Monday, January 2, 2023 – Stickball: culture and athleticism

Stickball is the older, rougher cousin of lacrosse, developed many centuries ago as both a game and a training exercise. The U.S. government once deemed stickball one of the cultural connections they needed to eliminate in the effort to assimilate Native children through missionary-run boarding schools. The game survived that assault and keeps gaining momentum, played by local clubs and in competitive national tournaments. Monday on Native America Calling, Shawn Spruce learned about the origins and growing future for the nation’s oldest team sport with Mike Slee (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians), stickball player for the Walelu Cherokee Indian Ball team and the director of operations for the Museum of the Cherokee Indian; Miranda Long Stamper (Creek and a citizen of the Eastern Band of Cherokee), teacher, coach and stickball player; announcer and player Jeremy Bell (Mississippi Band of Choctaw member); Dr. Scott Ketchum (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), Chickasaw Nation endowed chair in Native American Studies for East Central University; and Casey Bigpond (Mississippi Band of Choctaw member), cultural revitalization specialist for the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.

Tuesday, January 3, 2023 – Keeping your cool in 2023

A new year offers a sense of promise. But that promise this year comes with the backdrop of lingering division that infects our personal and professional relationships. Heated political discourse is at the top of the list and permeates everything from how we protect our own health to how we approach international security. Tuesday on Native America Calling, we spoke with Theda New Breast (Blackfeet), master trainer and facilitator for the Native Wellness Institute and board member of the Sovereign Bodies Institute; James Anderson (Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe), motivational speaker and success trainer; and D.J. Eagle Bear Vanas (Odawa Nation), motivational storyteller, bestselling author, and owner of Native Discovery Inc., about bridging divisions and avoiding the traps that drive wedges between us.

Wednesday, January 4, 2023 – Indigenous languages and the migrant border crisis

Thousands of migrants, many of whom are seeking asylum as they escape violence, extreme poverty, and oppression, are stopped at the U.S. border. The lack of resources available to them is a serious life-and-death concern. Adding to the many other hurdles is a language disconnect for Indigenous migrants. Wednesday on Native America Calling, we got an update on the crisis at the US-Mexican border and how it affects Indigenous people from Mexico and Central and South America with Odilia Romero (Zapotec), co-founder and executive director of Comunidades Indigenas en Liderazgo (CIELO); Javier Garcia (San Martín Peras from Juxtlahuaca in Oaxaca), interpreters program coordinator for the Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project; and attorney Allegra Love.

Thursday, January 5, 2023 – Unequal discipline for Native students

An investigative report in New Mexico finds Native students are expelled at a far greater rate than their white counterparts. The report focuses on the public school district on the edge of the Navajo Nation with the highest percentage of Native students in the country. Thursday on Native America Calling, we’ll hear from Bryant Furlow, a New Mexico In-Depth reporter and member of ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network who pursued the story, as well as Native education experts about what the data means for students.

If you have information that could help Bryant Furlow’s reporting, reach out via @bryantfurlow.

Friday, January 6, 2023 – Inside the ring: Native pro wrestling

Professional wrestling draws fans in with a mix of theatrics, colorful characters, and campy violence. Indigenous wrestlers comprise only a small faction of the wrestling world, but they are making names for themselves. In the process of entertaining their fans, they risk broken bones, concussions, cuts, and bruises in the ring. Friday on Native America Calling, we’ll hear from Native wrestlers about their love of the pastime and how they’ve forged careers in the industry.

 

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