With society’s growing interest in natural healing and alternative medicines, a modern interest in Native American culture has emerged. “There’s a catch phrase the native community uses,” says Julianna Brannum, an Oklahoma native who now calls Austin, TX home. “It’s called ‘cultural appropriation.’”

Through fashion, music, and now – sacred traditions like vision quests and sweat lodges – non-native Americans are adopting Indian customs and weaving them into popular culture – something that concerns Julianna and many of her peers.

A member of the Comanche Indian tribe, Julianna says she was never very traditional growing up, but has always deeply respected her culture’s traditions. She describes the sweats she’s participated in over the years as a spiritual experience, and an opportunity to cleanse the body and mind of negativity. But more than anything, they’re a sacred tradition that should not be exploited.

“When you capitalize off of something, either financially or culturally, that’s not something that should be taken lightly,” she says. “I don’t go into a Catholic church with pomp and circumstance. This is a very serious ceremony – one of the most important of native tribes. It’s a church essentially.”

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