Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed

New guidelines for implementing the Indian Child Welfare Act aim to clarify regulations and provide examples of best practices. Bureau of Indian Affairs officials say the guidelines will help families, tribes and courts navigate the sometimes inconsistent interpretations of ICWA by different state courts and agencies over the law’s 38 years in existence. The original law intended to keep children with families and tribal members. It’s a landmark of Indian law, but remains controversial among some adoption advocates. We’ll sift through the new guidelines and get an update on some current ICWA cases.

Guests:

Sarah Walters (Cheyenne River Sioux) – Chief of Staff to the Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs in the U.S. Department of the Interior

David Simmons – director of government affairs and advocacy for the National Indian Child Welfare Association

Shanna Knight – ICWA specialist for the National Indian Child Welfare Association

Break music: Prayer Loop (song) Supaman (artist)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed

Cherolynda Bennett (Navajo) turned to a popular for-profit preparation service when her taxes were due. But she noticed some shady behavior after receiving a small loan to get her by until her refund check came. Her close attention to detail ultimately turned into a class action lawsuit that brought a nearly $700,000 settlement. We’ll hear about her story and some other common scams to look out for.

Guests:

Cherolynda Bennett (Navajo) – average taxpayer and activist

Shawn Spruce (Laguna) – financial education consultant

Davyn Williams – assistant attorney general in the consumer protection unit in the Alaska Attorney General’s office

Break music: Harmony Nights (song) Cheevers Toppah & Alex Smith (artist) Harmony Nights: Native American Vocal Harmony (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed

Donald J. Trump takes his seat as the 45th president of the United States this Friday. During his campaign and throughout the transition he’s said next-to-nothing about Native Americans and Alaska Natives. What does a Trump administration mean for Native America? What policy agendas will benefit or hurt Native Americans and Alaska Natives? We’ll get some expert opinions from those in the Native American Coalition created in December and others.

Guests:

Senator Tom Udall – United States Senator from New Mexico

Ross Swimmer (Cherokee Nation) – former principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, former Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs for the U.S. Department of Interior

Sarah Deer (Muscogee (Creek) Nation) – co-director of the Indian Law Program and law professor at the Mitchell Hamline School of Law

William McCabe (Navajo) – principal owner of McCabe and Associates

Break music: Chant (song) Robert Mirabal + Ethel (artist) The River (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed

Joseph Boyden says he needs to ‘step back a bit’ from offering his perspective on Indigenous issues. The popular Canadian author of such books as Three Day Road, Through Black Spruce and The Orenda is under fire after an investigation called his heritage into question. The controversy raises a frequent issue of whether there’s room for people like Boyden in an authentic discussion of Indigenous topics. We’ll ask that question of people who both support and condemn Boyden’s actions.

Guests:

Nickita Longman (Saulteaux from George Gordon First Nation) – community organizer and freelance writer

Wab Kinew (Midewin) – Native author, journalist and hip-hop artist

Break music: Old School Hop (song) Cree Confederation (artist) Pakosiyimitan (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed

Not all tribes have a weaving tradition. Navajo and Chilkat weavings are among those that come to mind first when we think of Native American textiles. They are iconic pieces of art that exemplify their cultures. We’ll explore stories behind these and other weaving styles and find out how the practice became a high-end art form.

Guests:

Lily Hope (Tlingit) – weaver and teaching artist

Marcella Hale (Diné) – treasurer of the Navajo Weavers Association

Barbara Teller Ornelas (Navajo)

Break music: Hope (Featuring Werner Erb) (song) Sihasin (artist) Never Surrender (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed

From fights over oil extraction in Ecuador and Peru, to a water fight in Colombia, Indigenous people of Latin America are struggling to maintain traditional lands and culture against outside encroachment. The International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs estimates there are 40 million Indigenous people in Latin America. We’ll look at some of the key issues they’re facing.

Guests:

Cristina Coc (Q’eqchi Maya) – spoke person for the Maya Leaders Alliance and the Toledo Alcaldes Association

Leonardo Crippa (Kolla) – senior attorney at the Indian Law Resource Center

Rick Kearns (Taíno) – freelance journalist work has been included in Indian Country Today

Break music: Mundo Enganador (song) Quetzal Guerrero (artist) Coiza Boa (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed

Adults usually have two or three colds a year, according to the CDC. Children have even more. It’s the season for cold and flu. You start seeing coworkers and friends disappear as they wrestle with coughs, plugged sinuses, and fevers. We’re going to take the hour to talk about prevention, treatment, and flu shots, as well as traditional remedies to soothe the symptoms we suffer through.

Guests:

Dr. Kalamaoka’aina Niheu (Kanaka Maoli) – physician and on the Standing Rock Medic and Healers Council

Anne White Hat (Sichongu Lakota) – herbalist and owner of White Hat Herbs and Native botanicals

Capt. Thomas Weiser – medical epidemiologist at the Portland area Indian health Service

Break music: I See Si (song) RiverFlowz (artist) RiverFlowz Rural Recordings Malruk (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed

President Obama was one of the few sitting presidents to visit a reservation. His administration also restored more than half a million acres to tribal nations. Tribes and environmental groups applauded his moves to protect Bears Ears, Badger Two-Medicine and block the Keystone XL Pipeline. But others criticize his administration for failing to take decisive action to shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline. How does President Obama’s legacy stack up? Will he go down in the history books as one of the best presidents for Native Americans and Alaska Natives?

Guests:

Jacqueline Pata (Tlingit) – Executive Director for the National Congress of American Indians

Raina Thiele (Dena’ina Athabascan and Yup’ik) – president of Thiele Strategies

Debra Haaland (Laguna Pueblo) – Chairwoman of the New Mexico Democratic Party

Yatibaey Evans (Ahtna Athabascan) – Alaska Native education director for the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District and president of the National Indian Education Association

Brayden “Sonny” White (Mohawk) – northeastern regional representative for UNITY

Break music: My Winter Song (song) Andrea Menard (artist) Sparkle (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed

Have you ever wanted to blast off into space? It’s a dream for many young children. That dream became real for one man from the Chickasaw Nation. John B. Herrington is the first Native American to travel to space. He flew on the space shuttle Endeavour in 2002. We get to relive this journey in his new children’s book, “Mission to Space.” He traces the dedication, training and skill it takes to turn a dream into a high-flying reality.

Guests:

Commander John B. Herrington (Chickasaw Nation) – Astronaut

Break music: Rez Rocket (song) Red Earth (artist) Zia Soul (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed

There are a lot of people who turned a small idea into a successful business. We’ll highlight a few entrepreneurial Native Americans and find out what they did to make it from the bottom to the top. Are you starting a business? Do you operate your own business? Tell us about what it takes to make your business a successful one.

Guests:

Sean McCabe (Navajo) – managing shareholder of Mcabe CPA

Love Chance (Cherokee) – owner and founder of the Indigenous south

Chris James – president and CEO of the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development

Derrick Watchman (Navajo) –  board chairman of the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development

Break Music:  Nitohta (song) Asani (artist) Listen (album)