Ampers

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Updated 07/09/2020

JAN 22

Nikki Love (Pieratos): Keeping Relatives and Neighbors Safe in Uncertain Times

Today, we welcome Nikki Love Pieratos to Native Lights. An enrolled citizen of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa, Nikki is the Executive Director of the Tiwahe Foundation, a community organization serving Native people around Minnesota. She’s also a part of the Metropolitan Urban Indian Directors group. Leah speaks with her about the impact of Operation Metro Surge on Twin Cities Indigenous residents and their neighbors. One impact has been an increase of Native individuals being stopped by federal agents. But, says Nikki, this has also been a time of the wider community coming together and putting themselves on the line to look after and protect their neighbors. Nikki shares how she stays grounded with a prayerful attitude and a focus on the present. ----- Hosts / Producers: Leah Lemm, Cole Premo Editor: Britt Aamodt Editorial support: Emily Krumberger Mixing & mastering: Chris Harwood ----- For the latest episode drops and updates, follow us on social media. instagram.com/ampersradio instagram.com/mnnativenews facebook.com/MNNativeNews Never miss a beat. Sign up for our email list to receive news, updates and content releases from AMPERS. ampers.org/about-ampers/staytuned/ This show is made possible by community support. Due to cuts in federal funding, the community radio you love is at risk. Your support is needed now more than ever. Donate now to power the community programs you love: ampers.org/fund

Jan 22

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28 min
4D AGO

MNN Extended Interview with Dr. Antony Stately (NACC)

This week, an extended conversation with Antony Stately, President and Executive Office of the Native American Community Clinic in South Minneapolis, about providing care amidst federal budget cuts. ----- Producer: Emma Needham Anchor: Marie Rock Editor: Britt Aamodt, Victor Palomino Mixing & mastering: Chris Harwood Editorial support: Emily Krumberger Image Credit: Courtesy of Dr. Antony Stately----- For the latest episode drops and updates, follow us on social media. instagram.com/ampersradio/ instagram.com/mnnativenews/ Never miss a beat. Sign up for our email list to receive news, updates and content releases from AMPERS. ampers.org/about-ampers/staytuned/ This show is made possible by community support. Due to cuts in federal funding, the community radio you love is at risk. Your support is needed now more than ever. Donate now to power the community programs you love: ampers.org/fund

4d ago

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5 min
JAN 28

Tribal Response to Operation Metro Surge and Rock Ridge Schools' Hockey Nights Broadcast in Ojibwe

This week, how Tribes and the state's Indigenous community are responding to the increased federal presence from Operation Metro Surge, and how a youth Hockey Night series is uplifting the Ojibwe language. ----- Producers: Xan Holston, Deanna StandingCloud, Chaz Wagner Editor: Victor Palomino Editorial support: Emily Krumberger Anchor: Marie RockMixing & mastering: Chris Harwood ----- For the latest episode drops and updates, follow us on social media. instagram.com/ampersradio/ instagram.com/mnnativenews/ Never miss a beat. Sign up for our email list to receive news, updates and content releases from AMPERS. ampers.org/about-ampers/staytuned/ This show is made possible by community support. Due to cuts in federal funding, the community radio you love is at risk. Your support is needed now more than ever. Donate now to power the community programs you love: ampers.org/fund

Jan 28

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5 min
JAN 15

Robert Lilligren: The Native Community Responds to Minneapolis ICE Operations

Today, we have a special edition of Native Lights to share with you. We’re talking with Robert Lilligren, CEO of the Native American Community Development Institute, which is based in Minneapolis. He is also a White Earth citizen. Robert discusses the unprecedented deployment of some 2,000 ICE and Border Patrol agents to Minneapolis and how that has impacted the Native community, especially in the wake of the Renee Good shooting by an ICE agent. He shares what it’s like to be on the ground in Minneapolis right now, why whistles are important, and what Nativeleaders and organizations are doing to educate and protect the community. He also talks about the power of coming together, traditional pract ices and laughter during these uncertain times. If you want to know what your rights are if stopped by ICE or Border Patrol, you can find that and other information on the Metropolitan Urban Indian Directors website at MUIDmn.org.-----Hosts / Producers: Leah Lemm Editor: Britt Aamodt Editorial support: Emily Krumberger Mixing & mastering: Chris HarwoodPhoto courtesy of Robert Lilligren----- For the latest episode drops and updates, follow us on social media. instagram.com/ampersradio/ instagram.com/mnnativenews/ Never miss a beat. Sign up for our email list to receive news, updates and content releases from AMPERS. ampers.org/about-ampers/staytuned/ This show is made possible by community support. Due to cuts in federal funding, the community radio you love is at risk. Your support is needed now more than ever. Donate now to power the community programs you love: ampers.org/fund

Jan 15

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29 min
JAN 8

Victoria Marie: Learning to Surrender

Today, we’re excited to present Victoria Marie, an enrolled tribal member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate. She's the founder and owner of Indigenous Lotus, a wellness program that combines yoga classes, tribal dance, exercise and meditation with an emphasis on helping people cope with stress and trauma. Those stressors can include PTSD, homelessness, sexual exploitation and poverty. In addition to classes and workshops, Indigenous Lotus has a line of streetwear. Victoria shares the story of how, at age seventeen, she dropped out of high school, became a new mom and found herself struggling with depression. Her quest for guidance led her to the local library. There she found a book on meditation. That formed the foundation of her healing journey. When her son got older, meditation also became a shared bedtime practice for mom and son. Later, yoga came into her life. After getting certified, she taught yoga and movement to the youth at Little Earth of United Tribes. That became the origins of Indigenous Lotus, her yoga studio. Her business has evolved to include public speaking, workshops, art and apparel. Victoria talks about how a recent health diagnosis gave her permission to slow down, step back and surrender. Victoria lives in Shakopee with her partner, their children, two dogs, three cats, and a rabbit who loves to shred cardboard. ----- Hosts / Producers: Leah Lemm, Cole Premo Editor: Britt Aamodt Editorial support: Emily Krumberger Mixing & mastering: Chris Harwood Photo credit: Victoria Marie ----- For the latest episode drops and updates, follow us on social media. instagram.com/ampersradio instagram.com/mnnativenews facebook.com/MNNativeNews Never miss a beat. Sign up for our email list to receive news, updates and content releases from AMPERS. ampers.org/about-ampers/staytuned/ This show is made possible by community support. Due to cuts in federal funding, the community radio you love is at risk. Your support is needed now more than ever. Donate now to power the community programs you love: ampers.org/fund

Jan 8

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28 min
11/20/2025

Carl Gawboy: Remembering the Fur Trade Through Art

Today, we welcome Carl Gawboy to the Native Lights podcast. Carl, born to a Finnish mother and an Ojibwe father, was raised in Ely and is a member of the Bois Forte Band of Ojibwe. Carl is an artist, whose primary medium is watercolors. But he turned to pen and ink for his recent graphic book Fur Trade Nation: An Ojibwe’s Graphic History. For a number of years, Carl taught in the Indian Studies departments at the College of St. Scholastica and the University of Minnesota – Duluth. He was given an opportunity to develop a course and that turned into a history of the fur trade. His research revealed that every Ojibwe person, in one fashion or another, worked in the fur trade industry—as trappers, guides, interpreters, cooks, canoe makers, etc. He talks about the book that inspired him to turn his research into a series of black and white drawings. Those evolved into the 2024 book Fur Trade Nation and, more recently, Giclee prints and a calendar. Carl and wife Cindy live in Two Harbors and enjoy spending time with their family and a special feline friend. ----- Hosts / Producers: Leah Lemm, Cole Premo Editor: Britt Aamodt Editorial support: Emily Krumberger Mixing & mastering: Chris Harwood ----- For the latest episode drops and updates, follow us on social media. instagram.com/ampersradio instagram.com/mnnativenews facebook.com/MNNativeNews Never miss a beat. Sign up for our email list to receive news, updates and content releases from AMPERS. ampers.org/about-ampers/staytuned/

11/20/2025

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29 min
11/06/2025

Janis A. Fairbanks: Lessons Learned and Memories of Her Ojibwe Grandma

Today, we are excited to welcome Janis A. Fairbanks to Native Lights. Janis is a member of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. She recently released a book called Sugar Bush Babies: Stories of My Ojibwe Grandmother, a memoir in lessons learned from her grandmother during the era of Indian Relocation. Janis also has a doctorate in Ojibwe language, literature and history. She is currently the chair of the Language Advisory Board for the Fond du Lac Band. Janis talks about a lifetime devoted to writing, a talent that she uncovered as a second grader trying to fit in. She wrote stories that enchanted her classmates, who called her "Ye Olde Storyteller." That recognition encouraged her to keep writing. One of the most important and influential people in Janis's life was her grandmother. She always arrived with a bag, holding oranges and other goodies for the grandkids, and with stories. One was about her grandmother's birth at a sugarbush camp in a pit lined with cedar. Janis collected this and other stories in her memoir Sugar Bush Babies. In our conversation, she also shares what it's like to be the mom of a five-month-old puppy, why some memories stick and other fades and her advice for aspiring writers. ----- Hosts / Producers: Leah Lemm, Cole Premo Editor: Britt Aamodt Editorial support: Emily Krumberger Mixing & mastering: Chris Harwood ----- For the latest episode drops and updates, follow us on social media. instagram.com/ampersradio instagram.com/mnnativenews facebook.com/MNNativeNews Never miss a beat. Sign up for our email list to receive news, updates and content releases from AMPERS. ampers.org/about-ampers/staytuned/ This show is made possible by community support. Due to cuts in federal funding, the community radio you love is at risk. Your support is needed now more than ever. Donate now to power the community programs you love: ampers.org/fund

11/06/2025

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29 min
07/09/2025

Great-Grandmother Mary Lyons' Gift for Sharing Indigenous Traditions & Spiritual Guidance (Revisited)

On this week's show, we revisit our conversation from June 2022 with Great-Grandmother Mary Lyons (Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe), a spiritual advisor, storyteller, activist, wisdom keeper, and revered elder. Mary Lyons is the founder of the Minnesota Coalition on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and serves as a counselor for the women's sobriety group, which she also co-founded, called Women of Wellbriety International. Mary's inspiring book, Wisdom Lessons: Spirited Guidance from an Ojibwe Great-Grandmother, was published in 2018, and delivers love and advice through stories and perspectives grounded in traditional Indigenous values. Find Mary Lyons' book here: https://birchbarkbooks.com/products/wisdom-lessons Chi Miigwech to Mary Lyons for generously sharing traditional teachings, your wise approach to healing, and life-changing spiritual guidance. Native Lights: Where Indigenous Voices Shine is a weekly, half-hour radio program hosted by Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe members and siblings, Leah Lemm and Cole Premo. Native Lights is a space for people in Native communities around Mni Sota Mkoce -- a.k.a. Minnesota -- to tell their stories about finding their gifts and sharing them with the community. Native Lights: Where Indigenous Voices Shine is produced by Minnesota Native News and Ampers, Diverse Radio for Minnesota's Communities with support from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.

07/09/2025

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48 min
JAN 21

MNN Extended Interview: Leanna Goose

This week, an extended interview with Leanna Goose, an environmental activist from Leech Lake, about her work to protect land, air, and water for the next seven generations. ---- Producer: Deanna StandingCloud Editing: Britt Aamodt, Victor Palomino, Emily Krumberger Anchor: Marie RockMixing & mastering: Chris Harwood Editorial support: Emily KrumbergerPhoto credit: Deanna StandingCloud ----- For the latest episode drops and updates, follow us on social media. instagram.com/ampersradio/ instagram.com/mnnativenews/ Never miss a beat. Sign up for our email list to receive news, updates and content releases from AMPERS. ampers.org/about-ampers/staytuned/ This show is made possible by community support. Due to cuts in federal funding, the community radio you love is at risk. Your support is needed now more than ever. Donate now to power the community programs you love: ampers.org/fund

Jan 21

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5 min
02/08/2024

Dr. Michael Migizi Sullivan: Teaching Language Learners in the Modern-Day Classroom

Michael Migizi Sullivan Sr. is a lifelong student of the Ojibwe language, father, husband, ceremonial drum keeper of the Ojibwe, powwow emcee, up-and-coming storyteller, and teacher of the Ojibwe language. Dr. Sullivan earned his doctorate in linguistics at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, working under the tutelage of Larry Amik Smallwood as his main language consultant and Dr. John D. Nichols. Dr. Sullivan is the Faculty Director of Native American Studies at the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe College on his home reservation of Lac Courte Oreilles, where he teaches the intricacies of the Ojibwe language that he learned from Amik. In today’s episode, we hear about Dr. Sullivan’s editing role in his new book release Plums or Nuts, a collection of Ojibwe stories of Anishinaabe Humor told by his friend and mentor the late Larry Amik Smallwood. We hear why Michael’s drive to work closely with the elders in his community became a pivotal moment that changed the trajectory of his career. Dr. Sullivan shares stories of how he continues to uplift his students inspiring them to set goals while navigating them through the immense pressures of learning the Ojibwe language.

02/08/2024

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29 min

Ampers is a group of 18 different community radio stations throughout Minnesota. Each station is programmed by and for their specific community. The programming serves and teaches others about underserved populations including communities of color, new immigrants, Native American and rural areas not served by traditional media.

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