Blackwater trained US police

http://www.rense.com/general78/blackwater.htm

Maoris arrested, denied bail

Police repression in New Zealand, Maori peace activists and
environmentalists raided and arrested

http://www.indymedia.org.nz/
In a wave of massive state repression, 300+ Police, in many cases armed, raided houses around the country today making 17 arrests. Search warrants were carried out in Auckland, Whakatane, Ruatoki, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Wellington and Christchurch. Police are also seeking up to 60 people for questioning. The arrestees are all activists in the Tino Rangatiratanga, peace and environmental movements.
Prominent Tino Rangatiratanga activist Tame Iti was among the first arrested at his home at 4am Monday morning. At 6am raids were carried out at A Space Inside anarchist social centre in Auckland [ Search Warrant ] and the 128 activist Community Centre in Wellington [ Video of police raid ]. .

Read updated news on Maori arrests at:
http://www.indymedia.org.nz/
http://www.indymedia.org/
http://www.bsnorrell.blogspot.com/

Thanks to Indigenous Action for this post:
http://www.indigenousaction.org/ - Independent Indigenous Media

Makah filmmaker's 'Maria Tallchief' airs on PBS

Makah Filmmaker Sandy Osawa's new film about Maria Tallchief, comes to PBS in November, check local listings.

'Maria Tallchief' video available from the filmmakers:
http://www.upstreamvideos.com/

America’s First Prima Ballerina


San Francisco, California -- Makah film director Sandy Osawa's new film Maria Tallchief, the story of “America’s First Prima Ballerina” will have its public television debut in November on PBS. This is the first full-length documentary on this legendary dance figure who helped spark the founding of the New York City Ballet Company in 1948. Maria Tallchief began ballet lessons at age four in Fairfax, Oklahoma—an Osage Indian community—and went on to stardom in roles created specifically for her by her husband and choreographer, George Balanchine. In the film Maria Tallchief tells her own story, accompanied by archival photos, rare dance clips, and interviews with dance colleagues and historians.


Osawa, citing her motivation to produce the film, said, “There is a lack of positive stories about Native American women in film and although a television tribute to her is long overdue, I am honored to be the one to introduce Maria Tallchief to both old fans and a new generation of fans.” Maria’s professional life is prominent throughout the film with clips from Swan Lake, Firebird Pas de Dix, , Nutcracker and Le Baiser de la Fee. Audiences will also long remember the more chilling aspects of Maria’s Native American heritage. Shortly after Maria was born in 1925, the Osage Tribe was the richest group of people in the world due to the discovery of oil. This ignited what historians have termed a “reign of terror” as non Indians began plots to rob the Osages of their fortunes.


Murder was rampant and the tribe declined in population by almost 25 percent. Maria’s mother was greatly affected by this period of history and encouraged Maria and her sister to develop their own strengths and skills, as those could never be stolen. At the age of seven, Maria and her family moved to Los Angeles, where she studied with world class teachers such as Mr. Belcher and Madame Nijinsky. By the late 1940’s, television, the New York City Ballet, and even
ballet as an American art form were all emerging. Tallchief became a new prototype of the ballerina that was distinctively American. The ballet world that was dominated by Russian, French and English performers changed dramatically in 1948. The night Maria Tallchief
took center stage in Orpheus, a thunderous ovation was heard and history was made with the founding of the New York City Ballet. Author Francis Mason, who is featured in the film said, “Maria Tallchief lit a fire under classical ballet that is still burning.”
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ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
The film Maria Tallchief is the third in a trilogy of films that highlights contemporary American Indian themes, issues and people by the production company, Upstream Productions, based in Seattle, Washington. Sandy Osawa is a member of the Makah Tribe with a lifelong dedication
to bringing alternative images of Indians to the screen. Yasu Osawa, has assisted her in all the films and has been lauded for his camera and editing work . The two other previous documentaries were Pepper’s Pow Wow and On & Off the Res ‘ w/ Charlie Hill, which were also
broadcast on PBS stations and are now used as curriculum resources in college libraries across the country.

Hopi Sacred Water Run to Mexico film in Albuquerque

(double click on image to enlarge)Presented by the Native American Studies Department at the University of New Mexico
Wednesday, October 17, 2007 7:30 p.m.

Global Green Indigenous Film Festival in New Mexico

Inaugural international Global Green Indigenous Film Festival to be launched in New Mexico, April 18 - 20, 2008

By Stephine Poston
stephposton@msn.com

The international Global Green Indigenous Film Festival will be held at the El Museo Cultural de Santa Fe in Santa Fe, New Mexico, April 18 -20, 2008. Gary Farmer will be a part of the film festival team. Charmaine Jackson-John, film festival manager, is accepting submissions for films and videos that address indigenous environmental concerns and issues from all countries. Read more ...
http://censored-news.blogspot.com/2007/10/global-green-indigenous-film-festival.html

Mohawk Nation News: 'Who's Sorry Now?'

Mohawk Nation News

Mohawk Nation News has published a book on one of our Mohawk communities, Kanehsatake. The following is the preface: Title: “Who’s Sorry Now? The good, the bad and the unapologetic Mohawks of Kanehsatake” by Kahentinetha Horn.

The title of this book, “Who’s Sorry Now” was inspired by the remarks of Judge Nicole Duval Hesler of Quebec Superior Court. She wanted the Mohawks of Kanehsatake to apologize to get more lenient sentences from her. She wanted an admission of guilt andsubmission to the colonizers who are engaged in stealing our community’s assets. She wanted our men to bow down to those heavily armed goons who had invaded our territory on January12, 2004 carrying a “hit list”.

They’ve been convicted as “rioters”. Wouldn’t an apology be dandy? It would save her the embarrassment of her case being appealed. The treatment we have been receiving at the hands of the police, judicial system and colonial government officials is corrupt,deceitful and threatening. We’ve learned that we are in the way of multi-national corporate interests who control colonial governments. We have learned that we Mohawks have been and continue to be targeted for various reasons. Our ancestors always refused to knuckle under. So do we!

That’s why we are still the targets of genocide. Our land,our constitution and our tie to our land has kept us strong. We continue to take energy from our ancestors who made the sacrifices so we could be here today. They made sure that there would be at least seven generations of our people in the future. This book is about how we spoke out and about the way we were persecuted for exercising a right that Canada pretends to defend. We also wanted the Canadian public to know what is being done with their tax dollars. This will give them something to think about as they sit around waiting for medical services which we are told cannot be provided. Where is all the money going? Well, this is about one leak in the bucket.
Read more ...
http://censored-news.blogspot.com/2007/10/mohawk-nation-news-whos-sorry-now.html

BOLIVIA RISING!

Indigenous Peoples in Bolivia celebrate their resistance and sovereignty over their land and resources, announcing decrees on migration, their right to water and women's rights, while celebrating the emergence of a new world leader: Bolivian President Evo Morales

Bolivia Rising
A Formal Summons to World States by Indigenous First Nations and Peoples Chimoré, Cochabamba, Bolivia
From the heart of South America, on this 12th day of October, 2007, the delegates of the indigenous first nations and peoples of the world, meeting in the World Encounter “For the Historic Victory of the Indigenous Peoples of the World”, to celebrate the adoption of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, hereby declare: That, after 515 years of oppression and domination, here we stand; they have been unable to eliminate us. We have confronted and resisted the policies of ethnocide, genocide, colonization, destruction and plunder. Read more ...
http://boliviarising.blogspot.com/2007/10/formal-summons-to-world-states-by.htmlRead