Drowned Land

In the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, the Kiamichi River is a bastion of eco-diversity. A Texas corporation seeks to dam and build a hydroelectric plant on the river. For a group of locals, theirs is a generations-long struggle with resource extraction and displacement that began with the Trail of Tears. While the river drives the narrative, the director reflects on her Choctaw grandfather’s role in designing and building dams for the Army Corps of Engineers which displaced countless Oklahomans, many Native. Interwoven are the stories of the river’s advocates—residents, Choctaw culture-keepers and scientists—who have come together to protect the river.