This is a great film and can be watched/downloaded free here:
http://s3.amazonaws.com/isuma.video.original/atn.sd.mp4
Showing posts with label Movies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Movies. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 20, 2016
Wednesday, May 20, 2015
Stereotoypes, Mascots, and Absence of Broad, Diverse, Accurate Images
To put it all in one place - What's it like to live in your own country and never see yourself accurately represented?
News Stories - John Sanchez, Pennsylvania State University Study.
An extensive study between 1990 and 1999 of the “big three” television networks – ABC, CBS, and NBC.
Movies - Matika Wilbur, photographer.
—A photographic documentary of Native Americans called Project 562. Matika states that between 1990 and 2000, there were 5,868 blockbuster released films.
Textbooks - Sarah Shear, Pennsylvania State University in Altoon
—An analysis of the states’ academic standards, including names of important people, dates, events and concepts.
FURTHER INFORMATION
Anti-Defamation and Mascots
http://www.ncai.org/policy-issues/community-and-culture/anti-defamation-mascots
In general, NCAI strongly opposes the use of derogatory Native sports mascots. However, in the case where mascots refer to a particular Native nation or nations, NCAI respects the right of individual tribal nations to work with universities and athletic programs to decide how to protect and celebrate their respective tribal heritage.
National Congress of American Indians - Resolutions
NCAI is pleased that tribal advocates have succeeded in eliminating over two-thirds of derogatory Indian sports mascots and logos over the past 50 years. Today, there are fewer than 1,000 of these mascots left. In 2005, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the governing body of college athletics, formally condemned the use of disparaging mascots and banned the use of Indian names, logos, and mascots during its championship tournaments.
National Congress of the American Indian Resolutions
http://www.ncai.org/policy-issues/community-and-culture/anti-defamation-mascots/resolutions
"Praying Indian" Towns is not something to be proud of
http://nativeamericannetroots.net/diary/tag/Praying%20Towns
Waban, the Massachusetts leader who had requested the foundation of Natick, was less than enthusiastic about Christianity. However, he was afraid that the English would kill him if he didn’t pretend to embrace their religion. In addition, the English provided him with good food.
While the Indians in the praying towns were doing their best to shed their Indian-ness and to become English, the English colonists did not trust them. When King Philip’s War broke out in 1675, the praying villages declared their neutrality. The English colonists confined all of the “friendly” Indians to a few of the eastern praying towns, The colonists then confiscated the crops and tools in the praying towns of Wamesit, Hassanamisset, Magunkaquag, and Chabanakongkomun. The Indians were confined to the village limits on penalty of death.
In spite of the pledges of neutrality and declarations of their friendly feelings toward the English, the colonists continued to accuse the Christian Indians of supporting King Philip. The residents of Okommakamesit were arrested and marched to jail in Boston. The Natick were forced from their homes and interred on Deer Island in Boston Harbor. Deer Island was a windswept rock with little fuel and little shelter from the cold sea wind. In spite of the English hostility, the Christian Indians continued to declare their loyalty to the English and about 100 Indian men enlisted in the colonial army as scouts.
News Stories - John Sanchez, Pennsylvania State University Study.
An extensive study between 1990 and 1999 of the “big three” television networks – ABC, CBS, and NBC.
- —During that timeframe, the 3 networks produced 175,889 news reports. Of those, a combined total of 98 reports were about Native Americans or Native American issues.
- —The majority of these stories were framed by stereotypical 18th century imagery, such as Native Americans in buckskin clothing riding horses and wearing traditional headdresses.
- —The least common type of story were those representing 21st century Native Americans in a positive light.
- —Most Americans believe that Native Americans are either assimilated, or extinct – that we don’t exist anymore.
Movies - Matika Wilbur, photographer.
—A photographic documentary of Native Americans called Project 562. Matika states that between 1990 and 2000, there were 5,868 blockbuster released films.
- —12 included Native Americans.
- —All showed NA’s as spiritual or in tune with nature.
- —10 showed NA’s impoverished or beaten by down by society.
- —10 depicted NA’s continually in conflict with whites.
Textbooks - Sarah Shear, Pennsylvania State University in Altoon
—An analysis of the states’ academic standards, including names of important people, dates, events and concepts.
- —Across all the states, 87 percent of references to Natives portray them prior to 1900, with no clear vision of what happened after that.
- —In half of the states, no individual Natives or specific tribes are named.
- —The most commonly named are Sacagawea, Squanto, Sequoyah and Sitting Bull.
- —Only 62 Nations are named in standards; most mentioned by only one state.
- —One nation, the Iroquois, is mentioned in six states.
- —4 states (AZ, WA, OK, and KS) include boarding schools.
- —New Mexico is the only state to mention, by name, a member of AIM.
- —Washington is the only state to use the word “genocide” in relation to Natives. That word is used in the standards for fifth grade U.S. history.
- —Nebraska textbooks portray Natives as lazy, drunk or criminal.
- —90% of all manuscripts written about Native people are authored by non-Native writers.
FURTHER INFORMATION
Anti-Defamation and Mascots
http://www.ncai.org/policy-issues/community-and-culture/anti-defamation-mascots
In general, NCAI strongly opposes the use of derogatory Native sports mascots. However, in the case where mascots refer to a particular Native nation or nations, NCAI respects the right of individual tribal nations to work with universities and athletic programs to decide how to protect and celebrate their respective tribal heritage.
National Congress of American Indians - Resolutions
NCAI is pleased that tribal advocates have succeeded in eliminating over two-thirds of derogatory Indian sports mascots and logos over the past 50 years. Today, there are fewer than 1,000 of these mascots left. In 2005, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the governing body of college athletics, formally condemned the use of disparaging mascots and banned the use of Indian names, logos, and mascots during its championship tournaments.
National Congress of the American Indian Resolutions
http://www.ncai.org/policy-issues/community-and-culture/anti-defamation-mascots/resolutions
"Praying Indian" Towns is not something to be proud of
http://nativeamericannetroots.net/diary/tag/Praying%20Towns
Waban, the Massachusetts leader who had requested the foundation of Natick, was less than enthusiastic about Christianity. However, he was afraid that the English would kill him if he didn’t pretend to embrace their religion. In addition, the English provided him with good food.
While the Indians in the praying towns were doing their best to shed their Indian-ness and to become English, the English colonists did not trust them. When King Philip’s War broke out in 1675, the praying villages declared their neutrality. The English colonists confined all of the “friendly” Indians to a few of the eastern praying towns, The colonists then confiscated the crops and tools in the praying towns of Wamesit, Hassanamisset, Magunkaquag, and Chabanakongkomun. The Indians were confined to the village limits on penalty of death.
In spite of the pledges of neutrality and declarations of their friendly feelings toward the English, the colonists continued to accuse the Christian Indians of supporting King Philip. The residents of Okommakamesit were arrested and marched to jail in Boston. The Natick were forced from their homes and interred on Deer Island in Boston Harbor. Deer Island was a windswept rock with little fuel and little shelter from the cold sea wind. In spite of the English hostility, the Christian Indians continued to declare their loyalty to the English and about 100 Indian men enlisted in the colonial army as scouts.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Avatar as a Parable for Naumkeag Prehistory
This movie's similarity to some Native American histories can hardly be overlooked. Here is a website which makes an explicit link to Haiti. Below is another analysis of Avatar (reposted with permission from the author).
In late December, a few friends of mine started discussing James Cameron’s new movie “Avatar” quite enthusiastically. Critics have called it “Glorious.” I developed a desire to see it, and managed to watch it on January 1st. On its face “Avatar” is a futuristic science fiction flick that portrays events in a distant galaxy about the year 2150AD. A military conflict between two civilizations, an abundance of space and planetary images, and images of heavily armed flying gunships and walking robotic fighting machines remind us of older sci-fi classics, like Star Wars, and Dune.
Yet “Avatar” hit me much more deeply than those other science fiction movies. Why? Normally I do not relate well to novels or fantasy stories, and have always preferred true histories instead. What made Avatar strike me as it did?
One factor that makes Avatar resonate strongly with American audiences is that fundamentally it is a story of Indigenous-vs-Non Indigeneous conflicts, and racial struggles. It brings to mind past chapters of American history involving Native American battles for sacred sites preservation and tribal survival. In “Avatar”, Non-Natives propose to relocate Natives from their ancestral homeland so that valuable mineral resources can be mined. Natives who resist containment and relocation are called “Hostiles” and “Savages.” Battle scenes are fundamentally mis-matched because Native warriors are armed with body paint and bows and arrows, while Non-Native invaders possess heavy armament, gunpowder, guns and explosives. One Native American friend of mine commented, “This is not entertainment. We already lived through this.”
Some reviewers, noting Native American parallels, have discussed similarities with “Dances With Wolves” and “Pocahontas.” Similar to DWW, our Non-Native hero in “Avatar” gets adopted into a Native population, and begins seeing the world in much deeper ways. Similar to the “Pocahontas” legend and movie, a Native chief’s daughter’s love and sympathies for our Non-Native hero facilitates his being adopted, and his not being killed.
Other elements in “Avatar” make it a good tool to introduce some Native American history, and world views to non-Native audiences. For example, the world in which most of the movie takes place is a true natural paradise, complete with old growth forests, footpaths, waterfalls, and mountains. It could easily be South America, and an intact rain forest, in places. Nature is overwhelmingly magnificent and beautiful as well as a source of Native wisdom, power and strength.
The notion of ancestral spirits being alive, and communicating with living Natives harmonizes with much old Native belief, and suggests American historical influences. The film’s artful play with the question of which is “real”—waking state or dream state experiences—also brings to mind past studies of dreaming in Native traditions, such as Robert Moss’s “Dreamways of the Iroquois: Honoring the Secret Wishes of the Soul.”
Perhaps one reason the film hit me so deeply, is because it is archetypal. On one level, it crystallizes and references many true Native struggles. It is tragic because it reminds us of the degree of needless human slaughter and suffering and environmental mega-destruction that have occurred time and time again when “Western” concepts of reality have been imposed on older, Indigenous and more Natural societies. “Avatar” reminds us of Spanish conquistadores who brutalized, tortured, enslaved, and slaughtered Indigenous American populations after 1492. It reminds us of the series of horrible 19th century “Indian Wars” in the American West that were chronicled by Dee Brown in “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.” It brings to mind the military mis-match that characterized the Tarratine Wars and invasions here in Native Naumkeag in Massachusetts between the years 1607 and 1619. Fundamentally, it paints a picture of sharp territorial conflicts and misunderstandings between those-who-live-simply and see more holistically versus those-who-do-not live-simply, and who see little at all.
“Avatar” in addition to being a futuristic film can be seen as a parable. It can also be used as a prelude when teaching about life and worldviews in ancient Naumkeag after the development of the French Fur Trade in 1603 opened new floodgates of human greed and destruction. The film also reminds us of current global struggles and the necessity to adopt sustainable resources utilization practices as our 21st century advances.
“Avatar” is more than futuristic science fiction. Parts of it can be seen here: http://www.avatarmovie.com
It took 4.5 years to craft, consumed a production budget of $250 million dollars, and each showing is over two hours long. What do you think of “Avatar?”
AS AN ASIDE
Here is a "new interpretation" of what the "Disney princesses" would have looked like in authentic period clothing.
Avatar as a Parable for Naumkeag Prehistory By John Goff
In late December, a few friends of mine started discussing James Cameron’s new movie “Avatar” quite enthusiastically. Critics have called it “Glorious.” I developed a desire to see it, and managed to watch it on January 1st. On its face “Avatar” is a futuristic science fiction flick that portrays events in a distant galaxy about the year 2150AD. A military conflict between two civilizations, an abundance of space and planetary images, and images of heavily armed flying gunships and walking robotic fighting machines remind us of older sci-fi classics, like Star Wars, and Dune.
Yet “Avatar” hit me much more deeply than those other science fiction movies. Why? Normally I do not relate well to novels or fantasy stories, and have always preferred true histories instead. What made Avatar strike me as it did?
One factor that makes Avatar resonate strongly with American audiences is that fundamentally it is a story of Indigenous-vs-Non Indigeneous conflicts, and racial struggles. It brings to mind past chapters of American history involving Native American battles for sacred sites preservation and tribal survival. In “Avatar”, Non-Natives propose to relocate Natives from their ancestral homeland so that valuable mineral resources can be mined. Natives who resist containment and relocation are called “Hostiles” and “Savages.” Battle scenes are fundamentally mis-matched because Native warriors are armed with body paint and bows and arrows, while Non-Native invaders possess heavy armament, gunpowder, guns and explosives. One Native American friend of mine commented, “This is not entertainment. We already lived through this.”
Some reviewers, noting Native American parallels, have discussed similarities with “Dances With Wolves” and “Pocahontas.” Similar to DWW, our Non-Native hero in “Avatar” gets adopted into a Native population, and begins seeing the world in much deeper ways. Similar to the “Pocahontas” legend and movie, a Native chief’s daughter’s love and sympathies for our Non-Native hero facilitates his being adopted, and his not being killed.
Other elements in “Avatar” make it a good tool to introduce some Native American history, and world views to non-Native audiences. For example, the world in which most of the movie takes place is a true natural paradise, complete with old growth forests, footpaths, waterfalls, and mountains. It could easily be South America, and an intact rain forest, in places. Nature is overwhelmingly magnificent and beautiful as well as a source of Native wisdom, power and strength.
The notion of ancestral spirits being alive, and communicating with living Natives harmonizes with much old Native belief, and suggests American historical influences. The film’s artful play with the question of which is “real”—waking state or dream state experiences—also brings to mind past studies of dreaming in Native traditions, such as Robert Moss’s “Dreamways of the Iroquois: Honoring the Secret Wishes of the Soul.”
Perhaps one reason the film hit me so deeply, is because it is archetypal. On one level, it crystallizes and references many true Native struggles. It is tragic because it reminds us of the degree of needless human slaughter and suffering and environmental mega-destruction that have occurred time and time again when “Western” concepts of reality have been imposed on older, Indigenous and more Natural societies. “Avatar” reminds us of Spanish conquistadores who brutalized, tortured, enslaved, and slaughtered Indigenous American populations after 1492. It reminds us of the series of horrible 19th century “Indian Wars” in the American West that were chronicled by Dee Brown in “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.” It brings to mind the military mis-match that characterized the Tarratine Wars and invasions here in Native Naumkeag in Massachusetts between the years 1607 and 1619. Fundamentally, it paints a picture of sharp territorial conflicts and misunderstandings between those-who-live-simply and see more holistically versus those-who-do-not live-simply, and who see little at all.
“Avatar” in addition to being a futuristic film can be seen as a parable. It can also be used as a prelude when teaching about life and worldviews in ancient Naumkeag after the development of the French Fur Trade in 1603 opened new floodgates of human greed and destruction. The film also reminds us of current global struggles and the necessity to adopt sustainable resources utilization practices as our 21st century advances.
“Avatar” is more than futuristic science fiction. Parts of it can be seen here: http://www.avatarmovie.com
It took 4.5 years to craft, consumed a production budget of $250 million dollars, and each showing is over two hours long. What do you think of “Avatar?”
AS AN ASIDE
Here is a "new interpretation" of what the "Disney princesses" would have looked like in authentic period clothing.
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