Cultural Connections: Bodies in Motion

On April 15, 2009 the Swedish American Museum and the Mitchell Museum of the American Indian came together for aCultural Connections: Bodies in Motion event sponsored by Chicago 2016 and organized through The Field Museum and the Chicago Cultural Alliance. This series of Cultural Connections examines sport, athleticism and games in different cultures, and this program highlighted some of the outdoor activities of the Swedes and by different American Indian tribes. The speakers from the Swedish American Museum discussed bicycling, cross-country skiing and kick sleds, while the Mitchell Museum talked about lacrosse, tobogganing and snow snakes. They discussed the beginnings of these activities and how they have progressed through time.

The Cultural Connections program looks at the questions of what is culture and what is the value of cultural diversity. Human responses to challenges result in a multitude of ideas and this makes up the cultural diversity that makes human interaction so interesting. Cultural Connections is a platform for Chicago's ethnic and cultural centers to examine cultural diversity in its different forms. The April 15 program looked at physical activities and how they are viewed in such different ways. A bicycle can be a mode of transportation or a weekend hobby. Lacrosse can be a way to resolve disputes without violence or simply a sport. By examining these differences, we can see how people treat each event or idea in their own personal way. Some children love running around outside after school, playing video games, organized sports, or individualized physical activity. One man at the program cycles 365 days a year while others, considering winters in Chicago, find it hard to just get into their car! American Indians have given American culture many forms of entertainment from activities that were once purley function. Lacrosse was a peaceful solution for disputes, and toboggans were forms of transportation and methods to carry items, but now they are a extremely popular sport and one of the best snow activities of all time.

The next program is Cultural Connections: Transplanted Sports, hosted by the Indo-American Heritage Museum and the Brazilian Cultural Center of Chicago on May 16, 2009. Here sports that were brought to these countries through colonialism and immigration will be examined. This will be the last Cultural Connections program run by the Field Museum, before the program is handed over to the Chicago Cultural Alliance.