More than 50 students came to hear actor Wes Studi speak on the parallels between the Iraqi people and Native Americans at the first annual North American Indian Student Organization conference this weekend.
Four schools - the University of Michigan, Northern Michigan University, Lansing Community College and MSU - were represented at the two-day conference in the Union and attended workshops about leadership and affirmative action.
The conference didn't draw as many people as the group had hoped, NAISO Co-Chairman Bryan Newland said.
"There wasn't as much as we were expecting, but I think the weather caused some problems," he said. "A lot of students really liked the workshop sessions and Wes Studi's speech."
Studi, a Native American actor, has appeared in several films including "The Last of the Mohicans," "Dances With Wolves" and "Mystery Men."
"Any native that's familiar with native films is a big fan of his," Newland said.
Pre-vet freshman and NAISO member Ashley Harding said even though she wishes more people had attended the event, those that did were fortunate to go to the workshops and hear Studi's speech.
"You would picture a typical actor kind of snooty, but he was very laid-back," she said. "He was saying everyone is worried about Saddam and they're not thinking about the people there, and here the indigenous people, no one thought about them many years ago.
"He talked about the ties between the Iraqi people and the indigenous people and how they're suffering the same way we did."
Newland said the conference provided a perfect starting point for Native American students.
"It's been a long time since anyone's really brought Native American students together," he said. "We thought that if we can build a foundation of leaders from our generation, then in a few years these people will take positions within their tribal governments."
Newland said they attempted to create the conference last year, but they came short of funding and the idea fell through.
"So as soon as we started this year, we decided this was something we wanted to pursue off the bat," he said. "Hopefully this serves as a great platform for students all across the state to come to one place for a common purpose."
