A dance full of history

Sierra Vista Herald ^ | Lauren Renteria

[SandRat]

SIERRA VISTA — In honor of National Native American Heritage Month, Cochise College hosted the Redhouse Dancers of Tucson in its annual celebration of cultural diversity.

Tanya Biami, a communications professor at Cochise College, organized this year's event. The production featured performers from the Redhouse group as well as the the Ohitika Girls, a local song and drumming troupe of young girls from various cultural backgrounds.

The relationship between the Redhouse Dancers and Cochise College dates back at least 18 years, Biami said. But the history between the Redhouse Dancers and Sierra Vista goes back even further to when Rex Redhouse was stationed at Fort Huachuca, she said.

Rex taught his children the traditional practices of Navajo culture and, though he passed away a few years ago, his son Tony Redhouse still comes back to Cochise College every year to share his culture with the community.

"It helps us connect, once again as one people," Redhouse said about native dance. “It helps our family to share our gifts.”

Both Redhouse and Biami said it’s important for the community to remember and recognize the cultural history tied with the land that makes up Cochise County — which once belonged to the Apache natives and shares its name with a prominent tribal leader of the 19th century.

The mission of the annual event, Biami said, is to educate people about native culture, beliefs and traditions.

“Arizona especially, and even the area where Cochise College is standing, was once Chiricahua Apache land. We need to know our history,” Biami said. “So few people even know about Cochise and the Chiricahua Apache. So, I try to bring that education and awareness into the community because I think it enriches all of us. The more we know about other perspectives, the more we know about ourselves.”

For Redhouse, performing with his family not only helps educate the Cochise County community but also reminds him of his roots and the spirituality that comes with traditional native dance. He grew up learning native practices from his father and began performing when he was just 5 years old. Since then, he’s been sharing his culture with the community through performing arts.

Through traditional song and dance, Redhouse said he believes it can bridge the political and cultural divide that he thinks is pervasive in current American culture. Tony said native dance teaches “simplicity,” appreciation for the earth and spirituality.

“What we are sharing is pertinent to today’s world because today’s world needs healing,” he said. “We are sending a message that we need to go back to our truth, we need to go back to our ancestors, we need to back to what’s going to help us survive on this earth...We are at war with each other and we all need to come back to that one heartbeat called love.” 1