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Neo-contemporary Navajo artist Randy L. Barton is known for his ability to slap the paint on the canvas and across large murals to make vibrant images. He sees art as a tool for educating people. His talent also extends to the musical art form. This month we visit with him about his album “The Blessing Way Boogie” that mixes in electric sounds brushed with B-Boy break beats and tribal rhythms including sounds from his Diné Nation. Much like his visual art, his music calls on indigenous knowledge and creation stories that are full of instructions on life and facing the world. Join us for our January Music Maker with as he’s known on the dance floor and behind the turn tables, Randy Boogie.

Break 1 Music: Diyin Creates Sound (song) Randy Boogie (artist) The Blessingway Boogie (album)

Break 2 Music: The Real People (song) RiverFlowz (artist) RiverFlowz (album)

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A video from the Indigenous Peoples March in Washington, D.C. created a firestorm over the weekend. There’s a tug-of-war over the public message since the initial video surfaced showing Nathan Phillips drumming and singing as a group of students jeered and mocked him. Another group calling themselves Hebrew Israelites also heightened tensions. Tribes, tribal leaders, members of Congress, media pundits and even the school the students represented were quick to denounce what they say is obvious disrespect of an Omaha Nation elder. Parents, political commentators and even President Trump are now coming to the students’ defense, saying they acted appropriately. We’ll sort out the incident and the evolving reactions.

Guests:

Quese Imc (Pawnee/Seminole) – hip hop emcee and independent music producer

Nathan Phillips (Omaha) -U.S. Marine Vietnam Era Veteran and Elder

Lance Gumbs (Shinnecock Indian Nation) – a senior trustee and councilman of the Council of the Shinnecock Indian Nation and the regional vice president of the National Congress of American Indians

Marisa Duarte (Pascua Yaqui Tribe) – assistant professor of Justice and Sociotechnical Change in the School of Social Transformation at Arizona State University

Kansas Middletent (Lakota) – ambassador for Native Hope

Break 1 Music: Honoring The Homeland (song) Radmilla & Herman Cody (artist) Shi Kéyah (album)

Break 2 Music: The Real People (song) RiverFlowz (artist) RiverFlowz (album)

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As the partial federal government shutdown approaches the one-month mark, the effects on tribes and individuals who rely on services are growing: Nearly 9,000 Indian Health Service employees are working without pay; the Yomba Shoshone Tribe in Nevada shut off services and their tribal office administrator is working without pay; the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa in Minnesota is reducing workers’ hours; In addition, thousands of federal employees are going without pay, and those in power show no signs of coming to an agreement. We’ll get an update and hear from some of those experiencing difficulties stemming from what is now the longest government shutdown in United States history.

Guests:

Harold Frazier (Cheyenne River Sioux) – Chairman of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe

Sue Parton (Kiowa) – president of the Federation of Indian Service Employees

Tony Rowe (Kodiak) – Bureau of Indian Affairs national union representative for the Federation of Indian Service Employees

Jonathan Nez (Navajo) – President of the Navajo Nation

Break 1 Music: Heart of Gold (song) Midnight Shine (artist) High Road (album)

Break 2 Music: The Real People (song) RiverFlowz (artist) RiverFlowz (album)

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The election is over and, after a record year for Native women candidates, it’s time to get down to business. From Congress to state houses to tribal councils, there’s more total Native women representation than at any other time. We’ll hear from some of the new elected leaders about their priorities as they settle into their respective offices. Will increased representation translate to increased action?

Guests:

Debra Lekanoff (Tlingit) – representative of Washington State’s 40th House District

Andrea Clifford (Northern Arapaho) – representative of District 33 for the Wyoming House of Representatives

Peri Pourier (Oglala Lakota) – representative for South Dakota district 27

Ruth Buffalo (Mandan/Hidatsa/Arikara) – representative of North Dakota’s 27th district

Break 1 Music: Tapwe Oma (song) Fawn Wood (artist) Iskwewak (album)

Break 2 Music: A Winter Dream (song) Nitanis “Kit” Largo (artist) Serenity (album)

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A tenuous agreement halted a tense, ongoing scuffle between Wet’suwet’en First Nations protesters and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. For now, the hereditary chiefs and members of the Unist’ot’en Camp agree to let workers from TC Energy (formerly TransCanada Corp.) onto unceded territory land in British Columbia slated for gas pipeline construction. The confrontation resulted in 14 arrests after a court ordered the protesters to take down barricades on the main road to the property. The traditional leadership is at odds with the First Nation’s elected chiefs over the pipeline. We’ll get a look at what’s at stake and what’s next in this latest pipeline construction flare-up.

Guests:

Stewart Phillip (Okanagan) – president of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs

Bruce McIvor (Métis) – principal of First Peoples Law

Dr. Karla Tait (Unis’tot’en member of the Dark House/ Gilsuihu Clan) – director of clinical programming Unis’tot’en Healing Center and Unis’tot’en house member

Break 1 Music: Fass and Grancy (song) Northern Cree Singers (artist) Drum Boy (album)

Break 2 Music: A Winter Dream (song) Nitanis “Kit” Largo (artist) Serenity (album)

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A hundred years before the United States passed a constitutional amendment banning alcohol, Congress banned alcohol sales and production on reservations. The country quickly repealed Prohibition, but the reservation ban remained. That is until President Trump signed the law opening up alcohol manufacturing on Native land in December. For the first time in almost 200 years, tribes can now establish distilleries on reservation land. The Chehalis Tribe already has plans to open a distillery on their reservation in Washington State. Other than the obvious inequity based on race, the main reason to toss the outdated prohibition law is to tap into a growing trend for further economic development.

Guests:

Jeff Warnke – spokesperson and director of government and public relations for the Chehalis Tribe

Curtis Basina (Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa) – co-owner of the Copper Crow Distillery

Break 1 Music: Intertribal Song (song) Black Lodge (artist) Enter the Circle – Pow-Wow Songs Recorded Live At Coeur D’Alene (album)

Break 2 Music: A Winter Dream (song) Nitanis “Kit” Largo (artist) Serenity (album)

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Heating bills are projected to be a little higher this winter according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Winter Fuels Outlook. Expect to pay around 3 percent more if you heat with electricity, 5 percent more for gas and 20 percent more for home heating oil. The main reason for the increase is the higher fuel costs. In states like Alaska, North Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin, where temperatures can drop to -40 and lower, heating costs are a major burden and even a safety issue. Tribal programs like the Gwich’in Solar and Energy Efficiency in the Arctic Project and U.S. Government aid, like the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), are designed to offset the high costs of heating.

Guests:

Wes Alexander (Athabaskan from Nenana) – energy specialist for the Tanana Chiefs Conference

Henry Red Cloud (Oglala Lakota) – executive director of Red Cloud Enterprises

Bruno Zagar – environment special and energy projects manager for Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

Loren Anthony (Navajo) – community warrior

Break 1 Music: Intertribal Song (song) Black Lodge (artist) Enter the Circle – Pow-Wow Songs Recorded Live At Coeur D’Alene (album)

Break 2 Music: Rattle Dance (song) Asani (artist) Rattle And Drum (album)

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The Catholic Church ignored the abuse of Native women and children by Jesuit priests in Alaska. That’s one of the revelations from a 19-month-long investigation by the Center for Investigative Journalism and the Northwest News Network. The reporting also found the church shuffled offending priests around, sometimes to other Alaska Native villages and ultimately offered them a retirement sanctuary in Washington state. We’ll talk with the one of the reporters from the project and a survivor featured in the report.

Response from Gonzaga University

Guests:

Emily Schwing – correspondent for the Northwest News Network

Elsie Boudreau (Yup’ik Eskimo) –  president Arctic Winds Healing Winds

Patrick Wall – former priest and Benedictine monk and canon lawyer

Break 1 Music: The Real People (song) RiverFlowz (artist) RiverFlowz Rural Recordings Atauciq (album)

Break 2 Music: Plains Vs Coast, Pt 2 (song) Fawn Wood (artist) Iskwewak (album)