native Americans used to live. The Congaree tribe that lived here were Cherokee
Congaree. There are 11 state-recognized tribes here
in South Carolina. Among them we have the Waccamaw, the Beaver
Creek, the Edisto, the Santee, the Pee Dee Indians.
We have an Eastern band of the Cherokee, the Iroquois.
We have what are called powwows, and what they do is Native Americans
get together from all over to celebrate. Our clothing is called regalia.
It is not costume; it is regalia. And it's very sacred to all of us.
Every person puts into their regalia what comes from their heart.
In my regalia, you will see the braids, which women wear their hair braided or pulled
back unless they're in mourning.
The necklace I'm wearing is silver and turquoise. It's a squash blossom necklace from the Navajo
tribe. This is made of a box turtle shell,
and it is made into a purse. What I'm wearing here
is a glass-beaded, Native American, hand-beaded belt.
It is dated from around 1850 to 1890, and it is an actual artifact.
I am wearing trade cloth. My tunic and my skirt are 100% cotton,
which is considered Native American trade cloth,
and of course the moccasins. Our regalia is mainly worn for ceremonial
purposes. If we're going to a Native American event,
if we have a wedding or a funeral or a birth that we're attending,
we'd wear our Native American regalia.