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About Siletz news / (Siletz, OR) 199?-current | View Entire Issue (April 1, 2006)
NOTICES Safety forTribal Survivors of Domestic or Sexual Violence by Linda Gast, Attorney at Law, Siletz Tribal Spokesperson Legal Aid Services of Oregon, Lincoln County Office Nowadays, more information is available about domestic and sexual violence and stalking than there used to be. But even with all we have learned about domestic and family vio lence, recent statistics from a 10-year profile by the U.S. Department of Jus tice are alarming: • • • American Indians experience more than twice the rate of violence as other Americans. 61.4 percent of all American Indian and Alaska Native women will be physically assaulted in their lifetime. 34.1 percent of American Indian/ Alaska Native women will be raped during their lifetime; they have a higher rate of rape and sexual as sault than any other group. In nine out of 10 cases, the attacker was white or black - not an American Indian. 1 In 1999, Tribal Council passed the Domestic and Family Violence Ordi nance. It reflects that “the strength of the tribe is founded on healthy fami lies,” and that its purpose is “to recog nize domestic and family violence is a serious crime against society, the tribe, and the family, and to provide the vic tim of domestic or family violence the maximum protection from further vio lence which the law, and those who enforce the law, can provide.” 2 The ordinance allows Tribal Court to issue orders to protect domestic and family violence and stalking victims. It's on the tribe's Web site. State law also offers protection orders and tribal mem bers often are able to get both state and tribal orders. The Lincoln County office of Le gal Aid Services has a grant from the federal government to help rural tribal members who encounter domestic vio lence, sexual assault, and/or stalking. That help can reach not only to civil orders of protection under tribal or state law, but also to work on other legal Trudell to Premiere on PBS Filmmaker Heather Rae has spent more than a decade chronicling the life of American Indian activist and poet John Trudell and his travels, spoken word, and politics in a poetic and natu rally stylized manner. The broadcast premiere of Trudell is set for April 11 at 10:30 p.m. on PBS. The biography combines archival, concert, and interview footage with abstract imagery mirroring the coyote nature of Trudell himself. It reveals the philosophy and motivations behind his work and his relationship to contem porary Indian history. Incorporating years of work, 16mm and Super 8 film, video, and archival footage, Trudell begins in the late 60s when Trudell and a community group, Indians of All Tribes, occupied Alcatraz Island for 21 months, creating interna tional recognition of the American In dian cause and birthing the contempo rary Indian people’s movement. The film goes to Alcatraz, return ing to what Trudell refers to as his “birth.” From Alcatraz we follow his political journey as the national spokes man of the American Indian Movement (AIM). This work made him one of the most highly volatile political “subversives” of the 1970s with one of the longest FBI files in history (more than 17,000 pages). In 1979, while protesting the U.S. government’s policy on American In dians, Trudell burned an American flag on the steps of FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C. Within hours, his preg nant wife, three children, and mother- in-law were killed in a suspicious arson fire on a Nevada reservation. This ended Trudell’s involvement in organizational politics. He spent the next four years driving America in a car given to him by friend and fellow activist Jackson Browne. It was during this period that Trudell’s voice as a poet began to sur face. His gift as an orator carried him through his pain and he found a new way to represent his manifesto and cause. In 1983, he began to put his words to music with the help of a Kiowa gui tar legend, the late Jesse Ed Davis, and Browne. Even his early recordings re flect an articulate sensibility and elo quence about the state of the world. Trudell does not adhere to a dogma or school of thought but has created his own diatribe based in experience, having lived through and taken part in some of the most turbulent American political events of the past century. In an interview with Native actor Gary Farmer (Dead Man), he referred to Trudell as “the Native people’s prophet of these times, our Socrates.” Trudell’s musical and film career have led him to work with the likes of Robert Redford (Incident at Oglala), Sam Shepard and Vai Kilmer (Thunder heart), Kris Kristofferson, Bonnie Raitt, Browne, Amy Ray. and more re cently Angelina Jolie, who produced his current album, Bone Days. The film combines interviews with his allies from the entertainment com munity, the “movement” days, his friends and family with archival foot age, concert footage from all over the world, and abstract imagery. Trudell is a film that steps outside of traditional forms, even for Native films, and explores a figure of our contemporary history in a way that fairly represents the evoca tive nature of his work and significance. For more information, visit www. trudellthemovie.com. and www. pbs.org/independentlens/trudell. issues that will help with the safety of the tribal member family, like problems with custody or visitation, housing, TANF, or child support. The support of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians was crucial in obtaining this grant, which covers other rural counties within the tribe’s service area: Linn. Benton, Yamhill. Tillamook, Washington, and Clackamas counties, along with Lincoln County. Your contact with Legal Aid is con fidential. You can call Legal Aid just to get more information. Any decision on what to do next is always a decision made by the client, not the lawyer. Sometimes survivors of domestic violence or stalking are at a point where they want to get an order of protection; other times they might just want to know more about their options in or der to plan better. Another resource at this stage is My Sisters’ Place at 541-574-9424. They can talk with survivors about safety plans and ideas, emergency cell phones, and shelter if needed. You can reach Legal Aid Services at 541-265-5305 or 1-800-222-3884. Information on domestic violence and stalking is available on the Legal Aid Web site, oregonlawhelp.org, and at the Lincoln County office at 304 SW Coast Highway in Newport. A kiosk with written information from Legal Aid also is located by Tribal Court offices in the tribal administra tive building in Siletz. Call Legal Aid Services anytime, including evenings and weekends, and leave a message about the best time and place to safely reach you. 1 American Indians and Crime 1992- 2002; US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics; December 2004, NCJ 203097 2 Domestic and Family Violence Ordi nance, 12.500; Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians NAJA Offers Opportunities to Native Students The Native American Journalists Association has several annual oppor tunities for students to gain additional experience in their chosen journalism field. A few are listed below; please visit www.naja.com for others. paper published in North America in 1828, The Cherokee Phoenix. To download an application, go to www.naja.com/programs/students/ project-phoenix. Deadline to apply is May 1. Get Seen, Get Heard, Get Published! New Web Site Info NAJA is accepting applications for the 2006 Student Projects, a weeklong workshop for American Indian students majoring in print, radio, television, or online journalism. More than 35 Native students from around the country will be accepted for the workshop scheduled Aug. 7-12 in Tulsa, Okla. NAJA provides a small stipend for the week plus hotel and travel expenses. For more information or to down load an application, e-mail us at info@naja.com, call us at 605-677-5282, or go to www.naja.com/programs/ students/student_projects. Deadline for applications is May 1. Project Phoenix Journalism Camp NAJA is accepting applications for Project Phoenix, a weeklong journal ism camp that introduces the exciting field of journalism to American Indian high school students. Selected from a pool of applicants, 15 students learn the basics of journal ism skills by working with Native and non-Native media professionals in pro ducing one issue of a newspaper called Rising Voices. The project is named after the first American Indian news NAJA has upgraded its Web site to include fellowships, internships, and scholarships from other organizations and institutions. To view the new site, look for Fel- lowships/Internships under the Re sources category on the home page's menu bar or go to www.naja.com/ resources/fe Howships. Honor a Teacher The U.S. Department of Education again plans to honor outstanding class room teachers through the American Stars of Teaching program. Its Teacher-to-Teacher Initiative is seeking nominations for teachers who are improving student achievement, using innovative strategies in the classroom, and making a difference in their students’ lives. Teachers across all grade levels and disciplines will be honored this fall as 2006 American Stars of Teaching. Parents, students, colleagues, school administrators, and others can nominate teachers. One teacher will be recognized from each state. To learn more or to nominate, visit www.ed.gov/teachers/how/tools/initia- tive/index.html. All nominations must be completed by April 15. April 2006 • Siletz News • 13
