Amelia Schafer
ICT
MILWAUKEE – When 10-year-old Jordan Busse steps into the powwow arena in her jingle dress, the Ho-Chunk girl sets out to honor the dresses tradition by healing herself and those who listen and watch. She’s dedicated to dancing, practicing hours a week and often running three miles daily to stay powwow ready.
In late March, one of Jordan’s powwow warmup videos went viral, with just shy of 1 million views on TikTok and nearly 74,000 reactions on Facebook as of April 7.
In the video, Jordan steps into frame in an eye-catching blue and silver jingle dress, side stepping to pop-hit “Just the Way You Are” by Milky.
Jordan’s confidence and skills caught the attention of many online, and she wants to use that attention to help encourage other kids to dance, she said.
“I think kids should dance because I feel it would be good for their elders, their people and their tribe and just for everyone that needs healing,” Jordan said. “People back then [in the past] couldn’t dance so [kids] can dance for them now because they didn’t get to do it.”
One TikTok comment said the video made them emotional because of “how confident and free feeling little indigenous children should be always.”
In 2026, thousands of Indigenous children and people are preparing to participate in powwow season in North America, but this wasn’t always the case.
From 1883 to 1933, it was illegal for Native people to dance in public following the passage of the Code of Indian Offenses. The government’s ban on Native ceremonies and cultural dances was part of a larger effort to assimilate Native people into mainstream culture.
While the law was mostly focused on preventing cultural and spiritual dances, it included broad sweeping measures to prevent any dancing. Dances went underground during that time, sometimes breaking free to be showcased as “patriotic” celebrations on holidays like the Fourth of July or Veteran homecomings.
During this time the jingle dress was born. The dress was created in 1920 by an Anishinaabe man in the Great Lakes area, according to community oral tradition. The dress was revealed to the man in a dream, which depicted hundreds of tiny metal cones connected to a dress. The man believed the dress was a way to heal the people amidst the 1918-1919 influenza pandemic. Over 100 years later, the dress is still danced, especially in the Great Lakes region but also across North America.
Jordan is honoring that tradition in 2026 by dancing to heal herself, others, and inspire other youth to come out and join her in the circle.
“There’s a lot of people out there that can’t dance, and there’s a bunch of people out there who need healing,” Jordan said. “I like to dance for them.”
Jordan served as head female youth dancer at the Indian Community School’s powwow on April 4. It was her first time holding the position, she said.
To give back, Jordan’s family held a special in her honor at the one-day powwow just south of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
“She just wants to encourage us as much as she can,” said Kateri Busse, Jordan’s mother. “Whatever tribe you come from, she wants to encourage you 100 percent.”
Jordan’s dancing routine started off humble. She used to just dance in her family’s living room practicing to powwow songs on the television. She was encouraged to start dancing by her parents, and said she’s glad she took their advice.
“I feel better, I feel stronger and sometimes it heals me too,” Jordan said. “My parents have really helped me become the dancer I am today.”
Jordan said champion powwow dancer Prairie Rose Jack is her biggest inspiration.
“She started when she was little, just like me,” Jordan Busse said. “Everytime she dances in the arena she gets better, there’s not one thing that she can’t get better at. I want to be just like her.”