Native America Calling

Monday, January 20, 2025 – Special Edition: Biden commutes Leonard Peltier sentence

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Leonard Peltier, an enrolled Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe citizen, will go home after nearly 50 years in prison. In the final minutes of his term in office, President Joe Biden commuted Peltier’s sentence. Peltier was convicted in 1975 for the deaths of two FBI agents on the Pine Ridge Reservation in 1975.

“I have to give kudos to (the Biden Administration) for finally doing the right thing and setting Leonard free,” said Paulette Dauteuil. “It’s going to be a wonderful, wonderful homecoming for Leonard.”

Dauteuil was married to Peltier’s cousin, the late Bob Robideau, who was acquitted for the same shooting for which Peltier was convicted.

One of Peltier’s attorneys, Moira Meltzer-Cohen, told Native America Calling that she was stunned by the news.

“I did not expect to experience euphoria today,” she said.

“I couldn’t believe it,” said Peltier’s lead attorney Jenipher Jones in an interview with Native America Calling. “I was happy for Leonard. I give thanks to the Creator. Today, a measure of justice has been served to Leonard after almost 50 years.”

Outgoing Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, a Laguna Pueblo citizen, posted on X that commuting Peltier’s sentence ″signifies a measure of justice that has long evaded so many Native Americans for so many decades. I am grateful that Leonard can now go home to his family”.

Listen to Native America Calling’s interview with attorneys Jenipher Jones and Moira Meltzer-Cohen as well as Peltier’s cousin, Paulette Dauteuil:

 

Friday, January 17, 2025 – Native in the Spotlight: Ted Nolan

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Ted Nolan conducts a youth hockey camp in northern Ontario (Photo: courtesy Ted Nolan)

Ted Nolan’s home on the Garden River First Nation reserve in northern Ontario didn’t have electricity or running water, but it did have a hockey rink in the backyard that Nolan built to satisfy his own passion to play. That passion grew into a successful hockey playing and coaching career that included the Jack Adams Award as NHL Coach of the Year. In his book, Life in Two Worlds: A Coach’s Journey from the Reserve to the NHL and Back, Nolan recounts both pride in his Indigenous identity and overt racism as he worked to excel in his sport.

GUEST

Ted Nolan (Garden River First Nation), President of 3Nolans, former NHL player, award-winning NHL coach, and former Olympian

 

Break 1 Music: My Wild Rose (song) Blue Moon Marquee (artist) Scream, Holler, and Howl (album)

Break 2 music: Intertribal Song (song) Dakota Nation (artist) Home of the Champions (album)

Tuesday, December 31, 2024 – The Menu: King Philip Corn, the healing power of Natoncks Metsu, and remembering Terrol Dew Johnson

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Danielle Greendeer (Wampanoag) is on a quest to build awareness of King Philip corn, or weeâchumun, a red corn variety once grown by Northeastern tribes, but was targeted for destruction more than 300 years ago during the King Philip War.

Jason Vickers (Nipmuc) just opened his own catering and personal chef business in Seattle. Natoncks Metsu is the culmination of his connection to food sovereignty that helped him overcome substance abuse and homelessness.

We remember Tohono O’odham food sovereignty advocate Terrol Dew Johnson with someone who worked closely with him.

They’re all part of this year’s final edition of The Menu hosted by Andi Murphy.

GUESTS

Tristan Reader, associate professor of practice in the University of Arizona School of Geography, Development and Environment and in the Department of American Indian Studies

Danielle Greendeer (Wampanoag), seed keeper, culture keeper, and food sovereignty expert

Jason Vickers (Nipmuc), chef and owner Natoncks Metsu

Mentioned in the show: Keepunumuk: Weeâchumun’s Thanksgiving Story by Danielle Greendeer, Anthony Perry and Alexis Bunten

Break 1 Music: ABE [Joe Silva Remix] (song) Chuck Copenace (artist) Oshki Manitou (album)

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

Monday, December 30, 2024 – Native Bookshelf 2024

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Stacie Shannon Denetsosie’s life on the Navajo Nation is the inspiration for many of her imaginative stories in the collection, The Missing Morningstar And Other Stories. published this year. Ojibwe writer Marcie Rendon’s illustrated children’s book, Stitches of Tradition (Gashkigwaaso Tradition), measures time and culture through the ribbon skirts a grandmother makes through the years. And Danica Nava’s romance novel, The Truth According to Ember, has readers rooting for its Chickasaw protagonist to get the guy. Those are among the books that our expert readers will review in our look back on notable works by Indigenous authors.

GUESTS

Andrea L. Rogers (Cherokee), author, undergraduate professor at the Institute of American Indian Arts, and a PhD student at the University of Arkansas

Calvin Crosby (Cherokee), owner of King’s English Bookshop and executive director of Brain Food Books

 

Break 1 Music: Ghost [Stripped] (song) Sierra Spirit (artist)

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

Tuesday, December 24, 2024 — Native in the Spotlight: Rebecca Jim

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Rebecca Jim (Cherokee) was a school counselor in 1979 when she witnessed Tar Creek run orange with pollution from nearby mining tailings. The federal government eventually made it a Superfund site. She has been an environmental advocate ever since and is even known as the Tar Creek Keeper, raising awareness for the 11-mile waterway and leading a non-profit organization dedicated to ongoing cleanup and holding polluters accountable. Jim is our December Native in the Spotlight.

 

Break 1 Music: Elders Land Ballad (song) Paula Nelson (artist) C.H.A.N.T. Cherokee Hope and New Traditions (album)

Break 2 Music: Ridin’ Out the Storm (song) Samantha Crain (artist)

Monday, December 23, 2024 – Native Playlist 2024

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Native America Calling runs down some of the standout Indigenous tracks from the past year. We get expert recommendations from The Mainstream‘s Brett Maybee (Seneca), Indigenous in Music’s Larry K (Ho-Chunk), and Sounds of Survivance’s Tory J (Quinault) from KEXP. They give us a wide range of selections that include rock, folk, jazz-fusion, soul, and more, in addition to the insightful stories behind the music. We wrap up the 2024 Native Playlist with music you don’t want to miss.

Break 1 Music: Aster and daffodils (song) THRONE (artist) Singing Bear Speaks (album)

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

Top five artists and songs of 2024 picked by guests and staff:

Larry K’s 2024 top artists and songs:

  1. “Ocean Child I Am” by Khu.éex’
  2. “Strawberries and Champagne” by Indian City
  3. “Ista Nts Ali” by Nuxalk Radio
  4. “Bay City Blues” by The Bloodshots
  5. “Movimento” by Jalmy

Tory J’s 2024 top artists and their songs:

  1. “In My Way” by Liv Rion
  2. “Purity” by Indian Giver
  3. “Seeing Two” by Deerlady
  4. “Glass in The Sage” by Under Exile”
  5. Carefree” by Wyatt C. Louis

Brett Maybee’s 2024 top artists and songs:

  1. “Reservation Road” by Nadjiwan
  2. “Bounce, Boogie & Bump” by C.W. Ayon
  3. “Ridin’ Out the Storm” by Samantha Crain
  4. “Sugarcane” by Mali Obomsawin
  5. “FEE FI FO FUM” by Mato Wayuhi (feat. Black Belt Eagle Scout)

Honorable Mention: “Ocean Child I Am” by Khu.éex’

Shawn Spruce’s 2024 top artists and songs:

  1. “Who’s Your Favorite Indian” by The Jir Project
  2. “Thunder Medicine” by Geneviève Gros-Louis
  3. “Growing Pains” by Sage Nizhoni
  4. “Last Call” by Melody McArthur
  5. [Posthumously] “Doctor My Eyes” by Jackson Browne (featuring Jesse Ed Davis)

Andi Murphy (producer) 2024 top artists and songs:

  1. “COME TO LIFE” by Toni Heartless
  2. “Everyday” by Celeigh Cardinal
  3. “We Up” by Barkaa
  4. “KALEIDOSCOPE” by Snotty Nose Rez Kids feat. Travis Thompson
  5. “Warriors” by Black Braid

Sol Traverso (producer) 2024 top artists and songs:

  1. “Dirt Roads” by Tia Wood
  2. “Brown Fool Eyes” – Hataallii
  3. “Alpha and Omega” by The Zonies
  4. “Slash and Gash” by Red-209
  5. “RESIDENT EVIL” by Toni Heartless

Friday, November 29, 2024 – Native Bookshelf: “The Mighty Red” by Louise Erdrich

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The title of Pulitzer Prize-winning Ojibwe writer Louise Erdrich‘s latest book refers to the north-flowing river along the North Dakota-Minnesota border. It’s the geography of The Mighty Red that stretches in all directions from the small-town loves and losses that Erdrich’s characters inhabit. Readers follow the teenage Ojibwe protagonist Kismet Poe as she navigates race, class, and an uncertain economy. Along the way, we learn how bison bones were once used to turn beets into sugar. It’s all woven together with Erdrich’s uniquely exquisite prose. We talk with Louise Erdrich (Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa) about her newest novel.

 

Break 1 Music: Little Sunflower (song) Chuck Copenace (artist) Oshki Manitou (album)

Break 2 Music: Burn Your Village to The Ground (single) The Halluci-Nation (artist)

Wednesday, November 27, 2024 – The Menu: Turkey stories, Finding Manoomin, salmon restoration, and a Native twist on boba

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In Navajo origin stories, the turkey is a hero. He gathers up all the seeds from the third world and brings them to the fourth world we live in today. Many other tribes revere turkeys and make use of their feathers.

Anishinaabe journalist Leah Lemm documents her own cultural reconnection by gathering wild rice, or manoomin, in her home reservation in Minnesota for the first time.

Salmon are returning to the undammed Klamath River (Photo: by Matt Mais, Yurok Tribe)

Salmon are coming back to the tributaries of the Klamath River in California for the first time in a century after tribes helped bring about the largest dam removal project in history.

And a Diné entrepreneur creates an unlikely fusion of traditional flavors and the increasingly popular boba drink craze.

Those are the topics all on The Menu, our regular feature on Indigenous food stories and news.

GUESTS

Kenneth Brink (Karuk), vice chairman of the Karuk Tribe

Sheldon Blackhorse (Diné), cultural advisor, actor, and math tutor

Kevin Wilson (Diné), owner of Native Boba Tea Co.

Leah Lemm (Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe), senior editor for the Native News Initiative at Minnesota Public Radio and host of the Native Lights radio program

 

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

Break 2 Music: Burn Your Village to The Ground (single) The Halluci-Nation (artist)

Friday, November 22, 2024 – Native in the Spotlight: Mark Trahant

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As he marks 50 years in journalism, Mark Trahant (Shoshone-Bannock) is stepping down from his leadership role at the Native news organization, ICT. Trahant revived the struggling Indian Country Today newspaper and turned it into a premier non-profit multimedia Indigenous news source. His five decades of reporting and editing news includes interviews with world leaders and having a front row seat to the major events that affect Native people. In that time he has served as a champion and mentor for Native journalists. We’ll hear from Trahant about his work and his hopes for Native journalism.

 

Break 1 Music: Current (song) Chuck Copenace (artist) Oshki Manitou (album)

Break 2 Music: Grandmother’s Song (song) Fawn Wood (artist) Iskwewak (album)

Tuesday, November 19, 2024 – What to expect on Trump’s first day

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If he lives up to his word, President-elect Donald Trump’s first day in the Oval Office will include a wave of executive actions with significant repercussions for tribes and individuals. In addition to major moves to expel immigrants, Trump promises to expand oil and other extractive development, cancel selected green energy spending, and eliminate federal diversity and equity measures. Trump also has an ambitious agenda for his first 100 days that herald sweeping changes in federal government. We’ll hear from political watchers about what could be in store.

GUESTS

Aaron Payment (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians), tribal councilman and former chairperson for the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians

Angela Parker (Mandan, Hidatsa, and Cree), assistant professor of history at the University of Denver

Julia Wakeford (Muscogee and Yuchi), policy director for the National Indian Education Association

Lizbeth De La Cruz Santana, assistant professor in the Department of Black and Latino Studies at Baruch College

 

Break 1 Music:  Our Autonomy (song) Klee Benally (artist) Appropriation (album)

Break 2 Music: Grandmother’s Song (song) Fawn Wood (artist) Iskwewak (album)

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