MEDIA INDIGENA : Indigenous current affairs

This week: Storming the beaches. Some Canadian property developers hoping to lure so-called ‘snowbirds’ to sunny beachfront in Oaxaca, Mexico have hit a bit of a hitch: like, the fact that Indigenous people already own …

Media bias: something many suspect is at play in mainstream outlets. But proving it—that's a different story. Amidst the daily, dizzy churn that is the news cycle, finding a way to parse out and pin down reasonably …

This episode, a live debrief with our patrons on 'Oil and Gaslighting,' our December 21, 2022 discussion about the jarring juxtaposition between federal underfunding of First Nations’ preparedness for floods, fires and …

Something of a different turn for us this episode, as we roll into the realm of games. A way to play off another side of our personalities and help …

This week: Oil and gaslighting. They say an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Guess which one the Canadian government funds way more than the other for First Nations emergencies like floods and fires? Karen …

THIS WEEK: Our second-ever 'TalkBack' edition of MEDIA INDIGENA, where monthly supporters of the podcast on Patreon get a chance to share their feedback live via Discord about our latest deep dive conversation. This …

This week: Alberta sovereignty. Sovereign over what and whom, you may ask? Great questions, ones that finally got an answer last week when, on November 29, Premier Danielle Smith introduced her first bill, the Alberta …

This week: 'Nation to nation,' or funder to client? When it comes to describing the financial relationship between the Assembly of First Nations and the Canadian government which signs its cheques, critics are anything …

On our first MINI INDIGENA of the season, host/producer Rick Harp and MI regular Trina Roache (Rogers Chair in Journalism at the University of King’s …

Introducing our first-ever 'TalkBack' edition of MEDIA INDIGENA, where monthly supporters of the podcast on Patreon get the chance to share their feedback about our most recent deep dive directly with our roundtablers.

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This week: another one bites the dust? Who is the real Mary-Ellen Turpel-Lafond? A question very much on the minds of Indigenous people in Canada these days, still digesting the exhaustive and explosive CBC News …

On our last Summer '22 episode of collected, connected conversations: settler election fever! In this back half of our political retrospective on …

In this set of collected, connected conversations (the penultimate episode in our Summer '22 series): Neech the Vote! Was it really a year ago that …

On this week's collected, connected conversations (the sixth in our Summer '22 series): Settlerology. That’s right: our chance to turn that gaze …

For the fifth instalment in our Summer '22 series, we burrow into bureaucracy, the Canadian civil service which administers every aspect of Indian life from cradle to grave via the technocratic tentacles of Indian …

For the fourth instalment in our Summer '22 series of collected, connected conversations: freedom of speech. From censorship to libel, press access …

On the third instalment in our Summer '22 series: weaponized words. The first of two shows sounding off on speech, we've stitched together a variety of verbiage, from all about threats to speech in part two to all about …

On the second instalment in our Summer '22 series: the battle over belonging. The back half of our investigation into inclusion—or is that excursion into exclusion? They're kind of two sides of the same coin to be …

Our season-ender is all about Discord: no, not some disagreement or friction somewhere, but Discord the digital platform, one which lets creators connect more directly and responsively with their audiences, free of all …

Summer is back and so is MEDIA INDIGENA's Summer Series, our compendia of conversations collected and connected from over the past six years, coming …

For our eleventh 'MINI' INDIGENA of the season, we try something a little different this time ‘round: a face-to-face-to-face discussion recorded Friday, June 24 in Winnipeg! Joining host/producer Rick Harp this episode …

THIS WEEK: Return to Restoule—the back half of our conversation about the Restoule case, the litigation some say has advanced a re-consideration and …

Our tenth 'MINI' INDIGENA of the season runs the gamut as usual, with MEDIA INDIGENA regulars Ken Williams (assistant professor with the University …

This week: Billions in back rent? A pair of treaties covering a territory roughly the size of France are at the heart of a legal fight for a fair share of its resource revenues. Known as the 1850 Robinson Treaties, …

This week, it's another 'MINI' INDIGENA, where we pack in sizzling-hot takes on a flurry of items via social audio. Joining host/producer Rick Harp …

For our eighth 'MINI' INDIGENA of the season, MI regular Kim TallBear (professor in the Faculty of Native Studies at the University of Alberta) and …

Gift or grift? When it comes to the spoils of colonialism, perhaps none have been more spoiled than the Hudson’s Bay Company. A 17th century creature …

Another week, another 'MINI' INDIGENA (our seventh of the season), where host/producer Rick Harp is joined by yet another pairing of APTN National News alumni, Trina Roache (Rogers Chair in Journalism, University of …

For our sixth-ever 'MINI' INDIGENA, host/producer Rick Harp is joined by roundtable regulars—and fellow APTN National News alumni—Ken Williams …

Hardly a day goes by it seems without news of some ‘revolutionary’ A.I.-driven tool ushering in a brave new world. Less said is who’ll be left out or …

On our latest 'MINI INDIGENA,' special guest Michael Redhead Champagne (Ininew helper, host, speaker & author) joins roundtable regulars Kim …

How should we speak of safety in society? How ought we to understand and manage the origins of risk? And in doing so, where might we position …

This week: the occupation of Ottawa. And as truckers and others continue to crash Canada's capital and beyond, it’s striking (if not surprising) to watch how these protests have been handled—or not—providing a stark …

On our fourth-ever 'MINI INDIGENA,' the quick + quippy edition of the podcast, special guest Q. Anthony Omene (cultural and political commentator …

How would you write a eulogy for the United States? Oh, you didn’t realize it was on death’s door? Guess you didn’t read the Globe and Mail over the …

This week: the racket of Reconciliation. It’s been some six years since the TRC issued its final report, complete with 94 Calls to Action. Has Canada …

Displeasure Island. So distressed is an Ontario cottage owner that Indians could regain a significant say over some nearby islands in Georgian Bay, …

In this latest “rapid roundtable” on multiple topics via Clubhouse, Kim TallBear (professor in the Faculty of Native Studies at the University of …

On this week’s Indigenous round table: the gulf in understanding between settlers and First Nations people over treaties. A gap recently reinforced …

As long-time listeners know well, this isn’t the first time our podcast has looked at long-standing Wet’suwet’en efforts to block outside incursions into their territory. Indeed, last August’s double episode, 'Resource …

Our second crack at a “rapid round” of shorter conversations on multiple topics recorded via Clubhouse includes discussions on... whether '#LandBack' …

When it comes to advancing Indigenous causes, is making settlers 'feel bad' a winning strategy? At least one settler pundit says 'no,' and he’s rounded up some Indigenous people who seem to agree with him.

At issue: the …

CBC News has recently reported that a number of women have come forward with allegations of sexual assault against an Ontario medicine man. Although …

On our first-ever “rapid round” of shorter conversations on multiple topics (recorded via the social audio app Clubhouse), we discuss: provinces that …

Carbon coup. When it comes to fighting climate change, have Indigenous activists made much of a difference? Do we really know what their myriad anti-pipeline actions add up to? Turns out, a lot—now with the numbers to …

For Canadians, it was a revelation that seemingly came out of nowhere: the confirmation back in May of over 200 unmarked graves at Kamloops, BC, thought to be the remains of young people who decades ago attended one of …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations—our final show of the summer—more of our COVID contemplations. Featured voices this podcast …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (the eighth in our summer series): part one of our pandemic ponderings. A disease that’s thrown …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (the seventh in our summer series): the back half of our education investigation. And this episode, …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (the sixth in our summer series): back to school. Well, not quite yet. But it is around the corner, …

Moose, elk, bison, lobster, salmon: they're just some of the non-human relatives that Indigenous peoples have relied upon for centuries. A reliance that, in turn, made self-reliance possible for those peoples. That is, …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (the fourth in our summer series), we go on the hunt for some rights recognition. Rights rooted in …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations, our summer series walks into the world of leisure and recreation—well, for some, anyway. For, as …

This episode, the second in our summer series, part two of our look at law and order—emphasis on the latter. Because even though we’ll begin this episode with discussions about the courts and prisons (building on last …

With the arrival of warmer weather, it's once again time for another MEDIA INDIGENA Summer Series, our compendia of conversations collected and …

Pollution is Colonialism Part Two: fresh off part one, host/producer Rick Harp and MI regular Candis Callison once again sit down with author, artist …

Pollution is Colonialism: the straight-to-the-point title of a brand new book by Max Liboiron, Assistant Professor of Geography and Associate …

This week: redress, compensation and restitution. In short, Cash Back! It's the second half of our effort to put meat on the bones of this call for First Nations economic justice issued in the latest Red Paper of the …

From Wealth to Welfare. Just how did Canada’s economy end up among the world's largest, anyway? Was it the sheer pioneering pluck of can-do Canucks? A steely determination tempered by visionary imagination and …

DILEMMA INDIGENA: For Indigenous peoples living under settler colonialism today, there are few choices that aren’t constrained, a predicament at the …

Northern education rooted in the north: for many, it's a vision at the very heart of Laurentian University, a northern Ontario school that today is …

It’s the second half of our conversation with artist Chief Lady Bird about her decision to design a beer can label in support of Indigenous women’s causes. In part one, we learned about how it all came to be and some of …

It was meant as a gesture in support of Indigenous women. A one of a kind design by an Indigenous artist known for her bold, provocative imagery. But …

Canine colonial. Is it apt to draw parallels between the worst ills of mainstream child welfare systems and those of animal welfare? It’s the …

They’re one of Canada’s oldest political parties. Heck, they gave the country its first ever prime minister back in 1867. Today, the Conservative …

A crapload of controversy. Did an Indigenous member of the Manitoba Legislature cross the line when she claimed members of the governing Conservative party "just don't give a crap about Indigenous women and girls in …

With COVID-19 immunization programs now underway in Canada and beyond, the basic questions of who, when and where have leapt to the fore. Will the …

This week, high hopes for Deb Haaland—the congresswoman from New Mexico and citizen of the Laguna Pueblo who could make history as the first …

Punishment for Pretendians: the back half of our extended look at colonial cosplay. And if part one was all about the problem, this part’s all about …

With issues of identity reaching a fever pitch of late, we thought we’d take its temperature. From Michelle Latimer’s contested claims to Indigeneity, to an ever-growing, quasi-underground list of Alleged Pretendians, …

Medically-assisted death. It’s a controversial subject to say the least, precisely why any effort to legislate it has proven just as contentious. So it is in Canada, where laws have been challenged and critiqued, both …

A new brief from the Yellowhead Institute has shone a light on yet another Canadian government attack on the spirit if not the letter of a human rights order demanding equity for First Nations kids. Issued by the …

Repping the Queen. With Canada’s last Governor-General stepping down due to scandal, there are those who say her replacement ought to be a First …

This week, the back half of our two-part foray into fish farms. Part one discussed the myriad problems with such aquaculture; this time around, we …

Fish farm phase-out. And with the end of aquaculture as we know it in sight on British Columbia’s central coast, there is hope it could help spark a …

A second sit-down with Suzuki. In the first half of our discussion with Dr. David Suzuki, we learned how COVID inspired a return to his spoken word roots and why it was important to include Indigenous knowledge and …

Scientist, broadcaster, activist, author, grandfather: David Suzuki has worn many hats over his eight-plus decades on the planet. A planet he continues to be both amazed by and concerned for as it faces catastrophic …

Imagine what it would be like to live in a country where roughly half the population is Indigenous, said to be the highest such proportion in all of …

A western Canadian premier denounced by critics for bungling the province’s COVID response has now come under fire for questionable comments about immunizing Indians. We’re talking Manitoba, where Brian Pallister’s gone …

A Heiltsuk grandfather in British Columbia has recently launched a pair of human rights complaints almost a year after he and his young granddaughter …

Decades of disruption and destruction later, massive portions of northern Manitoba have been effectively sacrificed for hydro mega-projects, to the seemingly exclusive and enduring benefit of urban interests to the …

Voting day is just hours away in the USA, a day featuring a good number of Indigenous candidates at various levels: 111 in all, according to Indian Country Today. But even as some do their best to influence the outcome, …

Election and Empire: with U.S. voting day just around the corner, what will November 3rd bring? Will it be a worsening of the Republican shit-show that is the Trump presidency or will it be a slide over to that other …

Back to the border: part two of our extended look at a court case that should be getting more attention, but continues to fly under the radar of …

Beyond borders: It’s the shot that continues to be heard across time and states. And it was roughly 10 years ago that an un-licensed Sinixt hunter named Rick Desautel took down an elk in what’s now called British …

It’s a gut-wrenching, even agonizing video. As a distraught, bed-ridden Joyce Echaquan pleads for help, a nearby nurse and an orderly at a Quebec …

New sounds of the city. One of Canada’s largest centres—amiskwaciy-wâskahikan (aka Edmonton)—could be on the verge of Indigenizing the nomenclature …

THIS WEEK: 'Chapter 2' of The Anti-Indigenous Handbook. A look into the "constellation of corporations, special interest organizations, politicians, …

The Anti-Indigenous Handbook: A collective effort spanning three countries, this 'Handbook' is the joint product of four media outlets: the …

Settler panic in the Atlantic. Why do opponents of a new Mi’kmaq fishery in southwestern Nova Scotia speak as if it’s illegal when it has the support …

This week: Indigenous Gender and Sexuality Studies. A subject at the center of a talk delivered this past March by Dr. Jennifer Nez Denetdale, Professor of American Studies at the University of New Mexico, and the …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (the last of our summer-long series), we bring you part two of our resource resistance …

This week’s collected, connected conversations (the seventh in our summer-long series) make up the first part of a double-episode look at resource …

On this episode’s collected, connected conversations (the sixth in our summer-long series): we get down with data and tight with tech, tackling …

On this episode’s collected, connected conversations (the fifth in our summer-long series): navigating the harms and hopes associated with drugs. …

On this week’s collage of collected, connected conversations (the fourth in our summer series): appropriation and authenticity. The second half of …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (the third in our summer series), the arts take centre stage. A stage so wide, it’ll take two acts …

In our second summer series collection of connected conversations: a checkup on the state of Indigenous health. A thorough examination of how the …

Once again this year, we at MEDIA INDIGENA have dug deep into our archives to bring you a summer-long series of collected, connected conversations, …

THIS WEEK: A systemic look at media. It’s the second half of our extended conversation with our very own Candis Callison and Mary Lynn Young, co-authors of Reckoning: Journalism’s Limits and Possibilities. Published by …

On this episode: part one of our extended conversation on the limits and possibilities of journalism. And these days, we hear little about the …

THIS WEEK: NAISA INDIGENA. And just who or what is a “NAISA”? It’s the Native American Indigenous Studies Association. Or as they put it, a …

THIS WEEK: Food and environmental justice. Topics at the heart of a talk given back in February by Dr. Priscilla Settee, Professor of Indigenous Studies at the University of Saskatchewan, and Adjunct Professor for the …

THIS WEEK: The ‘Looting’ of America. As if a pandemic wasn’t enough to contend with, disturbing video came out on social media this week of blatant …

On this week’s episode: “Indigenous Knowledge and Heavens,” the title of a talk delivered earlier this year by Inuk scholar, Dr. Karla Jessen …

THIS WEEK: Weapons and exceptions. The Liberal government’s recently-announced ban on 1500 types of assault weapons is not going over well with …

THIS WEEK: 21st century voting, 19th century colonialism. An Ontario First Nation feels frustrated by the fact that, just weeks away from its June …

THIS WEEK: Butter blowback. With next to no fanfare, the makers of Land O’ Lakes butter have stripped their packaging of a decades-old iconic Indian …

Patient privacy, public protection: they can feel at odds in this era of coronavirus. And yet, when it comes to the impacts of the virus on black and brown people, some say there’s not enough information being captured …

THIS WEEK: Corona commiseration. It’s the topic on everyone’s mind, all the time—which itself can be a challenge, for us included. Inundated with infection information, how much might be too much for our mental health? …

THIS WEEK: Post-secondary plunder. Cornell, MIT, Rutgers—can you guess what these prestigious U.S. centers of higher learning have in common? Well, …

After hosting back-to-back episodes of special guest appearances concerning COVID-19, this time we re-connect with two of our regular roundtablers, …

THIS WEEK: Could the benefits of hindsight foreshadow the costs to come? As we discussed last episode, the collision of colonialism and COVID-19 …

THIS WEEK: Flattening the curve, feeling the gap. COVID-19, the virus that first popped up in Wuhan, China, is now officially a global pandemic. And even though the vast majority of people who get COVID-19 will …

When a company in one country is linked to human rights abuses in another, should they be held responsible for that abuse back home? According to …

THIS WEEK: Is Alberta becoming a police-state? At least one critic thinks so, after the province’s recent introduction of Bill 1. Labelled the …

This week: Choosing our words carefully. When discussing those who oppose resource extraction, how important is it to call them protectors rather …

Tired of how the media has covered its event in recent years, an all-Indigenous basketball tournament in BC has decided it's had enough of 'negative press.' With one exception—a First Nations radio station that …

THIS WEEK: Wet'suwet'en Redux. It’s an ever-changing story, yet all-too-reminiscent of other Indigenous struggles—and that’s just in supposedly …

THIS WEEK: Part 2 of our discussion on APTN’s new retrospective docuseries, “The Power Was With Us: Idle No More.” Picking up where Kim, Candis and Rick left off last episode—when they discussed the movement’s …

This week, the emergence of Idle No More, the Indigenous-led movement that’s arguably changed Canada forever. Now its arrival on the Canadian …

Once again, our podcast features a conversation based on our partnership with the Weweni Indigenous Scholars Speakers Series, a series made possible …

On this week’s program: awakening ancestral languages. Our very first episode of 2020 sees us return to our partnership with the Weweni Indigenous …

If you’re active on Twitter maybe you’ve seen it—the fuss some have kicked up over Donald Trump’s recent use of the phrase “Indian Country” in a …

Did you know it’s been roughly four years since Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission issued its final report? If all you follow is mainstream …

On this week’s Indigenous roundtable: Taking control, taking stock. How a First Nation in Ontario decided the only way they’re going to find images …

THIS WEEK: The Bureaucrats’ Burden. Could there be any job tougher than running Indian Affairs? Sources at Indian Affairs say “No!” According to a …

This week: Bringing blood home. Over a half-century after their removal, a large cluster of blood samples from Indigenous islanders in Australia have …

“What was CBC North management thinking?” A question fresh on the mind of CBC audiences and CBC staff this week, shocked and dismayed at the decision to combine three territorial morning newscasts into one. A decision …

This week, class dismissed—or should we say class denied? A North Carolina advisory board has rejected a proposed Native charter school on the …

It’s a dilemma that confronts much of Indigenous media: with so much of our time spent working to counter, correct and contextualize mainstream …

This week, the back half of our post-Canadian-election post-mortem, featuring the Yellowhead Institute’s Hayden King and Vanessa Watts. In part one of our discussion, we compared the relative prominence of so-called …

Barely 3 days after the Liberals' return to power -- only this time, as a minority government -- we wonder what that could mean for Indigenous …

It's been quite the week for the bottom-line of Canadian colonialism. First, a blunt assessment of what the lives of First Nations' kids are worth as …

This week, grousing over Greta. Even though millions recently took to the streets as part of world-wide Climate Strikes, the media still seems to reserve most of its spotlight for the teenage Swedish activist Greta …

This week: taking the measure of data about Indigenous peoples. It's a bit of a departure from our usual roundtable format—the first of our live …

Who’da thunk it? For once, we at MEDIA INDIGENA are happy to be wrong—right out of the gate at the first leaders debate, Indigenous issues are on the radar of Canada’s federal election. But will they continue to enjoy …

This week: the not-so-amazing race to form Canada's next government! That’s right: it's federal election time from now until October 21. But will Indigenous interests factor much if at all into this election? We discuss …

From the second it hit social media, the new ad campaign for the House of Dior’s so-called 'Sauvage' cologne kicked up a stink. In fact, as soon as …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations—the last in our Summer Series—the serious business of self-Indigenization. On its face, Indigenous …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (number eight in our Summer Series): comprehending and combating Climate Change. And as our current …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (the seventh in our Summer Series): the other half of our two-part look at remaking the Indigenous …

On this episode’s collected, connected conversations (the sixth in this Summer Series): Part One of “Re-making the Indigenous Family.” Said to be …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (the fifth of our summertime shows): how core concepts of Christianity continue to inspire and …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (the fourth in our Summer Series shows): reckoning with Reconciliation.

But what is …

On this week’s collected, connected conversations (the third in our Summer Series), we head to the lab to put Science under the microscope. From …

This week’s collected, connected conversations, the second in our Summer Series, feature a focus on the media. From blatant double-standards, to …

Given how all of our Summer Series shows dig deep into our archives, perhaps it’s only fitting that our first episode of the season explores history and heroes. Although, as you’ll hear, what constitutes the latter is …

THIS WEEK: Vetting the V-word. 'Victims' and 'victimhood'—it's controversial conceptual territory for many, and depending on your vantage point, distressing for different reasons.

In this, our third and final look at …

What’s in a word? Well, when that word is "genocide" and you’re part of Canada’s mostly-white, mostly-male commentariat, nothing, apparently. And if you’re like the Prime Minister, the word supposedly matters much less …

This episode, we discuss reaction to the final report of Canada's National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. This week marks the official release of that report, just days after details of a …

This week: State of Alienation. It was a country that didn’t even exist 120 years ago. Yet, today, authorities in Australia are convinced they’re somehow justified in declaring certain Indigenous people to be illegal …

THIS WEEK: Raising (and removing) red flags in Saskatchewan. A small Prairie village suddenly finds itself at the centre of a storm after one of its residents publicly displays flags long associated with hate. Now a …

THIS WEEK: Earth’s bio-diversity death spiral—can we change course? A new United Nations study paints a dark picture of the future, a future pretty …

This week: How a lake in the States lost its Indigenous name, re-gained it, only to potentially lose it again because of a Minnesota court decision. Join us as we dive into the details of the Dakota waters known as Bde …

Picking up where last week’s round table left off, this week is the second half of our deep dive into the dark response to the Notre Dame Cathedral fire, as we explore whether the spiritual schism triggered by its …

This week: the Indigenous 'grief gap' over Notre Dame. We'll react to the reaction that flooded social media over footage of the fire that ripped through France's Notre Dame cathedral. What do we make of the apparent …

This week: Sonic sovereignty? With Inuit widely credited as creators of a distinctive form of throat-singing, does it follow that they alone should …

This week: Crashing the Liberal party. After an advocate interrupts a recent partisan fundraiser to implore Canada’s prime minister to do right by a …

What happens when you reverse the lens and try to unpack what it means to be a Settler? What’s the difference between Settler colonialism and white …

It's being called a reconciliatory move: a new Liberal budget forgiving interest charges on loans taken out by First Nations to cover the costs of …

This week, another stolen generation, another class action. Three billion dollars, thousands upon thousands of children. These are the stakes of a …

On this week’s Indigenous roundtable: high-tech treaty rights. According to Māori in New Zealand, their treaty rights don’t just extend to resources of the land and sea, they also include a fair share of the radio …

THIS WEEK: A headdress head scratcher. What exactly did the premier of Alberta—a province hell-bent on hydrocarbon exploitation, come what may—do to …

This week, a battle over boundaries in the state of Utah. We discuss the simmering split in San Juan County, where a majority Indigenous population …

Back from our brief hiatus, this week's show speaks frankly about why the Liberal government's proposed Indigenous Languages Act is mostly notable for what it doesn't say. Joining us this week is special return guest …

This week... Another BC battlefront: Why Wet'suwet'en resistance to the Coastal Gas Link pipeline project is—and isn’t—so complicated to understand. Revitalizing MEDIA INDIGENA: Why us taking a break after 147 …

This week, the second installment in our two-part conversation with Darrel McLeod, author of Mamaskatch: A Cree Coming of Age.

Winner of the 2018 Governor-General’s award for non-fiction, Mamaskatch has been lauded for …

This week, we present part one of our two-part conversation with Darrel McLeod, whose memoir recently won this year's Governor-General’s award for non-fiction.

Also joining host/producer Rick Harp for this special …

Policing the police: A new review of Thunder Bay law enforcement finds the quality of their investigations so flawed many need to be re-opened; …

This week, we share two presentations delivered on day two of the International Symposium on Indigenous Communities and Climate Change, hosted this December 6th and 7th by Princeton University in New Jersey.

Part of a …

1. How to deal with denial? Can links be drawn between minimizing the intent and impacts of residential schools of the not-so-distant past with the …

1. Fighting fire with fire? Why some say the massive blazes ripping across parts of California did not have to be so furious or fatal, if only the …

1. Child and family fraud? How a potential class action lawsuit against one B.C. social worker has exposed some gaping vulnerabilities in a system …

THIS WEEK... What’s in a name? Everything, for Indigenous families hoping to reclaim their people's traditional naming practices. What gives with philanthropy? The author of a new book on the subject says it’s time to …

This week... The Will of Brazil: Indigenous advocates raise huge red flags over the election of super right wing president Jair Bolsonaro. Duty …

This week, part two of our live show at the University of Winnipeg on the potential impacts of cannabis legalization on Indigenous peoples in Canada. Part one featured matters of jurisdiction and justice; this time …

On this week’s program, recorded live in Winnipeg, we stir the pot now that Canada’s cannabis countdown is complete, making it only the second …

Twelve years. According to a new report from the UN-backed Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), that's how long we have to act both decisively and radically concerning the climate if we are to keep life …

This week, our special live-audience episode in Edmonton, where we discussed... Protocol Schmotocol: What one professor’s slide into another’s DMs on …

This week we bring you 'part two' of last week's round table, one that ran unusually long because of our extended discussion about APTN’s controversial reality show, "First Contact." Those outstanding two topics are... …

Provocative or problematic? We discuss why opinion is sharply divided over 'First Contact,' a new APTN mini-series showcasing Canadians’ deep ignorance about Aboriginal peoples. And, with our discussion going so …

1. 'Sinful' ceremony: a Cree community finds itself at spiritual odds over whether to allow a pow-wow some regard as blasphemous. // 2. Must the show …

Is a controversial pipeline now a pipe-dream? Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal has just ruled that plans to expand the Trans Mountain pipeline are to …

1. Man camp controversy: decades-old abuse allegations against hydro-dam workers finally surface in Manitoba. Might it spark a flood of similar …

Our ninth and final episode of our Summer Series collects and connects conversations about pipelines, in particular, the Kinder Morgan pipeline …

On this week's episode, the second-last show in our Summer Series, we revisit the troubling death of Colten Boushie—the 22-year old member of the Red …

Our seventh Summer Series episode collects and connects conversations about Thunder Bay, a small northwestern Ontario city where a huge amount of …

Our sixth Summer Series episode collects and connects conversations about language: more specifically, the politics of Indigenous language rights and …

This week's episode, the fifth in our Summer Series, wraps up our two-part conversation with the Yellowhead Institute's Hayden King and Shiri Pasternak about their critique of the Trudeau government's Indigenous Rights, …

The fourth show of our Summer Series begins our two-part look at an emerging set of proposed laws and policies that, if implemented, could majorly …

Our third Summer Series episode collects and connects conversations about food: it’s a veritable buffet of some of our most filling discussions, from …

Our second Summer Series episode collects and connects conversations about education: from inadequate funding to lack of Indigenous representation in …

For the first episode in our MEDIA INDIGENA: the Summer Edition series, we take a deep dive into water, from its status as a fundamental human and treaty right, to more nitty-gritty matters of funding, infrastructure …

THIS WEEK / Separation anxiety: as the U.S. catches criticism for splitting up migrant families and isolating their kids, some wonder if the concern …

THIS WEEK // Survey says: We opine on a poll asking Canadians what they think should be done regarding Indigenous peoples. Statistically …

This week—Yellowhead, Red Flags: We discuss the emergence of the Yellowhead Institute, a brand new First Nations think tank; we also look at why it's sounding the alarm over the Liberal government's 'Indigenous Rights, …

Bitumen Buyer Beware? The Canadian government has just announced it will buy the beleaguered Trans Mountain pipeline project. Will their gamble pay off? And who loses if it doesn’t? * Trump-aganda! When it comes to a …

Sick and solo: why does Quebec still force northern kids who fly down south for care to do so all alone on air ambulances? Pity porn: we discuss a …

1. Love for lava: Why some Indigenous people in Hawai’i reject any effort to divert the flow of what others see as the utterly destructive output of …

This week // From bad to worse: amid accusations that racism drove an Indigenous dean of law away from Lakehead University, some question why it’s replaced her with a judge who jailed anti-mining Native leaders. …

Saddle up for our Settler sexuality sequel! Building on last week’s exploration of how Settler norms impact Indigenous notions of intimacy and interpersonal connections, we more explicitly discuss the erotically infused …

On this week's roundtable: Settler Sexuality. A subject at the heart of two recent talks by our own Kim Tallbear (one at the sex-positive communities …

1. Who will next lead the AFN? Two candidates say they’re set to run; a potential third is thinking about it. We’ll review the field of would-be …

THIS WEEK // Big Steps: How some ancient footprints confirm (yet again) what Indigenous people keep telling scientists—how we’ve been here for a …

THIS WEEK // A 'Nope' from the Pope: Why does His Holiness seem wholly against saying sorry for the crimes of Church-run residential schools? / …

THIS WEEK / 'Sorry' for the racism: As National Geographic tries to atone for its problematic history with non-white people, we assess how much credit (and critique) they deserve. / 'Sorry' for the sexual harassment: As …

This week, the sound of two Indigenous podcasters podcasting, as MEDIA INDIGENA host/producer Rick Harp sits down with Wayne K. Spear (waynekspear.com

This week... 1. A fair share of the pot: why a push to tax cannabis on-reserve is itself a taxing debate. 2. Cottage clash: why can’t a First Nation …

Once upon a trigger: Did a school board and the media over-react after a parent found a children’s book about residential schools upsetting? Dumb …

This week: A tale of two trials. Late last week, a jury found the man accused of murdering 15-year old Tina Fontaine to be "not guilty." The decision …

War in the west: as Alberta battles British Columbia over pipeline expansion, we look at whether a new front could open up against First Nations / …

It was a much-anticipated verdict in a much-discussed case: the 2016 shooting death of 22-year-old Colten Boushie, a member of the Red Pheasant First …

This week: Toodle-loo Wahoo! The majorly racist logo of a major league baseball team is knocked out of the park in Cleveland... sort of. Turfed by Trudeau: The PM's cross country road show gets awkward when so-called …

This week: The trial of Gerald Stanley, the man accused in the shooting death of Colten Boushie. We’ll look at who gets to be on the jury, and who …

This week: the 'Change the Date' debate. We discuss what seems to have been the most controversial Australia Day yet. Plus, divine intervention? As …

This week.. Politician contrition: an Alberta MLA walks back some sweeping off-hand comments about Aboriginal voter behaviour in his riding; A flyer …

This week: Beyak Booted—A Canadian senator’s website gets her kicked out of the Conservative Party for controversial content about Indigenous people. …

This week: #NativeTwitter—more than just a hashtag? Can its influence be felt off-line? Or is it simply a case of tweeting to the choir? Seal for sale—Facebook reverses its refusal of seal-skin-related items on its …

The second of our two-part look back and look ahead on the year almost behind us and the 12 months to come. What is, or what could be, their …

What made 2017 a year of Indigenous significance? What might be in store for 2018? This week's show assembles the fulsome foursome for this year-end …

Vote vice: we scrutinize the story of a Saskatchewan First Nation politician accused of buying votes with drugs, and muse over how media framing of …

Monumental fight: US President Trump announces he'll significantly shrink the boundaries of two protected areas in the state of Utah, despite their …

Make BC 'Site C' free: A new summary of research into the mega-hydro project produces a flood of arguments against its completion. Will British …

1. We pore over a poll showing Native Americans who live in "majority-Native areas" in the U.S. face greater mistreatment than anyone else. 2. …

This week, an extended conversation with Sarah de Leeuw, co-author of the recent paper, Turning a new page: cultural safety, critical creative …

1. Downhill and out: Canada’s highest court rules against an Indigenous sacred site in favour of a ski resort. 2. White Hot: Conservative Twitter …

1. No joke: Why some racist Halloween stunts have people at one Alberta university upset (if not all that surprised). 2. Re-definition: Can expanding and enriching what homelessness means for Indigenous people help …

1. Hatin’ on Halloween? Why a non-native writer feels her 4-year-old was cheated of the chance to dress up as "a native princess." 2. Beothuk babble: …

1. In name only: How did an Ontario city manage to strike up an Indigenous working group—minus any Indigenous people? 2. Ciao, chief! As a gesture of …

1. Taste Testy: How the introduction of traditional foods in mainstream settings have inspired some, and incited others; 2. Bad Optics? A massive telescope gets the green light on the island of Hawai'i over the …

1. Unfair Share: A group of First Nations take Canada and Ontario to court for not honouring a 167-year-old promise to top up treaty payments as …

Has there been a media "witch-hunt" of Wab Kinew? A high-profile supporter has sounded a resounding 'yes.' But does the critique imply some …

This week... Kinew Conundrum: will old assault charges against the new leader of Manitoba’s New Democratic Party divide the Indigenous community? TB …

Fight of the Freedmen: Has a court victory for the descendants of ex-slaves of the Cherokee guaranteed the return of their citizenship? Casting controversy: Why Adam Beach wants other Aboriginal actors to boycott a new …

This week's Indigenous roundtable gets up close and personal with the people behind the show. As long-time listeners know, we at the podcast have brought you a wealth of voices on a variety of topics, week after week. …

Double the fun or double trouble? Seemingly out of nowhere, the federal Liberals have decided to re-arrange the political furniture as part of a late …

Ottawa gets a new, Indigenous-only courtroom, but does the evidence support the move? Why critics say electronic welfare cards are being used to …

This week... Why Indigenous people totally relate to recent violence over icons of intolerance in Charlottesville, Virginia; we get into Guam, a …

This week's Indigenous roundtable: a new study seems to solidify the link between homelessness and contact with the child welfare system; new data …

This week: Starvation, experimentation, segregation and trauma—to Mary Jane McCallum, these four words are critical concepts for any student of …

This week... the conclusion to our conversation with the authors of the recent article, "White Settler Revisionism and Making Métis Everywhere: The …

This week… the first in a two-part conversation that confronts the confusion and contention around what it means to be Métis. In their new article, "White Settler Revisionism and Making Métis Everywhere: The Evocation …

This week… a bit of a mid-summer break from our regular format as we take a deep dive into the fiscal infrastructure of colonialism in Canada. As …

This week... tempest in a teepee: Indigenous people fight to set up a ceremonial camp on Parliament Hill for Canada Day. Did their actions shine a light on the controversy over Canada 150—or simply stoke the flames of a …

This week, is the state of Indigenous health care plagued by governmental ill will? Some might think so in Alberta, where a pair of provincial …

This week... When words fail: Especially when one hears about the enormous equity gap in federal funding between French and Inuit languages in Nunavut. Plus... Putting us on the map—literally. Google announces that …

This week: why things aren't okay in Thunder Bay. In the wake of two more Indigenous teens found dead in this northwestern Ontario city’s waterways, …

This week: Questioning curious carriages of justice in Canadian courts. Questions like, how is it that a victim of a brutal assault in Alberta not …

This week... outrageous outfits: A group of Alberta students host a controversial "Cowboys & Indians" costume graduation party. Plus, rough ride: a northern Manitoba man says he was unfairly ejected from a Greyhound …

This week, an extended conversation with two of the people behind 'Unsettling Canada 150.' Planned for the exact same date as Canada Day—July 1—this …

On this week’s roundtable: sensationalizing suicide? We recount the critiques of 13 Reasons Why, the Netflix teen drama that's sparked controversy for centering the suicide of one of its characters. And shaking off …

This week, a breakdown of the BC election, the result of which is still up in the air, leaving Indigenous peoples with all sorts of questions. …

This week, an extended interview with James Daschuk, author of Clearing the Plains: Disease, Politics of Starvation, and the Loss of Aboriginal Life. …

THIS WEEK: We delve into an Indigenous woman's 30-year-plus court battle to regain her Indian Status, a battle that just resulted in victory in …

This week: Transportation Troubles. In Saskatchewan, a recent government budget announced the shutdown of the STC, a provincial bus service that critics say is a lifeline for rural communities and reserves. Meanwhile in …

This week, a double dive into recent moves by Health Canada: first, its decision to fund the cost of a travel companion for pregnant Indigenous women who give birth outside their community; second, is social media an …

THIS WEEK / Colonial Editorial: Why people like ex-TRC head Murray Sinclair are outraged by a Globe and Mail op-ed rejecting the idea that South …

On this week's Indigenous roundtable, we examine mainstream Canadian media and reconciliation. When the Truth and Reconciliation Commission issued its nearly 100 Calls to Action back in late 2015, the fourth estate was …

On this week's roundtable: Federal foot-dragging. The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ordered feds to stop underfunding child welfare on-reserve back in 2016. So why has it still yet to happen? And, Departmental …

On this week's Indigenous roundtable: Do growing calls for tougher laws deliberately target some more than others? A look at the apparent push to increasingly criminalize Aboriginal behaviour by non-Aboriginal …

This week—Attention Status Indian men: do you have sperm to spare? Some women on Craigslist are hoping you'll consider making what might be called a liquid transaction. And proudly unpatriotic: a Native student at an …

On this week's Indigenous roundtable: fire and water. A new investigation into the overall state of First Nations fire prevention and protection in Canada paints an abysmal picture. But with no shortage of suggested …

This week, two troubling stories of Indigenous institutionalization. The first comes to us from an Ontario jail where 9 out of 10 inmates are Aboriginal—and 10 out of 10 reportedly face challenges of a mental, cognitive …

On this week's Indigenous roundtable… Success for Survivors: Despite attempts by both the Harper Conservatives and the Trudeau Liberals to keep former adoptees out of Ontario courts, not only was their Sixties Scoop …

This week, it's Women on the Watchlist: why were rallies in support of an inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls on the radar of Canada's national security apparatus? 
Plus, 

Inherited Issues: …

On this week's Indigenous roundtable: Make room for men—we try to decipher recent revelations that the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls will examine "ways in which the testimonies …

This week, we discuss a western Canadian premier's racializing of the contentious issue of night-time moose hunting: could his hyperbole put …

This week, a look at the legacy of the late Arthur Manuel, whose vision of Indigenous rights was uncompromising. We also discuss a National Observer report suggesting that the Canadian government is backtracking on its …

On this week's roundtable: the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. Some 4 months after its official launch, critics question its progress to date ahead of its November 2018 deadline. …

On this week's Indigenous roundtable: a northern Ontario outfit that rents huts to ice-fishers is in hot water after an ad on Kijiji tells Status Indians to stay away! Plus, Canada 150: a century and a half after the …

On this week's Indigenous roundtable, we look back and ahead—what were the trends and themes that defined this past year for Indigenous peoples, and what might the next 12 months bring? According to our roundtable, 2016 …

This week's podcast, a kind of holiday edition, features an interview Rick conducted back in 2011 with Ryerson University professor Christopher …

On this week's Indigenous roundtable... Jennifer Lawrence's 'sorry' butt: the Hunger Games star has apologized after social media slammed her conduct …

On this week's roundtable... Return to the Rock: last episode, the future of the fight against the Dakota Access pipeline project seemed uncertain, with many opponents fearing the worst. Then on Sunday, to the surprise …

On this week's Indigenous roundtable...

Where do things stand with Standing Rock? The struggle in North Dakota against the construction of the Dakota Access pipeline continues to face constant pressure from federal and …

On this week's program... The all-too-brown face of child poverty in British Columbia: a new report details the frustratingly familiar reasons why …

On this week's show... invalidation in Val d'Or: Why have three-dozen Aboriginal accusations of police abuse in this Quebec town come up empty? Plus, …

On this week's program: Trump triumph... what could the election of this outrageously racist man mean for Indigenous peoples in the US and beyond? …

On this week's Indigenous roundtable…

This week's Indigenous current affairs roundtable discusses the controversial, much-criticized, Muskrat Falls hydro project in Labrador: has an 11th-hour negotiation addressed the critics' concerns? And the Public …

This week on our Indigenous current affairs roundtable: is Alberta all wet when it comes to Indigenous water rights? A recent story in the Globe and Mail suggests the province’s view may be skewed when it comes to whose …

This week, our Indigenous current affairs roundtable unpacks recent revelations that, despite federal bureaucrats saying the cupboard for First …

Ottawa's police force is taking some heat after one of its own appears to have posted racist comments on a local newspaper’s website. The commentary …

A First Nation that only seems to get the spotlight when bad things happen is once again in the headlines: Shamattawa. Literally left devastated last week after a major fire destroyed key services and …

For the third time in 9 months, the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal has ordered the federal government to end its discriminatory practice of inequitably funding child welfare services on-reserve. The Tribunal’s initial …

According to The Guardian, it's a discovery that "challenges the accepted history behind one of polar exploration’s deepest mysteries." This week, …

This week: Standing up for the Standing Rock Sioux. For the US state of North Dakota, massive deposits of unconventional oil have brought much prosperity for some, great pain to others. In a bid to get even more of that …

According to preliminary new data released this week, Indigenous people in Canada are 10 times more likely to use an emergency shelter than their non-Indigenous counterparts. That's according to the National Shelter …

If families form the bedrock of Indigenous peoples, it seems Canada has devoted decades to their fracture and fragmentation. And, as child advocate Cindy Blackstock notes, were we to label the forced …

Senseless, tragic and disturbing: words that rush to mind upon hearing the news of last week’s killing of Colten Boushie. A 22-year-old resident of …

Will it happen again? Will someone portrayed on-screen by Aboriginal actor Adam Beach be quickly dispensed with, leaving us next to no time to really know his character? According to our guest this week, it's been …

When loved ones die, there’s no question who suffers most—their families. And of those who pushed hardest for the newly-launched National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, none fought more …

According to the WHO, food security is “when all people, at all times, have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life.” In Canada's north, food access and affordability are …

This week on the program: Inaction on the Indian Act. Derided for decades, it’s hung in there as one of Canada’s oldest laws. Now there are hints …

An Indigenous broadcaster shares his personal and political perspective on police treatment of Aboriginal people, an issue he recently wrote about in …

Fresh off our week at the Podcast Movement conference in Chicago, the team behind MEDIA INDIGENA 'checks in' on our progress 18 weeks into the show. We share our experiences, lessons and successes—including our …

New research out of the University of Toronto into Indigenous child welfare has highlighted what some already suspected: that, when it comes to investigations of abuse or neglect, Indigenous families in Ontario are way …

This week: the fight for funding of Indigenous languages. Despite the best efforts of the Canadian government to wipe out the roughly 60 Aboriginal languages in that part of the world (what some call deliberate …

According to its proponents, Indigenous public health goes beyond the original concept to encourage health practitioners to be more aware of the …

"Contaminated, hard to access or toxic." According to a new Human Rights Watch report, that’s what all too many First Nations endure when it comes to safe, quality drinking water—in some cases, for decades.  Our guest …

One of Canada's largest provinces now says it's sorry for its "silence in the face of abuses and deaths at residential schools... [and] for the …

This week, we get an update on the inquest into a series of young First Nation fatalities in northwestern Ontario, where seven Indigenous students have died over a 10 year period in the city of Thunder Bay. Our guest …

This week we take a long look at a provocative poll recently published by the Washington Post about their home town pro football club, the …

Recently, Canadian energy giant Enbridge announced it was prepared to boost the Aboriginal stake in their Northern Gateway project up to 33 per cent. Mired in controversy pretty much from the get-go, that includes how …

This week on the program: the ever-growing economic footprint of Indigenous peoples. A recent report out of Atlantic Canada suggests Aboriginal spending benefits the region significantly, to the tune of $1.14 billion …

Adopted by most countries back in 2007, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) faced but a handful …

This week on the program, making sense of Manitoba's Election. As a province with one of Canada's largest proportions of Aboriginal people, it's worth asking what the end of the NDP's 17-year run in favour of the …

The remote Ontario community of Attawapiskat is but one example of a First Nation caught in the grips of a devastating suicide epidemic. This week, professor of psychiatry Amy Bombay joins us to explore the bigger …

Just how much attention have Indigenous issues been getting from the front-runners in the US presidential primaries thus far? Simon Moya-Smith of Indian Country Today fills us in.

Our opening and closing theme …

"An ongoing medical crisis." According to doctors serving First Nations west of James Bay, that is the current state of Aboriginal health for the northern Ontario region. Dr. James Makokis is a Cree family doctor based …

Some call it "historic." Its authors say it's "unprecedented." But what does Budget 2016 really offer Indigenous peoples in Canada?

We asked Cindy Blackstock—executive director of the First Nations Child and Family …

A United Nations expert review committee recently reported on how well Canada has treated Indigenous peoples under the International Covenant on …

Russ Diabo, publisher/editor of the First Nations Strategic Bulletin, joins MEDIA INDIGENA's Rick Harp to discuss what, if anything, came out of a …