A prophetic poster
The superheroic figure of Captain Assi Nukum (also known as Captain Turtle Island) heralds the inevitable triumph of the immemorial spirit that shaped the cultures and civilizations of America’s First Peoples, and the coming doom of the barbaric Maga Lords.
Birth of the hero: Captain Assi Nukum
The gall of racism had almost killed a young Native. But one day, he experienced a shock during an experience of reconnection with his culture. Discovering contemporary Aboriginal art, he was irradiated by the creative energy of First Peoples’ artists.
In a trance-like state, he was magically transported to the depths of Alaska’s Mount Denali. There, he continued his metamorphosis in a secret cave, a place of ancient rituals, the location of which is known only to a few wise men of the Dene nation.
He owes the mutant strength that gradually transformed him into a superhero to the incredible energy of the men and women of America’s First Peoples.
The men and women who, through innovative artistic practices, keep alive the fire of their ancestral heritage and illuminate the paths of the future.
The invading monsters
With an evil worm eating their brains, greedy criminals have transformed themselves into Maga Lords and set out to take over the continent.
Warning: how do you recognize a Maga Lord? Often, a brownish liquid exudes from their skulls in a foul-smelling stream; this is the residue of what was once a human brain, ejected by the neuron-destroying worm.
Vociferating in their own jargon, they let out a belch that sounds like goddegunnetromp amid the gurgle of drool that fills their hateful faces.
The battle begins
In the depths of Mount Denali, which the Maga Lords have desecrated by naming it after one of their distant ancestors, Captain Assi Nukum (aka Captain Turtle Island) has awakened.
Captain Assi Nukum will preside over the major artistic and cultural gathering of the First Peoples of America and the world, the 2025 First Peoples Festival.
For a Mother Earth where equality, joy of living, and respect for ecosystems prevail—true to the age-old traditions of Turtle Island—the creativity of Indigenous artists will make the 35th First Peoples Festival the apotheosis of Captain Assi Nukum.
Illustration: Jay Soule CHIPPEWAR – Original idea: André Dudemaine – Graphics: Smartiz
