Featured Event: John Trudell: Warrior Words
Tuesday, Nov. 18 7:00 PM, ARTS 111
*Basket Weaving Demonstration by Rose Ramirez and Lydia Vassar
Thursday, Nov. 6 12:00 PM, Tukwut Courtyard
*Documentary: “Way of the Warrior” Questions/comments after the viewing with Roy Cook
Monday, Nov. 10 6:00 PM, Clarke Field House 113
*Storytelling by Abel Silvas
Thursday, Nov. 13 12:00 PM, Academic Hall Mezzanine
*Documentary: “A Seat at the Drum”
Monday, Nov. 17 6:00 PM, Clarke Field House 113
*Documentary: “Looking Toward Home” with questions/comments after with Earl Sisto
Tuesday, Nov. 25 6:00 PM, Clarke Field House 113WHO: California State University San Marcos

WHAT: Native American Month is a fun and free opportunity for individuals of all ages to learn more about the culture, heritage, and traditions of American Indians.

Featured Event: John Trudell: Warrior Words
Tuesday, Nov. 18
7:00 PM, ARTS 111

Trudell is an acclaimed poet, national recording artist, actor and activist whose international following reflects the universal language of his words, work and message. Trudell (Santee Sioux) was a spokesperson for the Indian of All Tribes occupation of Alcatraz Island from 1969 to 1971. He then worked with the American Indian Movement (AIM), serving as Chairman of AIM from 1973 to 1979. In February of 1979, a fire of unknown origin killed Trudell’s wife, three children and mother-in-law. It was through this horrific tragedy that Trudell began to find his voice as an artist and poet, writing, in his words, “to stay connected to this reality.”

Basket Weaving Demonstration by Rose Ramirez and Lydia Vassar
Thursday, Nov. 6
12:00 PM, Tukwut Courtyard

Rose Ramirez and Lydia Vassar are two important basketweavers in the region. Both are members of the California Indian Basketweavers Association. Lydia teaches basketry at the Chámmakilawish Pechanga School. Rose is on the Board of the San Diego Museum of Man. Their lecture/demo will discuss the history of colonization of California and how indigenous people are working to revitalize their practices.

Documentary: “Way of the Warrior” Questions/comments after the viewing with Roy Cook
Monday, Nov. 10
6:00 PM, Clarke Field House 113

The warrior has a special place in Native American communities. Those who protect are exalted throughout Indian Country. This one-hour documentary about the warrior ethic explores how Native communities have traditionally viewed their warriors and why, during the 20th century, Native men and women have signed up for military service at a rate three times higher than non-Indians.

Roy Cook (Opata-Oodham-Osage) is a Veteran, Writer, and Designer. He has published stories, one hundred fifty plus print and virtual, Native American community topics: Indian Education, culture, language, health, history, American Indian Veterans, California Tribal custom and tradition, biographical tribute and Honoring of Elders.

Storytelling by Abel Silvas
Thursday, Nov. 13
12:00 PM, Academic Hall Mezzanine

Abel Silvas is a Native American/California, whose ancestry comes from the Juaneno Band of
Mission Indians of the Acjachemen Nation. He is a direct descendant from the Silvas Family, one of the first families to settle in Southern California. He will be performing as Running Grunion, a character he created based on his own heritage. His performance is a combination of comedy, storytelling, and mime offering an interpretation of Native American history and culture from past to present.

Documentary: “A Seat at the Drum”
Monday, Nov. 17
6:00 PM, Clarke Field House 113

In “A Seat at the Drum,” journalist Mark Anthony Rolo (Bad River Ojibwe) journeys to L.A., the city
that filled his imagination as a child. There he meets many of the thousands of American Indian
families who were relocated from poor reservations to the cities in the last half of the 20th century, creating the largest Native American community in the nation - over 200,000 according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Throughout this program, Rolo talks about the underlying challenges facing urban Indians of America and shares his reasons to rejoice, his reasons for concern and, ultimately, finds his own “seat at the drum.” This documentary takes viewers beyond the stereotypes to the reality of life for urban and reservation Native Americans today.

Documentary: “Looking Toward Home” with questions/comments after with Earl Sisto
Tuesday, Nov. 25
6:00 PM, Clarke Field House 113

Looking Toward Home is a one-hour documentary which explains how government relocation
programs in the 1950’s enticed significant numbers of Native Americans to leave the reservation for life in major cities such as, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, and the San Francisco Bay Area. The life and times of urban Indians is shown primarily through the eyes of these individuals and subsequent generations as they maintain their tribal identity far away from the culturally nurturing climate of the reservation.

Earl Sisto moved to Los Angeles via the federal government relocation program and worked for Southern California General Telephone Company in Redondo Beach and Manhattan Beach, CA. In 1974, he graduated from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). After graduating from UCLA, he has worked as a Community Representative for the Indian Education Program in the Los Angeles Unified School District, as a recruitment coordinator for the Educational Opportunity Program at California State University, Los Angeles, and currently University of California, Riverside as Director of Native American Student Programs.

For more information, contact Tishmall Turner, Tribal Liaison at760-750-3310

Posted on November 5th, 2008 by hunwut
Filed under: Education, Events