Has anyone ever heard of a documentary from Canada called Hollow Water?

It's about a small Native community in B.C Canada. The men and women discovered in an alcoholic support group, that there was alot of sexual abuse in their childhoods amongst themselves as the main reason for becoming alcoholics. This then sparked a support group for themselves,where they could finally get in out in the open and talk about it. The group took another turn when they decided that jail time for the offenders,doesn't do anything for the offender...so they took it upon themselves to extend the group to offenders and get the healing process going with the offender and a separate group for the victims,then then did a group with the offender reuniting with the victim and also with the children. They also did a healing circle as an alternative to being incarcerated...(which is what I want to find more about)

It was a very positive video,it shows the strength,the vision,the planning,and the faith that they put into it. It followed the story of one family,disclosing their feelings in a circle,even the children involved...it was so powerful to watch the healing process going on.

I need to rewatch it again...and I love to have a copy of it. I borrowed it from my school library.

On Screen (November 2000)

www.goodmnds.com (http://www.goodmnds.com)


Previews
BY SEE STAFF
Hollow Water
directed by Bonnie Dickie
(Saturday, Nov. 4, 5 p.m. at Zeidler Hall)
Hollow Water is the name of an Ojibway reserve in Manitoba that developed its own solution to the endemic cycle of physical and sexual abuse in this small community – statistics suggest as many as two-thirds of the population have been sexually abused.
Using the traditional healing circle as a way to allow offenders to identify their problems and begin confronting their own abuse, this community has become a model for other programs dealing with sexual abuse, as well as physical and substance abuse and youth crime.
It is one community’s way of dealing with its horrendous social problems through methods that address its systemic and historical contexts. Rather than seeking to merely punish the guilty, counsellors are drawn from within the community. They participate in a traditional healing circle that brings together offenders and victims to talk openly about the abuse. These are individuals who understand best what is necessary and are often personally invested in the work – one counsellor was once an offender himself.
It’s not easy. One couple spends three years on probation and counselling before their children are returned to them. Acknowledging responsibility as well as participating in this unique healing and justice system allows this family to own up to its past and stop the cycle of abuse. The rest of the community has a chance to offer its support, as well as have a voice in the decisions of the court.
Hollow Water’s story is at once disturbing and hopeful and its power lies in showing this community’s ability to move past despair, silence and repeated victimization of its children.****