$29.95
From the archives- Prairie Dust Films first feature...
Standing Silent Nation is a one-hour documentary that chronicles the struggle of a Lakota Indian to develop a hemp industry on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Alex White Plume's tenacious pursuit of a successful hemp crop is fueled by the burden he carries as the head of his tiospaye (clan), the tragic legacy of his people, and their tenuous future. Alex considers hemp to be a "new buffalo" for the Lakota. Such a resource could bring economic empowerment to one of the most impoverished communities in the United States.
For three years, Alex has grown hemp. But each year, his harvest has been disrupted by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which claims that hemp is marijuana, and is therefore illegal. Standing Silent Nation foregrounds the battle between Alex and the U.S. government, whose authority over the Lakota Nation Alex disputes.
For more information or to purchase screening, library or institutional DVDs, visit:
www.standingsilentnationfilm.com