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- By Levi Rickert
At the start of the year, I predicted it would be a roller-coaster ride, and 2024 certainly lived up to that expectation. Covering Indian Country touches so many areas from current events, arts & entertainment, education. These five articles illustrate the versatility of stories we cover at Native News Online.
No. 1 - Navajo Nation President Objects to NASA Sending Cremated Human Remains to the Moon
The moon has long been revered by Indigenous people. (Photo/University of Nebraska-Lincoln)
This article was actually published on December 31, 2023. Regadless, it was a nice jump start to 2024 and was the most read article of the year on Native News Online.
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The moon has long been revered by many Native American tribes. So, when Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren discovered that NASA is planning to launch a rocket headed to the moon in early January 2024 with cremated human remains to be placed there, he sent a letter to NASA and the U.S. Department of Transportation asking to delay the launch.
“It is crucial to emphasize that the moon holds a sacred position in many Indigenous cultures, including ours,” President Nygren wrote. “We view it as a part of our spiritual heritage, an object of reverence and respect. The act of depositing human remains and other materials, which could be perceived as discards in any other location, on the Moon is tantamount to desecration of this sacred space.”
No. 2. Montana GOP Candidate Tim Sheehy Caught on Audio Talking About “Drunk Indians at 8 a.m.”
Tim Sheehy speaking at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee in July. (Photo/PBS screenshot)
I recieved an email and a phone call from a Blackfeet friend who told me about the Repubbican senatorial candidate who was caught on tape saying disparatging thiings about members of the Crow tribe who are drunk at 8 a.m. When we published the story, it had not broken in the mainstream media. The candidate, Tim Sheehy, was running against the three-term Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT). Tester, who while serving in the Senate, proved himself to be a staunch supporter of Indian Country.
Sheehy has a pattern of speaking about the Crow, according to Char-Koosta. At other events, Sheehy mimicked Crow tribal members calling him “white boy” and throwing Coors beer cans at his head when he misses a double-heel shot at their rodeo.
On November 5, 2024, Sheehy defeated Tester. It will take Native Journalism to monitor how Sheehy handles Indian affairs as a senator representing Montana, a state with several tribes.
No. 3. When Trump Said, “They Don’t Look Like Indians to Me”
Melanie Benjamin, the six-time elected chief executive officer of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, made the keynote address at the Indian Gaming Association 2024 Tradeshow and Convention in Anaheim.
Benjamin said gaming is always under threat, and tribal leaders should not think otherwise. She pointed out in the United States anytime non-Natives see Native Americans with something of value, they try to figure out a way to get it. She said that the Supreme Court may some day deem tribes part of a racial group and eliminate tribal sovereignty.
To drive home her point about threats to gaming, Benjamin showed a clip from a U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources hearing from 1993 where Donald Trump was the key witness.
That day Trump expressed his opposition to Indian gaming. He was then simply a younger version of the insulting persona of the man he is today. Most of his testimony focused on Indian gaming and his opinion that the 1988 Indian Regulatory Act had given the tribes an unfair advantage over his two own gaming enterprises that he soon thereafter sent into bankruptcy.
During the testimony, Trump had a fiery exchange with the committee’s chairman, George Miller (D-CA).
Chairman Miller: Is this you discussing Indian blood: “We are going to judge people by whether they have Indian blood,” whether they are qualified to run a gaming casino or not?
Trump: That probably is me, absolutely, because I’ll tell you what, if you look—if you look at some of the reservations that you have approved—you, sir, in your great wisdom, have approved— will tell you right now, they don’t look like Indians to me, and they don’t look like Indians. Now maybe we say politically correct or not politically correct. They don’t look like Indians to me, and they don’t look like Indians to Indians, and a lot of people are laughing at it, and you are telling how tough it is, how rough it is, to get approved. Well, you go up to Connecticut, and you look. Now, they don’t look like Indians to me, sir.
No. 4. Cole Bring Plenty’s Tragic Death is Part the Epidemic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons
Triston Haper's soulful rendition of “Cover Me Up” by Jason Isbell captivated both judges and audiences, earning him praise and admiration from the judges’ panel. (photo/YouTube screenshot)
On Easter evening, I first noticed a post on Facebook telling the public that Cole Brings Plenty was missing. The following day, on Monday, the story broke that his family reported him missing to local law enforcement in Lawrence, Kansas.
During the week, Native News Online published several stories about the missing Lakota citizen and actor.
On Tuesday, one day after his family reported him missing to the Lawrence Police, that agency issued a statement posted on its Facebook page it had "submitted an affidavit to the District Attorney for the arrest of Cole after an incident Sunday morning at an apartment in Lawrence."
According to the post, Lawrence Police officers responded to calls of a female screaming for help, noting that the suspect fled before police arrived. It is unclear how police identified Cole as the suspect.
By Friday we learned Cole’s body was discovered in some woods near where the vehicle he was last seen driving was discovered.
Combined the articles, Native News Online published during the week made the overall story as the top story of the year.
No. 5. Triston Harper, 15, from MOWA Band of Choctaw, Wows on American Idol
On “American Idol” last month, 15-year-old Triston Harper from Macintosh, Ala., showcased his immense musical talent and highlighted his Indigenous heritage as a proud member of the MOWA Band of Choctaw Indians.
Harper said in an interview on the show that he faced tough times from a young age. When he was 12, his mother left an abusive relationship, leaving them homeless. But even through these hard times, he found comfort and courage in music. It became his guiding light, helping him navigate life’s challenges.
His soulful rendition of “Cover Me Up” by Jason Isbell captivated both judges and audiences, earning him praise and admiration from the judges’ panel.
Pop singer Katy Perry was deeply moved by Harper’s performance. She expressed,“You were so authentic, so connected to yourself, singing from your soul. It wasn’t perfect, but it resonated with me. It was really good.”
Country music superstar Luke Bryan acknowledged some technical issues in Harper’s performance but couldn’t overlook his potential. He remarked, “Anything that you’re doing technically-wise is because you’re fifteen. I could have an afternoon with you and say ‘Don’t do that anymore!’ Just like ‘Don’t do those two things,’ and man.”
And Lionel Richie, an icon in the music industry renowned for his ability to recognize genuine talent, was quick to commend Harper’s emotional delivery, stating, “I’m impressed.”
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