Our View - American Indian Pow Wow kicks up celebrational sand at The Beach

It's always weird being at school on a weekend. Most of the shops in the University Student Union are closed, parking is available and the campus is pretty much dead.

This weekend was an exception because of the 38th annual Cal State Long Beach Pow Wow on Upper Campus. American Indians from nations like the Chiricahua, Lakotah, Chumash, Navajo and many others from around the country came to celebrate their diverse cultures.

And on the Lower Campus, there was the Old West-themed Homecoming on Saturday, where students and alumni came to celebrate the men's basketball team and CSULB's heritage.

Yes, you read that correctly. "Cowboys" and "Indians" were gunning it out at The Beach for people to come join their celebrations.

Although we decided to attend both (we have school spirit, what can we say?), we found that the Pow Wow's overwhelming sense of community made it the clear winner of the shoot out at the "OK co-pyramid."

From the first second we walked into the event, we witnessed how much all of the participants from nations as far away as the Pine Ridge Reservation and beyond truly cared about one another. The dancers, singers and drummers hugged each other before entering the arena.

Even the vendors around the circle expressed care for those who purchased items from them by speaking with customers on a personal level. The vendors who spoke with us told stories about their travels to The Beach and about how much they appreciated us for coming.

Some vendors we spoke with had been coming to CSULB for this event for several years and knew almost all of the event coordinators on a personal basis. The colorful regalia, tasty foods (you have to try fry bread tacos and buffalo cheeseburgers), the smell of burning sage, the wonderful artwork and handcrafted jewelry delighted the senses.

For many, coming to the Pow Wow was a chance to meet new friends and reconnect with those friends they have not seen in a long time.

It was kind of strange for us to witness so much compassion and camaraderie on a campus where people primarily scoot in and skedaddle out as quickly as possible. Let's face it: The quad never has people hugging or remembering good times with other people like Native Americans did this weekend (except for maybe graduation).

But, this is exactly why we enjoyed the Pow Wow as much as we did. With Native Americans and non-Indians talking and enjoying themselves, the Pow Wow brought a sense of community to a campus that normally does not have one. In a way, it erased our "commuter school" feel, if only temporarily.

We would love for that type of feeling to stay on campus all week long but, until people enjoy coming to CSULB like the various tribal peoples do, it will probably never happen. Maybe the solution is for more events like the Pow Wow to take place on campus.

Either way, it was great to finally feel some sense of community one rarely experiences at The Beach.