June 12, 2014
For Immediate Release:

SovereignBodies.com Launches to Advance
Native Women's Access to Health Services

www.SovereignBodies.com
Lincoln, Neb.: Vision Maker Media has teamed up with the producers of Young Lakota for the release of www.SovereignBodies.com. It is a transmedia project that tackles disparity in Native women's access to health services.

The team that produced Young Lakota--featured on ITVS's Independent Lens--launched the site to provide a platform for Native-led work. It is their hope that the project will ignite important, new conversations around the struggle for reproductive justice and bodily sovereignty, bringing unique perspectives into the mainstream dialogue on human rights and social justice.

A collection of video interviews and blogs are presented by Native leaders in the field of health services, as well as young female writers who share their personal stories. Featured contributors include Katrina Cantrell, an abortion advocate for Native women in California and
Cecilia Fire Thunder, who defied proposed North Dakota legislation by vowing to build a banned women's clinic on her reservation.

"It's about working against any law that affects me and my reproductive system," says Fire Thunder, "because that belongs to me."

Recent laws, including the Violence Against Women Act of 2013, aim at protecting Native American women, but many view this as only a small measure and are calling for greater legislation to address the decades of neglect that have disadvantaged Native women. On reservations, sexual assault has become a norm, with women facing the horrific reality that 1 in 3 Native women will be raped, over double the national average. Victims of assault are further traumatized by the struggle to obtain care, including access to rape kits, emergency contraception, and safe birth control.

With major funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Vision Maker Media supports new media, research & development, production, and post-production initiatives through the Public Media Content Fund (www.visionmakermedia.org/fund).  
 
Join the conversation by following Incite Pictures on Facebook, facebook.com/YoungLakota, or on Twitter, twitter.com/YoungLakota; hashtag #SovereignBodies.

Vision Maker Media shares Native stories with the world that represent the cultures, experiences, and values of American Indians and Alaska Natives. Founded in 1977, Vision Maker Media, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) which receives major funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, nurtures creativity for development of new projects, partnerships, and funding. Vision Maker Media is the premier source for quality Native American and Pacific Islander educational and home videos. All aspects of our programs encourage the involvement of young people to learn more about careers in the media--to be the next generation of storytellers. Located at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, we offer student employment and internships. For more information, visit www.visionmakermedia.org.  
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Contact:
Jessica Kinser, Marketing Director
Vision Maker Media
jessica.kinser@unl.edu | 402-472-8607
 

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