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The Red Cloud Indian School is taking the lead among Christian-run schools in coming to terms with its assimilationist past. The Jesuits have given Red Cloud a $20,000 grant to help in the work, including conducting searches with ground-penetrating radar for unmarked graves, and have allocated $50,000 to hire an archivist for one year to examine the order’s boarding school history at its archives in St. Louis. School leaders are also working with tribal representatives about searching the school grounds on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota for remains of students who died there.
A “living history museum” based on the life of Dred Scott, digitization of books and manuscripts dispersed from the Philippines in the 18th century, a Cherokee translation effort, and an exhibit on the history of jazz and hip-hop in Queens, N.Y., are among 208 projects across the country that are receiving new grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The grants, which total $24.7 million, support individual scholarly projects and collaborative efforts, including initiatives and exhibitions at cultural institutions ranging from local history sites to behemoths like the Metropolitan Museum of Art. One is a $100,000 grant to Northeastern University in Boston, to support the translation of its Digital Archive of American Indian Languages Preservation and Perseverance, which gathers handwritten materials in the Cherokee syllabary, a writing system created in the early 19th century.
Native voters in Rapid City, South Dakota, will have a greater chance of electing a candidate who represents their interests in 2022. Lakota voting rights advocates say that’s due to their novel strategy used during last year’s mandatory legislative redistricting process. The strategy produced a new voting boundary map that notably groups the previously split Native “community of interest” in Rapid City. Voting rights advocates created a 23.9 percent Native voting-age district in a city that is about 17 percent Indigenous. That stems from the fact that Rapid City’s Native residential area is fairly “geographically compact” — a requisite to forming an electoral district. In addition, population growth in Rapid City required creating an extra legislative district. Local voting rights champions worked to harness the Native urban voting power.
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Boarding Schools:
Change Of Leadership At The Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition
Native News Online, Jenna Kunze, January 10
The group at the helm of the Indian Boarding School reckoning movement—the Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition (NABS)—announced new leadership last week. Christine Diindiisi McCleave (Turtle Mountain Ojibwe) left her role as Chief Executive Officer of six years to pursue a PhD in Indigenous Studies at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Deborah Parker (Tulalip Tribes) is the organization’s new CEO. Sam Torres (Mexica/Nahua), NABS’s former educational and programming lead, is now Deputy Chief Executive Officer. Parker comes to NABS with more than 20 years of work on reckoning with the history of boarding schools, including serving as the executive director of Residential School Healing in British Columbia, Canada, according to the agency’s press release. She also helped guide the passage of the Violence Against Women Act in 2013, and recently met with Interior Sectretary Deb Haaland to advocate for legislation that would create a congressional truth and healing commission on boarding schools in the United States.
Churches Starting To Face Facts On Boarding Schools
Indian Country Today, Mary Annette Pember, January 10
Red Cloud Indian School is taking the lead among Christian-run schools in coming to terms with its assimilationist past. The Jesuits have given Red Cloud a $20,000 grant to help in the work, including conducting searches with ground-penetrating radar for unmarked graves, and have allocated $50,000 to hire an archivist for one year to examine the order’s boarding school history at its archives in St. Louis. School leaders are also working with tribal representatives about searching the school grounds on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota for remains of students who died there. Churches are joining the U.S. federal government in facing the often-brutal history of Native boarding schools, which forced children from their families into schools where they were often abused, underfed and used as virtual slave labor. Some died there without ever going home.
Politics:
Native Redistricting Strategy Bolsters South Dakota Urban Vote
Indian Country Today, Talli Nauman, January 10
Native voters in Rapid City, S.D. will have a greater chance of electing a candidate who represents their interests in 2022. Lakota voting rights advocates say that’s due to their novel strategy used during last year’s mandatory legislative redistricting process. The strategy produced a new voting boundary map that notably groups the previously split Native “community of interest” in Rapid City. Voting rights advocates created a 23.9 percent Native voting-age district in a city that is about 17 percent Indigenous. The progress in Rapid City was exceptional for urban redistricting nationwide, Native American Rights Fund attorney Samantha Kelty told Buffalo’s Fire. That stems from the fact that Rapid City’s Native residential area is fairly “geographically compact” — a requisite to forming an electoral district. Most Native urban areas generally aren’t concentrated in a specific geographic area, Kelty said. In addition, population growth in Rapid City required creating an extra legislative district. Local voting rights champions worked to harness the Native urban voting power.
Health:
Navajo Nation: 79 New COVID-19 Cases, No Deaths For 3rd Day
AP News, January 10
The Navajo Nation on Monday reported 79 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, but no deaths for the third consecutive day. The latest numbers pushed the tribe’s totals since the pandemic began to 43,277 cases with 1,593 known deaths. Navajo Nation officials reported 270 cases and one death Friday, 220 cases Saturday and 242 cases Sunday. The figures released Monday included 18 delayed reported cases. Based on cases from Dec. 24-Jan. 6, the Navajo Department of Health issued an advisory for 61 communities due to the uncontrolled spread of COVID-19.
Other:
National Endowment For The Humanities Announces $24.7 Million In New Grants
The New York Times, Jennifer Schuessler, January 11
A “living history museum” based on the life of Dred Scott, digitization of books and manuscripts dispersed from the Philippines in the 18th century, a Cherokee translation effort, and an exhibit on the history of jazz and hip-hop in Queens, N.Y., are among 208 projects across the country that are receiving new grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The grants, which total $24.7 million, support individual scholarly projects and collaborative efforts, including initiatives and exhibitions at cultural institutions ranging from local history sites to behemoths like the Metropolitan Museum of Art. One is a $100,000 grant to Northeastern University in Boston, to support the translation of its Digital Archive of American Indian Languages Preservation and Perseverance, which gathers handwritten materials in the Cherokee syllabary, a writing system created in the early 19th century.
Pride Of Navajo Nation: Diné College Works To Rebuild Rodeo Program Amid The Pandemic
Cronkite News, Dylan Wilhelm, January 10
Far from the red rocks of Sedona and the bright lights of Phoenix sits a small college in the heart of the Navajo Nation. In Tsaile, Diné College has served as a higher education institution for the Navajo people for more than 50 years. A part of its identity is a rodeo program rooted in success and tradition. Since the COVID-19 pandemic struck, it has taken a major hit, but a top-ranked bull rider and a world champion coach are trying to return the school to its status as one of the premier programs on the college rodeo landscape. Livestock and rodeo events have long been a part of Navajo culture. As people grew up on ranches, they searched for ways to pass time. They created activities and events with the livestock they were around every day. Much like the rest of the world, Diné College came to a halt when the pandemic struck. Academics and sports were shut down entirely. A rodeo team that once featured over 30 athletes dwindled to just four.