This Week in Native American News (12/18/2020): Suicide Prevention, Homeless Shelters, and Traditional Celebrations
December 18, 2020
Good Works captain Teton Saltes gears strong voice toward Native American suicide prevention
The tribe's water scarcity is a bigger issue during the COVID-19 pandemic, when people have to wash their hands and sanitize more frequently.
New Mexico senior Teton Saltes takes a long pause when asked about the driving force behind his advocacy work in suicide prevention.
It's a tough question, but the 6-6, 332-pound senior tackle's answer starts with the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in the South Dakota Badlands before it winds into his personal mission.
"It's incredibly beautiful there," Saltes told Sporting News. "It's home, and I love it, but we have a lot of issues there that plague our community and our youth in particular."
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City considers proposed youth homeless center
The project is being spearheaded by the Zach Gordon Youth Center, which would operate the shelter program that would provide 24-hour, drop-in homeless shelter for youths. Under the proposed plan, the Tlingit and Haida Regional Housing Authority would maintain the property that would be leased from CBJ.
The property is the former site of Juneau Youth Services and already has many of the amenities needed to run a shelter, such as a commercial kitchen, said Gus Marx, who called in on behalf of the Juneau Coalition on Housing and Homelessness to express support for the project. There is currently no shelter for homeless youth, said Marx, who also works for Juneau Youth Services.
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Indigenous inmates, volunteers navigate a year without ceremonies, celebrations
Joey Dexter, front right, drums with his family during powwow at Two Rivers Correctional Institute in Umatilla, Ore., Aug. 24, 2019. Bradley W. Parks / OPB
“Our world has changed dramatically out here,” said Trish Jordan, executive director of Red Lodge Transition Services, the nonprofit that runs the home. “Everything got really, really quiet when we went into lockdown.”
In a typical year, the house is a hub for planning and coordinating cultural programming for Indigenous inmates across Oregon — everything from big annual bashes like powwows to more regular spiritual call-outs like sweat lodge ceremonies. Mid-October is around the time volunteers start winding down a packed summer calendar of events.
All of them were canceled this year due to the coronavirus.
“That was hard,” said Jordan, a registered nurse by trade, “but we recognize that this is a pandemic and it’s important for us to ... stay safe and that people in our prisons stay safe.”
For Indigenous inmates, the pause on visitation carries the potential for cultural isolation as well.
“I’ve got letters [from inmates] that say, ‘Don’t worry about us. We’re going to be OK. We’re going to get through this,’” Jordan said. “They’re more worried about us than they are about what they’re going through.
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This Christmas: Shop Native
Inuit-designed board game Nunami hits the shelves
A board game developed over the course of years from cut-up cereal boxes in Thomassie Mangiok’s Ivujivik home is now ready for worldwide distribution.
The artist and educator bills Nunami as the first Inuit board game. Nunami means “on the land” in Inuktitut.
Players — from two to four — can take on the role of either human or nature. It’s a game of strategy, but the goal is not to control the land or beat your opponent, but learn how to live together.
“Each time you play, not only do you get a sense of exploring, but you also see what’s happening and you create a picture in your head,” said Mangiok.
Lakota-Owned Bookstore Fills Void in Rapid City
Mendoza is the owner of the Bird Cage Book Store and Mercantile, a shop she ran in The Racing Magpie for four years. In October, Mendoza relocated to her own shop at 524 7th St. The new location is a hub from which her family runs a wholesale book business, Dakota West Books LLC, and online resource Word Carrier Trading Post, along with the brick-and-mortar book store and mercantile.
“There aren’t very many Lakota-owned book stores in the state of South Dakota, especially woman-owned, so (this new location) gives me an opportunity to put it out there that we’re here,” Mendoza said. “We really are a family-owned business. … It has been a really good move for us.”
This Instagram Account Spotlights Handmade Works by Indigenous Elders
In Indigenous culture, elders are regarded with the highest respect. They are the backbone of their communities and hold key teachings and languages that help preserve their tribal traditions and carry them forward. Many elders also have a deep knowledge of craft and act as cultural conduits, teaching the younger generations how to weave, bead, and sew. Knowing this sacred role of Indigenous elders, Adopt-A-Native-Elder, a nonprofit program, is spotlighting and paying tribute to elders of the Navajo Nation—and helping them keep afloat during the pandemic in the process.
On Adopt-A-Native-Elder’s website, you can browse a shoppable marketplace of works created by Navajo elders, including rugs, jewelry, baskets, and more. There are handwoven rugs that double as art pieces, turquoise squash blossom necklaces, and beaded bracelets. The offering is special enough on its own, allowing people from all over the world to support Native artists, but it’s the organization’s Instagram page that is truly captivating.
It’s hard to fit all the news in a little space.
To read all of this week's news, visit the LIM Magazine.
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