Summary

She:kon sewa'kwe:kon! Greetings everyone! Reclaim Turtle Island needs your help!

I'm Amanda, a young Haudenosaunee woman fighting against tar sands expansion in my territories, in particular the Line 9 and Energy East pipelines. In early October, with the help of subMedia, we launched reclaimturtleisland.com, and released the short film, Kahsatstenhsera: Indigenous Resistance to Tar Sands Pipelines, which focuses on our resistance in northeastern Turtle Island.

Reclaim Turtle Island is a grassroots radical media project that works to develop resources to build capacity for Indigenous sovereigntist and anticolonial struggles in Turtle Island. So, later in October our primary focus was delivering support for the Mi'kmaq Warrior Society who were toe to toe against the state and a fracking company as they stood up for their land, waters and peoples. Some of this work included getting the word out about Warriors' treatment in jail, including supporting a Mi'kmaq Warriors fight against solitary confinement and having the honour to share the call to #ShutDownCanada. In 2014 the resistance continues, and we would like to continue supporting the active decolonization of so-called North America by elevating the voices of frontline land defenders and building support for grassroots Indigenous resistance to colonial-capitalism.

For this we need you. This crowd-funding initiative is to ensure that RTI has the equipment necessary to produce high-quality video, from shooting interviews to post-production editing, and our work will always be available for free online. In early 2014, we want to bring you stories of resiliance and inspiration from the Dine who are protecting sacred sites and fighting against the mining of uranium. We want to connect with the Ponca who are fiercely resisting tar sands pipelines and unearth some of the histories of colonization in the southwest. We want to bring a land defender from the heart of the tar sands to Lakota territory where they are resisting tar sands infrastructure across their Nation. We want to support the Innu resistance against Plan Nord and continue to nurture the roots of Indigenous liberation in northeastern Turtle Island. Our focus is Indigenous resistance for Indigenous people and Reclaim is more than a media project. Reclaim Turtle Island also directly engages in struggle against resource extraction as well as builds a network of land defenders across our territories. We are bringing eachother together with stories of resistance: to learn, to share and to better fight back. Please support this initiative and encourage support from your friends. #2014WarriorUp

What We Need & What You Get

In order to deliver grassroots media productions, it is so important to have our own equipment. This will save us hundreds of thousands of dollars in the longterm, so that way we don't waste resources on renting equipment. Film is one of the most accessible mediums out there, it allows people to tell their own stories in their own words and captures more than just words. The production costs include all 4 projects, which focus on different Nations' protection of their territories.

• Estimated costs for beginners film gear (audio, video, editing): $6000
• Travel accomodations for a land defender from the Athabasca tar sands to attend gathering in Lakota territory: $2200
  
• Production costs (travel, support for production crew): $6500
• Mail out and materials for perks: $300
  
• Total of $15000

Don't forget to claim a perk!!

The Impact

The short term impact will make available really important resources that ensure self-representation and the fostering of decolonizing and anticolonial cultural production. This is crucial to help stoke the embers of Indigenous resistance across our territories, so we can share our struggles, stories, strategies and visions for a reclaimed Turtle Island. Fostering cultures of resistance takes community, and as land defenders we must build community together. Being able to share our struggles with the world and garner outside support when it is necessary, as well as simply educating our own people and communities on the frontline at home is absolutely essential.

Not only can we create educational tools and foster anticolonial and decolonized minds and attitudes, but we can also continue to build a network of land defenders to hold eachother up. So many of us are fighting similar creatures: SunCor, Enbridge, TransCanada, Cameco, Valero and many others - if we are able to connect eachother,  we can connect our struggles and hit harder, together.

On a long term basis Reclaim Turtle Island hopes to be a project that can facilitate media skill sharing for Indigenous youth to continue to amplify our voices and encourage eachother to continue to defend our lands.

The goal of this project is to build capacity for long term movement building and share a culture of resistance and decolonization. If any part of it is successful, it is truly impossible to fully imagine the impacts.

Other Ways You Can Help

Please spread the word about this initiative! There is such a strong need for a project like this to exist, and it is only possible when the resources are available to impacted communities. So please share and tell your friends! Niawen'kowa - great thanks - for your continued support!!

Follow Reclaim Turtle Island on Twitter @defendourlands, and on Facebook. Check out our film and sign up to our mailing list to keep getting updates. If you are a settler on stolen land, figure out what that means and support frontline land defenders however you can, on their terms.