We Will Speak

The Cherokee language is deeply tied to Cherokee identity; yet generations of assimilation efforts by the U.S. government and anti-Indigenous stigmas have forced the Tri-Council of Cherokee tribes to declare a State of Emergency for the language in 2019. While there are 430,000 Cherokee citizens in the three federally recognized tribes, fewer than an estimated 2,000 fluent speakers remain—the majority of whom are elderly. The covid pandemic has unfortunately hastened the course. Language activists, artists, and the youth must now lead the charge of urgent radical revitalization efforts to help save the language from the brink of extinction.

Cast

Keli Gonzales Self

Carolyn Swepston Self

Schon Duncan Self

Marion Scraper Self

Eda Scraper Self

Durbin Feeling Self

Clifton Petit Self

Weynema Smith Self

David Crawler Self

Betty Frogg Self

Clara Proctor Self

Cora Flute Self

Metadata from the source database.