The 2nd Annual Thangs Taken: rethinking thanksgiving Event

THE FREE LAND PROJECT PRESENTS THE 2ND ANNUAL THANGS TAKEN: RETHNIKING THANKSGIVING CULTURAL EVENT. THANGS TAKEN IS A PEOPLE’S HOLIDAY EVENT FEATURING MUSIC, POETRY, FILM, THEATRE, AND LIVE ART. THANGS TAKEN WILL BE HELD SUNDAY NOVEMBER 18, 2007 7 PM AT LA PENA CULTURAL CENTER, 3105 SHATTUCK AVE. BERKELEY, CA. THANGS TAKEN IS A PART OF LA PENA’S HECHO EN CALIFAS FESTIVAL. FOR MORE INFORMATION GO TO http://WWW.LAPENA.ORG

Berkeley, CA November 5, 2007— Thangs Taken: rethinking thanksgiving is an annual cultural event that brings artists, activists, and communities together to explore the complex history of Thanksgiving and to acknowledge the legacy of United States colonialism and genocide against Native Americans. Produced by the Free Land Project, Thangs Taken features live music, dance, film, spoken word poetry, hip hop theater, and visual art installations from Native and non-Native artists. Grounded in grassroots activism, Thangs Taken also features leaders from local social and environmental justice organizations to provide information on current campaigns and concrete ways to take creative community action. With the arts at the center, people from diverse backgrounds gather to engage in a critical dialogue about the impact of Thanksgiving and to stand in our collective power to create a world based in peace and justice for which we can truly be thankful.

This people’s holiday event features Ariel Luckey’s solo hip hop theater show Free Land and music by Ras K’Dee and One Struggle. The film Shellmound will be screened with Director Andres Cediel speaking. Octavio de la Paz will be creating live art. The event will also feature special guests: Jimbo Simmons with the International Indian Treaty Council, Corrina Gould with Indian People Organizing for Change, and Morning Star Gali with the Coalition to Protect Sacred Sites.

Free Land is an innovative hip hop theater solo show written and performed by Ariel Luckey, directed by Margo Hall, and scored by Ryan Luckey. The show follows a young white man’s search for his roots as it takes him from the streets of Oakland to the prairies of Wyoming on an unforgettable journey that will change him forever. During an interview with his grandfather he learns that their beloved family ranch was actually a Homestead, a free land grant from the government. Haunted by the past, he’s compelled to dig deeper into the history of the land, only to come face to face with the legacy of theft and genocide in the Wild Wild West. Caught between the romantic cowboy tales of his childhood and the devastating reality of what he learns, he grapples with the contradictions in his own life and the possibility for justice and reconciliation. Free Land challenges us to take an unflinching look at the truth buried in the land beneath our feet.

Thangs Taken: rethinking thanksgiving
Sunday November 18, 2007 7pm $10-25 sliding scale
La Peña Cultural Center 3105 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley CA.