The winner of the 2016 Button Poetry Video Contest – My Once Life by Pamela J. Peters
Link to Poem: (click to watch)
My Once Life by Pamela J. Peters by Button Poetry
My Once Life is a hybrid video poem about the continuing impact of colonization on tribal peoples. Native people resist their violent history and contemporary political struggles through engaging with deep historical knowledge and creating new oral histories. I asked my native female friends to read my poem for a few reason; one is that I want to show the diversity of tribal nations living in Los Angeles, and secondly, to show the passion and collective connection we have as Indigenous women to our tribal history.
The poem is read by 12 Native women living in Los Angeles whose strong voices embody empowerment : Nanabah Hill, (Navajo-Oneida), Diana Terrazas, (Paiute), JaNae Collins, (Dakota-Crow), Xelt’tia Temryss Lane, (Lummi Nation), Viki Eagle, Sicanqu (Lakota-Sioux), Cheyenne Phoenix, (Northern Paiute-Navajo), Stephanie Mushrush, (Washoe Tribe), Hakekta Winyan Jealous Of Him (Lakota), Chrissie Castro, (Navajo), Neyom Friday, (Cheyenne-Arapaho and Mskoke Creek), Vivian Garcia, (Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma), and Deja Jones, (Eastern Shoshone).
Pamela J. Peters 