AIM Leader Dennis Banks to Speak at UNM

Native American activist Dennis Banks will present a talk based on his recent autobiography "Ojibwa Warrior: Dennis Banks and the Rise of the American Indian Movement," as part of the University of New Mexico Native American Studies Spring 2004 Lecture Series.

Banks will speak Monday, April 19, from 6:30-7:30 p.m. in the Lobo Room of the UNM Student Union. A reception will be held 30 minutes prior and a one-hour discussion will follow. Banks will sign copies of his book from 8-8:30 p.m.

An Anishinabe born on the Leech Lake Indian Reservation in northern Minnesota, Banks co-founded the American Indian Movement in 1968. He recently founded the non-profit Nowa Cumig Institute to support Native American youth programs and the Indian community. Proceeds from his "Still Strong" CD, re-released in 2001, benefit the organization.

Banks now resides on the Leech Lake Reservation with his family and runs Dennis Banks Company producing American Indian food products such as wild rice and maple syrup grown organically on the reservation. All products are available at DennisBanks.com.

While visiting UNM's Native American Studies program, Banks will also meet informally with students. For more information, call 277-3917.

Contact: Laurie Mellas-Ramirez (505) 277-5915