- Details
- By Native News Online Staff
In the six-episode series titled “American Genocide,” Illuminative founder Crystal Echo Hawk (Pawnee) and Lashay Wesley (Choctaw) hit the ground on Pine Ridge in search of justice for the Native children who were abused and died at Red Cloud.
Red Cloud stopped boarding students in 1980 and today operates as a private Catholic school with more than 600 students from Pine Ridge attending. There has been no acknowledgment of the horrors committed by the institution during the Boarding School Era, a period between the late 1860s and the 1960s during which hundreds of thousands of Native American children were ripped from their homes and placed in government and church-run boarding schools the U.S. in an attempt to strip them of their Native culture and identity.
“We had no idea where this would end up when we first started — all we knew was that this story had to be told – and what we uncovered is far bigger than any of us could have imagined,” Echo Hawk toldVariety. “The United States government and Catholic Church blatantly committed genocide, and no one really knows about it outside of the Native community.”
“American Genocide” dives into the history of Red Cloud’s past and its perception today as a positive presence in the community.
Episodes will give listeners an embedded perspective through interviews with school administrators, local elders and survivors, young activists, and U.S. Department of the Interior Deb Haaland while examining Red Cloud’s search for mass graves on its campus, growing tension between the school and community youth activists, and if the Catholic Church will close the school and return the land to the Oglala Sioux people.
Listen to the trailer for ‘American Genocide’ at illuminative.org/americangenocidepodcast
More Stories Like This
Center for Native Futures Hosts Third Mound Summit on Contemporary Native ArtsFilmmakers Defend ‘You’re No Indian’ After Demand to Halt Screenings
A Native American Heritage Month Playlist You Can Listen to All Year Long
11 Native Actors You Should Know
Five Native American Films You Should Watch This Thanksgiving Weekend
Help us defend tribal sovereignty.
At Native News Online, our mission is rooted in telling the stories that strengthen sovereignty and uplift Indigenous voices — not just at year’s end, but every single day.
Because of your generosity last year, we were able to keep our reporters on the ground in tribal communities, at national gatherings and in the halls of Congress — covering the issues that matter most to Indian Country: sovereignty, culture, education, health and economic opportunity.
That support sustained us through a tough year in 2025. Now, as we look to the year ahead, we need your help right now to ensure warrior journalism remains strong — reporting that defends tribal sovereignty, amplifies Native truth, and holds power accountable.
The stakes couldn't be higher. Your support keeps Native voices heard, Native stories told and Native sovereignty defended.
Stand with Warrior Journalism today.
Levi Rickert (Potawatomi), Editor & Publisher
