Alanis Obomsawin, born August 31, 1932, in New Hampshire, USA, is an Abenaki filmmaker, singer, and composer based in Montreal. She began her career as a singer-songwriter in New York City in the early 1960s, performing at folk festivals across North America and Europe while advocating for Indigenous rights. Obomsawin released the album Bush Lady in 1978, featuring her compositions and traditional Abenaki songs; it was reissued by CST Records in 2018. Beyond music, she has directed over 50 documentaries focusing on Canadian Indigenous peoples’ rights and struggles, including the acclaimed Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance (1993). Her contributions earned her the Order of Canada in 2008 and the Glenn Gould Prize in 2009.
