Native America Calling

A series of troubling incidents around the country appear to harken to a time of unchecked discrimination, racism and basic disregard for Native people. A South Dakota hotel owner publicly announces a ban on all Native Americans. Students at an Oklahoma school forcibly cut off a Kickapoo first grader’s hair. And a Texas high school […]

Chef Pyet DeSpain takes cooking to the Next Level, Tulalip citizens are cleared of illegal shellfish trafficking, and a Midwest tribal consortium gets funding to create cultural instructional videos. Those are some of the food highlights that are on The Menu with our resident foodie Andi Murphy.     GUESTS Jerry Jondreau (Wiikwedong), owner of […]

Affording the basics is becoming harder every day as inflation continues to creep higher. Add to that the rising costs for gas and lingering supply-chain breakdowns. And a new study reminds us that people of color pay a steeper cost during economic hard times than the rest of the population. Shawn Spruce examines where and […]

After decades of legal and political battles have pushed Nevada’s Yucca Mountain out of discussion as the permanent nuclear waste repository. But that means tribes like the Prairie Island Indian Community and the Yakama Nation in Washington will have to endure waste storage at temporary holding sites nearby.     GUESTS Mike Childs Jr. (Prairie […]

As the Academy Awards show approaches, audiences are catching up on the nominees and weighing in on their top movies of the year. Native talent is largely absent from this year’s Oscars, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t some standout work on screens. We go over the media that has Native audiences buzzing.   GUESTS […]

Native Americans are much more likely to get certain cancers than the rest of the population. And cultural and geographic separations are two major factors that could determine life or death when it comes to cancer treatment. Congress just approved $8 million in federal money to expand a tribally run cancer treatment center on the […]

Affording the basics is becoming harder every day as inflation continues to creep higher. Add to that the rising costs for gas and lingering supply-chain breakdowns. And a new study reminds us that people of color pay a steeper cost during economic hard times than the rest of the population. Shawn Spruce examines where and […]

This St. Patrick’s Day we explore the historic links between Ireland and Native Americans – from mutual aid during times of crisis to their shared battle against colonization and the extended trauma that comes with it. We also preview the new show “Aaron Power! The Musical” premiering today that tells the story of a Navajo […]

As Russia works to forcibly annex a neighboring country, it’s instructive to recount its checkered history among Alaska Natives. Russian explorers in the early 18th Century cleared the path for a period of influence that continues today. Alaskan landmarks still bear the names of early Russian settlers and the Russian Orthodox religion remains a touchstone […]

Ukraine is a distant Eastern European foreign land. But the invasion by Russia has awakened a sense of solidarity around the world. One expression of support comes from brightly colored headscarves called ‘kokum’ that First Nations tribes traded with Ukrainian immigrants. The scarves extended to tribes well beyond Canada. Many tribes are also expressing support […]