We wish to honor the spirit and legacy of John Trudell for future generations to come. The Pines would like to thank Faye Brown, Missy Whiteman, and all of John's family & loved ones. "Time Dreams" was born from the collaboration between John Trudell & The Pines, words & music, as the last track from the 2016 record "Above The Prairie". The “Time Dreams” video is a collaboration between The Pines and writer, director and producer Missy Whiteman of Independent Indigenous Film and Media. Whiteman, of the Northern Arapaho and Kickapoo Nations, is a director and digital media consultant who’s currently working on a sci-fi/docu-narritive short film titled The Coyote Way: Going Back Home. Footage from this project appears in the video, along with clips from the incendiary 2005 documentary Trudell, produced and directed by Heather Rae. Jonathan Thunder contributes animation to the video, which also features a special appearance by Missy’s son Louis Whiteman representing the younger generation’s connection to Trudell’s message. Louis signs the words “Friend, Together and Peace in Plains American Indian Sign Language, a rare and ancient Indigenous form of communication. John Trudell was one of the leaders for the Indian of All Tribes Occupation of Alcatraz in 1969, ran Radio Free Alcatraz, and went on to serve as Chairman of the American Indian Movement (AIM) from 1973-1979. On February 11, 1979, he burned an American flag on the steps of the F.B.I J. Edgar Hoover building in Washington D.C., explaining that he had been taught in the military to burn the flag once it had been desecrated; and that the US government’s treatment of Native Americans, and the country’s classism and racism had desecrated the flag. About 12 hours after the flag incident, in the early morning of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, a fire “of suspicious origin” burned down Trudell’s home on the Shoshone Palute reservation in Nevada, killing Trudell’s pregnant wife, Tina, their three children and Tina’s mother. The F.B.I. declined to investigate, and the blaze was officially ruled an “accident.” He turned his tears into writing poetry and later, music and acting. He released several volumes of poetry and appearing in such films as Thunderheart and Smoke Signals. He also recorded several highly regarded albums combining spoken word and music. A lifelong activist and human rights advocate, he was quoted as saying “I’m just a human being trying to make it in a world that is rapidly losing its understanding of being human.” Whiteman says, “‘Time Dreams’ honors the life and legacy of John Trudell in a way that speaks to the hearts of all people.” For information on The Pines, please visit: http://www.thepinesmusic.com |