“There’s a heartbeat louder than thunder; Revolution is in the air; There’s a heartbeat deep inside our mother; Are you to cool to care”
Project Protect is an Awareness Campaign conceived with the wisdom and guidance from the Traditional Circle of Elders and Youth. Its primary objectives are to foster support, impart knowledge, and advocate for the rights of Indigenous Peoples, Mother Earth, and all our relations. The campaign was created to share the philosophy and the warnings of our ancestors and to serve as a poetic call to consciousness for the restoration of life in balance.
“We’re bringing a message to the world in celebration of the human rights instrument, the ‘Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,’ because music does make a difference.”
Project Protect, launched in 1990, featured two music pictures. The inaugural titled, IS IT TOO LATE, premiered during an international television broadcast at the Global Forum of Spiritual and Parliamentary Leaders held in Moscow. Prefaced by Mikhail Gorbachev, the first President of the Soviet Union, Nobel Peace Prize recipient, and founding President of Green Cross International, the live broadcast from the Kremlin featured an address by Onondaga Clan Mother Audrey Shenandoah, an adviser to Native Children’s Survival and the United Nations.
“We’re doing a live program from Moscow to you, across the world, across the globe and bringing you positive stories things of hope.”
Following the premiere, IS IT TOO LATE was screened at the General Assembly Hall at United Nations Headquarters in New York City and broadcast nationally on Mother Earth Day from Washington, D.C. for the 20th anniversary of Earth Day.
ALL THE MISSING CHILDREN premiered at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) Cinema in Brooklyn, New York, and screened at selected film festivals across Turtle Island, including the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival. Both music pictures screened at the Aveda Environmental Film Festival in 1991 in Santa Monica, California.
“With appreciation for the support you have given our project, we the children offer this symbol of our gratitude. It is our wish that children and adults everywhere could join together like this to help heal and restore the earth.”
In the spring of 1993, a series of award-winning Native American stereotype-breaking Public Service Announcements (PSAs) premired on MTV as part of MTV’s FREE YOUR MIND Campaign. These PSAs were followed by the VH1 World Alert Special, MAKOCE WAKAN: SACRED EARTH, which premiered on MTV Networks that same year. The original score featured the music pictures HEARTBEAT and PRAYER SONG. Both music pictures went into rotation on MTV, MTV2, and VH1 and became the theme for the “Call To Action” Tipi camp on the 1995 and 1996 H.O.R.D.E. Festivals. The “Call To Action” was also featured in the MTV H.O.R.D.E. Bootleg Special.
“Feedback has been more than positive: Congratulations on a very successful show that has generated more viewer calls than any other show to date.”
HIDDEN MEDICINE our second World Alert Special, premiered on Sundance TV in 2000 following a special screening at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival. The film was also screened at the Palais des Nations for the United Nations Geneva Working Group on the draft declaration on the rights of Indigenous Peoples in Switzerland and at the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, United Nations Headquarters, New York.
“Hidden Medicine is an experimental, mystical film that deals with the relationship between Indigenous Peoples and the environment. The film beautifully weaves story, poetry, music and politics, creating an impending sense of our planet’s struggle to survive.”
AMERICA’S LAST FRONTIER, the third World Alert Special, premired at the United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development on SABC Africa in 2002 and at the United Nations Permanent Forum On Indigenous Issues, United Nations Headquarters, New York.
“We had amazing feedback from our viewers and they enjoyed the educational ride, the critical message so eloquently brought across with the beauty of Alaska and music that could become a hit in South Africa.”
ALL OUR COLORS, the single, debut with a live performance at the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues Cultural Event held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. This performance commemorated the 2007 historic adoption of the United Nations "Declaration on The Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). The song and performance showcased Indigenous artists from around the world.
“Your musical talent and leadership in the Native American community will undoubtedly help commemorate the United Nations adoption of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples for years to come.”
WHO’S GONNA SAVE YOU, another music picture in the series, premiered on SABC Africa during COP17, the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Durban, and again on ABC’s “Heartbeat Alaska” program. Prefaced by Tonya Gonnella Frichner, the North American representative to the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and founder of the American Indian Law Alliance, WHO’S GONNA SAVE YOU also screened at the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.
“The Alaska premier of ‘Who’s Gonna Save You,’ by Robby Romero, brought a new excitement to the Native community of Alaska. With the radiation of Fukushima arriving on Alaska’s coast, the music picture launched a sense of urgency along with the added excitement of having a world class musician/activist in our midst.”
The next in the Project Protect series, EARTH REVOLUTION, premiered at the Conference of Youth in Paris, France, on the eve of COP21, the historic 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference. H.E. Laurent Fabius, French Foreign Minister and President of the 21st Conference of the Parties, prefaced the premiere, followed by an appeal by Ta’Kaiya Blaney calling for an Earth Revolution. During COP21 in Paris, EARTH REVOLUATION was also screened at the Rights of Nature Tribunal on 5 December 2015, and won the BEST MUSIC VIDEO AWARD in 2016 at the 44th American Indian Film Festival in San Francisco.
“Ta’kaiya Blaney is a key voice for Earth Revolution which is a movement of Indigenous and non-Indigenous people working together to empower and inspire children and youth by transforming words into actions and actions to results.”
IRON HORSE, a single and public service announcement, premiered at the Gathering of Nations Pow Wow in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The single was released to Native and commercial radio. The campaign was created in commemoration of the historic June 10, 2014, renaming of Kit Carson Park by the Town of Taos to a new name that does not evoke the weight of malevolence, suffering, or sorrow for anyone.
“Robby brought me out of the corn fields of the pueblo to join in igniting a collective fire and creating a poetic dialogue. The inevitable Kit Carson name-change provided the artistic momentum for a coming together of our music.”
The latest music picture, BORN ON THE REZ, was written at Očhéthi Šakówin Stronghold, Standing Rock, during the #NoDAPL #WaterIsLife movement. A sneak peek was first seen on VEVO and heard on Moccasin Wire, hosted by Pat Romero of Taos Pueblo on KTAO 101.9FM, World Famous Solar Radio. The single took off, impacting Native Radio from the heart of the Lakota Nation on KILI 90.1FM and KLND 89.5FM across Indian Country.
“Rights in Action. Standing Rock Stronghold ‘Where Sitting Bull Lives On and the Struggle of Our People Unfolds’ lyrics from the song BORN ON THE REZ writen by Robby Romero.”
With the launch of YouTube shorts in 2024, Native Children’s Survival (NCS) has created a series of Project Protect Shorts to help raise awareness and foster support for critical issues impacting Indigenous Peoples, children, and the environment.
“I live this Robby. Keep up the fight and music for our Sacred Grounds.”
New Project Protect Campaigns are currently in development and are scheduled for release in the near future. These projects include “Where Thunder Finds Here,” “We Are Indigenous,” and “Stronghold.”
While music is a powerful tool, Klee Benally, a musician, artist, and ally of Native Children’s Survival, reminds us that music is not enough…
“Direct and effective action is essential if we desire a healthy and sustainable existence. Entire ecosystems are being destroyed to maintain unsustainable lifestyles. Where there is an environmental crisis, there is a cultural crisis because we are people of the earth.”
Project Protect would not be possible without the generous support of the following Native Nations, Organizations, and Record Companies.
