Greetings, relatives.

A lot of news out there. Thanks for stopping by ICT’s digital platform.

Each day we do our best to gather the latest news for you. Remember to scroll to the bottom to see what’s popping out to us on social media and what we’re reading.

Also, if you like our daily digest, sign up for The Weekly, our newsletter emailed to you on Thursdays. If you like what we do and want us to keep going, support and donate here.

Okay, here’s what you need to know today:

Native authors may finally be here to stay.

Indigenous peoples have revered the power of stories since time immemorial, traditionally keeping their cultures and histories alive through story. But their presence as authors has vacillated for decades in the U.S. publishing world.

From the early recognition of Indigenous writings in the late 1800s to the works of Pulitzer Prize-winning authors M. Scott Momaday and Louise Erdrich, Native authors have gained the literary spotlight but often faded slowly back into relative obscurity.

This time may be different, however. A new Native Renaissance may well be underway in the publishing world amid growing interest in books, poems and other writings by Indigenous authors. READ MORE. — Mary Annette Pember, ICT

SUPPORT INDIGENOUS JOURNALISM. CONTRIBUTE TODAY. 

The Haskell Indian Nations University faculty said in a Sept. 11, 2024, letter that former Haskell President Ronald Graham “grossly mischaracterized” the school during a congressional hearing amid allegations of sexual assault, bullying and retaliation at the U.S. Bureau of Indian Education-operated college.

The letter came in response to two congressional committees’ investigation of problems at the university and the Bureau of Indian Education’s delay in responding to a public records request and numerous complaints against the school. READ MORE. — Renata Burkenbuel, ICT

PHOENIX — Members of an Arizona tribe urged a federal judge Tuesday to extend a temporary ban on exploratory drilling for a lithium project near lands they have used for religious and cultural ceremonies for centuries.

An executive for the Australian mining company that is trying to determine whether there is enough lithium to justify a commercial operation to help expedite production of renewable energy resources testified that every day of delay is costing it money.

The judge indicated she wouldn’t decide for more than a week whether to grant the tribe’s request or lift a temporary restraining order she issued last month. The Hualapai Tribe says the energy exploration will harm lands it has used for ceremonies for centuries about halfway between Phoenix and Las Vegas. READ MORE. — The Associated Press

Sign up here to get ICT’s newsletter 

OMAHA — It was not a walk that participants in the annual Indigenous Peoples Summit wanted to take on an 86-degree afternoon.

But they did — on principle, and to underscore a key reason that brought some 125 leaders of tribal governments, Indigenous groups and others together in the first place: a quest to reclaim cultural power and traditions.

What pushed conferees on Friday to walk the quarter-mile from a University of Nebraska at Omaha auditorium to Elmwood Park for lunch — many in ribbon skirts and traditional regalia — was that they were not permitted to bring food from a preferred culturally sensitive caterer onto UNO grounds. READ MORE. — Nebraska Examiner

FOLLOW ICT ON SOCIAL MEDIA: FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, TIKTOK. 

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.