A team of researchers are actively sifting through archival documents, artifacts, even artwork to expand the story of Indigenous slavery. The Native Bound Unbound project includes interactive maps, digitized documents, and recent interviews with descendants whose ancestors endured enslavement. The publicly available digital archive aims to document every instance of Indigenous slavery in the Western Hemisphere to illuminate where and when slavery took place, and the lasting effects for Indigenous communities and their descendants. This is an encore show so we won’t be taking calls from listeners.

GUESTS

Philip J. Deloria (Yankton Dakota), professor of history at Harvard University

Theresa Pasqual (Acoma Pueblo), executive vice president of Indigenous Affairs at the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center and the former tribal historic preservation officer for the Pueblo of Acoma

Estevan Rael-Galvez, executive director of Native Bound Unbound: Archive of Indigenous Slavery

Break 1 Music: Crossroad Blues (song) Lakota John (artist) Lakota John and Kin (album)

Break 2 Music: Oshki Manitou (song) Chuck Copenace (artist) Oshki Manitou (album)

The scariest clown to ever appear on screen drives a storyline involving a fictional tribe in Maine. “IT: Welcome to Derry” uses horror writer Stephen King’s 1986 novel as a jumping off point. The hit HBO Max miniseries provides a new Native American theme to the plot with some veteran Native talent in front of and behind the camara. It is one of the notable projects from 2025, a list that also includes Sterlin Harjo’s “The Lowdown”, the TIFF Best Canadian Feature winner, “Uiksaringitara,” and SXSW Documentary Feature Special Jury Award winner, “Remaining Native.” We’ll recall some of the best film and TV projects from the year and see what’s in store for 2026.

GUESTS

Johnnie Jae (Otoe-Missouria and Choctaw), founder of Red Pop! News

 Jason Asenap (Comanche and Muscogee), writer, critic, and filmmaker

Sunrise Tippeconnie (Commanche, Navajo and Cherokee), director of programming at deadCenter Film and co-host of the Reel Indigenous Podcast

Kimberly Guerrero (Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation and Salish and Kootenai), actress, screenwriter, and professor at the University of California, Riverside

Favorite films and television shows of the year

Sunrise Tippeconnie:

Jason Asenap:

Johnnie Jae:

Here’s an extended interview with “IT: Welcome to Derry” star Kimberly Guerrero speaking on her role of Rose in the television series. She starts off describing her early career in Hollywood.

As South Dakota tribes mark the 135th anniversary of the Wounded Knee Massacre, they face a headwind of history revision by the Trump administration. After years of admonishment by tribal leaders to rescind the Medals of Honor awarded to the soldiers who participated in the massacre, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth instead praised the soldiers for their bravery and declared that the medals will stand. Since then, President Donald Trump signed legislation preserving land at the site in honor of the tragedy. We’ll get perspective on how Wounded Knee is remembered.

GUESTS

Jeff Means (Oglala Lakota), associate professor of history and department chair at the University of Wyoming

Courtney Yellow Fat (Hunkpapa Lakota), historian and chief cultural consultant and co-producer with the Densmore/Lakota Songs Repatriation Project

Willard Malebear Jr. (Hunkpapa Lakota), current organizer of the Dakota 38+2 Memorial Run

Break 1 Music: Calvin Jumping Bull’s Memorial Song (song) Porcupine Singers (artist) Alowanpi – Songs Of Honoring – Lakota Classics: Past & Present, Vol. 1 (album)

Break 2 Music: Oshki Manitou (song) Chuck Copenace (artist) Oshki Manitou (album)

On the cusp of what could be a new era of Artificial Intelligence (AI), some researchers are urging caution and the need for deliberate controls to keep the developing technology from robbing Indigenous people of their cultures and sovereignty. A project with three universities provides a framework of standards to prevent AI from stripping Native Americans and all other Indigenous peoples of their right to control images, language, cultural knowledge, and other components of their identities they’ve worked so hard to retain. We’ll hear about the potential benefits and threats of AI to Native people. This is an encore show so we won’t be taking calls from listeners.

GUESTS

Danielle Boyer (Sault Ste Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians), robotics inventor

Randy Kekoa Akee (Native Hawaiian), Julie Johnson Kidd Professor of Indigenous Governance and Development at Harvard University

Michael Running Wolf (Lakota and Cheyenne), community leader in AI research

Crystal Hill-Pennington, professor at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks

Break 1 Music: Obsidian (song) Red-209 (artist)

Break 2 Music: Coventry Carol (song) PIQSIQ (artist) Coventry Carol (album)

December is a traditional time for feasts, family, and giving, but the financial and time burdens of the holiday-heavy month, combined with the change of seasons and other factors, also make it a time ripe for breaks in a person’s mental health. We’ll find out how connections — with other people, cultural traditions, or spiritual foundations — can be a way to mitigate the added stresses of December — or any time, in this encore presentation.

GUESTS

Dr. Pamela End of Horn (Oglala Lakota), national suicide prevention consultant for the Indian Health Service

Kristin Mitchell (Diné), assistant project director for Project AWARE Wildcats (PAWS)

Dr. Jessica Saniguq Ullrich (Nome Eskimo Community and Native Village of Wales), assistant professor at the Institute for Research and Education to Advance Community Health (IREACH) at Washington State University

Break 1 Music: Dreaming of A Christmas (song) Randall Paskemin (artist) Christmas Cheer (album)

Break 2 Music: Coventry Carol (song) PIQSIQ (artist) Coventry Carol (album)

New York Times best-selling author Angeline Boulley (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians) made a number of best-of-2025 lists with the third book in her series centered in the Ojibwe community, Sugar Island, titled “Sisters in the Wind.” Another favorite comes from young adult author and editor, Cynthia Leitich Smith (Muscogee), who challenged more than a dozen other Native authors to imagine a Native future where a frybread eatery holds community and culture in the “Legendary Frybread Drive-In.” And renowned Potawatomi botanist and writer, Robin Wall Kimmerer tapped into the curiosity of young readers with her first children’s book “Bud Finds Her Gift.” They are among the Native works highlighted by our distinguished panel of reading enthusiasts. You can find their lists of favorite books of the year below.

GUESTS

Allison Waukau (Menominee and Navajo), American Indian Library Association member -at-large

Amber McCrary (Diné), writer and poet

Stacy Wells (Choctaw Nation), author and librarian

Allison Waukau’s favorite books: 

Stacy Wells’ favorite books: 

Amber McCrary’s favorite books: 

Shawn Spruce’s favorite books: 

Andi Murphy’s (NAC producer) favorite books:

Break 1 Music: 12 Days of Christmas (song) Carol Adams (artist) Heartbeat of the Holiday Season (album)

Break 2 Music: Coventry Carol (song) PIQSIQ (artist) Coventry Carol (album)

With the stroke of a pen, the U.S. welcomes more than 50,000 new federally recognized tribal citizens. After numerous failed attempts, the Lumbee Nation is the 575th federally recognized tribe — the fourth-largest overall in terms of population and the largest tribe east of the Mississippi River. The recognition brings a host of potential changes, including new political power, economic development opportunities, and a sense of pride for Lumbee citizens who have worked for nearly 140 years to be counted among the country’s established sovereign nations.

GUESTS

David E. Wilkins (Lumbee), professor at the University of Richmond

Malinda Maynor Lowery (Lumbee), professor at Emory University, historian, and filmmaker

Carrie Lowry Schuettpelz (Lumbee), professor at the University of Iowa and director of the Native Policy Lab

Break 1 Music: Maple Leaf Rag (song) Lakota John (artist) Winds of Time (album)

Break 2 Music: Coventry Carol (song) PIQSIQ (artist) Coventry Carol (album)

Leonard Peltier’s release after nearly 50 years in federal prison tops our list for the most momentous events of 2025. We’ll explore what the unrepentant elder activist’s relative freedom (he remains under house arrest) means nearly a year after President Joe Biden commuted his sentence. We’ll also revisit some of the other top news events including how President Donald Trump’s first year touched everything from Native health care to federal contracts, and federal recognition for the Lumbee Nation.

GUESTS

Jourdan Bennett-Begaye (Diné), managing editor of ICT

Graham Lee Brewer (Cherokee), national reporter for The Associated Press

Levi Rickert (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation), publisher and editor of Native News Online and Tribal Business News

Melanie Henshaw (Mvskoke), Indigenous affairs reporter for InvestigateWest

Break 1 Music: Ridin’ Out the Storm (song) Samantha Crain (artist)

Break 2 Music: Coventry Carol (song) PIQSIQ (artist) Coventry Carol (album)

“Cruel Joke”, the new album by Cherokee singer-songwriter Ken Pomeroy, scored celebratory reviews from Rolling Stone and NPR’s World Café among many other outlets. Chickasaw classical composer Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate puts an Indigenous twist on classical music, teaming up with the Dover Quartet, which BBC Music magazine calls one of the greatest quartets of the last 100 years. And the popular First Nations powwow group Northern Cree released two singles with Juno-award winning blues duo Blue Moon Marquee. They are among the countless talented Native musicians who are mastering their craft and reaching new audiences in 2025. We’ll review some of the notable music from this past year.

GUESTS

Brett Maybee (Seneca), host of “The Mainstream”, “Gaënö’”, and Full Moon Radio; multi-instrumentalist; and singer- songwriter

Larry K (Ho-Chunk), CEO and program host of “Indigenous in Music”

Tory J (Quinault), host of “Sounds of Survivance” on KEXP

Break 1 Music: LUCKY8 (song) Ribbon Skirt (artist) Pensacola

Break 2 Music: Hug Room (song) Chuck Copenace (artist) Oshki Manitou (album)

The prime minister of Denmark apologized for the forced contraception of thousands of Indigenous women in Greenland dating back to the 1960s. The Danish government is also ending problematic parent competency tests associated with disproportionately high numbers of babies being taken away from Indigenous mothers. Both milestones come as Greenland — an autonomous territory of Danish rule — is making strides toward independence. The Trump administration has also made public comments about exerting U.S. control over the mineral-rich territory occupied almost entirely by Indigenous Inuit residents. We’ll talk with Greenlanders about how these developments address Denmark’s complicated past and what remains to be done.

GUESTS

Najannguaq Hegelund, chair for SILA 360

Johannes Geisler (Inuk), Greenlandic parent

Aki-Matilda Høegh-Dam, Member of the Parliament of Greenland

Ujammiugaq Engell, museum director for the Nuuk Local Museum

Break 1 Music: Ikitaa (song) PIQSIQ (artist)

Break 2 Music: Hug Room (song) Chuck Copenace (artist) Oshki Manitou (album)