Scottsdale Western Week is underway, and a unique Indigenous culinary experience kicked off this year’s festivities to honor the city’s roots in the heart of Old Town over the weekend.
From hand-tossing to frying round balls of dough, several dozen people practiced making frybread in an outdoor cooking class on Saturday. The Frybread Lounge hosted the event at a venue overlooking the Arizona Canal in downtown Scottsdale.
Celeste Deschene is Diné and with the first Native-owned restaurant in Old Town Scottsdale. She taught the sold-out, hour-long course and shared her favorite part is educating the public about their food customs.
“Having people embrace another culture and really take it in and see what it’s like to make something that’s, you know, straight from scratch,” she added. “Frybread’s always good any time of the day, but you really should have it in moderation.”
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Some traditional Indigenous stories can only be uttered during the wintertime. A member of the Gila River Indian Community has been workshopping a new collaboration with the Great Arizona Puppet Theater that’ll bring old creation tales to life on Saturday.
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A lawsuit has prevented some Arizona ranchers from using wells due to water rights claimed by the Gila River Indian Community.
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The Navajo Nation government recently came to an agreement with mining company Energy Fuels on the transport of uranium from a mine south of the Grand Canyon.
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A temporary exhibit featuring a little-known 1940s American art movement is nearing the end of its run at the Heard Museum in Phoenix. The show highlights the interconnection of Native and non-Native artists as they separately looked to redefine American and Native art.
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After the recent federal funding freeze, a coalition of tribal organizations is calling for confirmation that recent executive orders won’t harm programs and services their communities rely on.