Can you name the Super Indian comic book character whose name sounds a lot like a 1970s rock musician? How many members of Congress are Native American? What historical event precipitated colonial encroachment on California tribes? Those are some of the questions that careful listening to Native America Calling this year could provide answers to. We’ll test listeners’ knowledge of Native history, current events, and pop culture.

After a hiatus, horse riders resumed a tradition to remember the Dakota men hanged by the U.S. Government on December 26, 1862 in Mankato, Minn. The original organizer of the ride, Jim Miller, died in March 2023. A new group of riders has now taken up the task and reformed under the title Makota Reconciliation and Healing Horse Ride – from the Crow Creek Reservation in North Dakota to Mankato. We’ll hear from the riders about the journey and the history they are highlighting. We’ll also check on the work to have the federal government rescind the medals given to the U.S. Army soldiers who participated in the Wounded Knee Massacre Dec. 29, 1890.

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Guitarist Jesse Ed Davis (Kiowa) was an in-demand session player starting in the mid 1960s, appearing on dozens of recordings with artists such as Taj Mahal, Johnny Cash, Eric Clapton, and Jackson Browne. He appears on solo albums by three of the four Beatles. Davis toured with The Faces, alongside Rod Stewart and Ron Wood. The Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa, Okla., is mounting an exhibition celebrating Davis’ life and work along with a tribute concert featuring Jackson Browne, Taj Mahal, and Joy Harjo. We’ll hear from some of the people who knew and worked with the man Bonnie Raitt called “one of the most original, and soulful, and cool guitar players.” We hear about Davis and the exhibition honoring him in this encore show (we won’t be taking live telephone calls from listeners).

GUESTS

Joy Harjo (Mvskoke), 23rd U.S. Poet Laureate, musician, playwright, and co-curator of the Jesse Ed Davis: Natural Anthem exhibition

Chebon Tiger (Seminole and Mvskoke), musician

Douglas Miller, author of Washita Love Child: The Rise of Indigenous Rock Star Jesse Ed Davis and co-curator of the Jesse Ed Davis: Natural Anthem exhibition

Steven Jenkins, director of the Bob Dylan Center

 

Break 1 Music: Beauty in a Fade (song) John Trudell (artist) Graffiti Man (album)

Break 2 Music: Ridin’ Out the Storm (song) Samantha Crain (artist)