Questions (Creator, tradition, beliefs, elders, creation)

[painted wolf]

I won't discuss biblical legitimacy here...this isn't the place for it.
As I have said, I will stick with the religion of my First Nations ancestors.

However, much of the information on the web is not nessisarily relyable, but there are a good number of places to learn about the First Nations. Most Nations have thier own, very well put together web-sites. That and a handfull of other good resources insure that if you look you can find accurate and relyable information, if you look for it.

wa:do

[Ark]

Originally Posted by Feathers in Hair

Just as a gentle reminder, please keep in mind that this is the 'discuss individual religions' area. Forum rules request that debating be done elsewhere.

It is not my way or desire to insult, however I am also no pillow-prophet. I am here to enlighten regarding the forum titles. It is to ones own to regard the notion that there is more than one religion. It is to ones own to look (or not look) beyond human ego for the truth.

When most Americans remember the history of this country they think of Columbus, the Wright Bros, Washington, the Great Depression and WWII. But when I remember the history of my country, indians were beaten for speaking their language, pregnant women were scliced open only to die after watching her child murdered in front of her, there was the trail of tears, the sand creek massacre and in my country, there was genocide. This is truth that needs to be known.

"Hiawatha Diary reveals an important piece of history that has never been revealed to the public before. One won’t find it in the history books, it’s not taught in classrooms or schools. Interestingly enough, this lack of knowledge extends far into Indian Country as well. There's a whole generation of Natives that don't know that the Hiawatha Asylum for Insane Indians even existed. Our production will change that, it will reveal and educate and it’s been a hard fought battle to maintain that desire.

Our attempts to find funding regarding this production have been successful more than once in the mainstream arena but due to unreasonable demands from investor/producers we cut ties with each of them.

This is an important project in that the topic is virtually unknown. Natives from all over this country were taken from their homes and families, labeled 'insane' and warehoused in a virtual prison in the guise of a hospital. In it's 32 year history, Hiawatha housed over 300 Native patients, most of whom were not actually insane upon intake and ultimately lost their lives there. Telling their stories is a responsibility I do not take lightly and we really need to find funding from someone who is willing to let us reveal these truths without altering history, without adding sensationalism, to reveal them from the Native standpoint without undue alteration and whitewashing of history.

I have been repeatedly asked to rewrite history, to replace Natives with hispanics or blacks to make this movie more 'bankable'. These were the very reasons I walked away from funding. I had one producer that even attempted to steal this project out from under me, knowing that should mainstream get a hold of this they could pervert it into some sort of stereotype filled movie exploiting the 'Native American Experience" and literally make millions. I would rather wait for the right investor who will allow us to do this production on our own terms - Native terms - than sell out and destroy its historical accuracy and cultural integrity. I’m sure I sound like a broken record but I cannot and will not allow this piece of history into the wrong hands.

Some might see giving up funding as a fool's errand or perhaps even irresponsible. Turning down millions of dollars more than once probably seems insane to some, but, frankly, I have been given a great responsibility, both spiritually and personally, to reveal the truth regarding the Hiawatha Asylum and I cannot and will not give in to mainstream pressure that will ultimately destroy this project.

Ironically, we're ready to go. If we had funding within the next couple of weeks we could be on set and filming within two months, maybe less. We could have this movie in the can by the end of the year if we could only find funding from the right source. It's very frustrating to be this close to filming and not have the means to complete the process. It's very hard to look at the website some days and know I turned down the funding more than once but the reality is that I know I did the right thing. The overwhelming support and prayers we’ve received from Natives everywhere tells me that I did the right thing.

Even though I'm willing to wait however long it will take to find the right investors, there is a certain 'time is of the essence' reality in the fact that certain people within the mainstream industry know about this project and there is no doubt in my mind that they will attempt to capitalize at some point on the topic. This concerns me in that I know what they will do with the topic - "replacing Indians with black people", "making trailers with hispanics because really nobody can tell the difference" - those are the two comments that infuriated me the most in my dealings with mainstream industry investors. They don't care about the topic, they don't want to learn about the topic, they don't care if others know about the realities of the asylum. All they see is dollar signs. That's why this production needs to be funded by Natives or people close to the Native communities, people that CARE about the topic, that CARE about the People and seeing that their story is told appropriately. I need somebody to help me find these people and soon."

http://www.hiawathadiary.com/

[Feathers in Hair]

I can't see how this is anything other than a debate, and you seem to think that I am somehow unaware or uncaring of this topic. I'm just coming in as a fellow member and reminding others that this is a discussion section and that debate threads/posts belong in that area.

[Ark]

Originally Posted by Feathers in Hair

I can't see how this is anything other than a debate, and you seem to think that I am somehow unaware or uncaring of this topic. I'm just coming in as a fellow member and reminding others that this is a discussion section and that debate threads/posts belong in that area.

I never assumed that you were uncaring. I was simply presenting a perspective from the viewpoint of some of my people. Truth is not something to debate.