Avatar: Ways of Water is now available on streaming platforms. The sequence on the Avatar from 2009 tells the story of the indigenous Na’vi on the planet Pandora that is again being attacked by people from Earth: ‘sky people’. The Na’vi live in a deep connection with everything on their planet. The ‘sky people’, however, did not come to Pandora for the Na’vi’s valuable philosophy of life, but for the planet’s valuable resources. Earth is dying so they need a new one.
When I watched this movie in the cinema it deeply moved me and not because of the fictive storyline. What moved me was how villages of the Indigenous Peoples were set on fire, how forests were being destroyed, and how they hunted on (deeply intelligent) sea creatures for a chemical substance that stops aging – why would people want to live longer when they are letting their planet die and are trying to colonize another to do exactly the same?
Everything was about money and was solved with violence, without any respect. It all seemed so familiar to me. It touched me even more that when the credits appeared on the screen and the lights went on and I was looking for some sort of recognition of the Indigenous Peoples on our Earth whose story I think this actually is, I heard someone behind me say “that was fun”.
This was not a fun movie to watch. This was not a beautiful movie. This was not a powerful movie – something it could have been in so many ways. This was an animated documentary that tells the (hi)story of our Earth as if it is situated in a far future on a faraway planet. Avatar is not a fun movie. This is the incredibly painful story of colonialism and capitalism and of that which indigenous peoples everywhere on this earth experience to this day because of money.
The end of last year I spent one month in a village of the Yawanawa, an Indigenous People in the Brazilian rainforest. I found myself deeply immersed in nature and it was beautiful. With the Yawanawa I saw and experienced how these people live in balance with nature, how they respect all the life that surrounds them, how they feel a deep connection to everything that is alive. And if you have paid attention watching Avatar you understand how according to the philosophy of Indigenous Peoples everything is alive.
Ceremony under the Samauma tree in the village of the Yawanawa in Acre, Brazil
Today in Brazil the rights and lives of Indigenous People's are once again in crisis. Brazil's Federal Congress fast tracked and passed bill PL 2903 (formerly known as PL 490), a law that "removes protections from the Amazon Rainforest by erasing the rights of indigenous peoples". According to a petition from Supporters for the Amazon it will also erase rights and cultures of Indigenous peoples from Brazilian history. The bill opens the doors to widespread deforestation by mining, logging, and agriculture industries. Yes, exactly like in Avatar. It is an assault on human rights and an existential threat to the critical ecosystem that sustains our livable planet.
The sequence to the first Avatar movie could have been a powerful tool in bringing about awareness for the crisis we are globally facing as the rights and culture of Indigenous people are being actively oppressed. And maybe it is not too late.
A much liked comment on TikTok last year was “How much I would give to live on Pandora”. But how much are we giving to protect our own Pandora? Pandora is closer than we think. And I mean closer even than the Brazilian rainforest. Many Indigenous peoples across the world hold a similar worldview as the fictive Na’vi. This movie shares a history that is still going on. The current crisis in Brazil testifies to that. To what extent we recognize that story and its urgency determines the future of this planet.
Comprising less than 5% of the world's population, Indigenous people protect 80% of global biodiversity. – Gleb Raygorodetsky in National Geographic
Pandora is Earth, most of us just have to (re)learn to recognize the beauty and force that nature holds. The Indigenous Peoples of colonized countries can teach us a lot about this, on top of the fact that they protect the vast majority of this planet's biodiversity. Maybe the next Avatar movie will be accompanied by a clearly communicated message so that people walk out of the cinema with more words and sentiments than ‘that was fun’. Until that time, whether you decide to watch Avatar or not: talk about the Indigenous peoples on this planet, talk about Brazil. And sign the petition.
Comentarios