With the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s Understand Native Minnesota campaign ending, so is this podcast. In this final episode, host Rebecca Crooks-Stratton shares highlights from the podcast series and talks about the campaign’s successes in Minnesota classrooms. She is also joined by two Native students to reflect on their education experiences and SMSC Chairman Cole Miller to discuss what’s next for the tribe.

EPISODE RESOURCES

Understand Native Minnesota: https://www.understandnativemn.org/

Sign up for email alerts: https://www.understandnativemn.org/get-involved/stay-updated/

A Guide to Reliable Native American-Related Teaching Resources: https://www.understandnativemn.org/publications/

Minnesota Native American Essential Understandings for Educators: https://www.understandnativemn.org/publications/

Minnesota Native News podcast: https://minnesotanativenews.org/

Learn more about Mdewakanton Dakota history and culture at the SMSC’s cultural center: https://hocokatati.org/

Rebecca sits down with author, speaker, trainer and professor Dr. Anton Treuer. Anton is a professor of Ojibwe at Bemidji State University and author of many books, including “Everything You Wanted to Know About Indians But Were Afraid to Ask” and “The Language Warrior’s Manifesto.” They discuss Ojibwe language revitalization efforts, writing and the exciting projects he has on the horizon, such as the release of his debut novel, “Where Wolves Don't Die.”

This podcast series is a part of the SMSC’s Understand Native Minnesota campaign that concluded in January 2024. This episode was filmed before the series concluded.

EPISODE RESOURCES

Understand Native Minnesota: https://www.understandnativemn.org/

More about Anton Treuer: https://antontreuer.com/

Anton Treuer’s books: https://antontreuer.com/books

Follow Anton on X/Twitter for Ojibwe Word of the Day videos: https://twitter.com/antontreuer

Follow Anton on YouTube for Ojibwe Word of the Day videos: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC02Ei64PpI3ET-bMvTAr-sQ

Educator Academies on February 21 and March 14: https://www.understandnativemn.org/register-for-educator-academies-on-february-21-or-march-14/

Rebecca is joined by Brenda J. Child, a University of Minnesota professor, historian and author of several award-winning books about Native American history. They cover important elements of Native history that people should know about, like Native boarding schools, and Brenda’s latest endeavor – a new Center for Indigenous Arts at the University of Minnesota.

This podcast series is a part of the SMSC’s Understand Native Minnesota campaign that concluded in January 2024. This episode was filmed before the series concluded.

EPISODE RESOURCES

Understand Native Minnesota: https://www.understandnativemn.org/

Learn more about Brenda’s books: https://birchbarkbooks.com/collections/vendors?q=Brenda%20Child

Dreaming Our Futures exhibit: https://cla.umn.edu/art/news-events/news/dreaming-our-futures-ojibwe-and-ochethi-sakowin-artists-and-knowledge-keepers

Learn more about the work of Dr. Charles Eastman: https://birchbarkbooks.com/collections/vendors?q=Charles%20Eastman

Read “From the Deep Woods to Civilization” Dr. Charles Eastman for free here: https://books.google.com/books/about/From_the_Deep_Woods_to_Civilization.html?id=RG0_AAAAMAAJ

In this podcast episode, Rebecca is joined by Ferin Davis Anderson, supervisor of environmental sciences at the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. They talk about what caring for natural resources means, and how Ferin combines traditional Indigenous knowledge with modern science. They also discuss Ferin’s new, forthcoming book, “Wildfire” and the important role fire plays in environmental stewardship.

EPISODE RESOURCES

Understand Native Minnesota: https://www.understandnativemn.org/

Minnesota DNR Prairie Pod series: https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/prairiepod/index.html

Ferin’s book, “Wildfire: The Culture, Science, and Future of Fire”: https://lernerbooks.com/shop/show/23175

Learn more about the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s environmental stewardship: https://shakopeedakota.org/culture/our-environmental-stewardship/

In this podcast episode, Rebecca is joined by Heid E. Erdrich, a talented multi-hyphenate Native artist. They discuss her poetry, her experiences teaching creative writing and curating art exhibits, and the many Native artists she loves. Heid also gives ideas for how everyone can experience more art and embrace their creativity.

EPISODE RESOURCES

Heid’s website: https://heiderdrich.com/

Birchbark Books: https://birchbarkbooks.com/

Patrick DesJarlait’s website: https://www.patrickdesjarlait.com/

Carl Gawboy’s website: https://www.aicho.org/carl-gawboy-2022.html#/

Dyani White Hawk’s website: https://www.dyaniwhitehawk.com/

Jonathan Thunder’s website: https://www.jonthunder.com/

MN Museum of American art: https://mmaa.org/

Understand Native Minnesota: https://www.understandnativemn.org/

For the first time, we welcome two guests at the same time on the podcast: Teresa “Terri” Peterson and Walter “Super” LaBatte Jr. This niece and uncle duo from the Upper Sioux Community are both focused on preserving and sharing Dakota culture. They recently wrote a book together – Voices from Pejuhutazizi: Dakota Stories and Storytellers – in which they share and reflect on family stories. The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s Understand Native Minnesota initiative has organized a statewide K-12 One-Read program of the book for Native American Heritage Month, donating 20,000 copies to classrooms across the state.

In this episode, Rebecca talks with Terri and Super about their book, writing process, family, language revitalization and art.

EPISODE RESOURCES

Voices from Pejuhutazizi: Dakota Stories and Storytellers: https://shop.mnhs.org/products/voices-from-pejuhutazizi

Understand Native Minnesota Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/NativeMNFacts/

Understand Native Minnesota: https://www.understandnativemn.org/

Daḳota Wiċoḣaŋ: https://dakotawicohan.org/

Upper Sioux Community Wacipi: https://www.uppersiouxcommunity-nsn.gov/traditional-wacipi

In this special edition of the podcast, Rebecca interviews Native authors, artists and education experts at the most recent Understand Native Minnesota Educator Academy. This free event hosted by the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community brought hundreds of educators and administrators together for professional development workshops. In the episode, guests share advice and tips for educators and parents looking to engage children on Native topics like history, culture and civics.

Featured guests include:

• Tori Campbell | Prairie Island Indian Community Buffalo Project

• Tom Peacock | Black Bears and Blueberries Publishing

• James Vukelich | Speaker, author and creator of Ojibwe Word of the Day

• Eden Bart | Minnesota Humanities Center

• Darlene St. Clair | St. Cloud State University

• Tony Drews | Nashke Games

• Art Coulson | Native children's author

EPISODE RESOURCES

Understand Native Minnesota: https://www.understandnativemn.org/

Prairie Island Indian Community Buffalo Project: https://prairieisland.org/who-we-are/our-culture/buffalo-project

Black Bears and Blueberries Publishing: http://www.blackbearsandblueberries.com/

James Vukelich: https://www.jamesvukelich.com/

Minnesota Native American Lives Series: https://www.mnhum.org/program/minnesota-native-american-lives-series/

Nashke Games: https://www.nashke.com/

Art Coulson: https://artcoulson.com/

In honor of pow wow season, we’re revisiting one of the podcast’s most popular conversations. Rebecca chats with Rosemma Lafferty, a member of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (SMSC) in Minnesota. Rosemma dances in and helps plan the SMSC’s annual wacipi, or pow wow, a free event that welcomes thousands of people to experience Native dance and culture each August.

This episode gives listeners an overview of what they can expect at the SMSC Wacipi and other pow wows, plus tips if you’re attending a pow wow for the first time.

EPISODE RESOURCES

SMSC Wacipi (this year’s event is August 18-20, 2023): https://www.smscwacipi.org/

Explore Minnesota article about pow wows in Minnesota: https://www.exploreminnesota.com/article/dance-drums-artistry-combine-minnesotas-native-american-powwows

Understand Native Minnesota: https://www.understandnativemn.org/

Wacipi Dance Styles: https://youtu.be/aWVpdHT-dvc

History of the Jingle Dress: https://youtu.be/A9RoeJJWKI4

In this special edition of the podcast, Rebecca interviews Native leaders from across the country and elected officials at the recent National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) Mid-Year Convention. This episode features conversations with nine different tribal leaders and staff members as well as U.S. Senator Tina Smith. Guests share about the issues facing Indian Country including environmental sustainability, the Violence Against Women Act, the Indian Child Welfare Act, and the 2023 Farm Bill.

EPISODE RESOURCES

National Congress of American Indians: https://www.ncai.org/

Understand Native Minnesota: https://www.understandnativemn.org/

In this episode, Rebecca interviews Monique Gray Smith, an award-winning author and cultural consultant of Cree, Lakota and Scottish descent. They discuss how Monique’s books are used to share Indigenous wisdom, knowledge and hope with people of all ages, including her new book, Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults. Monique also shares how her work conveys themes of resilience and reciprocity, particularly the importance of being in reciprocal relationships with the land and living things, as well as her belief that “love is medicine.”

EPISODE RESOURCES

Monique Gray Smith: https://www.moniquegraysmith.com/

Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults Teaching Guide: https://lernerbooks.com/teaching_guides/736

Understand Native Minnesota: https://www.understandnativemn.org/