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As an advocate for Indigenous cultural, legal, political and environmental rights Sylvia McAdam (Saysewahum) has inspired many others with her passion and dedication to protecting Native ways of life. McAdam is one of the co-founders of the Idle No More movement. Her view on the hold colonialism has on Native liberty has also prompted others to push for self-determination and seek the path of healing from an era of genocide. Join us for this episode of Native America Calling where we sit down with Sylvia McAdam (Nêhiyaw First Nation) our March Native in the Spotlight.

Break Music: Idle No More (feat. Charlie Fettah, Wab Kinew & Young Kidd) (song) Boogey the Beat (artist) Idle No More (feat. Charlie Fettah, Wab Kinew & Young Kidd) (single)

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A new, costly treatment can cure some types of hepatitis C. It’s promising news for Native Americans, who, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have higher rates of hepatitis C infections than any other group. We’ll educate ourselves about how hepatitis C is transmitted and diagnosed. We’ll also discuss the latest treatments and the outlook for people who need it most.

Guests:

Dr. Gina Valente-Moore – nurse practitioner at the Mathiesen Memorial Health Clinic

Lisa Neel (Cherokee Nation) – program manager for the HIV/AIDS program at IHS

Break Music: Voices In the Wind (song) Chester Knight & The Wind (artist) Freedom (album)

 

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Antonin Scalia’s sudden death leaves several Native American legal decisions up in the air. It also prompts a look at the legacy he leaves on key Native American issues. Primary elections are starting to give shape to the presidential race. Are the candidates’ positions on Indian Country any clearer? We’ll take a look at the top headlines along with sports.

Guests:

Mark Trahant (Shoshone Bannock) –  journalist with TrahantReports.com and Charles R. Johnson Endowed Professor of Journalism at the University of North Dakota

Suzette Brewer (Cherokee) –  journalist with Indian Country Today Media Network

Brent Cahwee (Pawnee and Euchee) – co-founder and editor of ndnsports.com

Break Music: Rolling Stone (song) Burning Sky (artist) A Simple Man (album)

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The Twitter hashtag #OscarsSoWhite resurfaced with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences nominations because this is the second year in a row with only white nominees in the top acting categories. Several actors are boycotting the Academy Awards in protest. As we approach Hollywood’s biggest night, we’ll take a look at how little Native Americans are recognized for their work on the big screen. Has much changed since 1973 when Sacheen Littlefeather took the stage in front of 85-million viewers and declined Marlon Brando’s best actor Oscar? We’ll ask her.

Guests:

Buffy Sainte-Marie (Cree) singer-songwriter and Academy Award winner.

Sacheen Littlefeather (Apache/Yaqui) – activist, elder, educator and actress.

Chris Eyre (Cheyenne & Arapaho) – filmmaker, Smoke Signals, Skins and Edge of America

Sonny Skyhawk (Rosebud Sioux) – actor, producer and voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Break Music: Power in the Blood (song) Buffy Sainte-Marie (artist) Power in the Blood (album)

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This month we take time to hear from Navajo author Evangeline Parsons Yazzie about her latest novel, “Her Enemy, Her Love.” It’s the follow up to her first book, “Her Land, Her Love.” We invite you to join us for our February Book of the Month edition where we’ll hear more about the journey she has sent her characters on this time around. The book explores the themes of family, love and hope while during a major moment in a tribe’s history.

Break Music: Radmilla Cody (artist) Shi Ke’yah/ Five Agencies Song (song) Honoring My Land (album)

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Officials recently added bison meat to the list of commodity food items with the Food Distribution Program on Indian reservations. It’s the latest example of the USDA incorporating more traditional and healthier foods on the list that is historically cited as a culprit in Native American obesity, diabetes and other health problems. Are they on the right path? What would you like to see from the program?

Guests:

Notah Begay III (Dine, San Felipe and Isleta Pueblo) – founder and board member of the Notah Begay the Third Foundation and  founder of KivaSun

Gregory Nothstein (enrolled tribal member for the Native Village Wales) – program manager for the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium Food Distribution Program

Dan Cornelius (Oneida Nation in Wisconsin) – general manager for the Mobile Farmers Market and technical Assistance specialist for the Intertribal Agriculture Council

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

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Sometimes the way Native Americans wear their hair reflects a specific cultural expression. There may be a little more hair spray and some curls these days, but the tradition is still there. How do you wear your hair? Is it an expression of your cultural identity? And what happens when expression, through our hair, causes controversy?

Guests:

Pamela Peters (Navajo) – multimedia indigenous documentarian

Tara Houska (Couchiching First Nation) – lawyer, co-founder of Not Your Mascot and national campaigns director for Honor the Earth

Mary Kim Titla  (San Carlos Apache) – executive director of the United National Indian Tribal Youth incorporated (UNITY)

Ruth Swaney (Salish) – budget director for the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes

 

Break Music: Lightbeam Thunder (feat. Marla Nauni) (song) Cempoalli 20 & Quese Imc (artist) Osahwuh (album)

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For people who are overweight, shedding a lot of pounds is a healthy way to go.  But it comes with its own burden many people don’t think about.  Just mustering the drive to lose weight takes a lot of effort. Then it’s almost like becoming a different person. You look different in the mirror and people treat you differently. What kinds of emotions are involved in the weight loss journey? We’ll hear from individuals who have lost a significant amount of weight with help from a healthy Native American support group. They’ll discuss the physical benefits as well as the unexpected emotional side of their process of weight loss.

Guests:

Waylon Pahona (Hopi/Tewa/ Maricopa Piipaash) – motivational speaker on health and wellness and founder of Healthy Active Natives Facebook group

Dr. Barbara Beach – psychologist with the Cherokee Nation

Break Music: Lolo Said (song) John-Carlos Perea (artist) Creation Story (album)

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The Canadian government systematically discriminated against First Nations children by underfunding welfare services for years. That’s the landmark ruling by the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal. What follows such a major revelation? What’s the solution? What parallels can be drawn between Canada and America regarding child welfare issues?

Guests:

Raymond Shingoose (Ojibwe) – executive director for the Yorkton Tribal Council Child and Family Services and the president of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society

Dr. Linda Many Guns (Blackfoot) – professor in Native American studies at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta

Break Music: Friendship Song (song) Art Napoleon (Travelling Sun) (artist) Miyoskamin (Early Springtime) (album)