THE INDO PROJECT, INC.
is dedicated to the preservation, promotion, and celebration
of Indo culture and history through education and raising public awareness.
The Four Major initiatives that the project will undertake are:
Ø The Documentary Film: Chronicling the Indo historical narrative. This project will be the organization's most powerfulshort termmethod to spreadthe Indo story and will lay the foundation for other initiatives.
Ø Family Oral History Project: This segment encourages Indo families to create their own extended family oral history on video, audio or text.
Ø Heritage Tours: Professionally led tours to Indonesiavisiting colonial historical sights, native festivals, and ancestral Indofamily villages.
Ø Education: Show and tell kits for elementary kids to share their heritage at school.
People of mixed European and Indonesian ancestry, in particular, those of Dutch and Indonesian ancestry are called Indos or Indo-Europeans. During and after the Indonesian National Revolution, which followed World War II, around 300,000 people, pre-dominantly Indos, left independent Indonesia to be “repatriated” to the Netherlands. In the late 1950s and early 1960s roughly 60,000 of them continued their Diaspora or dispersal, mainly to the United States, where they have smoothly assimilated and integrated into mainstream American society. Many ended up settling in warmer more inviting locations in the West such as California, parts of the Pacific Northwest and Desert Southwest. They can now be found in almost all 50 states.
The rich history and legacy of the Indos has been overall well documented and recorded in the Dutch language, but unfortunately not much so in English. Therefore, few people in the English speaking world, specifically in the US, are aware what an Indo is. Even in the rest of the world, their culture and history is still a “cold case”, waiting to be discovered or rediscovered. By producing this unique documentary film, we aim to educate and raise awareness among the general public regarding the history-rich and exotic culture. These facts are currently primarily known in the Dutch community and to the Indos themselves.
Another important reason for making this documentary film is to keep alive the Indo culture, history and essence in the younger generations. The Indo population is invariably aging and their mortal time is running out. Their stories and recollections will be lost forever unless these are captured on film, in print, other media and archived for future generations. In reality, the Indos are an “endangered” ethnic species. Therefore history will be much poorer if this documentation is not accomplished in a timely fashion. The Indo Project is in the early stages of planning the previously mentioned documentary film on the Indo historical narrative. The primary intent of the documentary is to safeguard and elaborate on the legacy of those Eurasians whose origins lie in the former Dutch East Indies.
The Indo Project not only educates and raises awareness of the public about Indo culture and history, it also facilitates and conveys significant cultural information to the Indo community at large. This willultimately strengthen and rekindle the traditional Indo bond of respect, pride, integrity, cooperation - among other characteristics - and also mutual understanding among the members of this unique ethnic group. The Indo children and grandchildren have the birthright to know what their ancestors lived through in order for them to have a good chance to live and thrive in countries where freedom rings.
The Indo Project serves as a portal between the academic world and the experiential world. We also have an Honorary Advisory Council comprised of academicians and authors who provide guidance and counsel as the project progresses.
Spread the word to your friends and family. We will notify you when our web site is officially launched. Feel free to contact me for further information.
The Indo Project
Bianca Dias-Halpert
15132 23rd Pl W
Lynnwood, WA 98087
http://dutcheastindies.blogspot.com/
Ph: Hm (425) 742-5270 Cell (206) 313-1789 E-mail: