Brooklyn will welcome Lenape/Lunáapeew communities back to their ancestral homelands this fall with the Third United Lenape/Lunáapeew Nations Pow Wow, a free, two-day celebration of Indigenous culture, heritage and community.
Presented by Prospect Park Alliance, the Éenda-Lŭnaapeewáhkiing Collective (EL Collective) and American Indian Community House, the event takes place October 3 and 4 at the LeFrak Center at Lakeside in Prospect Park. The family-friendly gathering will feature Indigenous dancers, drummers, artists, artisans, food makers and cultural activities.
The Pow Wow runs from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free, with visitors encouraged to RSVP.
Lenape/Lunáapeew refers to the Indigenous peoples whose ancestral homelands included what is now Brooklyn and the surrounding region. The term is associated with “human beings,” or more specifically, “the ones who came from thought.” Pow Wows serve as gatherings where Indigenous nations come together to socialize, celebrate and maintain cultural traditions.
The event also reconnects with a history that stretches back more than a century. Prospect Park hosted intertribal Pow Wows from 1916 through 1972. The first United Lenape/Lunáapeew Nations Pow Wow organized by EL Collective founder George Stonefish took place at the Park Avenue Armory in 2018. Prospect Park Alliance followed with a culture fair in 2024 and a full Pow Wow at LeFrak Center at Lakeside in 2025.
This year’s celebration places a particular focus on younger generations. A Youth Spotlight will feature performers ages 6 to 17, while young adults Emma Hannah K. Stonefish and Javid Ridgeway have been appointed Pow Wow Coordinators. Organizers say the initiative is designed to provide leadership opportunities and help ensure Lenape/Lunáapeew traditions continue to thrive.
The Pow Wow is also part of Prospect Park Alliance’s ReImagine Lefferts initiative, which explores the histories, resistance and resilience of the Indigenous people of Lenapehoking, as well as the Africans enslaved by the Lefferts family.
Visitors can also explore Eelunaapéewi Ehaptoonáakanal: Voices of Lunáapeew/Lenape, an exhibition featuring interviews with Lenape/Lunáapeew knowledge-keepers and culture bearers.
The broader cultural programming continues at the Museum of the City of New York with Halumii Ktapihna: Lenape Legacies and Futures, opening September 25. Developed with EL Collective and Lenape/Lunáapeew community advisors, the exhibition features more than 30 artists along with archival materials, videos and interactive installations.
Together, these events offer New Yorkers an opportunity to encounter Lenape/Lunáapeew culture as a living tradition while celebrating its continued presence in the city and beyond.