Mi’kmaw Summer Games pageant promotes culture, empowerment

One of the biggest highlights of last week’s Mi’kmaw Summer Games was the princess pageant, an event where 12 girls from various First Nations competed to be the princess pageant queen.

Each contestant had the opportunity to promote themselves, their traditions and bring awareness to the importance of female empowerment.

“It’s important that we empower and introduce our young Mi’kmaw women because we come from a culture where women are respected, they’re the matriarchs of the families,” pageant co-ordinator Sunshine Paul-Martin said. 

Each contestant had to have full status cards to be eligible to compete. The pageant, which took place Friday in Millbrook First Nation, included various prizes, and categories for talent and cultural demonstrations, including traditional songs, poems and speeches.

“We had people cheering and we had people who were so curious on who was going to win and everybody was enjoying it.”

This year’s winner was Aleah Young, 15, from Eskasoni. She sang the women’s warrior song, a song she described as something that gives women strength and power. She was shocked to hear her name as this year’s winner and was amazed she won the beaded crown. 

“I didn’t expect to win queen, and was filled with emotions,” she said. “I felt that it was beautiful, I didn’t expect to win such a beautiful crown, because it’s beaded, it’s more meaningful because we take our beading seriously.”

Paul-Martin said the crown is carefully selected each year with this year’s design incorporating the Summer Games colours.

Young and the other contestants had the opportunity to voice their opinions on topics such as missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, and revitalizing the Mi’kmaq language.

“To have all these young Indigenous women showcase their culture from only being 15-19 years old is a big thing,” co-ordinator Kailey Lucas Julian said. “Women are the structure of our culture.”

Julian also helped in preparation and engagement, and always reminded the girls to be grounded. She said it’s vital for these lessons to be used in day-to-day life.

“We wanted to show our younger generations that you need to be proud of being an Indigenous woman,” Julian said. “A lot of these girls are working together and there for each other, and I know they’ll all be there for each other in life.”

Ally Martin from the Millbrook First Nation won the pageant in 2022 at 15 years old, and became a mentor for this year’s batch of contestants.

“Every year for the pageant there is a crown given to the winner and it’s always a beaded crown, but last year was the first year they had something different,” Martin said, sporting a basket-weaved crown. “It’s really fun to be a mentor. I just like to help and give them words of encouragement.”

Paul-Martin said the newly crowned queen now has a role in society for the calendar year. This year’s runner up was Miracle Rain Johnson, who also has a role alongside Young. 

“Any type of event in Mi’kma’ki, I’ll be attending if anyone asks,” Young said. “It’s a responsibility for the queen and when I can’t make an event, the first runnerup takes my space.

Paul-Martin said its important for the winners to participate and volunteer to help other communities across the province. She said it is also an opportunity to be a positive role model for younger women.

“The pageant taught me to have more confidence, the girls helped because I was terrified on stage singing,” Young said. 

During the pageant, Young said she was worried when she was the first to perform on stage, but was welcomed with shouts of encouragement from the other contestants.

“They kept saying I’m a strong Mi’kmaw women and believed I could do it. All of us have a very strong bond and it was extremely empowering.”