Monday, April 1, 2019 – Culture and matriarchy in business
Native women entrepreneurs often face barriers to success. But attention to cultural values and meaningful networking along with a solid business plan and disciplined attention to detail can make all the difference. As the annual Native Women’s Business Summit gears up, we’ll take time to ask Native businesswomen about their keys to success and how they tackle issues like the wage gap, unequal access to resources and other obstacles.

Tuesday, April 2, 2019 – The future of the Indian Child Welfare Act
The Indian Child Welfare Act has some tough opponents in the courts and in the court of public opinion. ICWA proponents suffered a setback in the Brackeen vs Bernhardt case. Both sides just presented oral arguments in the appeal. We will go live from the annual Protecting Our Children National American Indian Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect to hear first-hand stories from those affected by ICWA. We’ll also get expert analysis about the possible trajectory for the 40-year-old law going forward.

Wednesday, April 3, 2019 – The lighter side of Native poetry
Poems can be an epiphany, a sad good bye to a former lover, or an emotional recollection of strength. They can also offer a hilarious tale of life in Native America. For National Poetry Month, we’ll hear from Native poets like Tiffany Midge (“Bury My Heart at Chuck E. Cheese’s”), Chris La Tray (“One-Sentence Journal”) and others to understand how humor can paint a true picture of Native America.

Thursday, April 4, 2019 – Tribes respond to record floods
The National Guard is helping out after more than two weeks of record flooding left residents of the Pine Ridge Reservation stranded, some without food, water or medicine. At the same time, dozens of residents on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation had to be evacuated—some by helicopter—to escape the threat from rising waters. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe stacked sand bags to try and protect homes and businesses. We’ll get an update from tribes dealing with the worst flooding in memory.

Friday, April 5, 2019 –Tribal education departments fulfill a need
Tribal education departments offer opportunities most public and private schools can’t: a solid education in a culturally relevant environment. The departments sometimes run schools on reservations and even provide higher education scholarships. State and local education agencies are required to consult with tribes under the Every Student Succeeds Act. We’ll talk with educators about the role tribes play in the education of their citizens and improve education for Native students.

 

Monday, March 25, 2019 – Dogs of the tundra: more than sled dogs
Peter Kaiser is the first Yup’ik musher to win the Iditarod. Long before competitive sled dog races, Indigenous people in Alaska and Canada maintained an important relationship with dogs. In addition to transportation over snow and ice, dogs help in subsistence hunting and protection. We’ll take time to learn more about this symbiotic relationship between dogs and Indigenous people in the north.

Tuesday, March 26, 2019 – Book of the Month: In the Night of Memory
The novel “In the Night of Memory” by Linda LeGarde Grover of the Bois Forte Band of Ojibwe weaves a story about family history that includes the people that sometimes get brushed over or are forgotten. Foster placement and war are two of the forces that change the lives of the Natives characters we meet in this month’s literary feature. They must look inside to face challenges and accept the reality that reconnecting with family is not always easy. We’ll sit down with the Native author to get insights on her latest work of fiction.

Wednesday, March 27, 2019 – Indigenous Trade routes
Archaeologists were surprised to find a stash of 3,000-year-old quinoa seeds while surveying a construction site in Ontario Canada. Up to that point, the South American grain from the same time period had been documented only as far north as Kentucky. Scientists think a previously unknown Indigenous trade route could have brought the quinoa to Canada. Other traditional trade routes are well-documented. Abalone and other ocean sea shells are important to tribes in the landlocked Southwest. The Three Sisters—corn, beans and squash—originally made their way to Native farm fields from Central America. We’ll learn the history of Indigenous trade routes and how they relate to today’s commerce and customs.

Thursday, March 28, 2019 – Meet the 2019 Champions for Change
Every year the Center for Native American Youth picks a handful of outstanding Native youth who are working to make change in their communities. Charitie Ropati (Native Village of Kongignak) wants to decolonize education and is working in her school district to include regalia at graduation. Madison White (Mohawk Nation of Akwesasne) is devoted to healing from intergenerational trauma. She is making strides toward starting a sexual assault support group, a language immersion school, and a traditional resource center. Shandiin Herrera (Diné) is a Gates Millennium Scholar, a Udall Scholar, and a Chief Manuelito Scholar studying at Duke University. We’ll talk with them about their plans for making big and small changes in Native America.

Friday, March 29, 2019 – March in the news
A new wave of summer missionaries will soon flock to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Journalist Mary Annette Pember (Red Cliff Band of Wisconsin Ojibwe) tracked where the money raised to help Oglala Sioux tribal members goes. Her latest piece in Indian Country Today is titled, “Seasonal complaint: ‘Missionaries are on our reservation!’” Also, College Horizons has some perspective about how the college bribery scandal affects Native students trying to get into college.

Monday, March 18, 2019 – The continuing Bears Ears protection debate
New leadership at the local and federal levels is changing the discussion over the fate of Bears Ears National Monument in Utah. At a recent U.S. House committee hearing, tribal leaders heaped criticism on the Trump Administration’s decision to severely reduce the boundaries established by Barack Obama in 2016. Congressional Democrats propose legislation to include even more protected land than the original monument. Much of the monument is within San Juan County, Utah. With a new Navajo majority, the county commission rescinded previous resolutions opposing Bears Ears as a national monument. We’ll get updates on the various discussions on the size of Bears Ears National Monument.

Tuesday, March 19, 2019 – A better image of Native America through graphic design
Graphic design is much more than finding the right colors and fonts for a t-shirt. It’s about communicating a message. It’s storytelling through typography, photography and illustration. Talented Native designers are using their skills and traditional knowledge to get the message across for tribes, businesses and non-profits. We’ll hear about the intricacies of telling Native stories through graphic design.

Wednesday, March 20, 2019 –Music Maker: Khu.éex’
“Héen” means “water” in the Tlingit Language. It’s also the third album by the band Khu.éex’ and it features something that holds a lot of importance in Native culture: storytelling. Jazz, rock and funk sounds, sprinkled with spoken word, create the soil that makes the landscape of this album. In the songs, dynamic rhythm and energy crawl over deep messages about respecting culture and protecting the environment. They include the song “Shell No,” that confronts the conflict between cultural values and corporate profit. Other songs in this audible artistic collection are meant to teach listeners about the beauty of life. Some of the songs feature the Tlingit Language. We’ll hear more from the members of Khu.éex’ on our March Music Maker.

Thursday, March 21, 2019 – What makes a hate group?
The Montana Human Rights Network wants a group that attacks tribal sovereignty in the courts classified as a hate group. If so, it would be the first time a group focused solely on Native Americans reached that status. The Southern Poverty Law Center just released a report showing a steady rise in the number of hate groups in the U.S. over the past four years. They define a hate group as any organized group that “has beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics.” We’ll discuss what constitutes hate and whether advocating for the elimination of the federal reservation system reaches that level.

Friday, March 22, 2019 – Telling time through seasons, stars and the moon
Before Western calendars, Indigenous ways of tracking time depended on moon cycles, stars, agriculture and animal migrations. The Ojibwe have different names for moon cycles like “Falling Leaves Moon” or “Snowcrust Moon.” The Navajo calendar names months after significant activities like melting snow and planting early and late season crops. The Aztec calendar consists of both sacred and an agriculture-based elements. As the Gregorian calendar officially turns over the spring, we’ll take a moment to reflect on Indigenous timetables.

Monday, March 11, 2019 – The human faces of the Indian Child Welfare Act
Autumn Adams spent a good portion of her life in foster care. She says the Indian Child Welfare Act saved her life because she was able to stay in her tribal community. ICWA is called the ‘gold standard’ of child welfare policy. The 40-year-old law is under fire through a number of court cases, including a recent federal court ruling out of Texas that deemed the law unconstitutional. We’ll hear from individuals who have been affected by ICWA.

Tuesday, March 12, 2019 – Understanding headdresses
The headdress is one of the most iconic items associated with Native Americans. They are prominent in countless photos and illustrations of Native people. But not all tribes have headdresses, and these cultural items can vary from tribes to tribe. For many nations, headdresses are earned and they often come with protocols and prayers that need to be followed to show respect. Recently a powwow organizer in Canada bestowed a headdress and a Blackfoot name to a non-Native female politician. The event stirred discussion about who has the right to wear or own a headdress. We’ll hear from different tribal members about what the headdress represents.

Wednesday, March 13, 2019 – Zia symbol: from sacred emblem to commercial exploitation
Ever since a non-Native anthropologist lifted the sacred Zia symbol for the New Mexico state flag contest in the 1920s, it’s appeared on everything from beer labels to album covers to t-shirts. Rarely does anyone using it think to ask Zia Pueblo first. The tribe unsuccessfully tried to copyright the symbol. In recent years, the state of New Mexico has taken steps to formally recognize the symbol’s origin. We’ll explore its history, meaning and subsequent popularity.

Thursday, March 14, 2019 – What’s in the Green New Deal for Native nations?
The ambitious plan put forward by congressional Democrats to address climate change, create jobs and mitigate economic inequality has a reference to “indigenous communities.” But the 14-page proposed resolution does not specifically mention tribes. That and the lack of acknowledgement for government-to-government relations concerns the Indigenous Environmental Network, which otherwise applauds the goals of the Green New Deal. Other critics call the plan unrealistic. We take a look at the Green New Deal from a Native perspective.

Friday, March 15, 2019 – Sugar bush season
The Ojibwe lunar calendar puts the sugar bush moon, or “Iskigamizige-giizas,” in April, but maple sap can start to run as early as February depending on the location. This time of year, Native families and communities in the northern United States and southern Canada are tapping trees or are getting ready to. It takes about 50 gallons of sap to make one gallon of maple syrup. We explore the maple syrup-making process and the cultural importance behind it.