The Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian Announces 'Mother Earth' in the Spirit of the Live Earth Concerts July 7

    WASHINGTON, July 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Smithsonian's
 National Museum of the American Indian announced that it will host a
 special concert event called "Mother Earth" Saturday, July 7, with musical
 performances and speakers from the scientific and American Indian cultural
 communities in the spirit of the Live Earth message. Live Earth is a
 24-hour, seven-continent concert series that will bring together more than
 100 music artists to raise awareness about climate change. As part of this
 environmental message, the museum will make the broadcast of Mother Earth
 available to Live Earth.
     "There is no more important matter before us than the question of how
 to live sustainably on the Earth," said Tim Johnson (Mohawk), acting
 director of the museum. "As an institution of living cultures, the National
 Museum of the American Indian is committed to elevating human understanding
 of global climate change through education and cultural performances."
     The concert is free and open to the public. It will take place on the
 museum's Welcome Plaza at 4th Street and Independence Avenue SW, facing the
 U.S. Capitol. Mother Earth will begin with an opening ceremony at 10:30
 a.m. immediately followed by the concert's first act, Blues Nation, an
 Oklahoma- based rhythm and blues band. Native American rock, funk, punk,
 reggae, gospel and Andean music; films; and guest speakers will fill out
 the day ending with a finale by Blues Nation at 9:30 p.m.
     Schedule of Events:
 
     10:30 a.m. Opening Ceremony and Welcome with Blues Nation. Remarks by
                guest speakers:
                Henrietta Mann, Ph.D. (Cheyenne and member of the Cheyenne and
                Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma), professor emeritus and special
                assistant to the president of Montana State University in
                Bozeman, Mont.; Katsi Cook (Akwesasne Mohawk Nation),
                traditional midwife and founding director of the First
                Environment Project, a social-justice program with field
                operations in N.Y. and Washington, D.C.
 
     11:30 a.m. Native Roots, reggae band from Albuquerque, N.M.
 
     12:15 p.m. Remarks by guest speakers: Daniel Wildcat, Ph.D., professor at
                Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, Kan. and co-
                director of the Haskell Environmental Research Studies Center;
                Henrietta Mann; and Katsi Cook
 
     12:30 p.m. Yarina (Kichua), traditional and contemporary Andean music and
                dance from Boston, Mass.
 
     1:30 p.m.  Film: "The Trail of Tears: Cherokee Legacy." Rasmuson Theater
                (Note: During the film there will be no performances on the
                Welcome Plaza stage.)
 
     3 p.m.     Trail of Tears discussion with Chad Smith, Principal Chief of
                the Cherokee Nation of Okla., Rasmuson Theater
 
     3:45 p.m.  The Plateros (Dine), rock-tinged gospel from Canoncito, N.M.
 
     4:30 p.m.  The Breaking Wind, rock, funk, and blues from Canada's Six
                Nations Reserve in Ontario
 
     5:15 p.m.  Remarks by guest speakers: Nancy G. Maynard, Ph.D., senior
                research scientist in the Cryospheric Sciences Branch at NASA
                Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. and manager of
                NASA's Tribal College and University Project; and Anthony D.
                Socci, Ph.D., senior science and communication fellow in the
                Atmospheric Policy Program at the American Meteorological
                Society in Washington, D.C.
 
     5:30 p.m.  Blues Nation, original and standard blues from Okla.
 
     6:30 p.m.  The Reddmen, punk rock band from Rapid City, S.D.
 
     7:15 p.m.  Native Roots
 
     8 p.m.     Yarina
 
     8:45 p.m.  The Reddmen
 
     9:30 p.m.  Closing remarks by Henrietta Mann and Katsi Cook. Musical
                finale with Blues Nation and friends.
     The schedule is subject to change. For updates, visit the Museum's Web
 site at http://www.AmericanIndian.si.edu/motherearth/.
     The broadcast portion of Mother Earth is being produced by Herring
 Media Group, Inc. of Connecticut, (HMG). HMG Chairman and CEO Marc Herring,
 said, "It is an honor and privilege to work with the Smithsonian's National
 Museum of the American Indian and to collaborate with Live Earth to present
 this important program and to celebrate a new era of ecology awareness."
     Established in 1989, through an Act of Congress, the Smithsonian's
 National Museum of the American Indian is an institution of living cultures
 dedicated to advancing knowledge and understanding of the life, languages,
 literature, history and arts of the Native peoples of the Western
 Hemisphere. The museum includes the National Museum of the American Indian
 on the National Mall; the George Gustav Heye Center, a permanent museum in
 lower Manhattan; and the Cultural Resources Center, a research and
 collections facility in Suitland, Md.
 
 

SOURCE Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian