Indigenous Peoples Celebrated in UN Exhibit

To celebrate U.S. support for the UN declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples the United States Mission to the United Nations in Geneva is sponsoring the exhibition "Dignity: Tribes in Transition" by the American Photographer Dana Gluckstein at the United Nations from July 11 through the end of August.

Dignity: Tribes in Transition features 60 black-and-white portraits of individuals from tribes around the world including subjects from Australia, Bali, Bhutan, Botswana, Canada, Fiji, Haiti, Kenya, Mexico, Namibia, Peru, the United States, and Zambia..

The opening of the exhibition, on display just outside the Human Rights Council Chamber, was timed to coincide with the 4th meeting of the Expert Mechanism for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples at the United Nations Office in Geneva.

The U.S. Mission also sponsored the two-day visit to Geneva of the Yellow Bird Apache Dancers, an acclaimed Native American dance company. The group, which includes the current 2011 World Champion Hoop Dancer, performed at the Opening of the exhibit and at EMRIP in the Human Rights Council chamber.

U.S. support for the Declaration represents an important and meaningful change in the U.S. position, and resulted from a comprehensive, interagency policy review, including extensive consultation with tribes. While the Declaration is not legally binding, it carries considerable moral and political force and complements President Obama's ongoing efforts to address historical inequities faced by indigenous communities in the United States.

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• indigenous
• indigenous peoples
• Native American
• Apache
• American Indian
• Dana Gluckstein
• Yellow Bird Apache Dancers
• Hoop Dancing
• Hoop
• Hoop Dance
• United Nations
• Geneva
• Switzerland
• UN
• Human Rights
• EMRIP