Onöndowa'ga:' elder Stephen Gordon was twelve years old when his family was forcibly relocated from their home in Jonegano:h (Coldspring) as a result of the construction of the Kinzua Dam. Unlike his neighbors however, his family's home wasn't destroyed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers -- instead, Gordon's father set fire to it himself to prevent the Corps from doing the same. The Burning of My Coldspring Home, an adaptation of Gordon's 2005 short story of the same name, is a meditation on grief, trauma, family, healing, and the places we call home.
View Official Trailer.
Onöndowa’ga:’ bone and antler carver, Hayden Haynes, shares his inspirations, creative process, and the multifaceted approach he employs to hone his skills and revitalize the ancestral craft within his community.
Sponsored by City Lore and New York Living Traditions.
View Here.
Onöndowa’ga:’ dancer, Logan Booth stars in this moving introduction to the 2023 Indigenous Fashion Show at the Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino — narrated by Onöndowa’ga:’ matriarch, Rebecca Bowen.
Directed, produced, and edited by Caleb Abrams; cinematography, color and sound mix by Tucker Kohnen — for Seneca Gaming Corporation.
View Here.
Real Truths is a five part video series that sees Kanienʼkehá꞉ka leader, Sakoweniokwas, discussing how Haudenosaunee teachings and an Indigenous worldview might be applied to the fight against the on-going opioid epidemic. Sakokweniokwas highlights the importance of our teachings, compassion, addressing the on-going legacies of colonization, healing, and reconnecting to what makes us human.
Collaboration by Seneca Media & Communications Center and Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community.
View here.
Distinguished Onöndowa’ga:’ artist and Vietnam veteran, Carson Waterman, says art saved his life. First, when he was reassigned as a ‘combat artist’ after serving seven months in the 4th Infantry and later, when he returned home, art provided him a respite from the wartime trauma he carried.
© 2019 Western New York Public Broadcasting Service (WNED-TV Buffalo-Toronto).
View here.
Robert Odawi Porter (Onöndowa’ga:’) is an attorney, scholar, and political leader who has devoted his professional career to advancing the rights of Indigenous peoples across Turtle Island. His many accomplishments include serving two terms as the Seneca Nation’s chief legal counsel, serving as founding chairman of Seneca Holdings LLC, and, in 2010, he was elected as the 67th President of the Seneca Nation. This video series sees Porter discussing his practice, “Indian Law”, and tribal sovereignty.
Watch here.
The construction of the Kinzua Dam along the Allegheny River in Pennsylvania was a flashpoint in history for the Seneca Nation. Completed in 1965, the dam was to help mitigate flooding in Pittsburgh, 198 miles downriver, but the 27-mile reservoir that formed above it inundated vast tracts of the Seneca's ancestral lands, forcing their removal in breach of one of the United States' oldest treaties. Set against a backdrop of a federal Indian termination policy, pork-barrel politics, and undisclosed plans for private hydropower, Lake of Betrayal tells the story of a seemingly one-sided battle pitting an Indigenous nation against some of the strongest political, social, and commercial forces in the country. Although the Seneca suffered great cultural losses, the Kinzua crisis became a turning point to build a stronger Seneca Nation.
Writer-director, Paul Lamont; writer-producer, Scott Sackett; associate producer, Caleb Abrams
Co-production by Toward Castle Films and Skipping Stone Picture for presentation by Vision Maker Media via the Corporation for Public Broadcasting