Monday, May 4, 2015 – May The Native 4th Be With You
Star Wars movie enthusiasts mark a special day on their calendar each year: May 4th. It’s a day where fans get to let their inner Star Wars love shine as they turn the series’ famous line “May the force be with you” into a “May the 4th” celebration. On this unique Star Wars holiday, we bring you the Native side of this day. How have the Star Wars films influenced our Native nations? What parallels exist between this galactic fantasy world and Native reality? Guests include: Native Star Wars fans and Navajo actor and comedian James Junes, the voice of Han Solo in the Navajo-dubbed “Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.”
Follow this conversation with our hashtag: #MayTheNative4th
Tuesday, May 5, 2015 – Banishment: Good Or Bad For Tribal Communities?
Tribal banishment can be seen as an expression of justice, restoring balance, or righting a wrong. Banishment can be permanent or temporary. It can strip a tribal member of their enrollment status and it can happen for a variety of reasons – from embezzling to murder to selling drugs. It’s a tribal tradition that remains in effect in some communities today, but how effective is it and what are the downsides? Is banishment a form of tribal justice? Or the appropriation of a tradition for modern, possibly less-honorable, needs?
Wednesday, May 6, 2015 – Tribal Enrollment And Blood Quantum
Every tribe has its own rules for membership. Some tribes include lineal descent – proof that you descend from a recognized tribal member – while others have a blood quantum requirement that requires members possess a certain percentage of tribal blood. On White Earth, researchers found that the Nation would see dramatically diminished enrollment numbers in the future if they continued using blood quantum as a requirement for membership. In 2013, White Earth citizens voted to change tribal enrollment from blood quantum to lineal descent. The change hasn’t yet gone into effect, and questions linger about how enrollment will impact the tribe’s connection to the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, as well as its federal status. What are the benefits and drawbacks of basing tribal enrollment on blood quantum? Would you like to see your tribe change enrollment policy to blood quantum or lineal descent? If your tribe uses blood quantum, do you think your tribe will exist 100 years from now? Guests include: Robert A. Williams Jr. (Lumbee), the E. Thomas Sullivan Professor of Law and American Indian Studies and the Faculty Co-chair Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program at the University of Arizona.
Thursday, May 7, 2015 – Mauna Kea: Science vs. The Gods
In Hawaii, science is clashing with culture. Scientists from around the world have planned a $1.4 billion Thirty Meter Telescope that could help answer questions about how the universe began. Its proposed location? Mauna Kea: a religious mountain known to Native Hawaiians as “the realm of the gods.” While the stars and their secrets have always held value for Native Hawaiians, protestors currently occupying Mauna Kea say desecrating the mountain to build the worlds most advanced telescope would destroy a doorway to the eternal. Can a balance be struck? What chance do protestors have against the international conglomerate working to build the observatory? And what chance does western science have against the gods who call Mauna Kea home?
Friday, May 8, 2015 – Women In Power
A campaign called Women on the $20s is pushing to have Andrew Jackson removed from the twenty dollar bill and replaced by a notable woman. Among the potential replacements is Wilma Mankiller, the first female principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. Would you like to see Andrew Jackson replaced on the 20 dollar bill? Discussions about women in positions of power are not new, but may take another turn if Hilary Clinton is the Democratic nominee for president in 2016. Is the US ready for a female president? Why aren’t more women holding positions of power in the government or society in general?
Native America Calling is a national call-in program that invites guests and listeners to join a dialogue about current events, music, arts, entertainment and culture.
The program is hosted by Tara Gatewood (Isleta Pueblo) and airs live each weekday from 1-2 pm Eastern.
Join the conversation by calling 1-800-996-2848.