Latest news with #TashaHubbard
CBC
06-03-2025
- General
- CBC
How wiping out buffalo was a strategy to bring Indigenous people under colonizer control
In the 16th century, it's believed that between 25 and 30 million wild buffalo lived across North America. By 1890, according to some estimates, those once-great herds dwindled to fewer than 300 animals. During the industrial age, buffalo were a valuable commodity — their bones became fine china and fertilizer, while their hide became military boots and machine belts. Diseases passed on from cattle also contributed to their rapid decline. But the actions of governments and the military were also a key factor in the removal of the buffalo from the land, says Cree filmmaker Tasha Hubbard in the video above, an extended clip from Singing Back the Buffalo, a documentary from The Nature of Things. Indigenous people depended on the buffalo for food and vital materials. Without them, people starved and became dependent on the colonizers. "It was genocide of the Buffalo people, done to clear us both off the land and replace us with cattle and settlers," she says. In Singing Back the Buffalo, Hubbard delves into the history of the buffalo in North America, how their eradication affected the Indigenous groups that relied on them, and how Indigenous nations including the Blackfeet, Kainai (Blood Tribe) and Siksika Nations are working to return the buffalo to their ancestral territories through the unique Buffalo Treaty. The video above outlines the history of the buffalo hunt and how the Indigenous Peoples of North America's Great Plains experienced trauma, genocide and loss of independence. "We stopped singing when the buffalo were gone," Hubbard says in the clip. "But our stories and prophecies say the buffalo will come back to us one day."
Axios
20-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Axios
Your D.C. weekend: Smithsonian film festival, Second City LOLs
It's the 10th anniversary of the Smithsonian's annual Mother Tongue Film Festival, and you can celebrate with 10 days of free events kicking off Thursday. Why it matters: The festival is all about films that celebrate our world's diverse array of languages, and how they create connections and tell stories. State of play: In-person programming runs three days — Thursday through Sunday — including 23 films featuring over 25 different languages. Six days of virtual programming follow, from Feb. 24 to March 1. 🎥 Thursday night's kick-off event features a performance by the Native American group The Zotigh Singers, followed by a screening of the film "Singing Back the Buffalo" by Cree filmmaker Tasha Hubbard and a Q&A. (7-9:30pm, National Museum of the American Indian) Other weekend screenings include: a Welsh-language horror film (Friday, 7-9pm), a series of shorts about the legacy-long implications of war (Saturday, 5-6:30pm), and a film about finding love in Norway's Sápmi region (Sunday, 2-4pm). If you go: Weekend events will take place at sites around the National Mall. Screenings are free, and most of the films have English subtitles. More fun things to do this weekend: 🧵Get cultured at a new Renwick exhibit opening Friday that celebrates Black women quilt artists. It's free to visit, and will run through June 22. 🎨 Another new exhibit: A collection of work by Czech artist Alphonse Mucha — known for his 1960s poster art — will be on display at the Phillips Collection starting Saturday and run through May 18. Museum admission is $20 for adults. ❄️ Flurry Fest is Saturday at the Yards, and you can expect wintery activities like a snow throw, cold weather-themed craft stations, and warm bevvies, plus a polar plunge to support Special Olympics D.C. Admission is free. 🍻 Drink local this Saturday in Union Market at District Beer Fest. Tickets start at $35, and get you sips from breweries like Atlas and City-State. Expect live tunes and food for purchase, too. 🤣 Get your giggle on with a Second City improv show at Wolf Trap on Saturday. Move fast — the $48 tickets for the 7pm show are the last available from the weekend-long line-up.
