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It’s going to be a long hot summer for the striking writers of television and films.
A nationwide strike by the Writers Guild of America over working conditions and pay is already raising questions about how long Native-centric productions such as “Reservation Dogs,” “Dark Winds” and “Rez Ball” can continue if the strike goes on for months.
Diné writer Sierra Ornelas is among those who have been on the picket line. She was co-creator of the series, “Rutherford Falls,” and oversaw a writers’ room that included four other Indigenous writers – Tazbah Chavez, Tai Leclaire, Jana Schmieding and Bobby Wilson.
Having five Indigenous writers for a series is believed to have been a first for a major television production, and her deal with Universal Television was renewed in August 2021.
“We really want to ensure the future of this job, the future of this business for the writers coming up,” Ornelas told ICT by phone from Los Angeles about the decision to go on strike. READ MORE — Sandra Hale Schulmnan, Special to ICT
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Now that the governor has signed a controversial bill essentially outlawing the TikTok social media app in Montana, Indigenous people in the state are wondering how such a law might affect sovereign tribal nations.
Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte signed into law on Wednesday a bill banning the Chinese-owned social media application. Specifically, Senate Bill 419, is designed to ban state residents from downloading the app within “territorial jurisdiction” of the state, which is expected to go into effect in 2024.
“The Chinese Communist Party using TikTok to spy on Americans, violate their privacy, and collect their personal, private, and sensitive information is well-documented,” Gov. Gianforte stated in a press release on Wednesday. “Today, Montana takes the most decisive action of any state to protect Montanans’ private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party.”
The TikTok ban is a controversial idea, with opponents calling it a violation of the First Amendment. In fact, a group of TikTok users filed a lawsuit against the governor just hours after he signed the bill, alleging the state lacks the authority to bar people from accessing information, according to a CNN story. But the idea has sparked some in Indian Country to ask if tribal sovereignty extends to technology, specifically data. READ MORE — Kolby KickingWoman and JoVonne Wagner, ICT and MTFP
Over the past year, tribal advocates, leaders, and community members have been raising the alarm about unmarked vans cruising the streets of tribal nations to pick up Indigenous people so they could be transported down to the Phoenix area, where they are promised shelter, food, and rehabilitation help.
The predatory tactics of individuals claiming to be legitimate healthcare providers but who were instead allegedly billing the state’s Medicaid system for rehabilitation services that were never provided have had an immense human cost. Many Indigenous families filed missing person reports for their loved ones, while others grappled with the death of their family member.
This scheme has resulted in what state officials are now calling a “humanitarian crisis” and a “stunning failure of government” since the issues were identified years ago and nothing was done to stop the predatory behavior.
Reva Stewart and Coleen Chatter have been at the forefront of the issue for more than a year and are the advocates behind the #StolenPeopleStolenBenefits campaign.
Stewart said the announcement was a step in the right direction, but she wishes state leaders had listened before it got as bad as it did. She wants to see accountability for all the Indigenous people who have died because of the scam and for the state to provide some more relief to the Indigenous people still being impacted across the Phoenix Valley. READ MORE— Arizona Mirror
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MADISON, Wis. — Attorneys for a tribe in Wisconsin argued Thursday that a federal judge should order an energy company to shut down an oil pipeline the tribe says is at immediate risk of being exposed by erosion and rupturing on reservation land.
The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa asked U.S. District Judge William Conley last week to issue an emergency ruling forcing Enbridge to shut down the Line 5 pipeline after large chunks of riverbank running alongside it were washed away by the river in northern Wisconsin.
The tribe says less than 15 feet of land now stands between the Bad River and Line 5 in four locations on the reservation. In some places, more than 20 feet of riverbank has eroded in the past month alone. Experts and environmental advocates have warned in court that an exposed section of pipeline would be weakened and could rupture at any time, causing massive oil spills.
Enbridge’s engineers contend there is almost no chance the pipeline will be exposed by erosion, let alone rupture, in the next year. The company said in court filings that the tribe has not cooperated with its repeated requests to line the riverbank with sandbags that would protect against erosion.
Enbridge also asked the tribe Monday for a permit to install stabilizing barricades made of trees along the riverbank. READ MORE — Associated Press
- Indigenous hockey players close in on Stanley Cup finals: The final four teams left in the NHL playoffs include two with First Nations talent
- Washington state expands dental therapist program: American Indians and Alaska Natives have the highest oral health disparities in the country
- Black Belt Eagle Scout: ‘Note-shredding guitar hero’: Indigenous musician Katherine Paul is captivating audiences on tour for new album
- Native entrepreneur wants to fill healthy food business gap: ‘I just wanted to create food that is not hurting Native people and not hurting the earth’
- Inmates continue to die in tribal jails despite promises of reform
- New Portlandart exhibit highlights Indigenous Alaskan artists
- Young Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander adults have the highestcancer death rates, research shows
We want your tips, but we also want your feedback. What should we be covering that we’re not? What are we getting wrong? Please let us know. dalton@ictnews.org.
