American Indian Airwaves Podcast

American Indian Airwaves

American Indian Airwaves
American Indian Airwaves (AIA), an Indigenous public affairs radio porgram and, perhaps, the longest running Native American radio program within both Indigenous and the United States broadcast communication histories. Also, AIA broadcast weekly every Thursday from 7pm to 8pm (PCT) on KPFK FM 90.7 Los Angeles (http://www.kpfk.org). Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aiacr American Indian Airwaves is produced in Burntswamp Studios and started broadcasting on March 1st, 1973 on KPFK in order to give Indigenous peoples and their respective First Nations a voice about the continuous struggles against Settler Colonialism and imperialism by the occupying and settler societies often referred to as the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the Latin and South America countries located therein. American Indian Airwaves operates as an all-volunteer collective with no corporate sponsorship and no underwriters.
U.S. Policy Mismanagement in Denying the Lives of the Buffalo Relations
Once numbering at least 40-60 million, settler colonial men once hunted the buffalo through the train windows for sport – who had the most kills. By 1890, however, there were less than 1,000 buffalo with only 23 surviving in Yellowstone’s Pelican Valley. Today, in Yellowstone National Park, the buffalo are trapped for slaughter and quarantine. In fact, once migrating into Montana, the buffalo are under the control of the Department of Livestock instead of Yellowstone Park National Service. When trapped, the buffalo are often tested for Brucellosis – the disease given to them by cattle. In Gardiner, MT, a group of 28 buffalo migrating into Gardiner Basin were recently trapped by Yellowstone National Park at Stephens Creek near Gardiner, Montana. The group was the first buffalo to migrate into the basin this season. Another group of 49 buffalo migrated beyond Yellowstone National Park’s trap and the remaining buffalo retreated from the National Forest to Yellowstone National Park. Today on American Indian Airwaves, our guest provides in-depth updates on the U.S. National Park Services failed Bison Management program and the Yellowstone National Park continued operations causing the depopulation of the last remaining original genetically pure buffalo herds (~9,000), the failed Endangered Species Act, how the climate crises is impacting the ecosystems throughout the region and the buffalo relations, as well as how the U.S. government’s divide and conquer strategy in creating buffalo policies simultaneous benefits larger Native American nations buffalo management programs from far way compared to local and smaller Native American nations near the Yellowstone Nation Park regions. Moreover, our guest highlights the cultural importance of the buffalo relations for Native American lifeways and what is threatening the cultural sustainability for future Native America nations. Guest: • James Holt Sr. (Nimiipuu Nation), Executive Director of the Buffalo Field Campaign (BFC), and the board member for International Wildlife Coexistance Network Archived programs can be heard on Soundcloud at: https://soundcloud.com/burntswamp
Mar 28, 2024
58 min
The Lahaina Fires, Toxic Waste Removal & Pollution in Olowahu, and Defending Sacred Sites
In a coordinated effort between several federal and local government agencies and private contractors, more than 400,000 tons of toxic and hazards waste are planning to be removed from Lahaina and transported to the temporary debris storage site in Olowalu. The toxic and hazardous waste includes high levels of household waste, asbestos, arsenic, lead, and other toxins. Meanwhile an emergency declaration remains active which allows for side-setting and ignoring various federal, state, city laws and ordinances as part of toxic and hazardous waste removal efforts and any future development to rebuild Lahaina. Excluded or marginalized from the any of the actions, from waste removal and storage which would desecrate sacred sites, to the planned development, which will recolonize Lahaina, are some of the lineal descendants and other Kanaka maoli working to defend and stop the harm to Mother Earth in the Hawaiian Nation. Guests: • Ka’io Martin Cruz and John Cruz, creators and organizers of the People’s Community Council of Maui. Archived programs can be heard on Soundcloud at: https://soundcloud.com/burntswamp
Mar 14, 2024
57 min
From Here to There, Past & Present: Settler Colonialism Against Native American Nations & Palestine
How does history relate to the present? What is settler colonialism? How are the two related to each other and what is the connection between the past to the present? What is Zionism? What is the Doctrine of Discovery/Dominion? Moreover, how does this relate to Indigenous peoples across Turtle Island? What are the parallels between the legacy of settler colonialism in what is presently the United States to the history of what is known as Palestine? With the continued escalation of settler colonial violence and genocides being perpetrated by the Israeli government against the Palestinian peoples in Gaza and the West Bank, we ask these questions including what is the history and birth of Zionism as a settler colonial project and what are stark similarities to the Doctrine of Discovery/Dominion as the basis for the birthing of the United States settler colonial project in dispossessing Native American Nations of their traditional homelands. Listen to an in-depth interview about the settler colonial equivalents between here and there, past and present, across of all Mother Earth. Guest: Dr. Rashid Ismail Khalidi is the Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies in the History Department at Columbia University and is the editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies. In addition, he was President of the Middle East Studies Association, and an advisor to the Palestinian delegation to the Madrid and Washington Arab-Israeli peace negotiations from October 1991 until June 1993. He is the author of over ten publications, including his most recent book: The Hundred Years' War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917- 2017 (2020). Archived programs can be heard on Soundcloud at: https://soundcloud.com/burntswamp American Indian Airwaves streams on over ten podcasting platforms such as Amazon Music, Apple Podcast, Audible, Backtracks.fm, Gaana, Google Podcast, Fyyd, iHeart Media, Mixcloud, Player.fm, Podbay.fm, Podcast Republic, SoundCloud, Spotify, Tunein, YouTube, and more.
Feb 15, 2024
58 min
Defiling Mother Earth: Stopping the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP)
Thursday, 01/25/2024, on American Indian Airwaves “Defiling Mother Earth: Stopping the Mountain Valley Pipeline” Today on American Indian Airwaves listeners will hear an update the $6.6 billion Mountain Valley Pipeline construction struggles and how the Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC, a joint venture of several companies operating in the extractive industries, could desecrate Native American sacred and cultural sites with the planned construction of the Southgate portion of the Mountain Valley Pipeline into what is called the state of North Carolina. Meanwhile, listeners will be informed about the how the Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC. is presenting suing over 40 land defenders, and two organizations (Appalachians Against Pipelines and Rising Tide North America) with Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (S.L.A.P.P.) lawsuits. SLAPP lawsuits are often instigated by wealthy corporations and sometimes the state. It is powerful legal tactic used to silence and censor Native Americans, U.S. citizens, grassroots peoples, activists, and even organizations. SLAPP lawsuits result in violating peoples U.S. Constitutionally protected Free Speech rights and their right to assemble while the lawsuits move through the court system. Moreover, SLAPP lawsuits are financially expensive for Native Americans, U.S. citizens, activist, land defenders, water protectors, and grassroots and non-profit organizations, that result is systemic financial harms. The Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC is a joint venture of Equitrans Midstream, NextEra Energy Resources, Consolidated Edison, and RGC Resources, and other companies. The pipeline is six years behind schedule, about half a billion dollars over budget, and, despite promises that it would be done by the end of last year, delayed once again. The remaining construction is over rugged terrain, with hundreds of water crossings left to bridge. The pipeline runs through the states of West Virgina, south Virgina, and possibly into North Carolina, including through and adjacent to mostly Native American communities, POC neighborhoods, and poorer white communities. Beside the land and water damages, if the pipeline is fully constructed, the long-term, irreversible danger is releasing 90 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere from producing, transporting, and burning all that methane over the 40 to 50 years the pipeline’s life expectancy. Tune in to hear more about the struggle over the Mountain Valley Pipeline, the U.S Congress political back deals and the U.S. Supreme Court’s complicity in sanctioning the original pipeline route’s contrition, and what listeners can do to defend the sacred. Guest: Dr. Crystal Cavalier-Keck, member of the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation, co-founder of Seven Directions of Service, and chair of the NAACP Environmental Justice Committee. Archived programs can be heard on Soundcloud at: https://soundcloud.com/burntswamp American Indian Airwaves streams on over ten podcasting platforms such as Amazon Music, Apple Podcast, Audible, Backtracks.fm, Gaana, Google Podcast, Fyyd, iHeart Media, Mixcloud, Player.fm, Podbay.fm, Podcast Republic, SoundCloud, Spotify, Tunein, YouTube, and more.
Jan 25, 2024
58 min
The EZLN 30th Anniversary Gathering: Resistance, Reflections, and Growth in Chiapas
Today on American Indian Airwaves, we will hear highlights on what happened at the 30th Anniversary of the Beginning of the War Against Oblivion, the armed uprising of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) on January 1st, 1994, against the colonial state of Mexico and global capitalism. The anniversary-gathering was organized by thousands of Zapatista support bases, Mayan men, women, boys, girls, elderly and older men and women who celebrated three decades of resistance to the capitalist, settler colonial system with cultural sports, arts, music, food, popular dance, and other forms of living cultural expressions. The Mayan peoples’ traditional homelands were recovered after the armed uprising of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) in 1994 and are concrete evidence of how Zapatismo in Chiapas has improved the living conditions of the communities based on organization, autonomy, and self-determination. Tune in and listen to hear about the EZLN’s major announcements reflecting major changes in self-determination, autonomy, and independence in anti-colonial and anti-capitalism struggles. In addition, listeners will hear about the legacy of Indigenous women, their roles, contributions over the past four generations changing oppressive systems of heteronormative cis-gendered patriarchy. Also, well hear updates on the globalized and militarized Cartels and major megaprojects that threaten the Mayan peoples’ traditional homelands and all life systems in Chiapas, MX. All that and more. Guest: • Richard Stahler-Sholk, a retired Professor of Political Science at Eastern Michigan University, and community activist involved with the School of Chiapas which is an organization of grassroots activists and communities working to support the autonomous, indigenous Zapatista communities of Chiapas, Mexico. Schools for Chiapas was created the mid-1990’s by individuals searching for ways to make the world a better place and working to create a world where all worlds fit. Archived programs can be heard on Soundcloud at: https://soundcloud.com/burntswamp American Indian Airwaves streams on over ten podcasting platforms such as Amazon Music, Apple Podcast, Audible, Backtracks.fm, Gaana, Google Podcast, Fyyd, iHeart Media, Mixcloud, Player.fm, Podbay.fm, Podcast Republic, SoundCloud, Spotify, Tunein, YouTube, and more.
Jan 11, 2024
58 min
Defender of the Sacred: Memorial, Remembrance, and Respect for Dine’ Klee Benally
Diné ‘defender of the sacred, artist, activist, musician, author, land defender, Warrior,’ Klee Benally Walks On or transitioned on the morning of December 31, 2023. He was 48 years old and from what the place of many houses in what is known as Flagstaff, AZ. He was from the Tódích’íi’nii (Bitter Water People clan and born for the Wandering People clan). Klee Benally was a long-time advocate in combating violent forms of colonialism such as speaking out on ending Native American homelessness, combating systemic police violence, the clean up of thousands of abandon uranium mines as part of a much larger settler legacy of nuclear colonialism in which Native American nations have been and continue be on the front-lines including the Dine’ or Navajo nation. He also tirelessly fought against all forms of Indigenous cultural appropriation, worked to defend the "San Francisco Peaks," actively was involved with Indigenous Action (https://www.indigenousaction.org/), and supported Indigenous peoples across Turtle Island. He is a loving and caring person centered in defending the sacred and is the creator’s gift to the many of us he touched. Today on American Indian Airwaves, we will hear selected songs from the various musical projects he was involved with, helped create, and contributed over the years. Like his musical lyrics and life works focusing on Native American liberation, dismantling colonialism, and expressing stories of struggles and survivance, he is the creator of a newly released game called 'Burn the Fort' (https://burnthefort.com/). The game is a semi-cooperative game where each player takes the role of a historic warrior fighting to stop colonial invasion of their lands in acts of fierce anti-colonial resistance. 'Burn the Fort' was released in late December of 2023. He was also busy writing, mostly during the COVID pandemic, which continues, and authored a brand-new book released on Detritus Books called 'No Spiritual Surrender: Indigenous Anarchy in Defense of the Sacred', which was released on 11/18/2023 (https://detritusbooks.com/products/no-spiritual-surrender-indigenous-anarchy-in-defense-of-the-sacred). The book is a searing anti-colonial analysis rooted in frontline experiences and a living testimony of Benally’s life experiences in defending the sacred in anti-colonial struggles. Song List Appropriation, Song: “Fire to the Cages”. Album: Appropriation (2021). Klee Benally, Song: “Weather Changes”. Album: Respect Resistance or Expect Resistance (2013). Klee Benally, Song: “Holding Up the Sky”. Album: The Unsustainable Sessions (2019). Blackfire, Song: “Mean Things Happenin’ in this World”. Album: The Woodie Guthrie Sessions (2003). Appropriation, Song: “Toward’s Peabody’s Demise”. Album: Appropriation (2021). Klee Benally, Song: “She was a Mountain”. Album: The Unsustainable Sessions (2019). Klee Benally, Song: “One Brutal Violent Machine”. Album: Respect Resistance or Expect Resistance (2013). Blackfire, Song: “Silence is a Weapon”. Album: Silence is a Weapon (2007). Appropriation, Song: “Our Autonomy”. Album: Appropriation (2021). Klee Benally, Song: “At the Edge of the World”. Album: Respect Resistance or Expect Resistance (2013). Blackfire, Song: “NDN Alien”. Album: Silence is a Weapon (2007). Appropriation, Song: “Nothing for Ourselves Feat. Sage Bond”. Album: Appropriation (2021). Blackfire, Song: “The Power Is Out”. Album: Silence is a Weapon (2007). Klee Benally, Song: “Hands on a Barbed Wire”. Album: The Unsustainable Sessions (2019). Klee Benally, Song: “A Matter of Action”. Album: Respect Resistance or Expect Resistance (2013). Archived programs can be heard on Soundcloud at: https://soundcloud.com/burntswamp American Indian Airwaves streams on over ten podcasting platforms such as Amazon Music, Apple Podcast, Audible, Backtracks.fm, Gaana, Google Podcast, Fyyd, iHeart Media, Mixcloud, Player.fm, Podbay.fm, Podcast Republic, SoundCloud, Spotify, Tunein, YouTube, and more.
Jan 4, 2024
57 min
Wounded Knee, 133 Years: Spirit, Resistance, and Remembrance
December 29th of every year marks another anniversary of the Wound Knee Massacre of 1890 and the Occupation of Wounded Knee occurred from 02/27/1973 to 05/08/1973. The Wounded Knee Massacre of 1890 is the result of the United States (U.S.) 7th Calvary stopped Miniconjou and Lakota Ghost Dancers and community members from returning home to Pine Ridge in what is now known as South Dakota. The Would Knee Massacre took place near the Wounded Knee Creek during a time when the United States government essentially banned all Native American traditions and ceremonies. Shortly thereafter the initial encounter, a scuffle ensued which resulted in the U.S. 7th Calvary open firing and killing over 300 Indigenous women, children, and men. The Occupation of Wounded Knee from 02/27/1973 to 05/08/1973 is the outcome of over 200 members of the American Indian Movement and supporters occupying Wounded Knee (Lakota Nation) in response to a call to action from traditional Lakota residents whose civil, human, and treaty rights were constantly being violated by corrupt Indigenous and United States government officials. The Wound Knee Occupation resulted in a 67-day military standoff with U.S. government officials and quickly drew international and domestic support from people, organizations, and foreign governments throughout the world. Today’s show on American Indian Airwaves is comprised of sound from two principal sources: The Pacifica Radio archives and the documentary A Tattoo on My Heart: The Warriors of Wounded Knee 1973. The Pacifica Radio Archives include original reports from Pacifica’s-affiliate station, KPFA in Berkeley, CA which covered live the 1973 Wounded Knee occupation. In addition, sound from the documentary A Tattoo on My Heart: The Warriors of Wounded Knee 1973 includes reflective testimonies of the Wound Knee Indigenous activist such as Lenny Foster, Bill Means, Madonna Thunderhawk, and narrated by the late Floyd “Red Crow” Westerman, plus more. American Indian Airwaves regularly broadcast every Thursday from 7pm to 8pm (PCT) on KPFK FM 90.7 in Los Angeles, CA; FM 98.7 in Santa Barbara, CA; FM 99.5 in China Lake, CA; FM 93.7 in North San Diego, CA; FM 99.1 KLBP in Long Beach, CA (Tuesdays 11am-12pm); and on the Internet at: www.kpfk.org. Archived programs can be heard on Soundcloud at: https://soundcloud.com/burntswamp American Indian Airwaves streams on over ten podcasting platforms such as Amazon Music, Apple Podcast, Audible, Backtracks.fm, Gaana, Google Podcast, Fyyd, iHeart Media, Player.fm, Podbay.fm, Podcast Republic, SoundCloud, Spotify, Stitcher, Tunein, YouTube, and more.
Dec 29, 2023
58 min
Indigenous Musicians Across Turtle Island: New Music, Acknowledgements, and Accomplishments
So far, 2023 has been a remarkable year for Indigenous musicians across Turtle Island. Many Native Americans bands, First Nation’s musicians, and Indigenous peoples from the Siberian region have released new music over the past several months, and two different First Nations bands from Australia were recognized at the 19th National Indigenous Music Awards on August 12th, 2023 – one band inducted into the Hall of Fame for decades-long contributions to music, and the other band for the Archie Roach Foundation Award. Today on American Indian Airwaves, we hear music from Native American and Indigenous musicians that have either released new songs and albums over the past several months and/or have won awards for their acknowledgements and contributions towards Indigenous music across Turtle Island. Song List: Track 1: Artist: Eekwol, Song: “Settle Down” (2023), Single. (Lindsay Knight) is an Indigenous hip-artist, scholar, and activist, from the Muskoday First Nation in Saskatchewan, Canada. Her first rap album was released in 1998. Track 2: Artist: Mato Wayuhi, Song” BOOGEY BOY feat. Niandra Blonde” (2023). Oglala Lakota, accomplished musician and known for scoring the music for the Indigenous program Reservation Dogs (2021-2023). https://matowayuhi.net/ Track 3: Artist: Raye Zaragoza, Song: ”Hold that Spirit”. Album Hold that Spirit (2023). https://www.rayezaragoza.com/ Track 4: Artist: Andrian Sutherland, Song: “Notawe (Father)” (2023). Exclusive single premiere from the forthcoming album. Omushkegowuk Cree Nation: artist and song. https://adriansutherlandmusic.com/ Track 5: Artist: Yothu Yindi, Song: “Treaty” (1991/2012). Albums: Tribal Voice (1991)/One Blood (2012). Yothu Yindi performed and inducted into the Hall of Fame at the 19th National Indigenous Music Awards on 8/12/2023 in Australia. https://www.yothuyindi.com.au/ Track 6: Artist: Wildfire Manwurrk, Song: “Lonely Bangardi” (2022). Wildfire Manwurrk won the Archie Roach Foundation Award at the 19th National Indigenous Music Awards on 8/12/2023 in Australia. Track 7: Artist: Otyken, Song: “Genesis”. Album: Phenomenon (2023). Otyken is an Indigenous music group from the Siberian region that combines traditional and contemporary musical styles including lyrics and languages. 'Otyken' is a Chulym word for sacred land. https://otyken.ru/?lang=en Track 8: Artist: The Pretendians, Song: “The 38”. Album: Stories From the Fire (2023). Native American rock band from that calls Northeast Minneapolis, Minnesota home. Most bands, however, represent the Oceti Ŝakowiŋ (7 Council Fires) of the Dakhota/Lakhota Nation, hailing from Standing Rock, Rosebud, and Crow Creek tribes. https://www.pretendiansband.com/ Track 9: Artist: Blue Mountain Tribe, Song: “Sacred Flowers”. (Single, 2023). https://bluemountaintribe.com/ Track 10: Artist: Julian Taylor, Song: “Stolen Lands”. (Single, 2023). https://juliantaylormusic.ca Track 11: Artist: Joe Rainey, Song: ““No Chants”. Album: Niineta (Just Me)” (2022). https://www.roughtrade.com/en-us/product/joe-rainey/niineta-1 Track 12: Artist: Eekwol feat. Ila Barker & Boogey the Beat, Song: “Beauty”. Album: TMRWS (2023). Track 13: Artist: Robbie Robertson, Song: “Walk the Beauty Way”. Album: Sinematic (2019). Cayuga/Mohawk Nations. In acknowledgement of his transition on 8/9/2023. Archived programs can be heard on Soundcloud at: https://soundcloud.com/burntswamp American Indian Airwaves streams on over ten podcasting platforms such as Amazon Music, Apple Podcast, Audible, Backtracks.fm, Gaana, Google Podcast, Fyyd, iHeart Media, Mixcloud, Player.fm, Podbay.fm, Podcast Republic, SoundCloud, Spotify, Tunein, YouTube, and more.
Dec 14, 2023
58 min
National Day of Mourning 2023 Highlights
Since 1970, Indigenous people & their allies annually gather on Cole's Hill in Plymouth, MA to commemorate a National Day of Mourning on the US Thanksgiving holiday. Many Native American peoples do not celebrate the arrival of the Pilgrims & other European settlers. In fact, the settler colonial Thanksgiving Day is a reminder of the genocide of millions of Native American peoples, the theft of Indigenous traditional homelands, and the erasure of Native American cultures. Participants in the annual National Day of Mourning honor Indigenous peoples’ ancestors, Native American resilience and resistance, and our vitality and adaptability for survival. It is also a day of remembrance and spiritual connection, as well as a protest against violent forms of settler colonialism, racism, and oppression that Indigenous people continue to experience worldwide or across Mother Earth. Today, on American Indian Airwaves, we bring highlights from Indigenous peoples across Mother Earth who spoke at the 54th Annual National Day of Mourning, on November 23, 2023, at colonially what is known as: Cole's Hill (above Plymouth Rock), Plymouth, MA. The annual gathering is organized by the United American Indians of New England (UAINE), http://www.uaine.org/. For the full video and audio source, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wR4wLyUYFss
Nov 30, 2023
59 min
Indigenous Futures: Treaty & Water Rights Together in Protecting the Living Colorado River
With Lake Mead, Lake Powell, and the Colorado River decades-plus declining water levels with a one-year reprieve last year, and an ever-increasing demand for the water in the living Colorado River over the centuries by the states of California, Nevada, and Arizona, agricultural businesses and other commercial industries, Native American nations have historically been denied their fundamental treaty and human rights when it comes to the source of life: water. Over the century, the United States Supreme Court, certain U.S. Congressional members, and others complicitly engaged in the settler colonial legacy of violence not only against the 30 federally recognized Native American nations related to the living Colorado River, but all life that the “River” sustains since time immemorial. What happens to the living Colorado River between now and 2026 has yet to be determined. In late October of 2023 the U.S Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) released its draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) in which they are positioned to move forward with the CA, AZ, & NV states planning to give up about 13% of the water received from the Colorado River through the end of 2026. What comes next is a 45-day public comment period on the draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS), which is expected to be finalized in early 2024. At stake, however, are the treaty and water rights for 30 federally recognized Nation American nations connected to the living Colorado River which is also a major water supply for 40 million people, seven states, and 5.5 million acres of agriculture. Today on American Indian Airwaves we cover what all this means, particularly for the 30 Native American nations in general, but also, we explore and discuss the complexities of treaty and water rights in Federal Indian Law in relationship to the future of the living Colorado River. Our guest for the hour is an accomplished attorney who has worked with numerous Native American nations and governments for more two decades and he has developed extensive expertise in the area of federal Indian water law, worked on multiple Native American water rights settlements, and has represented clients in adjudications and other water-related proceedings in California, Montana, and Oregon. Guest: Jay Weiner, tribal water attorney for the Quechan Indian Nation (Kwatsáan) located along both sides of the Colorado River near Yuma, Arizona; and of counsel at Rosette, LLP; a majority owned Native American Law Firm. Archived programs can be heard on Soundcloud at: https://soundcloud.com/burntswamp American Indian Airwaves streams on over ten podcasting platforms such as Amazon Music, Apple Podcast, Audible, Backtracks.fm, Gaana, Google Podcast, Fyyd, iHeart Media, Mixcloud, Player.fm, Podbay.fm, Podcast Republic, SoundCloud, Spotify, Tunein, YouTube, and more.
Nov 9, 2023
58 min
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