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Graduation time this year comes with a moratorium on public gatherings because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But high school and college seniors are not letting social distancing keep them from celebrating their educational accomplishments. Social media and family gatherings are among the ways the Native senior class of 2020 is marking the occasion.

Guests:

Dr. Casey Smith (Diné) – University of Minnesota graduate and incoming UCSF (University of California San Francisco) resident

Dr. Corey Still (citizen of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians) – director of scholarship operation at the American Indian Graduate Center

Josh Lucio (Zuni Pueblo) – scholarship operations manager for the American Indian Graduate Center

Kaitlyn Carrywater (Assiniboine) – Hays Lodgepole High School senior

 

Break 1 music: Celebrate (song) Devin Whirlwind Soldier (artist)

Break 2 music: Nose Flute Dub (song) Paula Fuga (artist) Lilikoi (album)

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Almost 5,000 inmates in prisons and jails across the country have tested positive for the coronavirus. Nearly 100 of them have died according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Andrea Circle Bear (Cheyenne River Sioux) was the first female inmate in the country to die of COVID-19. Her family says she should’ve been treated much sooner than she was. In New Mexico, the state Supreme Court denied a petition to release certain inmates to prevent the spread of the virus there. We’ll check on the dilemma of those who have no way to isolate themselves from the pandemic.

Guests:

Gabe Galanda (belongs to the Round Valley Indian Tribes) – managing lawyer at Galanda Broadman and founder of Huy

Preston Sanchez (Dine and Jemez and Laguna Pueblo) – ACLU Indigenous justice attorney

Ruth Buffalo (citizen of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation) – North Dakota State House Representative for district 27

Amanda Lopez (Diné) – sister of incarcerated man

 

Break 1 music: Creation Story (song) John-Carlos Perea (artist) Creation Story (album)

Break 2 music: Nose Flute Dub (song) Paula Fuga (artist) Lilikoi (album)

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As the commercial fishing season in Alaska nears, residents and medical professionals are worried about the potential coronavirus threat posed by the thousands of seasonal workers who arrive from all over the world. The only hospital in Dillingham has two ventilators, which officials say would not be adequate if there’s a major COVID-19 outbreak. The tribally-owned Bristol Bay Area Health Corporation urges the state to postpone the fishing season, citing the health risk to the 28 Alaska Native villages it serves. A group of mayors from the area sent a letter to Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy to consider closing the fishing season. So far, there is no plan to do so.

Guests:

Robert Clark (Yupik) – President and CEO Bristol Bay Area Health Corporation

Thomas Tilden (Curyung Tribal Council) –  Chief of the Curyung Tribal Council

Ralph Andersen (Yupik) – President & CEO Bristol Bay Native Association

 

Break 1 music: Intertribal (song) Cree Confederation (artist) Pakosiyimitan (album)

Break 2 music: Nose Flute Dub (song) Paula Fuga (artist) Lilikoi (album)

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Along with some states, tribes are opening up their businesses despite the continued threat from the coronavirus. Idaho’s Coeur d’Alene Tribe opened its casino with added precautions May 1. In Washington, the Kalispel tribe opened its facilities May 5. At least four other tribes in the state are planning on casino openings in the coming days despite state-mandated stay-at-home orders. The debate over opening businesses to the public weighs economic survival against the health and safety of citizens. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports cases of COVID-19 are declining nationally, but some tribes continue to struggle with increasing infection rates despite the national trend. Experts also warn about a possible spike of new infections if public interactions increase too soon.

Guests:

Bryan Newland (Ojibwe) – tribal chairperson of Bay Mills Indian Community

Frankie Myers (Yurok) – Vice-Chairman of the Yurok Tribe

 

Break 1 music: Round Dance (song) High Noon (artist) Generations (album)

Break 2 music: Nose Flute Dub (song) Paula Fuga (artist) Lilikoi (album)

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The global COVID-19 pandemic generates fear and confusion for a lot of people. As always, scam artists are ready with new and creative ways to exploit people’s fears and steal their money. The Federal Trade Commission is coming down on marketers who falsely claim to have COVID-19 cures. The agency is also warning about phone calls from criminals pretending to be sick family members needing money. We’ll get reminders on how to protect yourself from the latest frauds and scams.

Guests:

Shawn Spruce (Laguna Pueblo) – programs consultant for First Nations Development Institute and co-host of the podcast Natives on a Budget

Chuck Harwood – regional director of Federal Trade Commission for the Northwest region

Dr. Lukejohn Day (Oglala Lakota) – associate professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco and the Chief Medical Officer at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital

 

Break 1 music: Through The Woodlands: Buckskin Flats/ Rod’s Reel/ Les Disputeuses (song) Métis Fiddler Quartet (artist) North West Voyage Nord Ouest (album)

Break 2 music: Manitou (song) The Delbert Anderson Trio (artist) MANITOU (album)

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Expecting mothers face added anxiety because of the coronavirus pandemic. They may be separated from their newborn if they test positive for the virus or are showing symptoms. At the same time, just going to a hospital to give birth increases the chances of getting exposed to coronavirus. We’ll get medical advice on what precautions pregnant women can take and hear from those who facing difficult decisions during their pregnancies.

Guests:

Dr. Vivek Katukuri – assistant professor in the division of maternal fetal medicine at the University of New Mexico

Chantelle Beeson (Turtle Clan from Akwesasne Mohawk) – mother of three with one on the way

Nicolle Gonzales (Diné) – nurse midwife and medical director for Changing Woman Initiative

Rhemie Helt (Otoe-Missouria Tribe) – mom of three

 

Break 1 music: Mommy’s Little Guy (artist) Fawn Wood (artist) Iskwewak (album)

Break 2 music: Manitou (song) The Delbert Anderson Trio (artist) MANITOU (album)

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Isolation because of the coronavirus doesn’t stop the need to raise awareness of a tragic statistic for Native people. May 5th is the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Native Women and Girls. Organizers are encouraging virtual walks, candles in windows, and twitter campaigns to keep the light on the disproportionate number of victimized Indigenous women and girls.

Guests:

Annita Luchessi (Southern Cheyenne descendant) — PhD student at the University of Arizona and the executive director of Sovereign Bodies Institute

Aqpik Charlene Apok (Inupiaq) — director of gender justice and healing for Native Movement

Cheyenne Antonio  (Diné) — sex trafficking project coordinator for Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women

Lucy Simpson (Navajo) — executive director of the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center

 

Break 1 music: Youth Prayer Chant (song) Spirit Line Collective (artist) Spirit Line: Woven Together For Our Missing & Murdered Indigenous Relatives (album)

Break 2 music: Manitou (song) The Delbert Anderson Trio (artist) MANITOU (album)

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There is no one way to address the coronavirus threat. The state of Alaska has relatively few COVID-19 cases. But some vital modes of transportation are already shut down and Native villages are working on keeping potential virus exposures at bay. It’s a different story in urban centers that the U.S. Census says is home to nearly seven out of every 10 Native Americans. In Los Angeles, the Native population is large and diverse. Organizations like United American Indian Involvement is helping elders and others coping with a significant and growing health threat. We’ll hear the various ways leaders are tackling the coronavirus emergency to suit the needs of their people.

Guests:

Mark N. Fox (Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara ) – Chairman of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation

Jason Wilson (Tlingit from the Eagle and Killer Whale Clans) – public safety manager for Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska

Joseph Quintana (Kewa Pueblo) – development director for United American Indian Involvement and a member of the Los Angeles City/County Native American Indian Commission

 

Break 1 music: Tha Chosen One (song) Southern Style (artist) Blacked Out (album)

Break 2 music: Manitou (song) The Delbert Anderson Trio (artist) MANITOU (album)

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Protecting seeds for Native vegetable varieties and relying on traditional subsistence methods only go so far for ensuring enough food for tribal citizens. The coronavirus is only making it harder as disruptions in supply chains, business closures and delayed food shipments increasingly pop up. As federal relief money is scheduled to start flowing, tribes and relief organizations are working in the meantime to cover some of the basics.

Guests:

Ethel Branch (Diné) – lawyer, former attorney general for the Navajo Nation and creator of the Navajo & Hopi COVID-19 Families Relief fund

Linda Black Elk (Catawba) – food sovereignty skills director United Tribes Technical College

 

Break 1 music: Red Ochre Cheek Clan (Tl’ááshchí’í) (song) Radmilla Cody (artist) K’é Hasin (album)

Break 2 music: Intertribal (song) Blackfoot Confederacy (artist) Confederacy Style (album)

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As the COVID-19 crisis continues to expand, we’ll hear from key Trump Administration officials guiding federal health and economic relief for Indian Country. Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Tara Katuk Mac Lean Sweeney (Inupiaq), Indian Health Service Director Michael D. Weahkee (Zuni) and Tyler Fish (Cherokee Nation), the senior policy adviser and tribal liaison to the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs will answer questions about stimulus relief money to tribes, coronavirus testing on reservations, how and when to begin opening businesses to the public and other questions on your mind.

Guests:

Tara Katuk Mac Lean Sweeney (Inupiaq) – Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs for the U.S. Department of the Interior

Tyler Fish (Muscogee Creek/Cherokee Nation) – Senior policy adviser and tribal liaison to the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs

Michael Weahkee (Zuni) – director of the Indian Health Service

 

Break 1 music: Siku (song) Pamyua (album) Caught In The Act (album)

Break 2 music: Intertribal (song) Blackfoot Confederacy (artist) Confederacy Style (album)