Good morning, NUNAverse:
On Friday, nearly two dozen Democrats urged the Indian Health Service (IHS) director to set up a support system for Native peoples experiencing trauma as revelations emerge from the Federal Indian Boarding School Truth Initiative, a first-of-its-kind formal review of the history of the U.S. government’s policy of taking Indigenous children away from their families and forcing them into boarding schools for assimilation. The initiative, which Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced in June, entails investigating past boarding school sites, the location of known and possible burial sites nearby where Indigenous children were brutalized and died, and the identities and tribal affiliations of children taken there.
A California man, wearing a bear suit of his own creation, has captured the attention of Navajo Nation residents as his cross-country walk to heighten awareness and raise money for five causes traverses tribal land. Bearsun, a Japanese anime-style teddy bear created by Jessy Larios, is using the character to spotlight various charities that center on mental health, autism, cancer, disabled communities, and the environment. Larios has worn the suit throughout his walk. So far, his walk from Los Angeles to New York City has generated donations but his presence in communities on the Navajo Nation has delighted tribal members and residents. They’ve taken to social media to follow his official accounts and to share their photos, videos, and encounters.
Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez, Vice President Myron Lizer, 24th Navajo Nation Council Speaker Seth Damon, and Chief Justice JoAnn B. Jayne honored and paid a tribute to all Navajo Code Talkers during the annual Navajo Code Talker Day, August 14. The virtual tribute also featured Navajo Code Talker Peter MacDonald, Sr., United States Marine Corps retired General James Mattis, and Miss Navajo Nation Shaandiin Parrish. During World War II, the Navajo Code Talkers answered the call to defend the United States of America using the impenetrable code based on the Navajo language that is widely acknowledged as a deciding factor in the war effort. On July 28, 1982, former U.S. President Ronald Reagan designated August 14th as “National Navajo Code Talkers Day.”
Firefighters and residents were scrambling to save hundreds of homes and entire towns as flames advanced across the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation in southeastern Montana. The U.S. Forest Service is operating in crisis mode and maxing out its support system by roughly 21,000 federal firefighters working on the ground, more than double the number of firefighters sent to contain forest fires at this time a year ago, and the agency is facing “critical resources limitations,” said Anthony Scardina, a deputy forester for the agency’s Pacific Southwest region.
Keep reading for a full news update.
Law:
‘Rights Of Nature’ Lawsuits Hit A Sweet Spot
Indian Country Today, Mary Annette Pember, August 15
Shortly after a groundbreaking lawsuit was filed in the White Earth Nation’s tribal court defending the rights of wild rice to fight the construction of Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline, the United Nations released its 6th Assessment on Climate Change. The UN report includes an entire chapter dedicated to the powerful role that Indigenous knowledge can play in global development of adaptation and mitigation strategies aimed at addressing climate change. According to the report, recognition of Indigenous rights, governance systems and laws are central to creating effective adaptation and sustainable development strategies that can save humanity from the impacts of climate change. In this first of three climate change reports, the working group focused primarily on physical science, providing evidence that a climate crisis caused mostly by human activities is upon us.
Boarding Schools:
Dems Urge Feds To Provide Trauma Support Amid Native American Boarding School Project
HuffPost, Jennifer Bendery, August 15
Nearly two dozen Democrats on Friday urged the Indian Health Service director to set up a support system for Native Americans experiencing trauma as revelations emerge from the Federal Indian Boarding School Truth Initiative, a first-of-its-kind formal review of the history of the U.S. government’s policy of taking Indigenous children away from their families and forcing them into boarding schools for assimilation into white culture. The initiative, which Interior Secretary Deb Haaland announced in June, entails investigating past boarding school sites, the location of known and possible burial sites nearby where Indigenous children were brutalized and died, and the identities and tribal affiliations of children taken there. The effort also serves as a starting point for raising public awareness of the former government policy, which most Americans never learned about in school.
COVID-19:
Social Media Influencers Working To Boost Vaccine Rates
AP News, James Anderson, August 14
Dozens of influencers, ranging from busy moms and fashion bloggers to African refugee advocates and religious leaders, are getting paid by the state of Colorado to post vaccine information on a local level in hopes of stunting a troubling summer surge of COVID-19. Colorado’s #PowertheComeback target audience is especially tailored to Latino, Black, Native American, Asian and other communities of color that historically have been underserved when it comes to health care and are the focus of agencies trying to raise vaccination rates. It’s part of a growing U.S. state- and city-based movement using local social media influencers to reach the most vaccine-hesitant at a neighborhood level. Health authorities in Chicago, Oklahoma City, San Jose, California, New Jersey and elsewhere are running similar campaigns.
Other:
Navajo Nation Leaders Pay Tribute To Diné Warriors On Navajo Code Talker Day (August 14)
Native News Online, August 15
Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez, Vice President Myron Lizer, 24th Navajo Nation Council Speaker Seth Damon and Chief Justice JoAnn B. Jayne honored and paid tribute to all Navajo Code Talkers during a live Navajo Code Talker Day, August 14, virtual tribute on Saturday. The virtual tribute also featured Navajo Code Talker Peter MacDonald, Sr., United States Marine Corps retired General James Mattis, and Miss Navajo Nation Shaandiin Parrish. Due to COVID-19 risks, the annual event was held virtually. During World War II, the Navajo Code Talkers answered the call to defend the United States of America using the impenetrable code based on the Navajo language that is widely acknowledged as a deciding factor in the war effort. On July 28, 1982, former U.S. President Ronald Reagan designated August 14th as “National Navajo Code Talkers Day.”
Who Is Bearsun?
AP News, Noel Lyn Smith, August 14
A California man, wearing a bear suit of his own creation, has captured the attention of Navajo Nation residents as his cross-country walk to heighten awareness and raise money for five causes traverses tribal land. Meet Bearsun, a Japanese anime-style teddy bear created by Jessy Larios, who is using the character to spotlight various charities that center on mental health, autism, cancer, disabled community and the environment. Bearsun is tan with a cream-colored belly, red cheeks and rounded tail, ears and arms. Larios, 33, has worn the suit throughout his walk. So far, his walk from Los Angeles to New York City has generated donations but his presence in communities on the Navajo Nation has delighted tribal members and residents. They’ve taken to social media to follow his official accounts and to share their photos, videos and encounters.
Fish Flown In After Yukon Salmon Plummet
Indian Country Today, Joaqlin Estus, August 13
Yukon River chum salmon, which make up 70 percent of the subsistence harvest in the region, didn’t turn up this year. Neighbors are helping out but people worry about hunger in the coming winter. It’s as if emergency food supplies had to be delivered — beef to Oklahoma, wheat to North Dakota, or apples to Washington state — due to a sudden plunge in harvest levels after thousands of years of plenty. And no one knows why the crops or animal populations failed. A report by Catherine Moncrieff describes the importance of the annual return of salmon to subsistence, the harvesting and sharing of food that’s at the heart of Alaska Native cultures. For thousands of years, the Athabascan, Yup’ik, and Inupiaq people living on the Yukon and its tributaries have depended on salmon as a reliable source of healthy, nutritious food.
Potawatomi Celebrate Their Culture In West Michigan Art Community
Native News Online, Levi Rickert, August 15
American Indian drumming could be heard a couple of blocks away from the Saugatuck-Douglas History Center on a beautiful West Michigan summer Saturday afternoon in the small village of Douglas, Mich., an art community located 40 miles southwest of Grand Rapids. The Iron Bear drum was on hand for the “Creative Spark – Celebration of the Bodewadmi (Potawatomi) Tribe” program. Several dancers were also present to demonstrate their skills as traditional dancers before a mostly non-Native audience who came out Saturday to learn about the Potawatomi culture. Visitors to the event were able to purchase Indian tacos and fry bread. They also were able to see some Potawatomi artisans who were present to demonstrate their traditional art techniques.
Navajo Nation Mourns Passing Of Former Navajo Nation President Kelsey Begaye
Native News Online, August 15
The Navajo Nation is mourning the passing of former Navajo Nation President Kelsey Begaye, who passed away due to natural causes on Friday, Aug. 13 in Flagstaff, Ariz. He served as the president of the Navajo Nation from 1999-2003. Former President Begaye was 70. Prior to his public service, Begaye served in the Vietnam War as a member of the United States Army. He later became a substance abuse counselor, helping many young people to overcome drug and alcohol abuse. Navajo Nation President Nez and Vice President Lizer call for all flags on the Navajo Nation to be flown at half-staff. A proclamation will be issued once details of the service are finalized. Begaye was born on Jan. 7, 1951 in Kaibeto, Ariz. He was Tódich’ii’nii and born for Tł’ízí łání.
Program Empowers Native Students In Neuroscience Discovery
Native News Online, Margarita Bauzá, August 14
Indigenous communities in the U.S. experience a disproportionately higher burden of disease and lower life expectancy than most Americans. Studies cite higher poverty rates, challenging social conditions, mistrust in the delivery of health services and a history of exclusion from clinical research as factors that contribute to these disparities. At the University of Arizona Health Sciences, educators and researchers are working to change this legacy and decrease health disparities within Native American communities by introducing Native students to biomedical research. Over a 10-week long summer internship, two students from Diné College, a tribal college located on the Navajo Nation in northern Arizona, visited Tucson to take part in an annual neurosciences program aimed at changing not only the number of Native students in these laboratories, but also the work that happens in them.
Forest Service Maxed Out As Wildfires Break Across West
AP News, Eugene Garcia, August 13
The U.S. Forest Service said Friday it’s operating in crisis mode, fully deploying firefighters and maxing out its support system as wildfires continue to break out across the U.S. West, threatening thousands of homes and entire towns. Firefighters and residents were scrambling to save hundreds of homes as flames advance across the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation in southeastern Montana. The roughly 21,000 federal firefighters working on the ground is more than double the number of firefighters sent to contain forest fires at this time a year ago, and the agency is facing “critical resources limitations,” said Anthony Scardina, a deputy forester for the agency’s Pacific Southwest region.