Program 208

George Catlin Stu-mick-o-súcks, Buffalo Bull's Back Fat, Head Chief, Blood Tribe, 1832 Blackfoot/Kainai Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr http://catlinclassroom.si.edu/catlin

The Blackfeet

with Arlie Neskahi

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From the journal of William Clark::
Meriwether Lewis, July 26th, 1806. I had scarcely ascended the hills before I discovered to my left at a distance of a mile an assemblage of about 30 horses. I halted and used my spyglass by the help of which I discovered several Indians on the top of an eminence just above them… This was a very unpleasant sight, however I resolved to make the best of our situation and to approach them in a friendly manner. Read more »

Holy Family Mission. Browning, Montana. Courtesy of the Browning Montana Home Site. www.browningmontana.com Photo by Colleen M. Barcus, Webmaster for town of Browning, Montana. www.colleenscomputercorner.com

Cynthia Kipp

with Brian Bull

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Arlie Neskahi:
What happens when religions collide? Often, as we hear in the news, the spiritual fabric that is created to unite people, can lead to divisions and intolerance. But, as Brian Bull shows in today’s in today’s Elder Wisdom, the survival of a tribal religion hinges on the enduring beliefs of its followers. Read more »

Judy Bluehorse Skelton

Dealing With Diabetes

with Judy Bluehorse Skelton

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Arlie Neskahi:
Arlie Neskahi: Native people have had a long tradition of remarkably good health. Our native ancestors were lean and robust, with well-developed bodies, dense bones, sound teeth, and they were free from the degenerative diseases found in Europe at that time. In the century that followed Lewis and Clark Expedition, Native people would be introduced to alcohol and foods that compromised their health.

In today’s Sacred Landscape, Judy Bluehorse Skelton talks about the diabetes epidemic in Indian country and what the Blackfeet nation is doing to restore healthy lives. Read more »

Nico Wind

The Hand Game

with Nico Wind

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Music:
Hand Game Songs
Thomas Big Spring and Floyd Heavy Runner
No publisher listed

Arlie Neskahi:
In Native communities across the west, from Oklahoma to British Columbia, people play an old game. No one knows how old it is, but some say it was played when people could still talk to the animals. It’s called the stick game, bone game, or hand game, depending on where you are. It’s a game of chance, concentration, and power, and it’s played to the steady rhythm of a drum. Read more »

The Black Lodge Singers at the JazzFest in New Orleans, Louisiana. 2001. Photo courtesy of STL Blues Reviews. www.stlblues.net

The Black Lodge Singers

with Milt Lee

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Arlie Neskahi :
One of the best known drum groups on the Powwow circuit today is the Black Lodge singers. These Grammy-nominated singers are led by Kenny Scabby Robe of the Blackfeet nation. Their mother Louise is a Yakima native, and they live in White Swan, Washington. It was their idea to introduce a new style of Powwow music – songs for kids. Not the traditional kids songs about grasshoppers and prairie dogs, but songs about Mickey Mouse, Mighty Mouse, and other cartoon characters. Milt Lee caught up with Black Lodge in Rapid City, South Dakota. Read more »

Curly Bear Wagner. Photo courtesy of Going-to-the-Sun

Curly Bear Wagner

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Arlie Neskahi:
Ever wonder why bears hibernate, or why the prairie chicken has spots? Curly Bear Wagner has answers in this week’s Turtle Island Storytellers segment. Read more »