Programs Announcements Updates Resources

Hello members and friends of the North Dakota Human Rights Coalition!

Thank you to Chris Runge and the North Dakota Public Employees Association (NDPEA) for accommodating NDHRC on your agenda for your annual meeting, and to Richard Vanden-Eykel, an NDPEA member, for your membership!

In this week's PAUR Report:

1. Susan A. Koberstein, an Attorney at Law with Centro Legal and a member of the Minnesota Detention Project, invites us to attend a brief presentation on "Assisting Victims of Torture"

2. Paul Boswell, Director of Multicultural Student Services at NDSU shares an invitation to attend The American Indian Heritage Month Even Series at NDSU.

3. Also from Paul Boswell, an invitation to attend a talk by Zonnie Gorman about Navajo Codetalkers

4. From Larry Peterson - NDHRC Board Member and Professor and Chair of the Department of History at NDSU requests and RSVP for the GLBT Rights Workshop in Bismarck.

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Dear Ms. Bergian:

I am a member of the "Minnesota Detention Project," a coalition of three non-profit agencies which provide immigration - related legeal services to non-citizens in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. Specifically, our project is funded to provide legal services to immigrant victims of torture.

I will be in the Fargo-Moorhead area on November 6, 2002 to give a brief presentation on how your clients and/or constituents can access the services of our project. My presentation will include a discussion on the definition of "torture," an explanation on what types of legal services our project provides, and instructions on how you can refer clients for services.

Because you have a connection with the immigrant and/or refugee communities in your area, we believe your involvement could be instrumental in assuring that torture survivors access the legal services that they need. The time and location of the presentation is listed below. Please feel free to invite anyone else from your agency or your community that you think would benefit from this information.

Minnesota Detention Project: Assisting Victims of Torture

Family Service Center of Clay County

Meeting Room 4

715 North 11th Street

Moorhead, MN

10:30am - 11:30am

Please RSVP by November 4 to Josie Gonzalez

Centro Legal, Inc.

(218) 233-8585

info@centro-legal.org

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Keith "Northern Lights" Bear to perform during American Indian Heritage Month

Two concerts by American Indian fluteplayer and storyteller Keith "Northern Lights" Bear are among the highlights of the 2002 American Indian Heritage Month series at NDSU in November. It will be Bear's first appearance on our campus in two years.

A Mandan-Hidatsa from New Town, N.D., Bear will perform on Friday, Nov. 8, presenting a children's concert at 7 p.m. and a main concert at 8 p.m. Both concerts will be given in the Memorial Union Gallery, and there will be a $5 admission fee for the main concert.

Bear's concerts are a unique blend of traditional stories and musical performances using handmade wooden flutes. His fascinating stories relate American Indian legends as well as tales about the American frontier. The performances will be musical and oral journeys - enriching cultural experiences for all ages.

The American Indian Heritage Month event series will also feature two YMCA of NDSU Brown Bag Seminars: "On and Off the Reservation: Perspectives from American Indian Students" on Wednesday, Nov. 6, and "American Indian Wisdom: The Meaning Behind Our Proud Traditions" on Thursday, Nov. 7. Both seminars will feature a panel of guest speakers, including American Indian students currently attending NDSU.

This year's American Indian Heritage Month series will feature 13 events scheduled from Nov. 6 through Nov. 14. Rachel Poitra, an American Indian student from the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation, said there are many reasons why people should attend the series. "To learn something new. To get a different perspective on life," Poitra said. "Students should go to these programs for the same reasons - and for extra credit."

American Indian Heritage Month events on our campus are jointly sponsored by Multicultural Student Services, Memorial Union Gallery, YMCA of NDSU, MU Breaks, MU Live, and a Cooperative Sponsorship Grant. Admission to most events is free. For more information, call Multicultural Student Services at 231-1029.

The full schedule of events is attached.

Paul Boswell

Director

Multicultural Student Services

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Navajo Codetalkers historian to speak at NDSU Oct. 30

Zonnie Gorman, historian for the famous Navajo Codetalkers, will speak on the NDSU campus on Wednesday, Oct. 30, as part of the university's second annual Cultural Awareness Month series.

Gorman will present an abbreviated version of her full lecture during a YMCA of NDSU Brown Bag Seminar at 2 p.m. in the Rose Room, Memorial Union, and the complete, multi-media version at 7:30 p.m. in Festival Concert Hall, Reineke Fine Arts Center. The evening talk will include clips from the 2002 motion picture, "Windtalkers."

Gorman, who is a member of the Navajo Nation, will relate the true story of the Codetalkers, a secret group of U.S. Marines who were mostly Navajo Indians and used their native tongue to baffle Japanese forces during World War II.

Her father, Carl Gorman, was one of the original 29 Navajo Codetalkers. Overall, there were 400 Codetalkers from at least 15 tribes, and 110 are still living. Out of the first group, there are only five left; Gorman's father died in 1998, at the age of 90.

"I feel privileged to have grown up with this history and to have the ability to share it," Zonnie Gorman said. "I feel these men deserve all the recognition they have gotten and will continue to get even when they are gone. Their story is one of courage, patriotism and irony - one that exemplifies native people's ability to rise above adversity and to persevere."

The movie, "Windtalkers," will be screened in Century Theatre, Memorial Union, at 6 and 8:30 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 28 and 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 29. Directed by John Woo ("Mission Impossible 2"), the action-packed adventure tells the story of a band of battle-weary Marines assigned to guard the Navajo Codetalkers. The film stars Nicolas Cage, Christian Slater, and, as one of the young Codetalkers, American Indian actor Adam Beach. "Windtalkers" is made available through NDSU Campus Attractions.

"Although the movie did not do as well as Hollywood had hoped, I believe it has raised awareness," Gorman said. "The biggest criticism I've heard about the movie is that there was not enough about the Navajo people and the Codetalkers' story. People expected a more historical portrayal, a more human interest story. John Woo is known for his action films and that's what he gave the audience. However, I give Woo a lot of credit for even taking on the subject."

In addition to NDSU, Gorman is scheduled to present talks on the Concordia College and Minnesota State University Moorhead campuses. Her appearance on our campus is made possible through the joint sponsorship of Multicultural Student Services, International Programs, and a Cooperative Sponsorship Grant. Arrangements for Gorman's appearance were made through the Program Corporation of America, White Plains, New York.

For more information, call Multicultural Student Services at 231-1029.

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If you are planning to attend the GLBT Rights Workshop in Bismarck next Saturday, please let me know so we can have a "head count" for arrangements.

Larry R. Peterson, Ph.D.

Professor and Chair

Department of History

Minard Hall 412J

Box 5075

North Dakota State University

Fargo, North Dakota 58105-5075

Phone 701-231-8824

Fax 701-231-1047

email Larry.R.Peterson@ndsu.nodak.edu

lpeterso@i29.net (home)

http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/history

http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/ndsu/lpeterso/

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Do you have a Program, Announcement, Update or Resource that you would like shared on our weekly PAUR report? If so, please send an email to Lesa Caskey and we will do our best to accommodate you.

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