Breaking New Ground

Freedom, for First Nations, is an achievement by Fourth World peoples, not a gift bestowed by modern states. The inherent aboriginal human rights — acknowledged in international law through instruments like the 2007 UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples — are not privileges granted by institutions, but rather acknowledged moral, legal and ethical obligations.

The World Indigenous Peoples’ Movement – organized to protect their ways of life from the states that still seek their annihilation — is a unified and concerted effort to end genocide, while simultaneously stimulating the consciousness of mankind. The success of this initiative, depends on the voluntary cooperation of civil societies, as well as the active support of conscientious individuals worldwide.

The indigenous peoples’ story – of the struggle to exist free to learn, live and prosper within a socio-political framework of conservation, cooperation and generosity — is eloquently posed in such genres as the novels of N. Scott Momaday, the songs of Archie Roach, and the oratory of Tom Goldtooth. Through the medium of film, this noble endeavor is now breaching the wall of denial constructed by modern states; through film and the Internet, we at the Center for World Indigenous Studies are breaking new ground in this struggle.