Western Navajo Fair reshapes schedule while improving access for elders
Naa’ahóóhai | 58th Annual Western Navajo Fair
WINDOW ROCK
For the first time in the fair’s history, organizers have taken the Yé’ii Bi Cheii dances off the schedule.
Acting Fair Manager April Lynn Fowler said the decision followed two years of complaints that a ceremony was being presented as another attraction between the rodeo and carnival.
The Yé’ii Bi Cheii dances are part of the Nightway, a healing ceremony held over nine nights for a patient. Some objections came from patients themselves, Fowler said.
“We were getting complaints from the patients as well as the community members telling us that it shouldn’t be a part of our event because it’s a ceremony,” Fowler said. “It shouldn’t be shown as a fun thing.”
The dances have long drawn some of the fair’s largest crowds. Fowler said removing them “really took a toll on us.”
To read the full article, please see the Oct. 8, 2026, edition of the Navajo Times.
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