Native America Calling

Koahnic
  • 4.8 (179)
  • News
  • Daily

Interactive, daily program featuring Native and Indigenous voices, insights, and stories from across the U.S. and around the world.

  1. 16h ago

    Wednesday, November 4, 2026 — Voters have their say

    In rejecting the direction President Donald Trump took the country in the past two years, voters also sent a record number of Native Americans to elected office. Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo), who made history as the first Native American cabinet secretary, makes history a second time as the first Native woman elected governor. Peggy Flanagan (White Earth Band of Ojibwe) is the first Native woman in the U.S. Senate. Claire Valdez (Ysleta del sur Pueblo) breezed to her seat in New York. She joins fellow Native U.S. Reps. Sharice Davids (Ho-Chunk), D-Kansas, Tom Cole (Chickasaw), R-Oklahoma, and Josh Brecheen (Choctaw), R-Oklahoma, in the U.S. House. In races too close to call, both Mary Peltola (Yup’ik) in Alaska and Jonathan Nez (Navajo) in Arizona have slim leads in their attempts to flip their respective Republican incumbents. In addition, the balance of power in Congress has shifted, offering a check on initiatives coming from the executive branch. We’ll find out what the electoral wins and losses mean for going forward and get a look at what remains in the balance. GUESTS Ruth Buffalo (Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation), former North Dakota State Representative from Fargo, North Dakota and the first Native American woman elected to the North Dakota Legislature Allen Wright (Choctaw), president and founder of the Hustings Group Joaqlin Estus (Tlingit), longtime journalist and former ICT correspondent Jeanette DeDios (Jicarilla Apache and Diné), KUNM Radio reporter Hannah Bissett (Knik Tribe), deputy finance manager and fundraising specialist at Ship Creek Group   Break 1 Music: Victory Song (song) All Lead Singers Home Of The Champions (artist) Home Of The Champions (album) Break 2 Music: Put Your Feathers On (song) Blue Moon Marquee & Northern Cree (artist) Get Your Feathers Ready (Album)

  2. 1d ago

    Tuesday, November 3, 2026 — Election Day status check

    While Native American voters generally stick with Democrats, any actual data on what is driving their decisions for the midterm elections is scarce. We’ll talk with first-time voters as well as veteran get-out-the-vote organizers to hear what is on the minds of voters this Election Day, which President Donald Trump calls “the most important midterm … in our lifetime.” Gasoline and grocery prices make headlines daily, but are historically low poverty rates an issue that voters think about? Are they worried about looming changes to health care access? We’ll ask about what’s important to those headed to the polls. GUESTS Muñeca Danforth (Oneida Nation of Wisconsin), Miss Indigenous Wisconsin Tayler Higgins (Seldovia Village tribal member and Cook Inlet Region Corporation shareholder), youth advocate Jordan James Harvill (Cherokee and Choctaw), national program director for Advance Native Political Leadership Mary Kim Titla (San Carlos Apache), executive director of United National Indian Tribal Youth   Break 1 Music: Show the People (song) Bear Creek (artist) On The Move – Powwow Songs Recorded Live at Apache Gold Break 2 Music: Put Your Feathers On (song) Blue Moon Marquee & Northern Cree (artist) Get Your Feathers Ready (Album)

  3. 2d ago

    Monday, November 2, 2026 — Amid election anxiety, Native candidates are poised for historic representation

    Win or lose, Native American women are making a major showing in state and national races on Election Day. There is a very good chance Native women will fill a state governor’s seat and be represented in the U.S. Senate for the first time in history. The gains in representation come as a record number of Native candidates are on local, state, and national ballots around the country. As the nation prepares to vote, we’ll discuss the direction of political winds for Native candidates and issues. GUESTS Rebecca Nagle (Cherokee), author and journalist Michael Stopp (Cherokee and Muscogee), Oklahoma GOP analyst and president and CEO of Seven Star Holdings James Brooks, state reporter at Alaska Beacon   Break 1 Music: Intertribal (song) Cree Confederation (artist) Pakosiyimitan (album) Break 2 Music: Put Your Feathers On (song) Blue Moon Marquee & Northern Cree (artist) Get Your Feathers Ready (Album)

  4. 5d ago

    Friday, October 30, 2026 — The Menu: Shoring up food banks, celebrating bison, and a new tribal flour mill

    Rising consumer costs and cuts to subsidized food programs are increasing the pressure on organizations that deliver food assistance. Native American food pantries are trying to forge new partnerships and develop additional tribal resources — like farms and meat processors — to meet the demand, all while reducing the stigma for those seeking help putting food on their tables. We’ll hear about how Native organization in Denver is doing to meet increasing demand. Twelve years since a handful of tribes signed a cross-border agreement to restore bison, the signatories to the Buffalo Treaty are assessing their progress in that time. Over the decades, Native American operations have helped boost bison populations from near extinction to more than 25,000. The tribes just gathered in South Dakota to share knowledge about land acquisition, animal processing, and raising cultural awareness as a way to create a sustainable future for bison. A new flour mill on the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation will be both an tribal economic boost and a processor for local farmers. We’ll hear about what is in store for the new 27,000-square-foot facility. GUESTS Monica Rattling Hawk (Oglala Lakota), tribal liaison for the World Wildlife Fund and a representative of the Oglala Sioux Tribe Dawn Sherman (Lakota, Shawnee, and Delaware), executive director of the Tanka Fund Lisa Ansell Frazier (Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe), founder and director of Buffalo Youth Nation Project Susan Bower, project manager for Cairnspring Mills and business development manager for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation’s Department of Economic and Community Development   Break 1 Music: Halloween (song) Blood Dance (artist) Halloween (album) Break 2 Music: I Saw the Witch Cry (song) Anasazi (artist) I Saw the Witch Cry (album)

  5. 6d ago

    Thursday, October 29, 2026 — Leadership changes in store for Navajo Nation and other tribes

    The first woman to hold the Navajo Nation Council Speaker post is now vying to become the tribe’s first female president. Navajo voters will decide November 3 whether Crystalyne Curley or her opponent, attorney Jason Jones, will lead the country’s largest tribe for the next four years. The two candidates edged out current President Buu Nygren in the primary election. The Navajo election is one of major tribal elections going on at the same time as the national midterm elections. We’ll hear about the Navajo race and others that could set new directions for some tribes in the coming years. We’ll also reflect on the legacy of legendary labor leader and civil rights advocate Dolores Huerta, who died at age 96. GUESTS Geri Hongeva (Diné), master of ceremonies of the 2026 Presidential Forum on the Navajo Economy and owner of Native Moto Tours Lisa Marie Byrd (Diné), president of the Upper Fruitland Navajo Nation Chapter house Twyla Baker (Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara), president of Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College Charlene DeCicco, owner, producer and host of Community Spotlight TV Chuy Martinez, cultural activist and member of the New Mexico Sí Se Puede Committee   Break 1 Music: Leadership Song [Naaí’áanii Biyiin] (song) Radmilla Cody (artist) K’é Hasin (album) Break 2 Music: I Saw the Witch Cry (song) Anasazi (artist) I Saw the Witch Cry (album)

  6. Oct 28

    Wednesday, October 28, 2026 — Election Day anticipation

    The Trump administration’s intervention in the U.S. Senate race in Alaska indicates the high stakes — and the scrutiny that comes with them — in the November 3 election. Mary Peltola, a Democrat, is one of two candidates hoping to make history as the first Native woman to be elected to the Senate. The Department of Justice is trying to block election results if Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan loses by a narrow margin. Voting rights advocates in Alaska and elsewhere are urging people go to the polls early to help offset any complications or challenges to election results. And Native voter organizations are deploying hundreds of observers to polling locations across the country in anticipation of potential interruptions that include worries about voting machine seizure and immigration raids. We’ll also get an update on severe flooding on and around the Navajo Nation and other tribal land in New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah. Heavy rains displaced hundreds of residents, damaged homes, and washed out critical infrastructure. GUESTS Michelle Sparck (Qissunamiut Tribe of Chevak), director of Get Out the Native Vote Samantha Blencke, senior staff attorney with the Native American Rights Fund OJ Semans Sr. (Rosebud Sioux), co-executive director of Four Directions Native Vote Lisa Byrd (Diné), president of the Upper Fruitland Navajo Nation Chapter house   Break 1 Music:  Get Up Stand Up (song) Bailey Wiley, Che Fu, King Kapisi, Laughton Kora, Maisey Rika & Tiki Taane (artist) Break 2 Music: I Saw the Witch Cry (song) Anasazi (artist) I Saw the Witch Cry (album)

  7. Oct 27

    Tuesday, October 27, 2026 — Native Bookshelf: Spooky books for the season

    A mining company unleashes an evil entity as the Arctic village of Chukchi falls into polar night in “It Looks Like You in the Dark“, the debut horror novel from Mathilda Zeller. It’s among several new books by Native writers that are especially fitting during the annual spooky season. Dr. Mat RudeWalker’s story, “Party at the Alvarez Ranch”, is included in the horror anthology, “Back for Blood: Never Whistle at Night Part II”. We’ll discuss these titles and others in keeping with the Halloween spirit. GUESTS Dr. Mat RudeWalker (Chickasaw), lecturer at Spelman College Mathilda Zeller (Iñupiaq), author Johnnie Jae (Otoe-Missouria and Choctaw), founder of Red Pop! News   Break 1 Music: Episodio (song) Hocico (artist) Aquí Y Ahora En El Silencio (album) Break 2 Music: I Saw the Witch Cry (song) Anasazi (artist)

  8. Oct 26

    Monday, October 26, 2026 — Analysis finds DOGE cut nearly $470 million from tribal budgets

    A new analysis by the Brookings Institution tallies nearly $470 million in federal funding taken from tribes and Native organizations early last year by the Department of Government Efficiency. Advocates at the Piikani Lodge Health Institute worked hard for years to secure an $8.5 million USDA grant to support local producers in and around the Blackfeet community. DOGE cut those funds before the tribe could use it. The cuts have far-reaching implications. More than half of de-obligated funds were for natural resources and environment work followed by agriculture. The Brookings analysis finds they disproportionately affect Native communities and concludes they violate the government’s trust and treaty obligation. GUESTS Robert Maxim (Mashpee Wampanoag), fellow at the Brookings Institution Kim Paul (Blackfeet Nation), founder and co-executive director of Piikani Lodge Health Institute James Meggesto (Onondaga), partner and the head of Native American practice at Holland & Knight   Break 1 Music: Intertribal (song) Blackfoot Confederacy (artist) Confederacy Style (album) Break 2 Music: I Saw the Witch Cry (song) Anasazi (artist)

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About

Interactive, daily program featuring Native and Indigenous voices, insights, and stories from across the U.S. and around the world.

Information

  • Creator
    Koahnic
  • Years Active
    2014 - 2026
  • Episodes
    300
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Koahnic Broadcast Corporation - All rights reserved - Contact nola@nv1.org for permission
  • Show Website
    Native America Calling

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