Members of the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe of New York can relate to the racial tensions in the film Frozen River, a spokesperson for the tribe said.

The film follows a Mohawk woman a non-Indian woman who smuggle people from Canada into the U.S. "There is no border," Lila Littlewolf tells Ray Eddy, the non-Indian character.

On a smuggling run, Littlewolf assures Eddy they won't be stopped by police because Eddy is white. "I think there is racial tension between any Indian community and whatever non-Indian town that is close by," the tribe's spokesperson told The Syracuse Post-Standard.

The film has received positive reviews and won he top prize for dramas at the Sundance Film Festival.

Get the Story:
Sundance-acclaimed film puts North Country in focus (The Syracuse Post-Standard 9/24)

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Review: Mohawk smuggling in intense 'Frozen River' (8/1)