The Sonoma Student Union InterCultural Center hosts a discussion with author, professor and tribal council leader Greg Sarris at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 24 p.m. in the Cooperage.
By tracing his family history, Sarris will show the intersection of three and more ethnic communities in the area entitled "American Indian, Filipino, and Mexican: A Family Story, A History of Sonoma County."
A screenwriter as well as a novelist, Sarris uses Sonoma County as the setting for his fiction, focusing on Native American ancestors he came to know about when he was in his teens. He learned from elders, in particular from basket maker and tribal "dreamer" Mabel McKay, whose biography he wrote.
A Santa Rosa native and a professor of creative writing and literature at Loyola Marymount University, Sarris has published several books, including the widely anthologized collection of essays, "Keeping Slug Woman Alive; A Holistic Approach to American Indian Texts", "Watermelon Nights", and "Grand Avenue", an award-winning collection of short stories which was adapted for an HBO mini-series of the same name.
Sarris currently serves as chairman of his tribe, the Federated Indians of the Graton Rancheria, formerly known as the Federated Coast Miwok. After an eight-year campaign, Sarris rallied the 407 members of his small tribe and regained federal recognition when President Bill Clinton signed a measure that gave the tribe its new name.
The Sonoma Student Union InterCultural Center, the School of Social Sciences, Associated Students, and Instructionally Related Activities are sponsoring this event.
Admission in free for SSU students, $10 for SSU faculty and staff, and $15 for general admission. Special seating and admission to the VIP reception following the talk can be purchased for $75. Tickets are available at the Sonoma Student Union front desk: (707) 664-2382.
NOTE TO MEDIA: To request an interview, please contact Joann M. Bacci, Tribal Council Executive Assistant (707) 566-2288 ext. 1011. For more information on these or other ICC events, call (707) 664-2537, or visit the Web site online at www.sonoma.edu/ICC.
