THE DOCTRINE, Documentary Film & Talk Back
*The event has already taken place on this date: Wed, 06/10/2026
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THE DOCTRINE is a feature-length documentary film about the Doctrine of Discovery. The film follows a group of Indigenous youth in Minneapolis/St. Paul who decide to request a meeting at the Vatican to explain how the 15th-century Doctrine has impacted Indigenous Peoples and advocate for its repudiation.
Also featuring Indigenous activists in Aotearoa New Zealand, Guatemala, New Caledonia, and Puerto Rico, the film exposes how laws of conquest and colonization issued by the Vatican in the 15th-century codified slavery, racism, and the exploitation of natural resources for profit, and became international law, targeting communities of color and enabling corporate forces driving the current climate crisis. Incorporated into U.S. law in 1823, the Doctrine of Discovery was also the origin of the transatlantic slave trade.
Director/Producer - Gwendolen Cates is an award-winning filmmaker and photographer based in NYC. Her previous films include “The Good Mind” about the Onondaga Nation.
Composer and Consultant - Pura Fé (Tuscarora/Taino) is a world-renowned musical artist.
Producer - Robert J. Miller (Eastern Shawnee)
Consulting Producers - Gary Farmer (Cayuga Nation, Wolf Clan) & N. Bruce Duthu (Houma)
Popcorn & Tea will be available
DOCUMENTARY | USA | 83 MINUTES | English
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