Dana and cinematographer Taiming YuenJames have been filming a music video of Dana’s song Ride The Lawn. The video will be released in the summer of 2023.
Cows With Guns Animation
Dana’s Music Video: The Great Salish Sea
“The Great Salish Sea” is written from the perspective of the 104-year-old matriarch “Granny” of the resident orcas and depicts how the sounds of boats have changed over the last century, from Native American canoes to large sailing ships, and now to today’s giant freighters and tankers.
I hope the video will help raise awareness of the effects of large ship noise on the orcas and the dangers posed to our beautiful Salish Sea region (Washington, Oregon, British Columbia) by proposals to export huge amounts of fossil fuels through our region by rail, pipeline, and ship.
Chosen By My People
“Chosen By My People” is a call to action to save the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the Gwich’in Indians’ subsistence way of life. This is an extremely important human rights and environmental issue.
Filmed in the summer of 2016 in Arctic Village, Alaska by world-renowned nature and wildlife photographer Florian Schulz, “Chosen By My People” tells the story of the struggle to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from oil drilling.
The Gwich’in Indians – or the caribou people – have lived in unity with the Porcupine Caribou Herd of Northern Alaska for thousands of years. These caribou migrate each year to the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in order to give birth and raise their young. The coastal plain remains vulnerable to oil drilling. This drilling would threaten both the Porcupine Caribou herd by eliminating their calving grounds and the Gwich’in people, who depend on the caribou to sustain their subsistence way of life. This is an extremely important human rights and environmental issue and has implications for climate change.
About the Video
“Chosen by My People” was written and performed by Dana Lyons. Dana has been traveling to the Arctic and speaking out to protect it since 1989. Dana was initially invited to Arctic Village by Gwich’in leader Sarah James (featured in the video preparing caribou meat).
The Arctic Wildlife Refuge is home to the porcupine caribou herd, which numbers well over 100,000. The proposed oil drilling would occur where the caribou have their calves, which will endanger or destroy the herd, and destroy the Gwich’in subsistence hunting way of life.
The Story Behind “Chosen By My People”
I’ve had the honor of visiting my friend and Gwich’in leader Sarah James numerous times since 1989, during the long struggle to protect the Arctic Wildlife Refuge from oil drilling. In June 2001, I attended an emergency meeting about the Refuge in Arctic Village, Alaska attended by hundreds of Indigenous and environmental leaders from across North America. Arctic Village had recently elected 25-year-old Evon Peter as chief. I was moved by the way Evon worked with the elders and the leaders, and the enormous responsibility placed on this young leader: his people’s way of life could be destroyed by oil drilling on his watch.
Filming of the Video
“Chosen by My People” was filmed at sunset in the tundra outside Sarah James’ home in Arctic Village, Alaska. Filmed by Florian Schulz and Jake Soplanda, sound by Carl Battreall. http://www.visionsofthewild.com/
Dana is playing a backpacking guitar by Early Winters.
Salmon Come Home
I am happy to announce the release of my new music video “Salmon Come Home,” directed by Gary Washington, with Alaskan wildlife and scenic footage by Daniel Zatz. “Salmon Come Home” was written to raise awareness about two proposed mines in Alaska: the Chuitna River Mine & the Pebble Mine.
Watch “Salmon Come Home” Chuitna River Mine version
Watch “Salmon Come Home” Pebble Mine version
The proposed Chuitna River Mine (60 miles west of Anchorage across the Cook Inlet in Tyonek, Alaska) would dig up thirteen miles of a salmon river, 300 feet down, thus destroying the salmon habitat there which provides salmon for the Athabaskan People living in the region and for the commercial fishing industry. The Pebble Mine (Bristol Bay) would create a gold and copper mine in the spawning grounds of the largest remaining salmon run on Earth, also destroying the salmon run for the Native Peoples and fishing industry.
I am releasing two versions of the video, one for the Chuitna campaign, and one for the Pebble Mine campaign. Both versions contain the same video and music, with different introductions and endings.
Purchase “Salmon Come Home” song on CD or download on iTunes: http://www.cowswithguns.