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In reporting on the transformative thinking Native communities are putting into action in these tumultuous times, I heard time and time again: “This is not our first pandemic.” Since the 1500s, when ever-larger numbers of Europeans began arriving in this hemisphere, disasters have come thick and fast for the First Nations, including tens of millions wiped out within a century by continual waves of unfamiliar diseases—measles, influenza, smallpox, typhus, diphtheria, and more. Village after...

While Vision Maker Media empowers and engages Native peoples to share stories, we also view a great deal of importance in education on how to be an ally for Native Americans. As we look ahead to 2021 we hope to cultivate conversation. Check out our list of ways you can be an ally brought to you by Native American allies in our organization. 1. STOP TALKING AND LISTEN One of the most vital steps in becoming an ally to Native Americans is simply listening. There’s a lot to learn as an ally,...

The first history of the United States told from the perspective of indigenous peoples Today in the United States, there are more than five hundred federally recognized Indigenous nations comprising nearly three million people, descendants of the fifteen million Native people who once inhabited this land. The centuries-long genocidal program of the US settler-colonial regimen has largely been omitted from history. Now, for the first time, acclaimed historian and activist Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz...

Season's Greetings Folks, Whatever your faith, belief system, ethnicity, identity may be, I am wishing everyone peace and joy. I am grateful that our paths have crossed. I will share a song of "Joy". I don't have much to offer, but as a musician I do have the gifts of music to share. An older song of mine & video, but the sentiment remains the same. Stay safe & Take care, Michael. "Joy" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=by4tWjowZVo

Hey folks, A powerful music documentary. Well worth watching to learn the back story on some great musicians and music. I saw this a few years ago, glad I watched it again. Talk about overcoming trauma, racism and stigma....these folks exemplify the courage and the perseverance of the human spirit. Take care, Michael. - RUMBLE | The Indians Who Rocked the World | Independent Lens | PBS - https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/films/rumble/

Playwright, poet, and essayist Cherríe Moraga sees the world as a place where the body knows and “the land has memory,” as she states in this interview. Moraga was born and raised in Southern California in the days when the civil rights, queer, antiwar, feminist, and environmental movements were changing the terms of public and private life. Her childhood home was just one long block from the San Gabriel Mission, established in 1771, and within view of the San Gabriel Mountains, smog...

The Native American belief is that some people are born with the spirits of both genders and express them so perfectly. It is if they have two spirits in one body. Some Siouan tribes believed that before a child is born its soul stands before The Creator, to either reach for the bow and arrows that would indicate the role of a man or the basket that would determine the role of a female. When the child would reach for the gender-corresponding hand, sometimes The Creator would switch hands and...

Looking to shop from Indigenous artists and small businesses this holiday season? Here is a list of sites where you can find these products online. (Side note: Also consider buying something from local artists, your auntie’s food stand or small businesses on social media.) MARKETPLACES Alaska Native Heritage Center's 12 Days of Christmas 一 Skincare, jewelry, chimes, artwork Beyond Buckskin 一 Jewelry, blankets, apparel Chickasaw Southeastern Art Show and Market 一 Beadwork, painting, textiles...

This week has been history in the making with the nomination of the first Native American to lead the Interior department. But there is more history: 50 years ago the Nixon administration signed legislation returning Blue Lake to the Taos Pueblo. Joining us today are Red Lake Band of Ojibwe citizen Holly Cook Macarro, a partner at Spirit Rock Consulting and a federal lobbyist since 2001, to talk about the nomination of U.S. Rep. Deb Haaland, Pueblos of Laguna and Jemez, to the position of...

California health officials have made clear they want equity and transparency to be among the main priorities in deciding how to allocate the first scarce supplies of a vaccine. For example, in divvying up the first doses for health care workers, the state is prioritizing hospitals located in low-income areas before those in wealthy areas. "We will be very aggressive in making sure that those with means, those with influence, are not crowding out those that are most deserving of the...

What are YOU doing to celebrate?

By Cassandra Szklarski The Canadian Press, Wed., Dec. 2, 2020. TORONTO - As a pediatrician with extensive experience working with marginalized groups, Anna Banerji believed herself more than equipped to advocate for her Inuk son when he began to display signs of deep depression. She recalls taking him to hospital and pleading with mental-health experts for help, but says her concerns were dismissed. Less than two weeks later in September 2018, Nathan killed himself. [ Please click here to...