Native America Calling

Thaioronióhte Dan David (Kanehsatà:ke Mohawk) launched the news department for Canada’s Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN). In doing so, he gave Indigenous voices a national public platform they did not previously have. He started his career with the CBC covering the Yukon Territory. He reported on the Oka Crisis, among many other historic events. After establishing APTN News, he spent a decade reshaping a national newsroom in post-apartheid South Africa. We’ll speak with David’s family, friends and colleagues about his many accomplishments and the importance of putting Indigenous voices front and center in news coverage. We’ll also hear from a founder of the Lakota Times newspaper on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. The independent weekly newspaper ceased publication this month after decades in operation, leaving a blank space for Native news in the Great Plains region. GUESTS Marie David (Kanien’kehá:ke Mohawk), sister to Dan David Karyn Pugliese (Pikwàkanagàn First Nation), host and producer Nation to Nation of APTN News Drew Hayden Taylor (Curve Lake First Nation), playwright and author Bruce Spence (Opaskwayak Cree Nation), producer at APTN National News Sylvia Vollenhoven, journalist and filmmaker Amanda War Takes Bonnett-Beauvais (Oglala Lakota), public education specialist at the Native Women’s Society of the Great Plains and former editor and publisher at the Lakota Country Times   Break 1 Music: Stomp Dance (song) George Hunter (artist) Haven (album) Break 2 Music: Mahaha: Tickling Demon (song) PIQSIQ (artist) Legends (album)

President Donald Trump appears to have backed off his most urgent rhetoric, for now, around acquiring Greenland against the will of nearly every European nation and the vast majority of Americans. But the threat of a potential takeover of Greenland and other sovereign nations remains, with Trump officials also putting Cuba, Columbia, and even Canada and Mexico on notice for what Trump himself refers to as the “Donroe Doctrine”, a reference to the 200-year-old foreign policy asserting America’s dominance in the Western Hemisphere. The momentum for such imperialistic rhetoric is a reminder of a dark time for Native Americans and other Indigenous peoples potentially in Trump’s path. GUESTS Dr. Sara Olsvig (Inuk from Greenland), chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council and holds a Ph.D in Arctic studies Andrea Carmen (Yaqui), executive director of the International Indian Treaty Council Tillie Martinussen (Inuit), former member of Parliament of Greenland Malu Rosing (Inuit), advisor on Arctic and global governance for the International Work Group on Indigenous Affairs   Break 1 Music: Tikitaummata (song) Susan Aglukark (artist) The Crossing (album) Break 2 Music: Mahaha: Tickling Demon (song) PIQSIQ (artist) Legends (album)

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth says he is taking a “sledgehammer” to a federal program that many tribes and tribal businesses rely on. He is referring to the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) Business Development Program that extends contract priorities to disadvantaged business owners. Hegseth uses words like “fraud” and “scheme” to describe what he says is an outdated diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiative. His is part of an overall scrutiny of the program by the federal government. Hundreds of Native small businesses have accessed the program over the past 60 years, and some Alaska Native corporations have multi-million dollar contracts. GUESTS Jon Panamaroff (Native Village of Afognak), co-chair of the Native American Contractors Association and CEO of Command Holdings Kevin Allis (Forest County Potawatomi), founder and president of Thunderbird Strategic and former CEO of the National Congress of American Indians Nick Grube, investigative reporter at Honolulu Civil Beat   Break 1 Music: Shawnee Stomp Dance (song) Little Axe Singers (artist) Traditional Voices: Historic Recordings of Traditional Native American Music (album) Break 2 Music: Mahaha: Tickling Demon (song) PIQSIQ (artist) Legends (album)

Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve (Sicangu Lakota and Ponca) mistook her first interaction with racism — a separate gas station outhouse reserved for “Indians” — as a privileged courtesy for her and her people. It is one of the “Special Places, Sacred Circles” that she recalls in the account of her life on the dry, windy plains of South Dakota. She tells of the Great Depression, grandmothers who taught her the power of words, and the navigation of a literary world that embraced her. Sneve was one of the first authors to offer an alternative to children’s literature flush with stereotypes. Her insightful writing took her from her home along Ponca Creek to a presidential honor at the White House. We’ll hear Sneve talk about her life as a writer and public school educator.   Break 1 Music:  Song of Encouragement (song) Porcupine Singers (artist) Alowanpi – Songs of Honoring – Lakota Classics: Past & Present, Vol. 1 (album) Break 2 Music: Elle Danse [Boogat Remix] (song) Mimi O’Bonsawin (artist)

A recent agreement between a gold mining company and the Shoshone Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Reservation is being called “historic” by its chairman. The mining company president says the agreement follows the standards set by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and gives the tribe a share of the profits from the mine. The company and tribal officials are optimistic this will set a precedent for how mining companies partner with tribes. At the same time as the agreement, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposes to severely limit the power of tribes to interfere with construction of oil and natural gas pipelines and resource-guzzling data centers. GUESTS Chairman Brian Mason (Shoshone Paiute) Maranda Compton (Delaware Tribe of Indians), founder and president of Lepwe Kate Finn (Osage), founder and director of the Tallgrass Institute James Grijalva, professor of law at the University of North Dakota School of Law Melissa Kay, Tribal Water Institute fellow at the Native American Rights Fund   Break 1 Music: Healing Song (song) Judy Trejo (artist) Circle Dance Songs of the Paiute and Shoshone (album) Break 2 Music: Elle Danse [Boogat Remix] (song) Mimi O’Bonsawin (artist)

In Los Angeles, Chicago, and now Minneapolis, activists, community leaders, and concerned neighbors have organized loose-knit networks of support for what they believe will be a protracted resistance effort against the crackdowns by federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers. The Powwow Grounds Coffeehouse in Minneapolis is among the locations collecting food, cash, and other support for those filling the streets with whistles, drums, and their own voices. Doing so carries risk. ICE agents shot and killed one person. Many more are injured. At least one Minneapolis restaurant fended off ICE agents who attempted to enter. We’ll hear from Native organizers in cities around the country about what they expect in the weeks and months ahead. GUESTS Robert Rice (White Earth Nation), owner of Pow Wow Grounds Courtney Cochran (Anishinaabe), artist, filmmaker, and community organizer Jennifer Marley (San Ildefonso), community organizer and a member of the Total Sovereignty Working Group Eva Cardenas (Mexica Chicana of Mazahua and Zapotec descent), director of organizing for the NDN Collective, the LANDBACK action network Joel Garcia (Huichol), artist, cultural organizer, and director of Meztli Projects   Break 1 Music: Hope [Featuring Werner Erb] (song) Sihasin (artist) Never Surrender (album) Break 2 Music: Elle Danse [Boogat Remix] (song) Mimi O’Bonsawin (artist)

The village of Kwigillingok, Alaska is at a crossroads after flooding, fueled by a serious Bearing Sea storm, washed away 50 houses, killing three residents. The storm is one of the increasingly frequent and increasingly severe storms to pummel the area. Combined with thawing permafrost and rising sea levels, village leaders are pushing to move — a plan that state and Native regional corporation officials reject. Recent flooding in Washington State also has tribal officials assessing their options. There too, major flooding — what used to be a once-in-a-lifetime event — threatens residents’ lives and property and the natural viability of the rivers than once sustained life for local tribes. We’ll get updates about the effects of increasing floods and the difficult choices tribal officials face. GUESTS Daniel Paul (Yup’ik), tribal president for the Village of Kipnuk Gavin Phillip (Yup’ik), tribal administrator for the Village of Kwigillingok Darrel John (Yup’ik), community school advocate Joseph Pavel (Skokomish), director of natural resources for the Skokomish Indian Tribe Guillaume Mauger, Washington state climatologist and research scientist at the University of Washington Climate Impacts Group   Break 1 Music: Uangilaa (song) Susan Aglukark (artist) The Crossing (album) Break 2 Music: Elle Danse [Boogat Remix] (song) Mimi O’Bonsawin (artist)

This year is the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the federal law that promised equal access to voting regardless of race or religion. The document was a milestone in the movement championed by Martin Luther King, Jr. Among the actions that prompted the legislation was a series of violent confrontations between protestors and officials intent on preventing their progress, including law enforcement officers’ attack on hundreds of marchers on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala. Many civil rights advocates say the country is now dismantling the progress that King devoted his life to that has helped Native Americans and so many others. GUESTS Dr. Sandy Grande (Quechua), professor of political science and Native American and Indigenous Studies at the University of Connecticut Nick Tilsen (Oglala Lakota), founder and CEO of the NDN Collective Wenona Singel (Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians) Caroline LaPorte (Little River Band of Ottawa Indians descendant), staff attorney with the Indian Law Resource Center and associate judge for the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians   Break 1 Music: Leadership Song [Naaí’áanii Biyiin] (song) Radmilla Cody (artist) K’é Hasin (album) Break 2 Music: Elle Danse [Boogat Remix] (song) Mimi O’Bonsawin (artist)

Dakota Louis’ (Northern Cheyenne) family bull riding roots go back five generations. His father was a two-time champion at the Indian Finals Rodeo. Now, Louis is a top competitor at the same rodeo and other events around the country. He hopes to pass down his skills and inspiration to a younger generation on the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana where he grew up. On the Qualla Boundary in North Carolina, Jade Blankenship (Colville Tribes/Eastern Band of Cherokee) opened a spa and boutique with her sister. Together they are sharing their business knowledge with budding Native entrepreneurs. They are among the names on this year’s 40 under 40 list by the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development. We’ll hear from some of the Native people on a variety of career paths recognized for their contributions to their communities. GUESTS Dakota Louis (Northern Cheyenne, Cree, and Blackfeet), professional bull rider Jade Blankenship (Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, Spokane and Eastern Band of Cherokee), co-owner of Indigenous Boutique and Spa and founder of UWENA Corey Hinton (Passamaquoddy), attorney at Drummond Woodsum Michael Charles (Diné), assistant professor in the department of Biological and Environmental Engineering at Cornell University   Break 1 Music: Rodeo Song [Skip Dance Song] (song) Sweethearts of Navajoland (artist) From the Heart of Diné Nation Traditional Songs of the Navajo (album) Break 2 Music: Vipismal – The Hummingbird Song (song) Earl Ray (artist) Traditional Songs Of The Salt River Pima (album)

The U.S. capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has prompted questions about what comes next. No one is more concerned about the answer to that question than Venezuela’s Wayúu people and the other Indigenous tribes that make up as much as 3% of the population. They are no fans of Maduro, enduring the same oppressive tactics as other residents, contributing to disproportionate socio-economic hurdles. They are also suffering at the hands of both legal and illegal mining operations. What will President Donald Trump’s stated interests in gas and mineral development mean going forward? GUESTS Alicia Moncada (Wayúu), director of advocacy and communications for Cultural Survival Carlos Roa, journalist and editor for IQ Latino and a member and spokesperson with Asociación de Periodistas Venezolanos en el Extranjero / Association of Venezuelan Journalists Abroad (APEVEX) Alejandro Velasco, professor of Latin American history at New York University Laura Botero, PhD student at the University of Texas at Austin   Break 1 Music: Money Cannot Be Eaten (song) Rosary Spence (artist) Maskawisiwin (album) Break 2 Music: Vipismal – The Hummingbird Song (song) Earl Ray (artist) Traditional Songs Of The Salt River Pima (album)