Monday, August 29, 2022 – Native in the Spotlight: L.A. Williams

L.A. Williams has been the high school sports play-by-play voice for decades on the Navajo Nation. She has also brought pro rodeo, women’s professional basketball, and the NFL Super Bowl to listeners. Now she is also the Navajo language announcer for Phoenix Suns NBA games. Monday on Native America Calling, Shawn Spruce speaks with the trailblazing broadcaster.

Tuesday, August 30, 2022 – The cultural and environmental importance of volcanoes

The volcanic eruptions near Tonga, Japan, and Ecuador are all making headlines and remind us of the role they play in Indigenous culture. Native Hawaiians have a direct spiritual connection to the explosive giants while many tribes in the continental U.S. have their own stories and links. Tuesday on Native America Calling, Shawn Spruce learns more about these mystical mountains.

Wednesday, August 31, 2022 – College student debt relief

Just in time for the mid-term elections, President Joe Biden announced his executive action to extend the current student loan payment pause until January and forgive up to $20,000 of debt. It’s a compromise between the full forgiveness pushed for years by progressive Democrats and the inflationary concerns of moderate Democrats and conservative Republicans. Wednesday on Native America Calling, Shawn Spruce gets an assessment for what’s in the student loan forgiveness plan, who qualifies, and what it might do for current and future Native college students.

Thursday, September 1, 2022 – New challenges for Native voters

The Native American Rights Fund and other organizations filed a legal challenge against the state for discounting ballots in a way that disproportionately affects Alaska Native voters. The Mississippi Supreme Court upheld voter restrictions in the state constitution originally instituted by white supremacists specifically to limit participation by people of color. Thursday on Native America Calling, Shawn Spruce gets a rundown of the evolving landscape of voter restrictions that affect Native Americans.

Friday, September 2, 2022

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Monday, August 22, 2022 – Merging Native languages with braille

The resurgence of language revitalization helps keep cultural connections and exercise sovereignty. Those connections are diminished somewhat for those who are visually impaired and can’t read the written page. But there are those who are taking on the work of merging Native languages with braille, extending the full power of their culture to more of their citizens. Monday on Native America Calling, Shawn Spruce speaks with Carol Begay Green (Diné), teacher of students with visual impairments at Utah Schools for the Deaf and Blind; students Heather Joe and Bryant Becenti (Diné); and Christine Muise, contract Braille transcriber and tactile illustrator.

Tuesday, August 23, 2022 – How the Inflation Reduction Act helps Earth

The new legislation just signed into law includes unprecedented investment into measures intended to reduce climate change. It sends millions of dollars to tribal projects, but also keeps in place reliance on polluters. Tuesday on Native America Calling, Shawn Spruce finds how the Inflation Reduction Act is a boost for the planet.

Wednesday, August 24, 2022 – The latest in repatriation efforts

The Alabama Department of Archives and History is the latest institution going through a repatriation process starting this month. The museum, which has dozens of human remains and hundreds of Indigenous funerary objects in its collection, hasn’t been in compliance with the Native American Graves Protection & Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) of 1990. And in Montana, several items were repatriated from the University of Missoula and will now be in the care of the Fort Peck Interpretive Center. Several other institutions still have collections containing thousands of human remains and objects that fall under NAGPRA but it’s been slow work to get actual objects back into the care of tribes. Wednesday on Native America Calling, Shawn Spruce talks with repatriation advocates about current efforts.

Thursday, August 25, 2022 – Native outlaws

Saddle up ’cause Thursday on Native America Calling, Shawn Spruce looks at the history of Native and Indigenous outlaws like the Apache Kid and Cherokee Bill.

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Friday, August 26, 2022 – The Menu: Farm Bill and Navajo Pizza

The Farm Bill is a huge piece of legislation dealing with every aspect of agriculture and nutrition and it’s set to be reauthorized in 2023. That’s a change for Native food advocates to insert critical policies, change old policies, and promote food sovereignty. Plus, an entrepreneur opens a pizza shop in a small town on the Navajo Nation. Friday on Native America Calling, Andi Murphy serves up a new helping of “The Menu,” our regular roundup of the Native food movement.

 

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