I've been working on our original website Oyate Ta Olowan.We've been working on adding digital downloads to the site, but it's still a challenge. Oyate is a public radio series that we did on traditional Native American music. We did 52 half hour shows and traveled over 100,000 miles collecting music from all over the Americas. It was a while ago, but people still seem to love it, so we keep offering the shows for sale.
It's all a part of our little press Many Kites Press. Life is so amazing, and so full, but we keep on trucking. I hope things are going well for all of you, and that continue to create wonderful things. Later, Milt Lee
Well, it’s been quite a year. We moved to Minnesota, and built a strawbale house. More of a cabin than a house. It seems big, but it’s really only 460 sq. feet, so I suppose that isn’t the biggest thing a person could build. Wow, what bunch of work, but totally worth it. So much fun, and so much beer. You know, I am just amazed to think that it could be so much fun to be living in a town of 860 people. Honestly, we had more visitors, and spent more time socializing than we have in the last 10 years. So crazy. And Jamie’s family is just wonderful. Her brothers are so helpful, and insightful that I would go to bed at night just shaking my head. How could these guys know so much, and be so good and helpful. Rick, Jeff, and Jim Baird were there whenever we needed.
Well, we are back in Rapid for few months – unfortunately we didn’t complete our house before winter set it, but come April, we’ll be back. Can’t wait – I’m counting the days.
The American Experience segment – Wounded Knee is coming up soon, and I thought it might be a good time to listen to a documentary on WK that we did in 1993 – 20 years after the takeover.
This piece, A Song For Wounded Knee, won a Golden Reel from the National Federation of Community Broadcasters. It was produced by Milt Lee and Jamie Lee for PRI, KILI Radio in Porcupine SD, and aired on AIROS. The hour long documentary looks at the background surrounding the takeover and goes deeply into the tribal politics that served as the stew that AIM ( the American Indian Movement) was brought into. Gerald One Feather, tribal Chairman from 1970 to 1972, remarked that in 20 years, we were the first people who had ever done an interview with him, which I found amazing since it was the actions of his administration that led to the 71 day siege at Wounded Knee.
I’ve been working on a new trailer for Video Letters From Prison. We went to a wonderful workshop with Fernanda Rossi who told us about how to make a good trailer. I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think about it.
Last week, we started an interview of Jackie Swanson, an 8th grade writing teacher at North Middle School, in Rapid City, South Dakota. During the interview, Jackie told us how she started using The Writer’s Workshop as a model for teaching her students. This week, we get to see the actual students, as Jackie interacts in class. It’s amazing to see, and I hope that this could be come one of the ways to transform our educational system. Next week, a short piece on what it would take to actually change the way that our children are taught. But this week, let’s just be inspired.
I've been working on our original website 
