Native America Calling

Pomaika’i Lyman (Kanaka Maoli) draws her musical inspiration from her late grandmother, “Aunty” Genoa Keawe, an iconic Hawaiian musician who performed in Hawaii and across the world. Pomaika’i’s voice and traditional Hawaiian ha’i melodies have been compared to her grandmother’s. We’re shining the spotlight on Pomaika’i to find out what’s next for her singing career and why she feels it’s important to keep the family’s musical legacy going.

Tiger Lee, Raye Zaragoza, Tha Yoties, and Radmilla Cody. Those are just a few of the dozen Music Makers we've featured on Native America Calling over the past year. We're picking out our favorite moments and some choice tunes to liven up your holiday. Sit back and turn up the volume as we hear some graceful melodies and driving beats from some notable Native musicians. This is a pre-recorded show so we won't take live calls, but feel free to reach out to us on this web page or on Facebook or Twitter.

The Netflix show, “Longmire,” has come to an end. The modern Western police drama broached several Native issues including the Violence Against Women Act, tribal jurisdiction and adoption of Native children by non-Native families. We’ll discuss the show’s triumphs and failures and also hear about some other promising projects that Native screenwriters and actors are bringing to the small screen.

Standing Rock, Native media, and even Indigenous food are some of the topics that a rising crop of Native podcasts tackle. The approaches range from serious and analytical to funny and personal. Media experts say audio podcasts can help bring marginalized issues to light by cutting out the gatekeepers between producers and the audience. At its most basic, all it takes to start is a microphone and something to record on. Edison Research finds about 40 percent of the population has listened to a podcast at least once. Are you one of them? What are your favorite podcasts?

Once nearly dead, the proposal to build a massive open-pit copper and gold mine on pristine wetlands in southwest Alaska is gaining new momentum. The Trump Administration is more favorable to the Pebble Mine project and the company pitching it is promising it will be smaller and more environmentally responsible. Some Alaska Natives representing villages closer to the proposed mine site say it offers much-needed jobs. But resistance against the mine remains strong, especially near the commercial fishing hub of Dillingham. Opponents say just building the mine would damage critical salmon spawning habitat and an accident could be disastrous to the billion dollar fishing industry. We’ll talk with representatives from both sides and hear from a reporter who just completed a five-part series weighing the threat to the environment and Indigenous cultures with the promise of economic benefit.

"She," "he," "zhe" or "they"? Gender fluidity, transgender, cisgender, non-binary, genderqueer? Keeping up with just the preferred words to talk about someone’s gender is increasingly complicated. In Native America those descriptions are sometimes put into one term: "two-spirit." We'll talk about how awareness of gender fluidity is changing for Native Americans and everyone else. We are also asking how those with less-defined gender identity are finding ways to fit in.

The end of the world as we know it is a popular topic for filmmakers, writers and artists. Current real life events are also fueling apocalyptic discussions. In recent years the scientists and others who control the Doomsday Clock moved the perceived threat to its highest level since the mid-80s. Indigenous people have their own prophesies and signs of the end. They also have unique histories of resilience in the face of colonization, disease, war and foreign invasion. We’ll take on the End of Times from a Native perspective.

In this month’s book feature, “Fall in Line, Holden” by Daniel W. Vandever, a young Navajo boy uses his imagination to help him cope with the challenges of boarding school. The book’s author from the Navajo Nation says the story is meant to not only encourage young readers though discovery, but it’s also his take on facing a dark moment in Native history and the boarding school era. Join us as we hear from the book’s creator.

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs is suing the state and the University of Hawaii. OHA wants to terminate a lease that would allow development of the Thirty Meter Telescope on Mauna Kea. The office says the university’s oversight of the land amounts to “longstanding and well-documented mismanagement.” It’s the latest action in the ongoing battle over the controversial proposed $1.4 billion project on the mountain many Native Hawaiians consider sacred. Hawaii state officials gave the green light to the telescope construction in September.

The American Indian Movement. The Alcatraz Island occupation. The Wounded Knee takeover. The Longest Walk. These are some of the notable events that propelled Native American issues onto the national stage during a critical time. Ojibwe activist Dennis Banks is closely associated with all of them. The towering and sometimes controversial figure walked on in October. He’s known for his early, in-your-face activism that exposed federal corruption and bias against Native Americans. He spent his last years quietly raising awareness against the scourge of addictive drugs, domestic violence and other destructive influences on reservations. We’ll talk with his friends and family members about his life and accomplishments.