Double feature of two short films.”Chief Tendoy,” (2021) a short historical western film directed by Steve Saxon and Cesar Rodriguez, about an event in the life of the prominent leader of the Northern Shoshone. When many believed that “the only good Indian is a dead Indian,” Chief Tendoy has an encounter with President Ulysses Grant that culminates in a duel of the titans where injustice, theft of land, and violation of treaties are debated. This film will be introduced by Leo Arriwite.

The second film, “In Good Faith,” (2018) is a documentary that illuminates the history of the unratified treaty between the U.S. Government and the Lemhi Shoshone people. Shot in Idaho and Montana, ‘In Good Faith’ reveals new discoveries about a Native American tribe, their unratified treaty with the United States and a historical revelation that could change the history of southwestern Montana. Jared Chastain will introduce this film.

Location: John A. and Carole O. Moran Lecture Hall at The Community Library.

Discussion after the films.

Leo Arriwite is a Traditional Northern Shoshoni, born and raised in Salmon, Idaho, at the confluences of the Salmon River and the Lemhi River. His career began as a Tribal Law Enforcement Officer for the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes in 1977. Next, a Bureau of Indian Affairs Federal Law Enforcement Officer and then as Chief of Police for the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Indian Reservation in Washington. Leo served as a Law Enforcement Officer for over 20 years. In the early 1990s, he changed careers, becoming a Chief Prosecutor, an Associate Judge, and then a Chief Judge—serving over 20 years as a Tribal Judge. During the early 2010s to 2020, Leo was a Historical Researcher for the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes.

Leo was raised in the Indian Camp in the City of Salmon, and was tutored and taught the traditional ways of the Northern Shoshoni People by his Grandmother “Hattie Honena Arriwite.” She did not allow herself to speak English and she wore moccasins her entire life. Her teaching included the oral history of the “Wihi’Naite” people, the trails, gathering, and hunting substance to sustain life according to her customs and traditions as a true Northern Shoshoni. He has become a Master Glove Artist, using the traditional methods of his people, as well as a Porcupine Quill Artist—taught to him by his father (Leo Ariwite). He is a story teller and a keeper of oral history, as it was told by his grandmother and the elders of the Indian Camp.