by Houston R. Cypress,
Coordination Circle, Love The Everglades Movement

The Film, Recording & Entertainment Council (link) is one of South Florida’s most important economic development organizations serving the Entertainment Industry and over the weekend FREC held its 11th Annual Star Gala recognition ceremony at the Magic City Casino.

The Star Gala (link) recognizes industry professionals and organizations whose careers and bodies of work establish South Florida as a significant region for developing a career in this commercial sector.  There is a thriving community of people here in South Florida and it is important to note just who they are and what they have done.

The nature of entertainment necessarily highlights those on stage, or in front of the camera, or in the spotlight, and so the unique work of the Star Gala is to highlight the talent and expertise of those behind-the-scenes.  The types of categories that this event notes include the work of choreographers, lawyers, recording executives, producers, directors, make-up artists, casting directors, recording studios, up-and-coming talent, and so many more.

Love The Everglades Movement, like FREC, is a member-driven organization.  Our work is concerned with offering opportunities for people to connect with the Everglades and thereby inspiring positive change in the broader society so that we can achieve goals such as improved water quality in the Florida Everglades.  Many of us are artists, and so the methods that we’ve been using reflect our skills.  We understand how our artistic projects communicate complex messages across multiple dimensions, so we’ve been eager to invite influential people to participate in our excursions and events.  Our understanding of the influential embraces people such as teachers, event planners, spiritual leaders, political organizers, etc.

We also strive to cultivate a community of people concerned with Everglades matters using an approach that is respectful of local mores – which we are discovering is not an easy task.  This work has required us to learn new languages, to go outside of our comfort zones, and to confront obstacles of all types.

LTEM began with a vision that Jean Sarmiento (link) was blessed with as a result of his dedication to his spiritual and ceremonial work.  Since the fall of 2012, our work has evolved:  from Everglades excursions, to art exhibitions, inter-faith prayer rituals, benefit concerts, short films, interviews with print/radio/television/internet media, and an eclectic symposium.

Our Summer Symposium 2014 (link) was the culmination of all of the projects and community networking that we’ve been involved in since our efforts began.  Our program and attendance reflected that.  It was also an event that was free to attend so that there would be no barriers preventing people from getting engaged in Everglades advocacy – FREC took note.

At the Star Gala, event hosts such as Trina Robinson of NBC 6 and world-renowned artist Laurence Gartel took time to highlight my achievements in film, television and art, as well as my community work with the Love The Everglades Movement as a prime reason for the honor.

So, I would like to share this honor with everyone who has been involved with LTEM in one way or another since our work began, including all those who’ve been on our Everglades excursions, everyone who has prayed for the water, all the friends we’ve made in all the different communities that we’ve visited, our benefactors and sponsors, and all the members of the Coordination Circle (link).  Nuff Respect!

Another honoree that was noted for Best Film Festival was Filmgate Interactive (link).  Filmgate is an event that showcases and develops transmedia projects – projects that are expressed across multiple media platforms.  Diliana Alexander, Executive Director for Filmgate, invited LTEM to collaborate on their filmmaking workshop.  Diliana wanted to use her resources to express an environmental and humanitarian concern for the Everglades and the Miccosukee community while providing artists from around the world with an opportunity to hone their skills using cutting-edge technologies.  You can see the result of this collaboration by clicking THIS LINK.

The Star Gala was a blast!  Some of us from the Coordination Circle who attended had an opportunity to rub shoulders with the professionals of the South Florida entertainment industry.  And I had a great time, with Dudley Alexis of Epyllion Films (link), in putting together the tribute video honoring Irene Marie of modeling agency fame for her Lifetime Achievement Award.  Love The Everglades Movement was in great company.

by Dr. Dennis Wiedman & Houston R. Cypress

by Quese IMC and Cempoalli 20,
from their album OSAHWUH.

"The Raven" is a single from the album "OSAHWUH" -- by Quese IMC & Cempoalli 20 -- and the album was released in April of 2013 at the Gathering of Nations Powwow.

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/osahwuh (Link)
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/osahwuh/id647390566 (Link)

The song and the album unites the creative fires of these 2 musical artists -- an evocative and inspirational blend of Indigenous Hip Hop and Turtle Island Reggae.

THE RAVEN music video was born out of an encounter between QUESE IMC, Cempoalli 20 and Houston Cypress deep in the Florida Everglades -- the historic homeland and refuge of the Micccosukee and Seminole people.

The musical artists were visiting the Miccosukee community sharing a message with the youth which emphasized the importance of cultural integrity and maintaining traditions, a healthy and drug-free lifestyle, and how the artistic process can contribute to their personal growth.

"The music video," says Quese IMC, "is about the importance of Earth and how we connect to the Earth and how Earth makes us want to move, jump, dance." He goes on to explain, "people are polluting the Everglades and it is sacred to us."

The locations featured in the video include the following:

- Water Conservation Area 3A -- otherwise known as the Central Everglades, or the River of Grass;
- Otter Clan village on the Miccosukee Reservation;
- Graffiti walls in the Wynwood Arts District of Miami, Florida;
- 7th Circuit Studios, home of the Moksha Family Arts Collective, in the Little Haiti neighborhood of Miami, Florida.

THE RAVEN emerges from the fire, bringing with it a message that unifies different communities, and restores balance to the land and our lives through the power of spirit-infused artistic expressions.

Houston Cypress: "It was important for us to show the grassy waters of the Florida Everglades, and to film in the Otter Clan Village of the Miccosukee Reservation because the poor water quality and the high water levels have a direct and negative impact on the Miccosukee & Seminole way of life. Flooding causes the trees that hold the islands together to drown, and without the root system to hold the islands together, the tree islands literally dissolve. So much life depends on the vitality of the Tree Islands: the plants, the animals, even the Miccosukee society of clans. So, because of this dissolution of the tree islands, you can say that we are losing our roots."

Houston Cypress, Executive Producer of the music video, explains about his production company, "Otter Vision, Inc., explores themes of Culture, History and Environment in all the various projects and formats that I get involved in, whether it's audio-visual forms for film, television, or video. Events, festivals, experimental projects, activism, or spirituality -- it's all concerned with creating 'Portals Between Worlds' and 'Contributing to the Global Discussion' -- these are my creative and spiritual manifestos."

Assisting in the production process, Felipe Marrou with VTM Productions brings decades of experience, with projects distributed on major networks, and for a variety of corporate clients.

Dudley Alexis of Epyllion Films, LLC, oversaw the post-production process. He collaborated with animator Jean Sarmiento to manifest the characters "Buffalo Boy" and "The Raven," based on creative discussions with QUESE IMC and Cempoalli 20.

by Houston R. Cypress,
Coordination Circle, Love The Everglades Movement

The Everglades Caucus recently issued a letter to the US Department of the Interior, the US Department of the Army for the Army Corp of Engineers, and the US Environmental Protection Agency, bringing attention to an on-going and immediate environmental threat to the Everglades:  the L-28 Interceptor Canal -- a canal that brings "dirty water" with high levels of phosphorus onto Federal Reservation Lands.

The Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida maintain traditional villages -- which they use for a number of cultural practices -- in the area that is directly and negatively impacted by this farm runoff.  In fact, their access to sacred sites become impeded by the proliferation of flora spurred by the fertilizer runoff.

The image at the top of this document illustrates the impact of high and unnatural levels of Phosphorus on the Everglades terrain.  The green areas are the dense overgrowth of cattails and other plants.

The Miccosukee concerns surrounding the L-28 Interceptor Canal are coinciding with a broader discussion on Everglades Restoration, especially as it relates to current events surrounding the Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP).

CEPP is concerned with delivering "New Water" through a series of projects that would bring water from Lake Okeechobee south to Everglades National Park.  As these projects come online over the next decade, there is still the glaring refusal to address the 40% of the total waters coming into the system brought by the L-28 Interceptor Canal.

Today, Miccosukee homelands are being sacrificed for the benefit of Everglades National Park -- as if the Everglades eco-system is limited to the boundaries of the National Park.  As the waters coming into Water Conservation Area 3A make their slow journey south, the high Phosphorus levels are filtered out significantly -- and what this means is that Miccosukee homelands are functioning as a de facto Stormwater Treatment Area.

The Everglades Caucus are not only honoring their Trust Responsibility to the Indigenous Sovereingty, but they are also honoring their commitment to the American Public by speaking up to protect these vital natural resources.

Signatories for the Everglades Caucus include:

• Mario Diaz-Balart
• Alcee Hastings
• Debbie Wasserman Schultz
• Patrick Murphy
• Ted Deutch
• Joe Garcia
• Lois Frankel
• Frederica Wilson

Read the letter in its entirety:

by Houston R. Cypress,
Coordination Circle, Love The Everglades Movement

One of our objectives for the Movement is to advocate for respect of Miccosukee Sovereignty.  This is because the Miccosukee Tribe is one of the few communities who actually live in the Florida Everglades -- so they witness, everyday, the effects of environmental degradation.

By listening to and incorporating the Miccosukee message into our Everglades Advocacy, we begin to do the work of Environmental Justice and express our solidarity with this indigenous community.

The Miccosukee community has a Way of Life that is intimately connected with the vitality of the natural world -- indeed, their philosophy is expressed in a beautiful symbol that is maintained in the heart of every village -- the Circle of Life.

The Miccosukee Tribe has also been an important catalyst for much of the progress achieved so far regarding Everglades Restoration.  This is due in large part to the greater legal framework and promises made by the US Federal Government to the indigenous sovereignties, known as the Federal Trust Responsibility.  Although the historical record reminds us that there has been much discord between the United States and the sovereign indigenous communities of this continent, we can also find evidence of great friendship and prosperity.  So we look forward to honoring our friendships with the Miccosukee community and how we can build on that to achieve environmental/Everglades goals that benefit everyone -- including the people that live there.

Recently, the Miccosukee Chairman, Hon. Colley Billie, addressed the House Interior Appropriations Subcommittee during the Public Witness Hearing on Native American Issues.

Chairman Colley Billie's statement was concerned with Everglades matters, and it's such a revealing statement about Miccosukee concerns for the Everglades, that it's worth sharing in its entirety.

By Houston R. Cypress,
Coordination Circle, Love The Everglades Movement

My name is Yahaletke, aka Houston Cypress and I'm from the Otter Clan of the Miccosukee Tribe, and I'm representing the Love The Everglades Movement.

I live on the Miccosukee Reservation on the border of Everglades National Park and Water Conservation Area 3A.  I maintain ancestral villages in the Central Everglades, on those disappearing hammocks that were mentioned earlier in this meeting -- hammocks where I conduct gardening, hunting, and spiritual practices.

My support of CEPP is buttressed with a critique of the inadequacies of CEPP, it doesn't do enough.

CEPP is a good step forward, but it is inadequate.  We need a holistic view and concerted action when it comes to Everglades matters -- because the Everglades matters.

A holistic view brings us to the Western Basin of the Everglades Agricultural Area and the ongoing and immediate problem of the L-28 Interceptor Canal, which is bringing waters that average 60 parts per billion of Phosphorus and spikes as high as 100 parts per billion of Phosphorus and this is happening every day!

By the time that the waters pass through the Water Conservation Area and arrive at Everglades National Park the waters nearly reach the Holy Grail and target of 10 parts per billion of Phosphorus.

This means that Miccosukee homelands and the Water Conservation Area become a de facto Stormwater Treatment Area.

With such a close margin, there's the potential for waters exceeding the Phosphorus target to enter Everglades National Park.  We must be wary of any requests for waivers to exceed the Phosphorus limit.  No waivers.  No exceedances.

CEPP is about "new water," but what about the 40% of waters being brought into the system by the L-28 Interceptor Canal and the high Phosphorus waters that it delivers?

This seems like the next big project to be undertaken to address the on-going problem of the L-28 Interceptor Canal.

And I also want to admonish the Board and the District for condoning the display of racist imagery with the display of the FSU mascot during the earlier PowerPoint presentation.

We're excited to partner with Ploppy Palace Productions and the inimitable Funkfinder/Activist/Community Organizer, Flash, in support of that event that he's fostered over many years:  the Everglades Benefit Concert.

Stay tuned for more info...
-- Houston R. Cypress, Coordination Circle