Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 56:30 — 51.7MB) | Embed

The revelation that more unmarked graves were found at a Canadian residential school adds additional injury for Indigenous people. The grim toll of children whose deaths are not properly documented continues to open wounds and spark questions, not least of which is: how many more are there?

Guests:

Angela White (Snuneymuxw) – executive director of the Indian Residential School Survivors Society of British Columbia

Christine Diindiisi McCleave (citizen of the Turtle Mountain Ojibwe Nation) – chief executive officer of the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition

Nahanni Fontaine (Sagkeeng Anishinaabe First Nation) – an elected official and member of the Manitoba legislative assembly

 

Break 1 music: Omen feat Andree Sioui, Charlotte Qamaniq and Nina Sigalowitz (song) Twin Flames (artist) Omen (album)

Break 2 music: Memego (song) Digging Roots (artist) Seeds (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 56:30 — 51.7MB) | Embed

For more than a century, county extension offices have worked to instill the importance of agriculture in young people through local 4-H programs. At first the programs attempted to bring outside practices to Native communities. But they evolved to incorporate Native farming and ranching methods to both educate young people and keep Native knowledge thriving.

Guests:

Dally Carlisle (Navajo) – 4-H member

Deanna Baier (Curyung) – tribal educator with Bristol Bay 4-H Club with the University of Alaska Fairbanks

Kristy Kinlicheenie (Navajo) – assistant in extension at the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension

 

Break 1 music: Supi-Song (song) Sidney Poolheco (artist) Heartfelt Songs (album)

Break 2 music: Memego (song) Digging Roots (artist) Seeds (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 56:22 — 51.6MB) | Embed

Navajo sheep herders are busy at this time of year. Depending on the size of their herd, shearing sheep is is a process that can take weeks. Clipping raw wool from sheep is one of the first steps to making famous Navajo rugs and dresses. Weavers then take over to process and dye wool and spin it into yarn. We’ll talk with sheep herders and weavers about the cultural and artistic process of taking wool from sheep to the loom (this is an encore show so we aren’t taking calls live on the air).

Guests:

Colleen Biakeddy (Diné) – shepherd raising churro sheep

Aretta Begay (Diné) – Executive Director, Diné be’iiná

Zefren Anderson (Navajo) – experimental archaeological weaver and silversmith

 

Break 1 music: Bah, Bah Black Sheep & Mary Had a Little Lamb (song) Radmilla Cody (artist) Precious Friends: Songs For Children (album)

Break 2 music: This Land (song) Keith Secola (artist) Native Americana – A Coup Stick (album)

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 56:22 — 51.6MB) | Embed

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the educations, social lives and after-school opportunities for millions of high school students. Native students navigated online classes, spotty internet access, and isolation but many thrived and even secured scholarships and acceptance at choice colleges. Native America Calling and the Hechinger Report followed a group of students throughout the school year to document their struggles and triumphs during a school year like no other. Here are their stories.

Guests:

Guila Curley (Navajo) – College and Career Readiness Coordinator for Newcomb High School

Nyché Andrew (Yupik/Inupiaq) – incoming freshman to Yale University

Amia Roach-Balandra (Sicangu Lakota )- incoming freshman at the University of Southern California

Aubee Billie (Seminole Tribe of Florida) – incoming freshman at Elon University

Break 1 music: Idawadadi (Let Us Speak Our Voice) (song) Dawn Avery (artist) Our Fire Native American Contemporary Songs (album)

Break 2 music: Burning Flame (song) Jan Michael Looking Wolf Band (artist) Breaking Free (album)

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 58:52 — 53.9MB) | Embed

Indigenous people are calling on the Catholic Church to be held accountable after continued revelations of unmarked graves on grounds of residential schools the church operated. Christian-based boarding schools are an enduring symbol of forced assimilation of Native children in the United States. At the same time, Christianity is a strong component of many Indigenous people’s lives. We’ll explore the history and complexity of the Christian faith among Native traditions.

Guests:

Steve Newcomb (Shawnee and Lenape) – author of “Pagans in the Promised Land: Decoding the Doctrine of Christian Discovery” and cofounder and director of the Indigenous Law Institute

Davidica Little Spotted Horse (Oglala Lakota) – activist, musician, artist, mentor

Jennifer Marley (San Ildefonso) – member of the Red Nation and Ph.D student at the University of New Mexico

Break 1 music: Cry of the Wolf (song) Wade Fernandez (artist) 4 The People (album)

Break 2 music: Burning Flame (song) Jan Michael Looking Wolf Band (artist) Breaking Free (album)

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 56:22 — 51.6MB) | Embed

Are workshops about racial discrimination discriminatory? Elected leaders across the country are proposing laws and classroom changes that aim to weaken instruction about America’s racist past. Instead, they say they want more emphasis on subjects that paint the country in a more favorable, patriotic light. It’s part of the backlash against what is sometimes called “Critical Race Theory,” which some Native scholars point to as a vital piece of fully understanding the ongoing legacy of colonialism.

Guests:

Dr. Melanie Yazzie (Navajo) – co-founder of The Red Nation and assistant professor of Native American Studies at the University of New Mexico

Dr. Brenda Child (Red Lake Ojibwe) – Northrop Professor of American Studies at the University of Minnesota

Dr. Jeanette Haynes Writer (Cherokee Nation) – professor of Curriculum and Instruction at the College of Education at New Mexico State University

 

Break 1 music: Animal Song (song) Art Napoleon (artist) Mocikan (album)

Break 2 music: We Yaa Naa (song) A Navajo Woman Sings (artist) We’ll Be In Your Mountains, We’ll Be In Your Songs (album)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 56:30 — 51.7MB) | Embed

By and large Native Americans are patriotic. The American flag and U.S. military veteran honors are prominent in most powwows, fairs and other Native events. But America’s Independence Day brings some ambivalence from Native citizens. It’s difficult to get past the reference to “merciless Indian savages” in the very document that declares independence from the British. The Colonies’ demand to launch their own separate country was fueled by the promise of conquering the land and resources that Native people relied on since time immemorial. What followed were massacres, land theft, broken treaties and enduring racism. We’ll get Native perspectives on the coming Independence Day celebrations.

Guests:

Dr. Christina M. Castro (Jemez Pueblo, Taos Pueblo and Chicana) – founder of the Three Sisters Collective

Dr. Jennifer Denetdale (Diné) – historian and professor and chair of American Studies at the University of New Mexico

Nikki Pitre (Coeur d’Alene Tribe) – executive director of the Center for Native American Youth at the Aspen Institute

Break 1 music: Standing Rock (feat. Nick Ørbæk Jacobsen) (song) Uyarakq (artist) Miseraq (album)

Break 2 music: Mewasin Oma (song) Cree Confederation (artist) Kihtawasoh Wapakwani-Beautiful Flower (album)