Dinca — contemporary art blog

The Return of Navajo Boy (2008) by Groundswell Educational Films

Trailer for The Return of Navajo Boy (2008) by Groundswell Educational Films

Here is superb documentary film examining an important struggle for environment justice. Support this film; support Mother Earth; support the Navajo People. Again, support the film, click here, watch it, purchase it, screen it. Or support this benevolent cause digitally: spread the word by some means, follow Groundswell Films via Twitter, join the Facebook group, suggest to friends.

There is forthcoming film review, until then, read this Salt Lake Tribune article, “A legacy of uranium, a prayer for healing.”

It is was posted yesterday (1/3/2011) — it is a big story on the uranium contamination of Navajo Nation and mentions Groundswell’s work on the issue.

Synopsis: The Return of Navajo Boy, an official selection of the Sundance Film Festival and PBS, is an internationally acclaimed documentary that reunited a Navajo family and triggered a federal investigation into uranium contamination. It tells the story of Elsie Mae Begay, whose history in pictures reveals an incredible and ongoing struggle for environmental justice. A powerful new epilogue (produced in 2008) shows how the film and Groundswell Educational Films’ outreach campaign create news and rally supporters including Congressman Henry Waxman (D-CA). The Chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform mandated a clean-up plan by the five agencies that are responsible for uranium contamination.

Ironically, the US EPA’s Comprehensive Five-Year Plan did not include Ms Begay’s backyard, until she traveled with this film to Washington, DC and screened it on Capitol Hill in September, 2008. Together we are building a groundswell for environmental justice.

Join Groundswell and Navajo Communities in this mission. We will continue filming and raising awareness until all Navajo communities impacted by more than one thousand abandoned uranium mines are cleaned up.

What Critics Say About The Return of Navajo Boy:

“Like a finely made rug, The Return of Navajo Boy contains multiple layers of color, construction, and meaning. . . A must see.”

– Native Peoples Magazine

Not only did the film lead to the reunion of the Cly family with the long-lost John Wayne Cly, but it also brought public and legal attention to the issue of uranium mining, a former way of life in Monument Valley that has led to an alarmingly high cancer rate.”

– Chicago Tribune

“I used this remarkable documentary in a large U.S. history survey course comprised mostly of students from Southeast Asian and Central American immigrant-refugee communities… Although centered on the experiences of one Native American family, this film is an instructive text for all of us living through this era of pervasive social disasters and profound displacements.”

– Art Hansen, Professor of History, California State University

“A decade after its release and initial acclaim, the documentary “The Return of Navajo Boy” is still garnering attention and educating audiences about Native American issues, past and present.”
– Oregon Gazette Times

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