National Native News

Antonia Gonzales
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Daily, five-minute newscast featuring the latest headlines and breaking news from Native and Indigenous communities anchored by Antonia Gonzales (Navajo) with reporters and storytellers from around the globe.

  1. 4H AGO

    Thursday, March 19, 2026

    The nomination of U.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation/R-OK) to become the next Homeland Security Secretary hit a rough patch Wednesday.  Outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem lost the faith of President Donald Trump, but the pick to replace her, Sen. Mullin, lost the faith of the Senate Homeland Security Committee Chair, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), for mocking him for being attacked by his neighbor nine years ago, as Matt Laslo reports. “You told the media that I was a ‘freaking snake’ and that you completely understood why I had been assaulted. I was shocked that you would justify and celebrate this violent assault that caused me so much pain and my family so much pain. I just wonder if someone who applauds violence against their political opponents is the right person to lead an agency that has struggled to accept limits to the proper use of force.” Mullin is a former MMA fighter and was not backing down. “I think before I can start my opening statement, I have to address the remarks of the chairman made calling me a liar. Sir, I think there’s — everybody in this room knows that I’m very blunt and direct to the point, and if I have something to say, I’ll say it directly to your face.” While the heated exchange made national headlines, most Republican senators, like U.S. Sen. Ted. Cruz (R-TX), shrugged it off. “The two of them don’t like each other. There’s no ambiguity on that.” U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) said, “I’m not going to get involved in that.” U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) told National Native News cited his mother’s wisdom. “Reminded of what my mom would say, ‘if you don’t have something good to say about somebody, don’t say it.’ And, you know, those rules we learned in kindergarten still apply up here as well.” Even Mullin’s home state colleague, U.S. Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK), was taken aback by the barbs. “In my time in Congress, rarely have I seen such an intense exchange between two members of the same party, especially in the [U.S.] Senate. Clearly, both of them are very strong-willed, very confident in their point of view and perspective and their memory. It was just fascinating.” While most Republican senators are refusing to weigh in, Sen. Lucas says he is not discounting Chairman Paul or Mullin’s accounts. “I know from having served with Markwayne in the House, I suspect the case in the [U.S.] Senate is the same — members have an insight into the nature of each other that no one on the outside can have. I never impugn the opinions of my colleagues, so maybe there was a little bit of truth in what they both had to say.” (Courtesy Asm. James Ramos / Facebook) Assemblymember James Ramos (Serrano/Cahuilla/D-CA) is urging for the establishment of California Native American Day as an official paid state holiday. A bill introduced by Asm. Ramos would designate the fourth Friday of September as a paid holiday for state employees. Ramos, along with tribal representatives, legislators, and labor leaders, held a press conference Wednesday in Sacramento., Calif. Ramos says the legislature and the state should honor California’s First People with the paid holiday. “It’s true and just that this has to happen. It’s time that the voices continue to move forward and to make sure that we’re calling out for respect and honor for California’s First People and tribal elders.” Ramos say they have many worthy holidays, but the bill creates justice for past atrocities toward California Indian people who have lived through colonization, including the mission era and gold rush eras. Denver’s bison transfer included a ceremony with songs and prayers for the bisons’ safe return to tribal lands. (Photo: Rachel Cohen / KUNC) Several tribes are working to bring bison back to their lands. As the Mountain West News Bureau’s Rachel Cohen reports, one source helping them is in Denver, Colo. where the local government manages a herd. Snow was falling fast and hard at a mountain park west of the city earlier this month, when 34 bison were gifted to four tribes or nonprofits. Denver has managed two small herds since the early 1900s and started giving some animals to tribes six years ago.  Lewis TallBull is with the TallBull Memorial Council, which has members from various tribes.  Lewis TallBull with the TallBull Memorial Council was part of the drumming ceremony to honor the bison. (Photo: Rachel Cohen / KUNC) This year, the organization is taking one bison back to a property it manages near Denver. “The Bison represent so much. They represent the water and the fire and the thunder and the clouds and the snow. They represent all that. But at the same time, they represent us as Indigenous people.” Tribal leaders said the animals would add genetic diversity to their growing herds – and help feed tribal members with a historic food source. The Navajo Nation got 11 bison in the transfer and the Northern Cheyenne in Montana received 10.      Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Thursday, March 19, 2026 – Native American Muslims, a distinct minority, reflect on Ramadan and religious intolerance

    5 min

  2. 1D AGO

    Wednesday, March 18, 2026

    Legal online sports betting in Wisconsin would have to go through in-state tribal computer servers, under a bi-partisan bill given final okay by the state legislature Tuesday. Chuck Quirmbach reports. Supporters and critics of online sports betting acknowledge it frequently occurs in Wisconsin. Gamblers go through commercial companies like Draft Kings, but the Wisconsin Constitution says most legal betting can only occur on sovereign tribal properties here, regulated by state-tribal gaming compacts. The just-passed bill by the legislature attempts to reinforce that online sports bets in the state must go through the 11 federally recognized tribes in Wisconsin. Shannon Holsey is President of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians. She says the new legislation is good public policy. “It provides clarity, respect to tribal sovereignty, and it strengthens Wisconsin’s long-standing state and tribal partnership. Especially for our tribe and all tribes. It really creates opportunity, while allowing us to grow responsibly, securely and on our own terms.” Holsey says any additional revenue for the Stockbridge-Munsee would go toward funding things like tribal housing, health care and public safety. Remarks opposing the Wisconsin sports betting bill center on what critics like State Sen. Steve Nass (R-WI) say is the possibility of more people becoming addicted to gambling. “Making gambling easier and more accessible online will only accelerate these harms-family breakdown, lost productivity, addiction treatment.” But other supporters of the sports betting bill say more ways to prevent problem gambling could now be negotiated with the tribes. Gov. Tony Evers (D-WI) still has to sign the legislation and the federal government has to approve amended gaming compacts. Pete Kaiser leaving Unalakleet checkpoint. (Courtesy Iditarod Insider) Jessie Holmes was the first musher to reach the end of the 1000-mile trail from Anchorage to Nome, winning his second consecutive Iditarod. KNBA’s Rhonda McBride reports. Four of the race’s Indigenous mushers were still out on the trail Wednesday morning. Pete Kaiser (Yup’ik) from Bethel and Ryan Redington (Iñupiat) were finishing up their mandatory eight-hour rest in White Mountain, one of the last two checkpoints in the race. Both former champions were hoping for a repeat, b But Kaiser says his team contracted stomach virus on the trail, so he rested them more to give them time to recover. Kaiser told the Iditarod Insider this changed his focus. “I’ve been kind of reminiscing and soaking in the sights more than ever, trying to be in the moment more than stressing out about placement and different things like that. So of course it would be fun to be further up, but that’s not always in the cards. I’ve had a good trip.” Kaiser’s team is positioned to finish in the top ten. He says the cold dry snow on the Bering Sea Coast was one of the biggest challenges, because it sticks to the sled runners. Redington, who is not far behind Kaiser, told the Iditarod Insider this last stretch of the trail also tested his team. “Hopefully we get a little less wind. If it is windy, I’m going to take a lot more rest.” Ryan Redington talks about the strong Bering Sea winds are slowing his team down. (Courtesy Iditarod Insider) There were also three rookie Indigenous mushers in the race. Jesse Terry, an Anishinaabe from Ontario, is in 16th place and Kevin Hansen, an Iñupiaq from Kotzebue, is in 21st place. Jody Potts-Joseph, a Hän Gwich’in from Eagle Village, who had to contend with bison on the trail, pulled out of the race after her team came down with kennel cough. She said she had to put her team first. Iditarod Trail officials praised her handling of the dogs.   Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Wednesday, March 18, 2026 – States, philanthropy help keep tribal clean energy projects going

    5 min

  3. 2D AGO

    Tuesday, March 17, 2026

    Prosecutors in South Dakota have dismissed charges against an Indigenous rights advocate. South Dakota Public Broadcasting’s CJ Keene reports. Charges stemming from a 2022 incident against Nick Tilsen, CEO and founder of NDN Collective, were dropped. In a statement, Tilsen said, “my freedom wasn’t granted by a judge, a jury, or the settler colonial court system. My freedom was won by the people, the movement, and the ancestors.” Tilsen faced more than 25 years in prison, originally facing charges of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and obstruction. Ultimately, the trial resulted in a hung jury. Tilsen maintained his innocence throughout, saying the incident was an effort to watch an interaction between police and an Indigenous member of the Rapid City, S.D. community. NDN Collective spokespeople had contended the charges were excessive. In the same statement, representatives describe them as, “blatantly politically motivated effort to silence a movement leader by criminalizing his actions.” In response, Pennington County State’s Attorney said, “the decision to dismiss this case was made after careful review and thoughtful consideration.” The office adds they stand by the charging decision. “While we believe the case was properly charged and presented, the jury’s inability to reach a verdict was an important factor in evaluating whether further prosecution would serve the interest of justice.” A nearly empty critical care unit at Bartlett Hospital on April 7, 2020, in Juneau, Alaska. (Photo: Rashah McChesney / KTOO) Alaska will receive about $1 billion from the federal government over the next few years to improve healthcare, but millions of that depends on the legislature passing several bills aligning Alaska with best practices for rural healthcare. Alaska Native people are much more likely to live in rural areas than other Alaskans. As Alaska Public Media’s Rachel Cassandra reports, a proposal to make it easier for out-of-state nurses to practice in Alaska is facing fierce pushback. When you boil it down, Alaska Hospital and Healthcare Association head Jared Kosin says joining a so-called license compact is pretty simple. He says there would be a set of criteria nurses would demonstrate. “And if they do, then they are issued a license and then they can practice in any states that use those same standards.” Proponents say joining a compact would help ease a nurse shortage across the state that is projected to worsen. Kosin says it may be simple to explain, but actually getting a bill passed to join the nurse licensure compact has been anything but. “It’s just so snagged up in politics.” The last version of the bill was introduced in 2023. It was supported by most healthcare organizations in the state, but it was opposed by nursing unions. He says that created a toxic dynamic. And this year there is new pressure on the legislature thanks to the Rural Health Transformation Program. When the Alaska Department of Health (DOH) applied for the money, it told the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) the state would join the compact. The state has been directed by CMS to create compacts for other health care positions too: physicians, emergency medical services, psychologists, and physician assistants. The DOH does not know exactly how much money would be clawed back if Alaska does not pass all the required legislation, but a DOH official wrote over email that a ballpark estimate is that millions of dollars is at stake annually and tens of millions of dollars over the five years of rural funding. Shannon Davenport is a union leader and a nurse. She says there are many problems with the nursing field right now, especially workplace safety, and she doesn’t think the nursing compact is the solution to them. “It’s not the golden goose. It’s not the answer to everything.” Even so, most nurses support a compact — almost 90% of nurses living in Alaska, according to a 2023 survey. The federal deadline to join the compact is at the end of 2027.     Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Tuesday, March 17, 2026 – Re-enactors help bring Native American perspective of the Revolutionary War to life

    5 min

  4. 3D AGO

    Monday, March 16, 2026

    The Chandler Museum in Arizona has a new exhibit called “Being Eddie Basha.” It is a retrospective of the hometown-turned-statewide grocer who died in 2013. And as KJZZ’s Gabriel Pietrorazio reports, this 3,800 sq ft installation is all about unpacking the man behind the grocery king persona. Chandler Museum’s storytelling coordinator, Sarah Biggerstaff, literally leaned on Basha’s own words for one interactive display. “This is our telephone. There’s about 20 clips, and they range from, like, 20 seconds to a minute. You can pick it up, give it a couple seconds, but then you hear him actually speaking. And at our opening, it was really moving.” “I would want my epithets to have to say, ‘Eddie Basha, he was a good man, but a bad boy.’ And that’s how I want to be remembered.” An interactive telephone display inside the “Being Eddie Basha” exhibit at Chandler Museum. (Photo: Gabriel Pietrorazio / KJZZ) Another one of his principles was putting people over profits. The great-grandson of Lebanese immigrants brought his family brand to tribal lands beginning in 1981 with the Diné Supermarket in Chinle. Basha even committed 25 cents of every dollar to the Navajo Nation. “And of course, the relationship with the Navajo became extremely powerful and fruitful and still exists today.” From Tuba City to Window Rock, stores kept popping up. More locations would follow on Apache land in Peridot and Whiteriver. The one-time gubernatorial candidate was also an avid collector of Western and American Indian art. Basha owned one of the world’s largest private collections, most of which has since been donated to the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Ariz. Parker Kenick of Nome competing in the One Hand Reach at the Arctic Winter Games in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada. (Photo courtesy Carter Photography) Athletes, coaches, and spectators crowded Main Street in downtown Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada Saturday for the closing ceremonies of the Arctic Winter Games, also known as the Olympics of the North. And Team Alaska had a lot to celebrate. Among the six Arctic nations, it led the count for ulus, the medals shaped like the curved knife emblematic of Arctic life. Alaska had 227 ulus, followed by Team Yukon with 174 and Alberta North with 127. As KNBA’s Rhonda McBride tells us, Parker Kenick of Nome took home three gold ulus and many lessons about life. Although Parker Kenick started learning traditional Alaska Native games when he was eight, he did not take part in the Arctic Winter Games until later in life. This year he competed in the adult category and won gold ulus in the Two Foot High Kick, the Alaskan High Kick, and the One Hand Reach. Kenick says he is grateful for the community support that made it possible for him to travel to the games. “Our spirits get lifted here because there’s so many people here that want to see us do our best, to our absolute limit.” Kenick competed in his first Arctic Winter Games in 2023 and says he was lucky to be mentored by some of the best Indigenous athletes in the world. Now he’s returning the favor. One of his coaches, Candace Parker, says when Kenick first started out, he was very quiet and kept to himself. Today, he readily volunteers to coach the younger athletes. “I would say full circle moment for him to be out on the floor passing on the knowledge. May not have been technical but doing more encouraging.” Parker Kenick of Nome, center, enjoys mentoring younger students at the Arctic Winter Games in Whitehorse. (Photo courtesy Carter Photography) Parker says young people can be self-absorbed, but the games teach them to think beyond themselves. She says it is an important exercise in humility, one that athletes like Kenick have embraced. Parker has been coaching since 1996, but this year she reached an important milestone – having three generations of her family compete in this year’s Arctic Winter Games.   Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Monday, March 16, 2026 – What’s in a (tribe’s) name?

    5 min

  5. 6D AGO

    Friday, March 13, 2026

    This month, 34 bison were loaded into trailers at a park in Colorado’s foothills – and sent across the Mountain West region to tribal lands. Rachel Cohen reports. The bison are part of herds that the City and County of Denver has managed for almost a century. And since 2020, 170 animals have been gifted to tribes. Jason Baldes is a member of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe in Wyoming and works with the Intertribal Buffalo Council. He says Denver’s donations play a big role in bison restoration. “Because there are so few animals in isolated populations, it’s important to diversify your gene pool so that you have a healthy population.” In this year’s transfer, Navajo Nation received 11 bison and the Northern Cheyenne in Montana got 10. Jody Potts-Joseph in McGrath, Alaska. (Courtesy Jody Potts-Joseph) The leaders in the 1,000-mile sled dog race from Anchorage to Nome have reached the halfway point. Two of the mushers — Ryan Redington (Inupiat) and Pete Kaiser (Yup’ik) — are former champs of the Iditarod. Both have teams with some of the fastest speeds on the trail. Redington was in third place early this morning and Kaiser was not far behind in the 11th spot. There are three other Indigenous mushers in the Iditarod. Kevin Hansen and Jesse Terry, who are in the middle of the pack, are rookies to the race, as is Jody Potts-Joseph, who as Rhonda McBride reports, has been holding her own at the back of the pack. The Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma recently added an amendment to the tribe’s Public Health and Wellness Fund Act to set aside funds for the tribe’s reentry program. $6.5 million is being set aside in new opioid settlement funds, which will include building and operating transitional housing for formerly incarcerated Cherokee citizens. According to the Cherokee Nation, in 2017, it became the first tribe in the country to sue the opioid industry for damages. The tribe has continued its legal efforts, which include the latest settlement. The reentry program served 500 Cherokee citizens last year. (Courtesy Cherokee Nation)   Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Friday, March 13, 2026 – The Searchers: cinematic treasure or stereotypical disaster?

    5 min

  6. MAR 12

    Thursday, March 12, 2026

    A new report shows access to nearby nature in the U.S. is not equal and the gap is closely tied to race and income. Researchers say Indigenous communities are among those most affected. The Mountain West News Bureau’s Kaleb Roedel has more. Communities of color are three times more likely than white communities to live in places with severe nature loss — fewer parks, fewer trees, more pollution. That is thanks in part to resource extraction and the rapid development of natural spaces. Researchers say that is significant for tribal areas, where land is closely tied to cultural traditions and food systems. Rena Payan with Justice Outside, which co-produced the report, says losing nearby nature isn’t just about scenery. “Nature deprivation isn’t just about the aesthetics of who has access to ‘big nature.’ It’s also about who has access to clean air and clean water.” The report also highlights Indigenous-led solutions. On the Navajo Nation, local groups are restoring native grasslands and wildlife habitat. In Alaska, Native organizations are protecting salmon streams and coastal ecosystems that support subsistence. Researchers say efforts grounded in Indigenous stewardship could help close what they call the nation’s growing nature gap. Reliable high-speed internet is still out of reach for many tribal communities. A new report highlights ongoing barriers to broadband access in Indian Country. Daniel Spaulding has more. The report from the Urban Institute says many Indigenous communities lack reliable high-speed internet, especially in rural areas. Recent federal investments have helped expand broadband in some tribal communities, but gaps remain. Tomi Rajninger is a co-author of the report. “In certain parts of the country, especially in Indian Country and a lot of rural communities, folks have a lot less access to high speed broadband than other parts of the U.S.” The Urban Institute’s Gabe Samuels says geography is one of the biggest challenges. “Because of the historic way where a lot of tribes are relocated, they’re often located in maybe more remote rural areas that are physically harder to access, it’s just kind of compounds the challenge to accessing.” Rajninger and Samuels both say allowing tribes to manage their own broadband infrastructure will be key to improving access. American bison inside a pen at Genesee Park near Golden, Colo. on March 6, 2026. (Courtesy Denver Parks and Recreation) American bison are a symbol of the West that might have vanished from this landscape entirely, if not for conservation efforts. As KJZZ’s Gabriel Pietrorazio reports, the city of Denver donates bison from a long-established herd to tribes and nonprofits each year. Snow powdered the 34 bison inside a pen while tribes blessed them. Eleven went to the Navajo Nation. The rest were sent to the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, a Lakota nonprofit, Buffalo First, in South Dakota, and the Denver-based Tall Bull Memorial Council. This keystone species once roamed the Great Plains, but faced the brink of extinction. In 1908, the Denver Zoo had only 18 animals left in captivity, but they would help form a herd near Golden, Colo. The city has transferred more than 170 buffalo into tribal hands. (Courtesy Six Nations Iroquois Cultural Center) In New York state, more than 900 acres of land is returning to Indigenous care. The Six Nations Iroquois Cultural Center, Paul Smith’s College, the Nature Conservancy, and the Adirondack Land Trust joined in the land-back partnership. The Nature Conservancy purchased 600 acres of land for $1.1 million from the college and transferred ownership to the Six Nations Iroquois Cultural Center. The cultural center will privately own and steward the land. The land trust has already transferred 300 acres of adjoining land to the cultural center.   Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Thursday, March 12, 2026 – Confronting a past of forced sterilization

    5 min

  7. MAR 11

    Wednesday, March 11, 2026

    Photo: A scenic overview of the Colorado River from the Navajo Bridge near Jacob Lake. (Gabriel Pietrorazio / KJZZ) The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs has invited tribal leaders to testify on Capitol Hill today. As KJZZ’s Gabriel Pietrorazio reports, the Northeast Arizona Indian Water Rights Settlement Act is the hearing’s subject. This $5 billion deal would resolve claims for three parties, including the Navajo Nation and Hopi Tribe. For San Juan Southern Paiute President Carlene Yellowhair, this proposal is not just about securing precious water in the Southwest. If passed, it would also set aside 5,400 acres for a new reservation in Arizona. “We want to settle, because we want our land, our home, a place to build. We lost all of our elders. They started it and we just want to finish it.” The tribe has more than 300 members, including Vice President Johnny Lehi Jr. “You know, the land and the water, that’s what we needed to become more sovereign.” Prisoner Mark Andrews is housed at Spring Creek Correctional Center in Seward, Alaska. (Photo: Anne Hillman / Alaska Public Media) The Alaska Supreme Court heard arguments this month on whether prisoners can be forcibly medicated with psychiatric drugs — without a court hearing and the right to a lawyer. In the state corrections system, Alaska Native people are incarcerated at about twice the rate of white Alaskans. Alaska Public Media’s Rachel Cassandra has more. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) brought the case against the Department of Corrections (DOC) on behalf of a prisoner, Mark Andrews. He says he has been unjustly drugged with powerful psychotropic medication for most of the last seven years, without due process or access to legal counsel. The Department policy currently allows prisoners to be drugged against their will if they are gravely disabled or are in imminent risk for harming themselves or others. Doron Levine is a lawyer for the ACLU. He argued at the hearing that the policy infringes on rights protected by the state constitution. “Few things are more personal than someone’s body, and arguably, nothing is more personal than a person’s mind. It’s the locus of a person’s identity, and it’s a last refuge of freedom for people who are incarcerated.” Under department policy, prisoners have the right to hearings every six months with department staff. And they have the right to appeal the decision to a department committee. The ACLU argues that Andrews did not have sufficient access to hearings or an appeal. Justice Jennifer Henderson questioned Kimber Rogers, the attorney representing DOC. Justice Henderson says the facts seem to suggest that the prisoner was denied the rights promised in the department’s policy. Justice Henderson: How do you respond to that? Kimber Rogers: Your Honor, I agree that there were definitely some problems, and Mr. Andrews’ hearings, but I don’t think that that’s important. JH: There were more than some problems. There were long periods of time where there were no hearings, for example. KR: Well, Your Honor, I would dispute that actually. The ACLU lawyer argued that there should be a hearing in a courtroom because DOC staff may be biased to protect the institution over the person, but Rogers says a hearing inside prison is the best approach. When the Supreme Court issues a ruling, the decision could apply to the approximately 22 Alaska prisoners who are being forcibly drugged. U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) The National American Indian Housing Council (NAIHC) is applauding the House passage of the Tribal Trust Land Homeownership Act. The bill to improve access to homeownership for Native families on tribal trust land is led by U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) and passed last week. NAIHC executive director Rudy Soto says the bill improves coordination between the Bureau of Indian Affairs, lenders, and tribal communities, establishes timelines, and helps Native families, veterans, and tribal citizens who want to achieve homeownership. The Senate previously approved the measure and it now heads to the president’s desk.   Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Wednesday, March 11, 2024 – Michigan backs away from Boarding Schools report

    5 min

  8. MAR 10

    Tuesday, March 10, 2026

    A second funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) narrowly passed the U.S. House of Representatives. As KJZZ’s Gabriel Pietrorazio reports, U.S. Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ) sought to create a safeguard for tribes getting caught up in immigration crackdowns. Rep. Grijalva has been regularly meeting with tribal leaders from across southern Arizona, like the Pascua Yaqui, Tohono O’odham, and Gila River. She says they are all telling her the same thing. “DHS must consult with tribes. They’re not doing it now. This administration doesn’t honor sovereignty.” Grijalva proposed an amendment to the funding bill that would have required U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to consult with tribes before conducting immigration enforcement on their land, but her effort to attach that requirement to a DHS funding bill failed. “They’re all concerned with the presence of ICE and how they are profiling their members because, you know, they might look like working people who have darker skin.” Meanwhile, Kristi Noem has been ousted by President Donald Trump as DHS secretary. He named U.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (Cherokee/R-OK) as her replacement. “Removing Noem doesn’t root out the lawlessness at ICE. Maybe leadership style might be different, but the end goal is still the same.” Ketchikan-based artist Savannah LeCornu was selected as this year’s poster artist for the Alaska Folk Festival in Juneau, Alaska. (Courtesy Jason Baldwin) Ketchikan, Alaska-based artist Savannah LeCornu was recently selected as this year’s poster artist for the Alaska Folk Festival in Juneau. The annual spring event seeks art submissions from Alaska creatives for festival merchandise, including its promotional poster. KRBD’s Hunter Morrison sat down with LeCornu to discuss how the opportunity will help expand representation of Indigenous artists throughout Alaska. Hunter Morrison: Can you tell me a little bit about what inspires your work as an artist? Savannah LeCornu: I’m an Indigenous artist. I’m part of three different tribes. I’m Tsimshian, Haida and Nez Perce. So a lot of my inspiration comes from the art styles of my tribes, as well as my family, surroundings, environment, friends, that kind of thing. HM: Can you tell me a little bit more about what mediums of art you specialize in? SL: Yeah. So mainly I draw and I paint. I do a lot of traditional drawing, but I also do digital drawing as well. So, working with Procreate on my iPad. And then I also do painting, mainly acrylic, but I have done watercolor here and there. HM: You were selected as this year’s poster artist for the Alaska Folk Festival. Do you have a design yet for that poster? Or, do you have ideas of what that design might look like? SL: I don’t know how secret they are with it. I will say my inspirations were some of my favorite musicians in Alaska, as well as the northern lights. HM: How will this opportunity expand not only your work as an artist, but expand the celebration of Indigenous people and Indigenous art? SL: Wow, what a great question. What I’m hoping for with being the artist for this year’s folk fest is that my art gets started to be seen more widely throughout Alaska. I will say it’s not my most obvious Indigenous design. I will say all of my art inherently becomes Indigenous because I am Indigenous, but at the same time, there’s no form line in it. There’s no traditional Native art in it for this design. But I still hope that means that people look into my own art and see more of what I do, and that people just explore more of it.   Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Tuesday, March 10, 2026 – Elections watchers prepare for Midterm complications

    5 min
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About

Daily, five-minute newscast featuring the latest headlines and breaking news from Native and Indigenous communities anchored by Antonia Gonzales (Navajo) with reporters and storytellers from around the globe.

Information

  • Creator
    Antonia Gonzales
  • Years Active
    2008 - 2026
  • Episodes
    300
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Koahnic Broadcast Corporation - All rights reserved - Contact nola@nv1.org for permission
  • Show Website
    National Native News

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