For centuries, the United States government has taken Native American children away from their tribes and nations, devastating parents and denying children their traditions, culture, and identity. First Light, part of the Dawnland series, documents these practices from the 1800s to today and tells the story of an unprecedented experiment in truth-telling and healing for Wabanaki people and child welfare workers in Maine.

In 2015 the Maine Wabanaki-State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission concluded that Native people in Maine continue to be targets of “cultural genocide.” The commission is the topic of Upstander Project’s Emmy® award-winning documentary film, Dawnland, which aired on Independent Lens in 2018.