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Keep Talking: Culture is Home, Language is Key
On Wednesday, November 6, the New Bedford Whaling Museum screens "Keep Talking (Niugaa Yugaa)," an award-winning documentary celebrating the sustained efforts of a vibrant, multigenerational Alaska Native community committed to revitalizing their Alutiiq language and culture.
This film is part of a series of Native Stories from the Pacific to the Arctic, presented in conversation with The Wider World & Scrimshaw exhibition on view at the New Bedford Whaling Museum’s June 14, 2024, through November 11, 2024.
About the Film
Directed by Karen Lynn Weinberg, Keep Talking follows four Alaska Native women fighting to save Kodiak Alutiiq, an endangered language now spoken by less than 40 remaining fluent Native Elders. Their small community travels to remote Afognak Island to start teaching kids Alutiiq. Sadie, 13, is inspired to begin learning the language and dances of her ancestors. Instead of getting swept up in the wake of historical trauma, these women overcome personal demons and build toward a brighter future. Keep Talking reveals the ultimate impact of language and culture revitalization: joy and hope.
Keep Talking asks fundamental questions about the impact of language on historical trauma, healing, community, and identity. When a language dies, that worldview is essentially erased from the collective lexicon of human thought. It is up to us to decide how we feel about this, as languages are dying off at an unprecedented rate. Globally, UNESCO estimates that one language dies every two weeks.
Event Links
Tickets: https://go.evvnt.com/2668061-0
