Page 9 - December 2002 • Southern California Gaming Guide

Agua Caliente Tribe Supplements Military Pay for Employees
Richard M. Milanovich, Tribal Chairman of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians announced early in November that the tribe would supplement the salaries of its employees who are called to active military duty. So that employees will not suffer a nancial loss while serving in the U.S. military, the Tribe will make up the difference in pay for those employees who serve in the military and receive less than their Agua Caliente paycheck. The policy affects both personnel who are currently serving, as well as employees who may be called to serve in the future, and covers employees from all the Tribes’ enterprises.
The Tribe has a long-standing tradition of community involvement. Milanovich said, “When we give back to the community, whether through nancial contributions or by serving in the military as our employees do, we strengthen the community. And a strong community is good for the Tribe as well as the entire region.”
Twenty-Nine Palms Band of
Mission Indians Holds
Winter Gathering Pow Wow
The Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians will hold their sixth annual Winter Gathering Pow Wow from December 6-8 on the grounds of Trump 29 Casino in Coachella. The pow wow has been expanded this year to
three days. A celebration of Native American traditions,
the Winter Gathering Pow Wow features dancers from Mexico, Canada and across the United States, drum groups from throughout the country and Canada, and a wide variety of food booths, plus an excellent display of Native American arts and
crafts. For more information contact committee members Brandy GoodBuffalo and Earl Thomas at 760-775-3239, or Robert Paull at 760-775-2852.
Native American Life, Cinema Illuminated at
the 27th Annual American Indian Film Festival
The American Indian Film Institute (AIFI) presented its 27th annual American Indian Film Festival in November in San Francisco, including the American Indian Motion Picture Awards. Native American producers, performers, and writers gathered to present more than 50 feature, documentary, and short lms by, for, and about American Indians and Canada’s First Nations. As the nation’s oldest and prestigiousvenueforAmericanIndiancinemaandentertainment,theAIFFhas earned a national reputation for excellence and integrity.
The AIFF is a non-pro t media arts center to raise awareness about issues, traditions, and culture of contemporary Native Americans. Founded in 1979 with late actor Will Sampson [One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest], the AIFI uses lm as a tool to preserve and record our heritage; a vehicle for Indians and non-Indians alike to “unlearn”
damaging stereotypes and replace them with multi-faceted images that portray the complexity of Native peoples. Presently, AIFI is the major Native American media and cultural arts presenter in California, and its festival is the world’s oldest and most recognized international lm exposition
dedicated to American Indians in cinema.
The 2002 lm festival sponsors included the San Manuel
Band of Mission Indians, Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians, Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians, Santa Ynez Band of Indians, Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Indians,
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GAMING GUIDE
Jackson Rancheria, Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians, Fox Entertainment Group, California Lottery, San Francisco Film Video Arts Commission, California Arts Council, National
&
Endowment for the Arts and others.
December 2002 Page 9
Tribes in the News