Native American Heritage Month Resources

November 30, 2021
Native American Heritage Month Resources

American Indian History

  • American Holocaust of Native American Indians: this powerful and hard-hitting documentary is quite possibly the only film that reveals the link between the Nazi holocaust which claimed at least six million Jews, and the American Holocaust which claimed, according to conservative estimates, 19 million Indigenous people.
  • As Long As the River Runs: the Salmon Defense acquired the rights to “As Long as the Rivers Run,” a film that documents the Fish Wars of the late 1960s to early 1970s. The film was directed by Carol Burns and co-produced by Hank Adams.
  • Back to the River: the Salmon Defense created this companion video to "As Long as the River Runs" to help today’s viewers understand the struggle for recognition of tribal treaty fishing rights and to share the experience through their eyes. 
  • C-SPAN Cities Tour - Olympia: The Boldt Decision and Native American Fishing Rights: learn about the Boldt Decision, which secured Native American's fishing rights on the Puget Sound in the 1970s.
  • Dakota 38 Full Movie: This film was created in line with Native healing practices. In honoring this ceremony, Smooth Feather Youth is screening and distributing “Dakota 38″ as a gift rather than for sale. This film was inspired by one individual’s dream and is not promoting any organization or affiliated with any political or religious groups. It was simply created to encourage healing and reconciliation.
  • Great Tribal Leaders of Modern Times: Billy Frank, Jr.: this video, produced by the Institute for Tribal Government at Portland State University, interviews Billy Frank, Jr. (Nisqually) as he shares his experiences as a leader battling on the front lines to protect and maintain the treaty-guaranteed fishing rights of his people and other native peoples in the Pacific Northwest.
  • Hank Adams at Boldt 40: Hank Adams speaks at the 40th-anniversary celebration of the Boldt decision on Feb. 5, 2014, at the Squaxin Island Tribe's event center.
  • Nisqually River Violence under the Treaty of Medicine Creek: video from Oct. 13, 1965, about the Medicine Creek Treaty, narrated by Marlon Brando. 
  • Warrior Women Project: focused on collecting individual, group, and place-based oral histories centered on Indigenous matriarchy and movement building.

American Indian Culture, Language, and Traditions

  • Billy Frank Jr. Interview: this video from the Salmon Defense was used as a keynote address for the Billy Frank Jr. Pacific Salmon Summit in 2018.
  • CANGLESKA WAKAN / THE SACRED HOOP: a documentary film addressing the 'Cangleska Wakan' (the 'Sacred Hoop') of the Lakota, with personal opinions from contributors on Indian Reservations in South Dakota.
  • Indigenous in Plain Sight: Gregg Deal talks about the use of history as a tool while he navigates the restrictions thrusts upon his work as a contemporary artist while challenging those who hear his words to take responsibility for their knowledge, and create room for this nation’s First Peoples.
  • Project 562: created by Matika Wilbur, Project 562 is a multi-year national photography project dedicated to photographing more than 562 federally recognized tribes in the U.S. resulting in an unprecedented repository of imagery and oral histories that accurately portrays contemporary Native Americans.
  • Shadow of the Salmon: this video tells the story of a young man from Lakota Nation who comes to the Pacific Northwest to visit his Coastal Salish relatives. 
  • Teaching of the Tree People: a story from the Puget Salish Tribes.
  • The Canoe Way: this video documents the annual Tribal Journeys of Pacific Northwest Coast Salish people. Indigenous tribes and First Nations from Oregon, Washington, Canada, and Alaska follow their ancestral pathways through the waters of Puget Sound, Inside Passage, and the Northwest Coast.
  • Tribal Voice Project: the Tribal Voices Archive is a digital audio and video collection primarily featuring tribal members from the U.S. v. Washington case area. The purpose of the archive is to collect perspectives regarding on tribal natural resources management and the struggle to protect treaty rights.

American Indian Storytelling, Books, and Music

  • Wisdom of the Elders: Widom of the Elders records, preserves, and shares oral history, cultural arts, language concepts, and traditional ecological knowledge of exemplary Native American elders, storytellers, and scientists in collaboration with diverse institutions, agencies and organizations. 

American Indian Podcast, Radio, and Other Media

  • All My Relations: a podcast hosted by Matika Wilbor (Swinomish and Tulalip) and Adrienne Keene (Cherokee Nation) to explore relationships to land, to creatural relatives, and to one another.
  • First Voices Indigenous Radio: the first Indigenous radio program in the northeastern U.S., First Voices Indigenous Radio brings to the airwaves the experiences, perspectives, and struggles of Indigenous people.
  • Nia Tero: this list of podcasts from Nia Tero amplifies and uplifts Indigenous narratives and creative endeavors.
  • This Land: an award-winning podcast with host Rebecca Nagle reporting on how a string of custody battles over Native children became a federal lawsuit that threatens everything from tribal sovereignty to civil rights.
  • Toasted Sister Podcast: this award-winning podcast talks to Native chefs and foodies about what Indigenous cuisine is, where it comes from, where it's headed, and how it's used to connect them and their communities to their origins and traditions. 

American Indian Veterans

American Indian Wellness

  • Native Wellness: the Native Wellness Institute exists to promote the well-being of Native people through programs and trainings that embrace the teachings and traditions of our ancestors.
  • Valerie Segrest - TEDxSeattle: Valerie Segrest is a native nutrition educator who specializes in local and traditional foods. As an enrolled member of the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe.