We Shall Remain is a groundbreaking mini-series and provocative multi-media project that establishes Native history as an essential part of American history. Five 90-minute documentaries spanning three hundred years tell the story of pivotal moments in U.S. history from the Native American perspective.
Episode 1 After the Mayflower
In 1621, the Wampanoag of New England negotiated a treaty with Pilgrim settlers. A half-century later, as a brutal war flared between the English and a confederation of Indians, this diplomatic gamble seemed to have been a grave miscalculation.
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Episode 2 Tecumseh’s Vision
In the course of his brief and meteoric career, Tecumseh would become one of the greatest Native American leaders of all time, orchestrating the most ambitious pan-Indian resistance movement ever mounted on the North American continent.
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Episode 3 Trail of Tears
Though the Cherokee embraced “civilization” and won recognition of tribal sovereignty in the U.S. Supreme Court, their resistance to removal from their homeland failed. Thousands were forced on a perilous march to Oklahoma.
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Episode 4 Geronimo
As the leader of the last Native American fighting force to capitulate to the U.S. government, Geronimo was seen by some as the perpetrator of unspeakable savage cruelties, while to others he was the embodiment of proud resistance.
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Episode 5 Wounded Knee
In 1973, American Indian Movement activists and residents of the Pine Ridge Reservation occupied the town of Wounded Knee, demanding redress for grievances. As a result of the siege, Indians across the country forged a new path into the future.
PBS Television Series
At the heart of the project is a five-part television series that shows how Native peoples valiantly resisted expulsion from their lands and fought the extinction of their culture — from the Wampanoags of New England in the 1600s who used their alliance with the English to weaken rival tribes, to the bold new leaders of the 1970s who harnessed the momentum of the civil rights movement to forge a pan-Indian identity. We Shall Remain represents an unprecedented collaboration between Native and non-Native filmmakers and involves Native advisors and scholars at all levels of the project.
Web & New Media
An in-depth Web site will serve the general public, educators, and students, offering educational resources and several hours of streaming video. Part of PBS Online, one of the leading dot-org sites on the Internet, the We Shall Remain site will feature Web-exclusive videos exploring contemporary topics such as language revitalization efforts, Native enterprise and tribal sovereignty. The site will also host behind-the-scenes production stories, streaming of the ReelNative films, and information about upcoming events across the nation.
ReelNative
This unique project offers Native Americans a venue to share their stories with a national audience. At workshops in Arizona, Massachusetts, and Oklahoma, participants ranging in age from fourteen to fifty-five were taught to produce short films. Quirky, touching, funny, and profound, the films reveal the diversity of the contemporary Native experience and testify to the resilience of Native people and culture.
Community Engagement Campaign
A nationwide community outreach campaign is engaging Native communities and organizations, Native radio, public television stations, universities, museums, schools, and libraries. The events, activities, and dialogue that come out of these relationships will extend We Shall Remain’s crucial message to invite audiences to tune in to the broadcast.
Educator Resources
The We Shall Remain Web site will launch an extensive Teacher’s Guide for social studies educators. The guide will incorporate video segments from the five documentaries into social studies resources, offering both viewing and comprehension aids and classroom activities. This resource will inspire and support teachers to integrate Native history and issues into their curricula and encourage them to present Native history as an integral part of American history.
National Library Initiative
WGBH is working closely with the American Library Association (ALA) and its 2007-2008 President Loriene Roy (White Earth Anishinabe) to build awareness of the series among librarians, Native organizations, scholars, and writers. Ms. Roy is also collaborating with WGBH to develop innovative ideas for how to use We Shall Remain materials to serve the unique needs of local communities and tribal libraries. A library event kit developed specifically for public, college, school, and tribal libraries will be distributed to 17,000 public libraries, as well as to all tribal libraries. The kit offers programming ideas and resources to help libraries organize and deliver engaging events related to We Shall Remain. Features include storytelling days, Native literature reading circles, cross-cultural art projects for youth, discussion forums, guidelines for evaluating media about Native peoples, and an extensive bibliography of book, film, and Internet resources.
North American Indian Center of Boston's Blog 