The Spirit of Redbone’s Ghost Dance at Wounded Knee
“We Were All Wounded at Wounded Knee” was omitted from Redbone’s 1973 US-version album Wovoka, but it was top of the charts in parts of Europe.
native americans
Cormac McCarthy’s ‘Blood Meridian’ Diagnoses Everyday Fascism
If everyday fascism’s essence is the anti-humanist view of living beings as disposable instruments, then Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian is its field manual and warning.
‘Keep Quiet’ Pits Inner Peace Against Social Turmoil
Crime drama Keep Quiet may seem abrupt and pared-back, but there’s confidence and depth in its study of inner peace amidst social turmoil.
Ken Burns on the Heartbreak and Hope of ‘The American Buffalo’
Ken Burns talks about his forthcoming PBS documentary The American Buffalo, the near extinction of the majestic beasts, and their respectful return to their rightful homeland.
‘The Silent Enemy’ Raises Issues of Native American Identity
The gorgeously shot 1930 ethnography, ‘The Silent Enemy’, depicts the life of an Ojibway tribe long before the advent of European explorers and settlers.
Becoming Douglas Fairbanks: ‘The Half-Breed’
Throughout his career, Fairbanks scrubbed his scripts of racist elements. The Half-Breed is a rare example when racism is foregrounded as a theme.
‘A Pictographic History of the Oglala Sioux, 50th Anniversary Edition’ Is a Treasure
There's really nothing quite like this in other collections of "primitive" art, or even in the grand narrative painting from the European tradition.
In ‘The Hunter Maiden’ Morals Are Learned and Lessons Realized
These stories demonstrate a sweeping range of complex characters whose dynamic standpoints spark the imaginations of any reader.
Award-winning ‘Walking the Rez Road’ 20th Anniversary Edition Still Haunts
At times humorous but also permeated with sadness, Walking the Rez Road illuminates those who have inherited generations of institutionalized oppression while adding their own layers of pain and dejection.
‘Songs My Brothers Taught Me’: Coming of Age on the Reservation
With Songs My Brothers Taught Me, Chloé Zhao and her team have created an emotionally compelling neo-realist portrait of a family and their community experiencing the stresses and pressures of post-colonial life.
‘The Revenant’ Finds Beauty in the Brutality of Survival
With The Revenant, Alejandro González Iñárritu weaves a story both simple and complex, brutal and beautiful, and with a focused and impressive visual aesthetic.