FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
powerHouse Books is pleased to announce the November 2010 release of
DIGNITY
In Honor of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

By Dana Gluckstein
Foreword by Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Introduction by Faithkeeper Oren R. Lyons
Afterword by Dana Gluckstein
Epilogue by Amnesty International

DIGNITY, an exquisite collection of photographs by Dana Gluckstein, honors Indigenous Peoples worldwide and celebrates the 50th anniversary of Amnesty International, the Nobel Peace Prize-winning human rights organization. With more than 90 black-and-white portraits of Indigenous Peoples spanning three decades, this richly printed book distills the universality of experience that links us all without diminishing the dignity of the individual. Whether photographing a Haitian healer or a San Bushmen chief, Gluckstein infuses each portrait with an essential human grace.

Gluckstein's stunning photographs represent "tribes in transition" by capturing fleeting periods in world history when traditional and contemporary cultures collided. "The Indigenous Peoples have a gift to give that the world needs desperately, this reminder that we are made for harmony, for interdependence," states Archbishop Desmond Tutu in DIGNITY. "If we are ever to prosper, it will only be together...The work of Dana Gluckstein helps us to truly see, not just appearances, but essences, to see as God sees us, not just the physical form, but also the luminous soul that shines through us."

DIGNITY's power, artistry, and impassioned call to action create a historic book in support of Indigenous Peoples—who comprise six percent of the global population and are amongst its most impoverished and oppressed inhabitants. With inspirational text and photographs, DIGNITY is intended to give a fuller awareness of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and to advocate for its global implementation. The declaration was adopted by 144 countries in 2007 and is the most comprehensive global statement of the measures every government should enact to ensure the survival, dignity, and well-being of Indigenous Peoples around the world.

As the Obama administration has recently announced a "formal review" of the U.S. position, the publication of DIGNITY comes at a timely moment. In 2007, the U.S. voted against the declaration, along with Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. Since then, New Zealand adopted the declaration, as well as Australia along with making a formal apology to the Aborigines. It is presumed that the U.S. will announce adoption of this important human rights declaration in late Fall 2010.

A portion of the artist's proceeds from book sales will benefit Amnesty International during its 50th–anniversary year. Beginning in December, 2010, 60 images from the book will tour the U.S. and Europe in two exhibitions entitled Tribes in Transition with a Web-based curriculum on the U.N. Declaration.

For a preview of the book please visit: http://www.powerHouseBooks.com/dignity.pdf

Dana Gluckstein has photographed iconic figures including Nelson Mandela, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Muhammad Ali, and has produced award-winning advertising campaigns for clients such as Apple, Land Rover, and Toyota. Her portraits of Indigenous Peoples are held in the permanent collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. Gluckstein graduated from Stanford University, where she studied psychology, painting, and photography, and realized the power of images to shape consciousness. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two children.

Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning, grassroots activist organization with more than 2.8 million supporters, activists, and volunteers in more than 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth, and dignity are denied.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984 for his nonviolent resistance to apartheid. As an Anglican priest, he served as General Secretary of the South African Council of Churches and Archbishop of Cape Town. In 1995, President Mandela appointed him chairman of South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission where he brought to light the atrocities of apartheid. In 2009, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States' highest civilian honor. He now serves as Chair of The Elders, a group of eminent global leaders working to support peace and address causes of human suffering.

Faithkeeper Oren R. Lyons, Turtle Clan, Onondaga Nation, co-founded the Working Group on Indigenous Populations for the United Nations in 1982, and helped develop the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. As a revered Native American elder and scholar, he has sat on the Council of Chiefs of the Six Nations in New York since 1967 and taught Native American studies for 37 years as a Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus at New York State University at Buffalo. He is guided by the Six Nations' democratic principles of governance by the people, which requires decision-making on behalf of the "seventh generation coming."

For a preview of the book please visit: http://www.powerHouseBooks.com/dignity.pdf

High-res scans to your specification are available upon request; scanning from the book or lifting images from the mechanical file are strictly prohibited. Mandatory credit line: from DIGNITY by Dana Gluckstein, published by powerHouse Books.