'DAWNLAND' documentary and panel discussion set for Nov. 13

The Cinetopia Film Festival and the Washtenaw County Peacemaking Court will present the 86-minute documentary “DAWNLAND,” 7 p.m., Tuesday, November 13, at the Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St., Ann Arbor.

The screening is followed by a post-film panel discussion with Washtenaw County 22nd Circuit Court Judge Timothy Connors, Maine Wabanaki Truth and Reconciliation Commissioner (and on-screen subject) Sandra White Hawk, and other special guests.

White Hawk is a Sicangu Lakota adoptee from the Rosebud Reservation, South Dakota. She is the founder and Director of First Nations Repatriation (FNRI), the first organization of its kind whose goal it is to create a resource for First Nations people impacted by foster care or adoption to return home, reconnect, and reclaim their identity.

For much of the 20th century, social workers stole Native American children from their homes and placed them with white families. They were given new names and forced to act, dress, and talk like white Americans. These methods were an effort to once again wipe Native Americans from our history.

“DAWNLAND” focuses on the recent formation of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission by the Wabanaki tribes and the state of Maine that aims to help those affected by this atrocity. In this eye-opening documentary, their heartbreaking stories are finally told.

Special Cinetopia prices apply – $15/$12 for members.

Tickets are available at https://www.michtheater.org/show/cinetopia-presents-dawnland/.