Vibrant Indigenous Peoples' Day Celebration In Fairmount

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Dancers performed to the beat of the drum inside the Philadelphia Assembled Perelman Building on Pennsylvania Avenue, recognizing Indigenous Peoples' Day.

"We're celebrating the contributions and livelihood and culture of indigenous people," explains Priscilla Bell, who helped organize the event.

Dancers wore colorful and intricate outfits as the crowds gathered around them as they put on a show. But Bell says the dancing is more than just a spectacle

"All the dance steps are purposeful," she says, "timed in a certain way to honor all the elements, so you can imagine a group of people, all in unison dancing in a circle. It's really powerful."

Various groups were represented, including the Lenape people who....

"....were the original people whose territory we're standing on today, Lenapehoking otherwise known as Philadelphia," says Bell.

Indigenous leaders and activists were also on hand.

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• Community
• Philadelphia