Diverse Voices : American Indians Want Place At Table
Mark Reed looks like a leading man, talks like a politician and feels utterly invisible.
In the world of acting, where looks come first, American Indians come last in being cast for roles, says Reed, chairman of American Indians in Film & TV and a member of the Screen Actors Guild. When it comes to writing, directing, producing and other jobs behind the camera, the situation is much the same.
"When you hear the words `American Indian,' what image comes into your mind?" asks Reed, sitting in a Studio City cafe. "Most people think of a strong man with long black hair in buckskin leather."
What's wrong with the romantic image of a noble warrior standing against the white settler invading his land? Nothing. Unless that's the only role you ever see an American Indian playing.
"A producer once told me, `American Indians will start getting work when we bring back Westerns,"' Reed says. "He thought he was being funny, but his attitude shows that we're not in the contemporary scene at all. Who's going to cast an American Indian character in an `ER' or `CSI' if all the mind sees is a half-breed in a war bonnet with long black braids?"
Reed grew up on Hollywood sets, tagging along after two cinematographers-his grandfather, Hans Koenakamp ("The Stunt Man"), and uncle, Fred Koenakamp ("Patton," "The Towering Inferno"), winner of the 2005 Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Society of Cinematographers.
The acting bug took hold, and Reed became a stuntman, doing horse stunts and hand-to-hand combat, then got small roles on "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman," "The Magnificent Seven" and projects overseas.
"As an actor, I believe it's all about self-responsibility for the direction of your career," says Reed, who has organized workshops and gatherings between the networks and his organization. "Being an activist for diversity, I see it's also about lack of opportunity. The networks will say you're talented, but they won't hire you."
Reed represents one of the four groups in The Grand Coalition, a grand name for a great idea that's lost its way since its inception in 1999. That year, leaders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the National Hispanic Media Coalition, the Asian Pacific American Media Coalition and American Indians in Film & TV protested a nearly all-white schedule of new network series, which led to agreements by the broadcasters to improve their diversity performance.
Now, the four coalition members have largely splintered to the point where the African American contingent stands apart, and the other three groups meet once a year at a press conference to issue separate report cards on network diversity progress.
"We don't meet as a coalition, and we don't discuss strategies," Reed says. "The networks successfully divided and conquered by giving a deal to one group here or there, and each organization started looking out only for its own people."
With the creation of diversity programs for minority writers, actors, directors, et al., has diversity improved in the television industry?
"All the networks are trying hard, but the placement of talent is the question, and for that, I gave them all an F for not hiring a single American Indian last year," Reed says. "It's still a good old boys club that's prevalent in the diversity programs. It's all about who you know."
Reed says history has taught American Indians to be quiet, blend in and not arouse the wrath of the federal government (i.e., white people), so there are few activist role models to emulate. As he talks about the problems facing American Indians, the political rhetoric is clearly polished and automatic. There, perhaps, is the problem.
We can present intellectual arguments, countering facts with figures ad nauseam, but changes in behavior don't happen because our head knows it's the right thing to do. We change when our gut is so tied up in knots we can't stomach the status quo anymore. We change when our hearts are touched by emotional truth that we cannot avoid feeling.
In an industry that values ratings and buying power, it's easy to forget that the most valuable asset for any business is human capital, and that whatever we do comes back to us. If we help someone, aid will come when we need it. If we take what is not ours, life will take it back from us somewhere else.
If lack of opportunity for American Indians (or any group) is the problem, what's the solution? There are many possible answers, but Reed put his finger on one that makes economic sense.
"I have hope that casino money from different [Indian] nations will bring us together and give us the tools to change our image," Reed says. "In the next 10 years, I hope to see us create our own network channel and programming, because the talent is there. I'd like to get casino owners in the room with network executives, so that advertising dollars clearly go to the companies that do more than lip service to diversity."
It'll take that kind of thinking to transform political rhetoric into visible changes.
Dinah Eng is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer who writes a syndicated column for Gannett News Service.
Bear Butte - The Spirit Of Our Relatives
Submitted by Jeanne Bedell Mashkikinabinais
I returned home today, the day after the rest of American celebrated their Fourth of July. I guess I should start from here to say I have been living with conflict in two worlds as a Native American. I am a veteran; however I did offer myself to protect the United States in case of times of war. Although at the time I was devoted to my mission, I was still wrestling with the idea of identity and who I am as a Native American. I was reminded too in basic training that I was Indian and so the others after learning I was a Native person expected me to be some how the super human warrior and I became Pocahontas to the rest of the platoon.
Well, now 30 years later I can say I am not the same Indian I use to be, which was mostly embarrassed to mention to others I was an Indian… an Ojibwe or Anishinabeg Indian...and oh yes part of the Tantanka -Iyotanka tiwahe!
As I sat there yesterday morning with the big Bear Mountain looming overhead, I was aware that my relatives had something to do with this mountain too. After all, they had met here when they decided on the strategy for the Little Big Horn. Still, after all these years, the mountain stood steadfast amongst controversy and failed attempts in Federal and State court for the protection of Bear Butte as a prayer site, historical site or even an environmental significant site. Thinking back to the day before, when I had climbed the mountain with rattle snakes hidden in the grass on the paha, I could see I could se the huge amphitheater in construction just les then a mile away!.
Many things I learned as my inquisitive mind began to decipher what environmental, historical, law significance this had over the years. I found Bear Butte is actually a rare and geological formation from underground magma chambers pushing this mountain up through the earth. It is here that precious rare minerals can only be found here on Bear Butte which makes this unique from the other mountainous ranges within the Paha Sapa. This and the fact there are endangered species that may reside in this area and still migrate here yearly is an important environmental concern.
The Lakota call this mountain Mato Paha. If the people of Sturgis and the world could see the importance of this historical religious site and what it means for not only the Indians but the surrounding areas, maybe others could wake up, understand, and value this site. This site, amongst the Sturgis rally, a money maker for greedy entrepreneurs is at its peak for controversy with many groups within South Dakota. We need advocates for environmental strategies willing to share their time to research this mountain and its uniqueness that not only involves an environmental significance, but a religious and historical value for all the people involved and who value this mountain.
The people of Sturgis, the grassroots people, do not want this area to be turned into a place where people come to drink party and exhibit enormous loud motorcycle pollution which destroys peacefulness around the Bear Butte area. Our Lakota nations need to gather for the summit on August 1-4 and declare and demand that the management for this mountain be turned back over to the tribes for management and reinforcement of protection from outsiders who are not historically connected to this mountain, and implement a buffer zone around Bear Butte.
To organize an environmental research group, please call 441-8383 or email jeannesdbedell@yahoo.com. We need those with resources and skills who can be volunteer their time. Jeanne (mashkikinabinais)
Other links-
http://www.matopaha.org/wp/
TO SUBMIT an ARTICLE or OPINION PIECE to the Native Unity Digest, e-mail bobbieo@digitaldune.net.
NATIVE UNITY - A place for Native American Peoples to solidify their tribes to make a positive impact on the cultural, social, economic and political fabric of American society and a place for non-Natives to better understand the ways of the American Indian.
Visit Vietnam Vet. Larry Mitchell at http://www.potawatomivet.com and click on his blog at the site.
In the world of acting, where looks come first, American Indians come last in being cast for roles, says Reed, chairman of American Indians in Film & TV and a member of the Screen Actors Guild. When it comes to writing, directing, producing and other jobs behind the camera, the situation is much the same.
"When you hear the words `American Indian,' what image comes into your mind?" asks Reed, sitting in a Studio City cafe. "Most people think of a strong man with long black hair in buckskin leather."
What's wrong with the romantic image of a noble warrior standing against the white settler invading his land? Nothing. Unless that's the only role you ever see an American Indian playing.
"A producer once told me, `American Indians will start getting work when we bring back Westerns,"' Reed says. "He thought he was being funny, but his attitude shows that we're not in the contemporary scene at all. Who's going to cast an American Indian character in an `ER' or `CSI' if all the mind sees is a half-breed in a war bonnet with long black braids?"
Reed grew up on Hollywood sets, tagging along after two cinematographers-his grandfather, Hans Koenakamp ("The Stunt Man"), and uncle, Fred Koenakamp ("Patton," "The Towering Inferno"), winner of the 2005 Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Society of Cinematographers.
The acting bug took hold, and Reed became a stuntman, doing horse stunts and hand-to-hand combat, then got small roles on "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman," "The Magnificent Seven" and projects overseas.
"As an actor, I believe it's all about self-responsibility for the direction of your career," says Reed, who has organized workshops and gatherings between the networks and his organization. "Being an activist for diversity, I see it's also about lack of opportunity. The networks will say you're talented, but they won't hire you."
Reed represents one of the four groups in The Grand Coalition, a grand name for a great idea that's lost its way since its inception in 1999. That year, leaders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the National Hispanic Media Coalition, the Asian Pacific American Media Coalition and American Indians in Film & TV protested a nearly all-white schedule of new network series, which led to agreements by the broadcasters to improve their diversity performance.
Now, the four coalition members have largely splintered to the point where the African American contingent stands apart, and the other three groups meet once a year at a press conference to issue separate report cards on network diversity progress.
"We don't meet as a coalition, and we don't discuss strategies," Reed says. "The networks successfully divided and conquered by giving a deal to one group here or there, and each organization started looking out only for its own people."
With the creation of diversity programs for minority writers, actors, directors, et al., has diversity improved in the television industry?
"All the networks are trying hard, but the placement of talent is the question, and for that, I gave them all an F for not hiring a single American Indian last year," Reed says. "It's still a good old boys club that's prevalent in the diversity programs. It's all about who you know."
Reed says history has taught American Indians to be quiet, blend in and not arouse the wrath of the federal government (i.e., white people), so there are few activist role models to emulate. As he talks about the problems facing American Indians, the political rhetoric is clearly polished and automatic. There, perhaps, is the problem.
We can present intellectual arguments, countering facts with figures ad nauseam, but changes in behavior don't happen because our head knows it's the right thing to do. We change when our gut is so tied up in knots we can't stomach the status quo anymore. We change when our hearts are touched by emotional truth that we cannot avoid feeling.
In an industry that values ratings and buying power, it's easy to forget that the most valuable asset for any business is human capital, and that whatever we do comes back to us. If we help someone, aid will come when we need it. If we take what is not ours, life will take it back from us somewhere else.
If lack of opportunity for American Indians (or any group) is the problem, what's the solution? There are many possible answers, but Reed put his finger on one that makes economic sense.
"I have hope that casino money from different [Indian] nations will bring us together and give us the tools to change our image," Reed says. "In the next 10 years, I hope to see us create our own network channel and programming, because the talent is there. I'd like to get casino owners in the room with network executives, so that advertising dollars clearly go to the companies that do more than lip service to diversity."
It'll take that kind of thinking to transform political rhetoric into visible changes.
Dinah Eng is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer who writes a syndicated column for Gannett News Service.
Bear Butte - The Spirit Of Our Relatives
Submitted by Jeanne Bedell Mashkikinabinais
I returned home today, the day after the rest of American celebrated their Fourth of July. I guess I should start from here to say I have been living with conflict in two worlds as a Native American. I am a veteran; however I did offer myself to protect the United States in case of times of war. Although at the time I was devoted to my mission, I was still wrestling with the idea of identity and who I am as a Native American. I was reminded too in basic training that I was Indian and so the others after learning I was a Native person expected me to be some how the super human warrior and I became Pocahontas to the rest of the platoon.
Well, now 30 years later I can say I am not the same Indian I use to be, which was mostly embarrassed to mention to others I was an Indian… an Ojibwe or Anishinabeg Indian...and oh yes part of the Tantanka -Iyotanka tiwahe!
As I sat there yesterday morning with the big Bear Mountain looming overhead, I was aware that my relatives had something to do with this mountain too. After all, they had met here when they decided on the strategy for the Little Big Horn. Still, after all these years, the mountain stood steadfast amongst controversy and failed attempts in Federal and State court for the protection of Bear Butte as a prayer site, historical site or even an environmental significant site. Thinking back to the day before, when I had climbed the mountain with rattle snakes hidden in the grass on the paha, I could see I could se the huge amphitheater in construction just les then a mile away!.
Many things I learned as my inquisitive mind began to decipher what environmental, historical, law significance this had over the years. I found Bear Butte is actually a rare and geological formation from underground magma chambers pushing this mountain up through the earth. It is here that precious rare minerals can only be found here on Bear Butte which makes this unique from the other mountainous ranges within the Paha Sapa. This and the fact there are endangered species that may reside in this area and still migrate here yearly is an important environmental concern.
The Lakota call this mountain Mato Paha. If the people of Sturgis and the world could see the importance of this historical religious site and what it means for not only the Indians but the surrounding areas, maybe others could wake up, understand, and value this site. This site, amongst the Sturgis rally, a money maker for greedy entrepreneurs is at its peak for controversy with many groups within South Dakota. We need advocates for environmental strategies willing to share their time to research this mountain and its uniqueness that not only involves an environmental significance, but a religious and historical value for all the people involved and who value this mountain.
The people of Sturgis, the grassroots people, do not want this area to be turned into a place where people come to drink party and exhibit enormous loud motorcycle pollution which destroys peacefulness around the Bear Butte area. Our Lakota nations need to gather for the summit on August 1-4 and declare and demand that the management for this mountain be turned back over to the tribes for management and reinforcement of protection from outsiders who are not historically connected to this mountain, and implement a buffer zone around Bear Butte.
To organize an environmental research group, please call 441-8383 or email jeannesdbedell@yahoo.com. We need those with resources and skills who can be volunteer their time. Jeanne (mashkikinabinais)
Other links-
http://www.matopaha.org/wp/
TO SUBMIT an ARTICLE or OPINION PIECE to the Native Unity Digest, e-mail bobbieo@digitaldune.net.
NATIVE UNITY - A place for Native American Peoples to solidify their tribes to make a positive impact on the cultural, social, economic and political fabric of American society and a place for non-Natives to better understand the ways of the American Indian.
Visit Vietnam Vet. Larry Mitchell at http://www.potawatomivet.com and click on his blog at the site.
posted by Bobbie Hart O'Neill @ 10:31 AM
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