NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH
TRUDELL - The Movie * | Tuesday, November 8 | Hertz Auditorium, 7:00 p.m.
Free and Open to the Public
* John Trudell is scheduled to attend and answer questions following the Nov 8 screening.
This impressionistic portrait of legendary Native American poet and activist John Trudell weaves history and politics with personal and poetic musings to find the man behind the icon. TRUDELL explores his life, loss, and contributions - from his work as spokesman for the American Indian Movement (AIM) and the his personal artistic expressions. Directed by Heather Rae (US, 2005, 75 min).
JOHN TRUDELL & QUILTMAN - Live Performance |
Wednesday, November 9 |
Hertz Auditorium, 7:00 p.m.
Free and Open to the Public
The dangerous poetry and visionary music of John Trudell was forged by an extraordinary life, lived out in heart of the land and its people. Born of mixed tribal blood, John grew up in and around the Santee Sioux reservation near his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska. The struggle against economic and cultural deprivation would, in time, become the raw material for his uncompromising artistic vision. In the '80s, he began recording a fusion of poetry and Native music often working with Quiltman, a Native-American vocalist whose chants add a traditional Native American dimension to Trudell's spoken word.
Trudell's CWU appearance is sponsored by the CWU Diversity Education Center, Indian Country Committee, Native American Student Association, and Campus Activities. Both events are free and open to the public. For more information, or for persons of disability to arrange for reasonable accommodation, call (509) 963-1687, or (for the hearing impaired) TDD 509-963-2143.
JOHN TRUDELL BIO:
Poet, Singer, and Activist for Native American Rights
John Trudell is a poet, a singer and one of the most powerful voices of the human spirit today. He came to prominence as a long time activist for Native American rights and freedoms, as the national spokesperson during the Indians of All Tribes Occupation of Alcatraz Island in 1969, culminating in the formation of AIM (American Indian Movement) in the 70's. He was the National Chairman of AIM, 1973 - 1979, at a time of great turbulence and intensity for Native Americans, culminating in the siege of Pine Ridge, the Occupation of Wounded Knee and the years of trials and continuous attacks following these events. These events mark the beginning of intense surveillance and scrutinization of John Trudell by the FBI, a 17,000 page FBI file is testimony to this, as well as the overt beginning of a war on the members of AIM by the FBI's cointelpro factions to subvert the movement.
John was born in Omaha, Nebraska February 15, 1946 growing up on the nearby Santee Sioux reservation. The loss of his mother at an early age, and the hardship of watching his father struggle to support their large family, galvanized in him the economic injustice of the American Dream. After a brief stint in the Navy, his disillusionment with the government and justice system, inspired the exploration of his connections and indigenous roots.
In February of 1979, Trudell burns the flag at a demonstration in Washington, D.C. in front of the J. Edgar Hoover building, the headquarters of the FBI, citing "injustice and racism and classism," as the reasons for the desecration. It is less than 24 hours later that his wife, her mother, and their three children were killed in a fire of "suspicious origin" on the Shoshone Paiute reservation in Nevada. Through the heartache that follows him for all the 100,000 miles traveled in the next 3 years, his spirit begins the process of speaking thru poetry, then music - encapsulating his loss - "it was murder, they were murdered as an act of war."
His poetry evolved into a book he published in 1981 called Living in Reality. The inspiration of good friend and musician Jackson Browne enabled him to sample the world of music, eventually forming "The Grafitti Band" with Jesse Ed Davis, a Kiowa, in 1985. The next two releases, "AKA Grafitti Man" and "Heart Jump Bouquet" were followed by the death of Jesse Ed in 1988. Other releases followed: "Tribal Voice," "But this Isn't El Salvador," "Child's Voice," and a new remixed version of "AKA Grafitti Man."
Appearing in several movies including Incident at Oglala, Thunderheart, On Deadly Ground, Smoke Signals, and the release of John's second book Stickman in 1994 began a new a level of visibility in the media; to be seen not just a poet, or musician, or actor - John seemed to transform his politics and 'heartspeak' from the experiences of life into an optimism, not so clearly defined, but rather felt.
Now, with Bone Days, his brilliant new collection of thirteen original compositions, independently released, John Trudell is poised to bring his stunning soundscapes to a whole new audience. Recorded with his longtime band, Bad Dog, and executive-produced by Angelina Jolie, Academy Award winning actress and Goodwill Ambassador to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Bone Days marks a new chapter in the creative saga of one of America's true originals, an artist Kris Kristofferson once called "a crazy lone wolf, poet, prophet, preacher, warrior full of pain and fun and laughter and love...He's a reality check. Justice is a fire that burns inside him. His spirit cries out for it. It makes him dangerous."
"Some people call me a poet," John Trudell concludes. "Others say I'm an activist. Some say my poetry and music is political. Others say it's about the spirit of my people." He laughs. "I don't buy into any of those labels. I may be a little bit of all those things, but I'm more than any of them. We all are. That's what makes us human."
