Category: Arts & Entertainment
Cabela’s® Celebrates Holiday Shopping Season with Free Gifts
Doors Open at 8 a.m., Saturday, December 14
Tulalip, Washington (December 12, 2013) –Cabela’s Tulalip is celebrating Christmas early by giving away more than $3,800 in free gifts to the first 250 customers in line on Dec. 14. Doors will open at 8 a.m.
Early weekend shoppers at Cabela’s will enjoy refreshments, games, entertainment, camp fires and more, and will have the chance to take home a Savage firearm, Vista Polaris Bow Package, Coleman camping gear, Cabela’s vacuum sealer, Mitchell 300 Pro fishing Combo or a Cabela’s cash card worth up to $100.
The first 250 Cabela’s customers, ages 18 and older, will be given a mystery envelope containing information about their gift. All gifts will be distributed randomly. Winners will be able to pick up their gift at the store immediately after the store opens. Firearm winners will be required to complete a standard federal background check to take ownership of the firearm.
Cabela’s store location and holiday hours are available at www.cabelas.com/tulalip. Extended hours will continue throughout the holiday season.
Watch ‘Sake Bombs’—Timbaland-Produced Single by LightningCloud
Source: ICTMN
When Native hip hop act LightningCloud, which consists of MC Redcloud, Crystle Lightning, and DJ Hydroe, won the East vs. West: Battle for the Best contest back in March, the true prize was the chance to record a track with hip hop mastermind Timbaland. As a producer, Timbaland has been responsible for chart-topping hits by Justin Timberlake, Nelly Furtado, and Aaliyah, and left his mark on instant hip hop classics like “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” by Jay-Z and “Get Ur Freak On” and “Work It” by Missy Elliott.
The fruit of the LightningCloud-Timbaland sessions is “Sake Bombs” (available as a free download at LightningCloud’s SoundCloud page) — here’s the official video:
The clip was filmed at The Gas Lamp restaurant in Long Beach. To stay up-to-date on LightningCloud’s further adventures, visit facebook.com/LightningCloud1491.
Read more at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/12/11/watch-sake-bombs-timbaland-produced-single-lightningcloud-152656
Read more at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/12/11/watch-sake-bombs-timbaland-produced-single-lightningcloud-152656
Chanel’s Native American Headdress On Runway Raises Eyebrows
The Huffington Post | By Rebecca Adams
Chanel hit Dallas yesterday, staging a Texas-centric fashion show for its pre-fall collection — which included Native American headdresses to accompany the “cowboys and Indians” theme. Cue the controversy.
While Karl Lagerfeld has yet to face a full-on backlash, Twitter has already begun to buzz with commentary about Chanel’s controversial decision to send the headdress down the runway. “Can’t wait for the think pieces on that Chanel Native American headdress,” one user noted.
The preemptive tweet is certainly not off base. Karlie Kloss’ Native American-style headdress in the 2012 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show caused the lingerie brand to issue an apology and pull the look from the show’s broadcast. H&M was also forced to pull a feathered headdress after offending shoppers earlier this year. Then, of course, there was that ill-advised Native American-themed “Dream Catchin” party Paul Frank put on before controversy broke.
Now, as the skeptical reactions to Chanel’s headdresses on Twitter suggest, the industry is conditioned to anticipate this kind of fashion misstep. But the backlash thus far against Chanel seems to pale in comparison to previous instances — perhaps there are those fashion fans who believe that, in this case, showcasing a Native American-inspired headdress is acceptable. What’s your take on the catwalk homage?
Meet Cirque du Soleil’s Latino-Native American hoop dancer
by Norma Rubio, NBC News, @nrubio, 12/09/2013In a few short hours here in Irvine, California, Cirque du Soleil, Totem, performers will charge onto their stage with dramatic makeup, costumes and music.
Behind-the-scenes and inside the “Village on Wheels” as it’s called, there is a flurry of activity.
Look above and you’ll see trapeze artists perfecting their moves.
Down below, artists stretch on thick gymnastic mats and tell jokes, while others visit the medical tent to soothe their muscles through massage.
The makeup team is busy painting faces as costumes are being rounded up by the performers.
At the makeshift lounge, there are couches and a flat-screen tv, where performers can watch the previous night’s show and make the necessary notes.
It’s all in a day’s work at Totem, Cirque du Soleil’s show about the evolution of humans.
We caught up with one featured Latino-Native American performer, Eric Hernandez, the show’s Hoop Dancer. Hernandez hails from Covina, California, so Totem’s show this week is a homecoming of sorts for Eric.
Eric has been hoop dancing since he was 10 thanks to his uncle Terry Goedel, a world champion hoop dancer.
And although Eric never imagined he’d being hoop dancing for a living, one look at his performance and you can see why Cirque du Soleil came calling.
New Film, ‘Out of the Furnace,’ Accused of Stereotyping Ramapough Indians
“The undertones are racist and personal.” DWAINE C. PERRY, president and chief of the Ramapough Mountain Indians
December 11, 2013 The New York Times
MAHWAH, N.J. — The past week has been unsettling for the Ramapough Mountain Indians, who live on this northern stretch of the Appalachian Mountains that overlooks the Manhattan skyline and wealthy parts of Bergen County. The new movie “Out of the Furnace,” featuring a star-studded cast that includes Christian Bale and Woody Harrelson, also features numerous negative references to the Ramapoughs. They include a fight-ring subplot.
Keith Van Dunk, 27, a member of the tribe, took a break from feeding the chickens at his father’s house up on Stag Hill here on Sunday morning and gestured at the surrounding woods.
“You see any fight ring up here?” he said. “Absolutely not.”
Tribal leaders and local elected officials held a news conference last week, speaking out against a film that they claim portrays them as trashy backwoods bumpkins involved in drugs and violence. One Ramapough henchman in the movie even bears Mr. Van Dunk’s last name.
The references constitute a “hate crime” that has “stained the community and stirred up animus” by increasing marginalization and stigmatization, said the Ramapoughs’ chief, Dwaine C. Perry, 66, in an interview.
In the past few days, he said, there had been several instances of Ramapough students in local high schools being picked on by classmates who had seen the film, including one case in which a teacher had to intervene.
At a showing of the movie last weekend, someone hurled slurs at a Ramapough woman in the theater, he said. There was also a fight at a local mall that tribal members said was stirred up by the film.
“The film contains ugly stereotypes that stain you for life,” Chief Perry said. “The undertones are racist and personal. It’s a hate crime when you look at the psychological impact on the kids.”
Contacted for comment, the film’s production company, Relativity Media, released a statement saying that the film is “entirely fictional” and not “based upon any particular person or group of people.”
“As is the case with most films, the filmmakers conducted research and drew upon their own personal life experiences in creating an original screenplay, and the story and the characters are entirely fictional,” the statement read.
Scott Cooper, who directed the film and co-wrote the script, was unavailable for comment Wednesday night. But a Relativity Media spokesman said that John Fetterman, mayor of Braddock, Pa. — the other main setting in the film — had nothing but praise for the way the movie portrayed Braddock. Mr. Fetterman called it a respectful depiction that was “eloquent, forceful and honest,” in a guest column he wrote for Variety magazine.
Several characters in the film have last names that are prevalent Ramapough names, including De Groat and Mann. The film was not shot in the area, but the Bergen County Police Department is portrayed as the local authority.
Mr. Van Dunk said he refused to buy a ticket to the film, but he consulted the IMDB website and saw that several cast members were listed as “Jackson White.”
The term “Jackson White” is a slur used by outsiders to deride the Ramapoughs, Mr. Van Dunk said, referencing the tribe’s descent from Native Americans, whites and runaway slaves who settled in the mountains in the late 18th century. The term dredges up decades of a long, ugly history of discrimination and marginalization.
“To me, it’s like calling a black person the N-word, and my father is black,” said Mr. Van Dunk, who works for a moving company in Hackensack. “In high school, kids would call me a Jackson White in the hallway, and if I stuck up for myself, they’d say I’m living up to the stereotype.”
Before the opening of the film, which was the third-grossing film in the country last weekend, The New York Post published an article saying that it depicts the Ramapoughs as “New Jersey hillbillies.” The article characterized tribe members as unsophisticated, intermarrying types who are ridiculed, who hunt and eat squirrels, and who drive all-terrain vehicles on dirt roads.
Read the rest here, The New York Times
Tlingit Master Carver creates totem pole for Carnegie Museum of Natural History
Tommy Joseph, a member of the Tlingit people of southeast Alaska, uses a reverse bent knife to carve a 16-foot totem pole that will be permanently installed at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
December 10, 2013
By Mary Thomas / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The story of a raven, two fishermen and a salmon was emerging from the trunk of a Washington red cedar last week under the skilled hands of master carver Tommy Joseph. Today, he will complete the carving and on Saturday a public “Celebration of the Raising of the Totem Pole” will be held as it’s installed permanently in the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
Mr. Joseph, a member of the Tlingit people of southeast Alaska, was born in Ketchikan and lives in Sitka. He began carving the totem pole, which was commissioned by the museum, on Nov. 26 in the R. P. Simmons Gallery, where he will be until 5 p.m. today.
Tommy Joseph, a member of the Tlingit people of southeast Alaska, talks about his totem pole sculpture.
The totem will be unveiled this weekend at the entrance of Polar World: Wyckoff Hall of Arctic Life and the Alcoa Foundation Hall of American Indians. The all-ages event will begin at 10:30 a.m. with Tlingit song and drumming by musician Morgan Redmon Fawcett. Following the celebration, Mr. Fawcett will play Native American flute, and guided tours of Alcoa Hall and other activities will be offered (included in museum admission).
The 16-foot tall totem pole is a blend of traditional and contemporary practices. The formal qualities of the bold stylized components, and the fact that they memorialize a story told by a Tlingit elder, are timeless. Mr. Joseph carves with hand tools that would have been recognizable generations ago, including an adz, gouges and knives, some of which he made. However, the vivid paints are latex.
When the museum commissioned the totem pole, it requested a story that included a raven but was otherwise unrestricted. That gave Mr. Joseph, 49, an opportunity to fulfill a project that had been on his mind for three decades.
“They told me I could pick any story. This story has never been told before. When I first heard it, I wanted to tell it,” Mr. Joseph said last week.
The description he gave the museum was of two young men on a hunting trip:
“While out on the open ocean with a storm approaching, a young man spotted a large seal and fired at it. He was happy to see that his aim was true, and he piloted his boat over to haul in his catch. The young man grabbed the seal by its tail, but it began to thrash about. So as not to lose it to the ocean waves and the approaching storm, he bit down on the tail, gripping hard between his teeth while grabbing the seal’s flippers with his strong hands and arms.
“In a boat not far away, the young man’s hunting partner and Clan brother was watching this entire scene unfold. He fired a shot into the seal, saving the catch. The hunt was a big success, and both men were able to bring food home to their families, along with an adventure story that would live on for generations to come.”
But there’s more, a personal connection. The men in the boats were Mr. Joseph’s father and the elder who related the story in the mid-1980s. Mr. Joseph’s father was lost at sea when he was 6.
“The museum wanted a traditional raven story,” Mr. Joseph said. “But what is a traditional raven story? It’s a story an elder told. Raven is my Dad’s moiety [descent group].” Mr. Joseph is of the Eagle Moiety.
The raven, at the bottom of the totem pole, appears in Tlingit legends, myths and creation stories. The middle figures are the hunters in dugout canoes. The top figure, a dog-salmon, completes the circle of life, the seal eating the salmon and the people, the seal.
One of the painted “trappings” on the Raven portion of the totem pole Tommy Joseph has been commissioned to carve for the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
“Alaskan natives still eat seals today,” Mr. Joseph said. “They’re part of our subsistence lifestyle.
“A totem pole is a visual tool for telling a story,” he explained. “The whole purpose is to be a reminder of the story. [Subjects include] migration, individuals, groups of people, events, history, clan history; grave markers, mortuary poles that memorialize people.”
Mr. Joseph first became infatuated with wood when he made a halibut hook out of yellow cedar in a third-grade woodcarving class. His art includes Tlingit armor, masks and bowls in addition to totem poles. He sells them at his Raindance Gallery in Sitka along with work by other Alaskan native artists.
Funded by a Smithsonian visual artist grant and a USA Artist Fellows award, he traveled to 20 museums and collections in the U.S. and abroad in 2009 to study Tlingit armor. The Alaska State Museum, Juneau, presented the first exhibition of Mr. Joseph’s armor this year. In July, he gave a TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) talk on constructing Tlingit armor.
At his gallery, he teaches carving in affiliation with the University of Alaska Southeast, Sitka Campus. “I always hope there’s going to be some of our young people who will be interested. But to keep [the tradition] going, I’ll teach anybody of any age who wants to know, as long as they’re old enough to work safely.”
Tommy Joseph works on the details of his totem pole.
For 21 years he ran the wood studio of the Sitka National Historical Park’s Southeast Alaska Indian Cultural Center. While there he observed leading wood conservators from the National Park Service and now he conserves, restores and replicates totem poles for the Park Service and other institutions and individuals.
“It’s a huge honor for me that [this totem pole] will be in the Carnegie Museum forever,” Mr. Joseph said. “I have the coolest job around. I get to go to work every day and make stuff, and share it with everybody.”
Tlingit artifacts including baskets, halibut hooks and objects relating to the totem pole creation process may be seen in the Simmons Gallery today through Friday. Information: 412-622-3131 or www.carnegiemnh.org.
Post-Gazette art critic Mary Thomas: mthomas@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1925.
Journeys East – A far east immersion course served up at Tulalip Resort
The Best Culinary Traditions from Asia Showcased in One Modern, Zen-inspired Space
Tulalip, Washington — Tulalip Resort Casino’s newest dining concept, Journeys East, artfully combines the best culinary traditions of Japan, Thailand, China, Korea and Vietnam in one modern, Zen-inspired space. From the sleek contemporary Asian décor to a central view of the display kitchen, diners will experience the equivalent of a passport stamp for a seasoned traveler.
This is a Far East immersion course; an explosive celebration of Asian culture. Featuring shareable dishes such as fresh noodles, rice, wok-fired items, hand-made dim sum, sushi, Pho and tempuras, the menu’s bold flavors and rich textures meld together. Guests can dine in or on the go, with a convenient take-out kiosk. The restaurant is open Wednesday – Sunday 6:00 pm to 12:00 am.
Design elements incorporate the use of wood, metal and glass, creating a harmonious blend of Tulalip and Asian décor. The menu is a blueprint for individual or group dining. In addition, the bar features handcrafted cocktails, a broad sake selection, and wine offerings from the Resort’s award-winning list.
For more information, visit www.tulalipresortcasino.com/Dining/JourneysEast. To make restaurant reservations call 360-716-1880, or for takeout call Quick Trips Cuisine To Go at 360-716-6334.
About Tulalip Resort Casino
Award winning Tulalip Resort Casino is the most distinctive gaming, dining, meeting, entertainment and shopping destination in Washington State. The AAA Four Diamond resort’s world class amenities have ensured its place on the Condé Nast Traveler Gold and Traveler Top 100 Resorts lists, as well as Preferred Hotel & Resorts membership. The property includes 192,000 square feet of gaming excitement; a luxury hotel featuring 370 guest rooms and suites; 30,000 square feet of premier meeting, convention and wedding space; the full-service T Spa; and 7 dining venues, including the AAA Four Diamond Tulalip Bay Restaurant. It also showcases the intimate Canoes Cabaret and a 3,000-seat amphitheater. Nearby, find the Hibulb Cultural Center and Natural History Preserve, Cabela’s; and Seattle Premium Outlets, featuring more than 110 name brand retail discount shops. The Resort Casino is conveniently located between Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. just off Interstate-5 at Exit 200. It is an enterprise of the Tulalip Tribes. For reservations please call (866) 716-7162.
Christian Parrish Takes The Gun Demonstrates the Fancy Dance
By Toyacoyah Brown on December 10, 2013, PowWows.com
Christian Parrish Takes The Gun (aka Supaman) is a Crow hip-hop artist and dancer. In this video he talks about the origins of the Fancy Dance and shows off his footwork style. You can see why he was chosen to participate in the 2013 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade!
Did you get a chance to read Sings In The Timber’s article on the art of pow wow photography? There’s a great shot of Supaman featured in the article.
You can check out a short clip of the dancers featured in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade here on PowWows.com.
‘Alive’ Director: Blackfeet Thought Rez Drug Abuse Story ‘Needed to Be Told”
By Vincent Schilling, Indian Country Today Media Network
The music video for Chase & Status’ dance track “Alive,” directed by Welsh filmmaker Josh Cole, has inspired a tremendous reaction from Indian country. Just read through the comments on the ICTMN facebook page and you’ll get the picture — some viewers have praised the clip for its tale of drug abuse on the rez and spiritual redemption, while others feel it’s exploitative and disrespectful of the ceremonies it depicts. The video, which shows dramatized drug use, crime and ceremony, was shot on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. Cole has received considerable attention in Indian Country.
SEE RELATED: Controversial Video Set on Rez Depicts Drug Use, Violence and Sundance
Cole filmed the video on the Blackfeet Reservation in Browning, Montana, and worked with Blackfeet tribal members during the course of its creation. On the day of the video release, ICTMN reached out to Cole to get his thoughts on some of the questions and comments coming from the Native community on social media.
Concerned he might be misrepresented, Cole requested that ICTMN could present his words in their entirety. He provided links to some other videos he has made which we have chosen to embed in the text of the story. Cole’s answers to our questions are as follows:
How did you first come up with this concept of using a Native Reservation story for this video?
As a reformed drug addict I follow stories around the world where the worst drug abuse is common. It’s my mission with my career to try to steer people into recovery as a thanks to those that helped me with my own addiction. As such I was shooting a story about a reformed Hispanic gangster turned graffiti artist in LA and I met a Native American rapper who grew up on a reservation.
I was shocked to hear stories about the reservations — in Europe there is no concept generally about contemporary Native Americans. I then started researching and put together a story based on the stuff I was told about. I decided I would really like to tell Europe how difficult it is for Native Americans in modern America because most people have no idea who they are. All my work is about the beauty that comes from hardship and I wanted to tell the story of the spiritual awakening of a drug addict in a Native American community.
How did you explain this concept to the Blackfeet community?
Several members of The Crazy Dogs Society in Browning are reformed alcoholics, I showed them my script and they really connected to it. They explained that it was basically their own story and also that they regularly help those with addictions through ceremony. I told them that I would like to make it something they would be proud of, that told the story properly, so we had a few days discussing my script and changing it to make it more realistic.
During this time I met several community leaders including many people on the Tribal Council including the Cultural Attaché of the Blackfeet Nation. Every time we met anyone we explained what we wanted to do in great detail and then each person was emailed a copy of the script. We explained the story dozens of times and the Tribal Council gave us their blessing and also gave us a shooting permit to shoot anywhere in Blackfeet territory. The community basically backed the project and we were repeatedly told by various people how much they thought this story needed to be told. I feel I could return there any time with my head held high. I’m also told the film has been very well received by people living not only on the Blackfeet Reservation but also on other reservations. You can see this by reading the comments under the video on Youtube. I should also say that this was a very low budget production — we were all working 20+ hour days to make it work and everybody involved really believed in the project. It still moves me when I think how much the people of Browning came together to help with this production.
What were the reactions about filming a “ceremony?”
I was extremely sensitive when talking to the Crazy Dogs about the ceremonies and always said that we could shoot an alternative scene. They spent a day or so discussing it with all members and they decided collectively they wanted the scene to be in the film. They felt like they wanted it to be shown and I gave them many opportunities to make sure they were happy. It meant a lot to me that they wanted to show this to the world. They told me that they wanted to use the video to help to heal the youth of the Blackfeet Nation. I should also say we didn’t film an actual ceremony — both the sweat lodge scene and the Sundance scene were mock ceremonies set up by the Crazy Dogs themselves to their exact specifications. I had no control whatsoever over the look or sequence of the scene, nor did I want it. I also had no interest in filming an actual ceremony — at every step of the process I was led by the advice of the Crazy Dogs and I am ever grateful for that and I feel no guilt in portraying this as I was led by a much greater knowledge than my own as I am with most of my work.
What were the reactions about this young man turning toward good then becoming a “martyr” as you put it?
I felt that the film needed an emotional finish. When people are moved they remember what they have seen. Plus it actually is somewhat of a happy ending because he is reunited with his girlfriend in the afterlife. There’s also a message in there about the way your past follows you — that no matter how much you reform you can’t always avoid who you were before. I have lost many many friends to the illness of addiction and this is often my experience.
What is the song about without the benefit of a video connected to it?
It’s a gospel track I’m told. You’d have to ask the artist but I interpreted them as lyrics about recovery. Check them out here: http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/chasestatus/alive.html
What was the message you hoped to share?
It’s a very simple message about the dangers of drugs. I nearly died myself through drug abuse and most of my narrative work contains these themes. It’s also a call to addicts to reform before it’s too late and to lead a more spiritual life.
Many native people are concerned about using Native Americans in a romantic way as a form of poverty porn or sensationalism, what is your response?
I strive against this type of imagery myself and I don’t think my work inspires pity at all. Everywhere I shoot I work very closely with the actual community to tell their story in the most authentic and meaningful way possible. Everywhere I’ve ever shot I can go back to and work again. I’m about to return to Ethiopia in January to work with the same community I shot with 2 years ago to produce a similar piece highlighting the plight of prostitutes in the capital and the beauty of the Rastafarian religion there. My extensive work in Africa generally shows very positive images and the energy of the slums:
The same with my film in the Philippines which shows positivity despite hardship- the true spirit of the country:
My work with the gypsy communities in the UK and Eastern Europe spans 10 years and tries to offer more positive images of this misunderstood people:
I also believe that my portrayal of Browning is not negative. It is ultimately a story of redemption and shows the elders of the community coming around the boy to heal him. If you don’t show the darkness in a realistic way the young people I’m trying to reach will not take it seriously. However, there is an element of drama to all my work as I want all my work to reach the masses – but it is always subverted as I believe I have done here. You have to remember that in the States the concept of Native Americans living in severe poverty is old news but in Europe people have no idea. None! I think this is something people here should know about. So this video serves a dual purpose – to show Europeans some of the conditions on reservations and also to give a Native community an opportunity to show both its darkness and its beauty.
There were social media interactions between yourself and others regarding the cavalry – what happened there?
I had been staying in Browning for a week or so meeting members of the community and my crew who are mainly from Wales arrived to shoot. I posted a picture on Instagram and stupidly wrote “The Welsh Cavalry arrive in Montana” which is a common phrase in the UK similar to “reinforcements have arrived”. When I was attacked on twitter by a number of activists somebody found the tweet and tried to spread the word that I was being racist. A shame really but I understand — in hindsight I should have realized the implications of using the word “cavalry” but it certainly wasn’t meant in a negative or humorous way at all.
Any last remarks?
Just want to thank again the Blackfeet Nation and the Crazy Dogs Society for all the love we were shown.
Read more at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/12/09/director-josh-cole-blackfeet-thought-story-needed-be-told-152631 Read more at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/12/09/director-josh-cole-blackfeet-thought-story-needed-be-told-152631
Read more at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/12/09/director-josh-cole-blackfeet-thought-story-needed-be-told-152631