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Overlooked & Underrated Docs & Features
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Sisters Rising: Ending Violence Against Native American Women
“Sisters Rising” features six Native American women who are fighting back against systemic violence against their sisters.
Four out of five Native American women have experienced violence. One out of three will be raped. Native American women are 2.5 times more likely to experience sexual assault than all other American women. Most of the perpetrators are non-Native men. A federal statute disallows Native Americans from prosecuting acts of violence against Native Americans that occur on tribal land—a dirty little trick non-Native men know about.
This story is set in the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, North Dakota, which includes three affiliated tribes: Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nations.
The six inspiring sisters are:
Dawn White
Sarah Deer
Loreline Lacroix
Lisa Brunner
Chalsey Snyder
Patty Stonefish
The documentary is produced, directed and shot by Willow O’Feral and Brad Heck. The soundtrack is by Allison Leialoha Milham. (I’m a big fan of music composed for movies of all ilk.)
“Sisters Rising” is a disturbing, powerful film that shines a light on systemic violence against Native American women—and seeds hope via the empowerment of sisters by sisters.
You can support efforts to end the violence by contributing to: