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In November 1969 a small group of Native American students and urban Indians began the occupation of Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay. Eventually joined by thousands of Native Americans, they claimed "Indian land" for the first time since the 1880s. This documentary tells the story of that occupation which lasted 19 months, interweaving archival footage and contemporary commentary to examine how this historic event altered US government Indian policy and programs, and how it forever changed the way Native Americans viewed themselves, their culture and their sovereign rights. c2002.