Blog

By Mikhail Zinshteyn, LA School Report, March 3, 2020 In one incident, a teacher grew frustrated with a student because he wouldn’t respond to her, not realizing that in the student’s Native American tribe, exhibiting silence is a sign of respect to an authority figure. As punishment, the student was denied recess. In another instance, a Native American student was accused of consuming drugs, interrogated by the police and subject to random searches for weeks after returning from a tribal...

By Johanna Lie, February, 24, 2020, YouTubers are known for creating interesting and fun videos containing tutorials on beauty, ASMR and commentary, all to grow their channels and communities, but for Chelsey Moon of Michigan, the stakes are higher. Moon is Ojibwe, with roots in the Bay Mills Indian Community, and is committed to spotlighting indigenous culture on her channel. “I’m doing this for people who don’t know about us and are interested, but also for indigenous people who want to...

By Elizabeth Chuck and Haimy Assefa, NBC News, February 8, 2020 The twins were scheduled to be delivered on Aug. 21, 2019, and Stephanie Snook was nervous. Her pregnancy had not been planned. Snook was born with a heart condition; after her first two children, she had been told getting pregnant again could put too much stress on her heart. Nonetheless, Snook, 37, a warehouse clerk in food services at the Seattle Mariners’ ballpark, trusted she was in good hands. [ Please click here to read...

By Freddy Brewster, Lost Coast Outpost, February 7, 2020 The Blue Lake Rancheria recently received a $156,116 grant from the U.S. Department of Education and the State Tribal Education Program to establish a multi-district agency aimed at improving not only Native American youth success, but the success of the community as well. The grant money will be used to set up an education authority with officials from Blue Lake Rancheria, the Northern Humboldt Unified School District, College of the...

January 15, 2020 Spilyay Tymoo, Coyote News The team working on the state Missing and Murdered Indigenous People initiative will meet soon with the Warm Springs tribal community. Terri Davie of the Oregon State Police, and Mitch Sparks, of the Oregon Legislative Commission on Indian Services are planning a Warm Springs MMIP meeting in Warm Springs on Tuesday, January 28. The state legislature in 2019 created with the MMIP task force, providing resources to help address one of the most...

Plan to attend! January 25, 2020, from 2:00 to 3:30 pm Central Santa Rosa Library 211 E Street, Santa Rosa, CA 95404 Hosted by: Sonoma County History Genealogy Library Please join us for a presentation by Dr. Khal Schneider, who will discuss voting rights within the context of the Native American experience. Dr. Schneider is a Sacramento State University assistant professor of history. He teaches Native American History and writes about Indian policy and politics and California Indian...

By Diane K. Levy and Nancy Pindus, Housing Matters, January 8, 2020 American Indian households move more often than American households do overall, and an increasing share of American Indians live in metropolitan areas, including in nontribal areas. Although many people find stable housing in urban areas, not all do. With few resources and supports to help ease the transition, multiple moves can increase the likelihood of homelessness for American Indians who already are overrepresented in...

HarperCollins launches Heartdrum to better portray Native characters and stories HarperCollins Children’s Books recently tapped Smith to lead Heartdrum, a new imprint set to launch in early 2021 emphasizing contemporary Native characters and genre fiction. She’ll work with editor Rosemary Brosnan to publish a variety of picture books, chapter books and young adult titles from Native authors. Tribal presses and small publishers have focused on Native children’s books in the past, but Smith...

The ancient art of rainmaking was once practiced all around the world. It represented the sacred relationship between humans and the Divine. The deep connection between Earth and cosmos, an innate and intimate understanding of the elements, and the essential nature of the universe . To understand these sacred traditions is to understand the extraordinary sacred connection Indigenous people have with the land. That intuitive understanding and knowing about life, which gives them knowledge of...

Creators of the popular video "Baby Shark," whose "doo doo doo" song was played at the World Series in October and has been a viral hit with toddlers around the world, have released a Navajo version of the tune. "Łóó' Hashkéii Awéé," which loosely means Navajo Baby Shark, is the 20th language version of Baby Shark, SmartStudy marketing manager Kevin Yoon said in an email. The project was launched after Navajo Nation Museum director Manuelito Wheeler reached out to SmartStudy in September...

An Indigenous Peoples’ History offers a needed, yet often unheard perspective on United States history. An Indigenous Peoples’ History consistently poses questions that counteract misinformation about Native communities, specifically stories that are usually taught in elementary school. This lends itself to fantastic conversations on whose history is taught in school, and offers students a chance to recognize whose curriculum they’re expected to learn for standardized tests. And unlike many...

By Kelly Smith, Star Tribune, December 2, 2019 After bouncing from shelter to shelter for four years, 19-year-old Shataye finally has a place of her own to lay her head and help to get back on her feet. Beaming with joy, she recently moved into a St. Paul apartment, one of 42 units at Mino Oski Ain Dah Yung, a new $13.6 million building that means “good new home” in Ojibwe. Two nonprofits, the Ain Dah Yung Center in St. Paul and Project for Pride in Living in Minneapolis, unveiled the...