At the premiere showing in San Francisco at the American Indian Film Festival, left to right: Steve Michelson, DVD producer; Leaf Hillman, Vice-Chair, Karuk Tribe; Lyle Marshall, Chair, Hoopa Valley Tribe; Merk Oliver, Yurok Tribe; Ray Matz, Yurok Tribe; Stephen Most, author of
River of Renewal
(book and film). Photo by Thomas B. Dunklin
The Klamath River, in all of its beauty and turmoil, runs through the consciousness of many. And it’s always in the news: fish dying, parasites swarming, dams dropping (perhaps), farmers shaking hands with fishermen, powers-that-be talking.
So we just wanted to remind you of several screenings this week and weekend of River of Renewal. The 54-minute documentary directed by Carlos Bolado is based on Stephen Most’s book
River of Renewal: Myth and History in the Klamath Basin.
The film won Best Documentary Feature at the
2008 American Indian Film Festival
. Covering the territory from the farms in the dry upper basin on down the river to the ocean, it tells the story of the water war and ecological crises in the Klamath Basin through the eyes of Jack Kohler — a Welsh-Yurok/Karuk who grew up in San Francisco.
The screenings:
Today, Feb. 5, 5:30-7 p.m.
at Founders Hall 118 at Humboldt State University. Stephen Most will be there.
Friday, Feb. 6, 6 p.m.
at the Yurok Tribal Headquarters in Klamath. Most will be there to answer questions. And, Troy Fletcher, the Yurok Tribe’s Policy Analyst and lead negotiator in the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement talks, will talk about those negotiations as well about the recent Agreement in Principle between the stakeholders and federal and state leaders to remove the dams.
Saturday, Feb. 7, 7 p.m.
at the College of the Redwoods campus in Crescent City. Fisheries geo-videologist Thomas B. Dunklin — the guy who took that incredible photo of a Pacific lamprey
on the cover of our paper
last week — will be screening some salmon footage before the documentary.
Sunday, Feb. 8, 7 p.m.
at Westhaven Center for the Arts at 7 pm.
This article appears in Love me, I’m a Lamprey.
Merk Oliver has poached elk at Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park.
For over 70 years Merc Oliver has striven to live the Yurok Way. I can not comment on whether or not Merc ever took an elk at Prairie Creek. But I will note that Yuroks have been taking elk along Prairie Creek long before the European invaders arrived and even longer before the State of California made a park and banned hunting in that park.