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Wild horse populations on tribal lands are flourishing. And that’s a problem. The horses compete with livestock and wildlife for food and other resources. Tribes also complain the horses consume plants that have spiritual and nutritional importance. The animals contribute to soil erosion that also harms rivers and other waterways. Wild horse adoptions are down and slaughtering the animals remains controversial. We’ll explore how tribes confront wild horse management with limited budgets and cultural constraints.

Guests:

Bodie Shaw (The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs) – Northwest deputy regional director of trust services for the Bureau of Indian Affairs

Jason Smith (Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs) – president of the National Horse Coalition & Range Manager for Warm Springs

Moses Brings Plenty (Lakota) – Member of the CANA Foundation, a non-profit wild horse advocacy program

Break Music:  Steamboat Akalii Song (song) Jay Begaye (artist) Horses Are Our Journey (album)

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Before the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) federal museums had no mandate to return the remains of native ancestors or their cultural items. On the 27th anniversary of the law’s enactment, we take a moment to look how it has helped Native Nations. We’ll also consider where the act has come up short. Has NAGPRA helped your tribe bring home those that were kept in museum collections? What’s ahead for those who call on NAGPRA to protect Native culture?

You can watch the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs hearing on the Safeguarding Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act here.

Guests:

Shannon Keller O’Loughlin (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma) – Executive Director / Association on American Indian Affairs

Melanie O’Brien – With the U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service – Manager/National NAGPRA Program

William “Willie” Johnson (Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan) – Curator at Ziibiwing Center of Anishinabe Culture & Lifeways

Break Music: Steamboat Akalii Song (song) Jay Begaye (artist) Horses Are Our Journey (album)

 

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The number of Native Americans living in urban areas has grown substantially in recent decades. Urban and rural life each has its advantages and disadvantages. Access to health care, jobs, culture and family life all play into the decision on where to reside. The official definition of rural and urban can change depending on who you ask. A recent report that attempted to rewrite the definitions had to reexamine their work after people complained. We’ll look at the importance of urban and rural designations and why people choose one over the other.

Guests:

Janeen Comenote (enrolled Quinault) – executive director of the National Urban Indian Family Coalition

Natasha Singh (a Stevens Village tribal member) – General Counsel for the Tanana Chiefs Conference

Break Music: Gold Skies (Neon Natives Remix) (song/single) Neon Natives (artist)

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The deadline is near for those eligible to receive cash payments from the U.S. government over the historic Cobell settlement. Many people who have money coming to them don’t know they’re on the list. November 27th is the last day to file a claim stemming from the case. After that the remaining money goes into the Education Scholarship Fund established under the settlement. Those working to find recipients estimate some 35-thousand tribal members and their descendants remain eligible but have not applied. We’ll talk about the process to file a claim and cover some of the history of how we got here.

Whereabouts Unknown List

Office of Special Trustee for American Indians

Guests:

John Tahsuda (Kiowa) – Acting Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs

Jerold Gidner (Sault Ste. Marie Chippewa Tribe) – Acting Special Trustee for American Indians

Melvin Monette-Barajas (Turtle Mountain Chippewa) – President and Executive director of Indigenous Education Incorporated

Break Music: Witchi Tai To (song) Joy Harjo (artist) Winding Through the Milky Way (album)

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Congress is taking steps to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in Alaska to oil and gas drilling. Opponents have turned back similar efforts before, but Republicans in Congress and the Trump Administration are generating momentum for the idea. Alaska Native voices are on both sides of the issue. Some Alaska Native corporations stand to benefit from oil development. Others say it’s a fragile ecosystem and home to traditional food sources and sacred places.

Guests:

Matthew Rexford (Inupiaq) – president of the Kaktovik Iñupiat Corporation and tribal administrator for the Native Village of Kaktovik

Samuel Alexander – tribal member of Gwichyaa Zheii Gwich’in

Break Music: Reindeer (song) Pamyua (artist) Caught In The Act (album)

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If Moonshot, Blanket of Butterflies, and the Baker twins sound familiar, you might be nerdy enough to fit in at the second annual Indigenous Comic Con. We’ll be broadcasting live from the event that features Native artists, filmmakers, writers, game developers, cosplayers and fans. This year the 3-day gathering is at the Isleta Resort & Casino outside of Albuquerque. Listen in for a snapshot of the action as it happens.

Break Music: Starwalker (song) Buffy Sainte-Marie (artist) Medicine Songs (album)

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“Toxic masculinity’ is a concept being used by opinion columnists and academics to tag bad behavior by everyone from Harvey Weinstein to President Donald Trump on Twitter. Discussions link toxic masculinity to issues as serious as gun violence, and as mundane as shaggy beards. We’ll talk with a group of Native men about what it means to be a man, what guidance Native traditions provide and what masculinity has to offer when it stays this side of poisonous.

Guests:

Greg Grey Cloud (Crow Creek Sioux Tribe) – Co-founder of Wica Agli, based in Mission SD; Rosebud Reservation

Aldo Seoane (Yoeme) – co-founder of Wica Agli

Jeremy Nevilles-Sorell (Ojibwe/ Winnebago) – Training and Resource Director, Mending the Sacred Hoop

Break Music: Hiy Hiy (Grandfather) (song) Randy Wood (artist) Family (album)

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Native American women are some of the lowest paid employees in the country, according to a new study by the American Association of University Women. The gender pay gap happens for a variety of reasons including the types of jobs women and men gravitate towards, education, and child rearing. The authors of the study say the gender pay gap is closing but it’s going to take years, even decades for women to reach pay equity with men. In this program, we’ll discuss what’s behind the numbers and being done to address the issue in Native America.

Guests:

Vanessa Roanhorse (Navajo) – CEO of Roanhorse Consulting

Vanessa Bowen (Diné) – artist and designer

Julia Brown – board chairperson for American Association of University Women

Margo Gray (Osage) – president of Margo Gray and Associates (consulting business)

Break Music: Red Man Groove Thing (song) Aaron White and Anthony Wakeman (artist) Handprints Of Our People (album)

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The action starts in 1860 when an order is given to the Calvary to retrieve something they feel is extraordinary. From there the narrative takes us into the story of Changing Woman and the beginning of the Hero Twins saga. Native Realities Press issue number one of the “Hero Twins” comic by Navajo illustrator Dale Deforest is out and we are bringing you closer to the adventure with our November book of the month. We hear how this graphic tale ties to Navajo tradition.

Break Music: Different Heroes (feat. Northern Voice) (song) A Tribe Called Red (artist) Nation II Nation (album)