Native America Calling

Tulsa, Okla. Mayor Monroe Nichols is championing a $105 million reparations package for the survivors and families of his city’s 1921 Race Massacre. It’s a philanthropy-driven city and housing rejuvenation project to offset the continuing repercussions from the coordinated attack more than a century ago. At the time, thousands of white residents besieged what was among the most successful and affl...

A new study finds the death rate for Native Americans — which was already higher than other groups — is much higher than previously thought. The analysis just published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) finds the gap in life expectancy between Native Americans and Alaska Natives and the national average is almost three times wider than what official statistics say it is. Th...

If you’re one of the 1.9 million people who still get a paper tax refund check from the federal government, you will need to make a change in the coming months. It’s the same for those who still count on Social Security checks in the mail rather than electronic direct deposit. A presidential executive order requires those and other transactions by the federal government to go completely electronic...

President Donald Trump is expected to reverse President Joe Biden’s designation of two national monuments in California supported by area tribes. The Department of Justice issued an opinion that it is in the president’s purview to do away with Chuckwalla National Monument and Sáttítla Highlands National Monument. There is additional pressure to at least reduce the side of Bears Ears National Monum...

Two Native nations, the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California and the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, are suing the federal government over what they say is mismanagement of funds related to Indian Boarding Schools. They claim the U.S. Government is on the hook for $23.3 billion by failing to live up to the Treaty and Trust Responsibility. Meanwhile, boarding school survivor advocates are concerned...

The city of Anchorage plans to clear a large encampment of homeless people at a park in mid-June following years of complaints and public safety problems. The park has seen two fatal shootings and a large fire in recent months. The city’s move is one of dozens of encampment “abatements” around the country following a U.S. Supreme Court decision that allows such law enforcement actions. Some cities...

President Donald Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops and U.S. Marines to quell protests in Los Angeles has upped the ante when it comes to the response to direct action. Native Americans turned to civil disobedience during high profile protests at Standing Rock and following George Floyd’s death more recently, and during the formation of the American Indian Movement more than a half centur...

In what is becoming an annual occurrence, numerous fires across at least three Canadian provinces are putting Indigenous nations residents at risk. The 3,000 citizens of the Mathias Colomb Cree Nation are affected by evacuations because of the fires. They are among the estimated 30,000 people forced to flee from some 200 wildfires. Many, like the Sandy Lake First Nation, had to be airlifted to saf...

At least two tribal relocation efforts foreshadow what can go wrong when even small communities are forced to contend with the increasing threats posed by climate change. A report by the Washington Post, ProPublica, and Bethel radio station KYUK documents the ongoing difficulties which the residents of Newtok, Alaska confront after moving their village to escape the effects of the rising sea and t...

An exhibit at the Museum of Natural and Cultural History in Eugene, Oreg. assembles works by Native LGBTQ2 artists that express this moment in time. It is among the hundreds of events, including parades and panel discussions, to mark Pride Month. This year’s push for awareness will have to go on without acknowledgement by the federal government, which is foregoing any mention of Pride. And the ann...

Today marks the 30th anniversary of Native America Calling’s first national radio broadcast. Started in the studios in Albuquerque public radio station, KUNM , NAC has been the daily voice for Native issues, politics, entertainment, and arts ever since. Tribal leaders, activists, educators, bureaucrats, aunties, presidents, and everyday people have all made their way onto the airwaves on NAC, all...

The increase in highly publicized deportations is unnerving both undocumented and documented migrants in the United States. Indigenous people from other countries, some who have visas or are awaiting decisions from immigration proceedings, are among those caught up in the Trump administration’s focus on mass deportations. Many of those who remain say they live in fear of being apprehended by U.S....

Three Alaska Native tribes filed a lawsuit to stop a controversial gold mining operation east of Nome. The tribes say a permit just granted by the U.S. Corps of Engineers will allow the destruction of salmon habitat and other important environmental elements in a pristine estuary. The mining process involves extracting ore from material dredged from river and ocean beds. On the other side of the s...

David A. Robertson (Norway House Cree Nation) gives us 52 practical suggestions — one for each week of the year — to support and connect with Indigenous people. 52 Ways to Reconcile lists tasks as simple and enjoyable as making Bannock, to as challenging as taking personal action toward reconciliation. Matthew Fletcher (Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians) has devoted himself to the...

President Donald Trump’s proposed spending plan, dubbed the “Big Beautiful Bill,” would cut about $300 billion from the program that provides food to low-income residents. If it survives Congress intact, thousands of Native people will lose eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Tribes and conservation groups worry the Trump administration’s push for expanded logging of fed...

Tornados and other severe storms that stretched across three states killed nearly 30 people this month. Before that, storms left at least 37 people dead and damaged hundreds of homes. Early warnings are key to saving lives during tornados and other damaging weather events. We’ll talk with people who are part of the process to spot severe weather and get the word out when minutes save lives. GUESTS...

The 3,300-member Chinook Tribe in Washington State just scrapped their support of legislation for federal recognition tribal leaders had been working on for more than two years. The rejection comes after the key author of the bill added a series of onerous conditions at the last minute. A handful of other tribes around the country are working through the long, complicated process to secure recogni...

The Trump administration cut a quarter of the staff at Haskell Indian Nations University in February. A little over a month later a judge reinstated those positions. Even though the jobs at Haskell and other Bureau of Indian Education schools were restored, uncertainty over the future of those institutions prevails. Similar anxiety accompanies dozens of other important programs and institutions in...

More than 42,000 Native Americans served in the military during the Vietnam War, the vast majority as volunteers. They faced racist and stereotypical taunts from fellow service members. After their service, veterans suffered psychological and emotional trauma at a higher rate than other populations. As the nation marks 50 years since the fall of Saigon and the end of the war, we’ll hear from Nativ...

On the eve of the five-year commemoration of George Floyd’s death, the Trump administration is withdrawing Department of Justice (DOJ) oversight for police departments in Minneapolis, Phoenix, Louisville, and other cities where the DOJ previously found civil rights violations against Native Americans and other people of color. Floyd’s murder by a Minneapolis police officer prompted global calls fo...

The federal government is poised to open up an extra 112 million acres of land to cover what Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins labels an “emergency”. Tribes concerned about sacred places, wildlife habitat, and conservation complain they were left out of the decision-making process to get here. And while there’s potentially opportunities for tribes that look to logging for economic development,...

One out of every ten children in Oklahoma’s foster care system are Cherokee citizens . Cherokee leadership’s message for National Foster Care Awareness Month is that Native foster parents are vital to finding solutions that work best for Native children. The Cherokee Nation is among the many tribes working to build a strong system of support for foster children and foster parents. The effort comes...

The San Carlos Apache Tribe is fighting to stop the planned June 16, 2025 transfer to the sacred Oak Flat land in Arizona to the companies that intend to turn it into a copper mine. There’s a flurry of activity around the ongoing fight over the land, known to the Apache as Chi’chil Biłdagoteel. The Trump Administration announced its intention to rush the land swap involving 2,400 acres of land to...

Natalie Benally (Diné) knew early on she was a performer. She has channeled her determined creative spirit in any number of disciplines for the stage and screen. She has performed and taught dance after honing her craft at Fort Lewis College in Colorado. Along the way, she has embodied enduring characters in film and television, including Natalie Bluehouse on the AMC series, Dark Winds , and was t...

Two musicians with Diné roots give audiences distinctly different takes on their desert Southwest origins. The Phoenix-based band Mogley and the Zoniez have built their sound playing for years in the Southwest café and bar circuit. The melodic and energetic indie-alt sound and distinctive vocals have become a favorite for a growing number of fans. They have a new EP to add to their set list, Bette...