PBS Mini-Series on Native American History
April 13, April 20, April 27, May 4, May 11
We Shall Remain is a groundbreaking mini-series and provocative
multi-media project that establishes Native history as an essential part
of American history. Five 90-minute documentaries spanning three hundred
years tell the story of pivotal moments in U.S. history from the Native
American perspective.
Episode 1 After the Mayflower
In 1621, the Wampanoag of New England negotiated a treaty with Pilgrim
settlers. A half-century later, as a brutal war flared between the English
and a confederation of Indians, this diplomatic gamble seemed to have been
a grave miscalculation.
—–
Episode 2 Tecumseh’s Vision
In the course of his brief and meteoric career, Tecumseh would become one
of the greatest Native American leaders of all time, orchestrating the
most ambitious pan-Indian resistance movement ever mounted on the North
American continent.
—–
Episode 3 Trail of Tears
Though the Cherokee embraced “civilization” and won recognition of tribal
sovereignty in the U.S. Supreme Court, their resistance to
removal from their homeland failed. Thousands were forced on a perilous
march to Oklahoma.
—–
Episode 4 Geronimo
As the leader of the last Native American fighting force to capitulate to
the U.S. government, Geronimo was seen by some as the perpetrator of
unspeakable savage cruelties, while to others he was the embodiment of
proud resistance.
—–
Episode 5 Wounded Knee
In 1973, American Indian Movement activists and residents of the Pine
Ridge Reservation occupied the town of Wounded Knee, demanding redress for
grievances. As a result of the siege, Indians across the country forged a
new path into the future.
PBS Television Series
At the heart of the project is a five-part television series that shows
how Native peoples valiantly resisted expulsion from their lands and
fought the extinction of their culture — from the Wampanoags of New
England in the 1600s who used their alliance with the English to weaken
rival trib
es, to the bold new leaders of the 1970s who harnessed the
momentum of the civil rights movement to forge a pan-Indian identity. We
Shall Remain represents an unprecedented collaboration between Native and
non-Native filmmakers and involves Native advisors and scholars at all
levels of the project.
Web & New Media
An in-depth Web site will serve the general public, educators, and
students, offering educational resources and several hours of streaming
video. Part of PBS Online, one of the leading dot-org sites on the
Internet, the We Shall Remain site will feature Web-exclusive videos
exploring contemporary topics such as language revitalization efforts,
Native enterprise and tribal sovereignty. The site will also host
behind-the-scenes production stories, streaming of the ReelNative films,
and information about upcoming events across the nation.
ReelNative
This unique project offers Native Americans a venue to share their stories
with a national audience. At workshops in Arizona,
Massachusetts, and Oklahoma, participants ranging in age from fourteen to
fifty-five were taught to produce short films. Quirky, touching, funny,
and profound, the films reveal the diversity of the contemporary Native
experience and testify to the resilience of Native people and culture.
Community Engagement Campaign
A nationwide community outreach campaign is engaging Native communities
and organizations, Native radio, public television stations,
universities, museums, schools, and libraries. The events, activities, and
dialogue that come out of these relationships will extend We Shall
Remain’s crucial message to invite audiences to tune in to the
broadcast.
Educator Resources
The We Shall Remain Web site will launch an extensive Teacher’s Guide
< http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/w…
earn> for social studies educators. The guide will incorporate video
segments from the five documentaries into social studies resources,
offering both viewing and comprehension aids and classroom activities. T
his resource will inspire and support teachers to integrate Native history
and issues into their curricula and encourage them to present Native
history as an integral part of American history.
National Library Initiative
WGBH is working closely with the American Library Association (ALA) and
its 2007-2008 President Loriene Roy (White Earth Anishinabe) to build
awareness of the series among librarians, Native organizations,
scholars, and writers. Ms. Roy is also collaborating with WGBH to
develop innovative ideas for how to use We Shall Remain materials to serve
the unique needs of local communities and tribal libraries. A library
event kit developed specifically for public, college, school, and tribal
libraries will be distributed to 17,000 public libraries, as well as to
all tribal libraries. The kit offers programming ideas and resources to
help libraries organize and deliver engaging events related to We Shall
Remain. Features include storytelling days, Native
literature reading circles, cross-cultural art projects for youth,
discussion forums, guidelines for evaluating media about Native peoples,
and an extensive bibliography of book, film, and Internet resources.
I did a couple of interviews for this series but my sister and Richard Whitman saw it up at the Sundance Festival and didn’t like it much. Plus I feel they lied to me to get the interview, they promised they would interview the actual participants and not concentrate on AIM leaders. Now I see the ads are full of Dennis Banks, we’ll see but I’m not hopeful.
Okay, here’s Rounds’s press release:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Feb. 24, 2010
CONTACT: Terry Woster at 605-773-3178
Governor Seeks Presidential Disaster Declarations
PIERRE, S.D. -* Gov. Mike Rounds has requested two Presidential
Disaster Declarations to help South Dakota recover from a Christmas
blizzard and a January ice storm.*
One request is for public assistance in 12 counties and two tribal
reservations hardest hit by the Christmas blizzard. _Public
assistance damages from that storm are estimated at slightly more
than $1 million for such activities as removing snow and repairing
rural electric systems._
_The second request is for both public and individual assistance for
damages estimated at nearly $22.5 million as a result of the January
ice storm. Public assistance is being requested for 29 counties and
three reservations, while private assistance is being requested for
seven counties and two reservations. The Governor’s request said 29
counties suffered severe damage to power lines and poles, while
seven counties had substantial home damage caused by broken water
pipes after utilities were restored._
[Aji’s note: Remember Regina’s written response from Daugaard’s
office? He tried to imply that the damage wasn’t equal to $1
million+. Carter made the point that the downed utility poles alone
would cost more than that to repair, and we included both Daugaard’s
response and Carter’s points in subsequent diaries.]
_”I have further determined that this severe winter storm is of such
severity and magnitude that effective response is beyond the
capabilities of the state and the affected local governments, and
supplemental federal assistance is necessary,”_ Gov. Rounds wrote
in each request for presidential action.
[Aji’s note: This goes directly to my point about how he was using
S.D. state law to weasel out of the disaster declaration – i.e.,
word choice. He’s now changed to the statutory wording that
justifies a “disaster” (v. “emergency”) declaration.]
The governor’s request for help with costs associated with the ice
storm included _a special mention of the need for assistance for
individual homes on the affected reservations__. Gov. Rounds noted
that the preliminary assessment classified those damages as minor._
_ _
_”Many of us would view broken pipes as an irritating
inconvenience,” he wrote. “I assure you, Mr. President, __these wet
homes are not merely an inconvenience to members of the __Cheyenne
River and Standing Rock Sioux Tribes. With high unemployment rates
in these areas, impacted individuals do not have the means to
complete necessary repairs in a timely manner.”_
[Aji’s note: We all made these point in every diary, whether about
the disaster declaration or about donations – particularly hammering
at the unemployment rate and its impact on the ability to cope with
the weather.]
That could mean homeowners would only be able to fix water pipes and
would be forced to delay replacement of wet sheetrock, studs and
insulation, the governor said. _With warmer temperatures, mold could
grow rapidly and homes could become health hazards,_ he said.
[Aji’s note: Someone – SarahLee, maybe? – specifically mentioned the
mold issue.]
“Mr. President, let’s do what we can to at least put these South
Dakota citizens into homes repaired to their pre-disaster
condition,” the governor wrote.
_The requests are necessary for federal disaster funds to be made
available to South Dakota__. _If the president grants the
declarations, up to 75 percent of eligible costs could be reimbursed
by the federal government. The governor’s request does not guarantee
federal funding will be made available in South Dakota.
[Aji’s note: This is CYA on his part, but we made that point
repeatedly, so I think he kind of had to acknowledge it anyway.]
There is no deadline for the White House to either accept or deny
the declaration requests.
The South Dakota Office of Emergency Management, Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) and local officials conducted preliminary
damage assessments following each storm. The state received an
extension to file its request from the Christmas blizzard because
the preliminary damage assessment from that storm was interrupted by
the January ice storm.
0*The following counties and tribes are listed in the requests for
presidential disaster declarations:*
Christmas blizzard:
* Public assistance requested for: Campbell, Clay, Gregory,
Jones, Lyman, Mellette, Perkins, Shannon, Todd, Tripp, Turner
and Yankton counties and the Pine Ridge and Rosebud Indian
Reservations.
* Snow assistance requested for Campbell, Clay, Jones, Lyman,
Perkins, Shannon, Todd, Turner and Yankton counties and the
Pine Ridge and Rosebud Reservations.
January ice storm:
* Public assistance requested for: Aurora, Brule, Buffalo,
Campbell, Corson, Day, Deuel, Dewey, Douglas, Edmunds, Faulk,
Grant, Gregory, Hand, Harding, Hughes, Hutchinson, Hyde,
Jerauld, McCook, McPherson, Meade, Perkins, Potter, Roberts,
Sully, Turner, Walworth and Ziebach counties and the Cheyenne
River Sioux Tribe, the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate and the
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.
* _Individual assistance programs and Small Business
Administration disaster loans_ requested in Campbell, Corson,
Dewey, Hyde, Potter, McPherson and Ziebach counties and the
Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.
[Aji’s note: My original disaster declaration diary broke down
the kinds of assistane that a declaration could get for folks on
the rez, and asked people to note that specifically in
contacting public officials and the media. These are some of the
kinds of assistance that were mentioned.]
The whole announcement smacks of CYA to me. I honestly think that all
the e-mails and phone calls, being so specific, triggered this – in part
because I think it got the Sen. Indian Affairs cmte. off its collective
ass to lean on Rounds. And, yes, we need to watch him like a hawk to
make sure 1) he gets the aid, and 2) he disburses it properly. But it’s
the first step, and without it, we wouldn’t even have to worry about
watchdogging any payouts.
Let me know if you need anything else.
~ A