Sovereign Nation, Sovereign Neighbor

Sovereign Nation, Sovereign Neighbor Synopsis

More About Sovereign Nation/Sovereign Neighbor from Director and Producer Kendall Moore
Sovereign Nation/Sovereign Neighbor explores the word 'sovereignty' from the Narragansett Indian point of view. In this seven-minute short film, tribe members voice how legacies of state and federal action and laws have encouraged or discouraged understanding between the tribe and the state of Rhode Island. The making of the film was inspired by the need to understand the legal justifications behind the 2003 Narragansett Smoke Shop Raid in Charlestown, Rhode Island. Since the making of the film, the Narragansett tribe has continued their fight for its right to function as a sovereign nation. In December 2006, the tribe appealed to the Federal Supreme Court to have its case heard, which was denied. In January 2007, court cases began for the members of the tribe who were arrested for assault and resisting arrest in the Rhode Island Smoke Shop Raid. So far, one member of the tribe has won his case against the state and was awarded over $300,000 in damages.