Native Lights is a weekly, half-hour radio program hosted by Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe members and siblings, Leah Lemm and Cole Premo. Native Lights is a space for people in Native communities around Mni Sota Mkoce — a.k.a. Minnesota — to tell their stories about finding their gifts and sharing them with the community.
On today’s show, we talk with Binesikwe Means who is an enrolled citizen of the Oglala Lakota Tribe in Pine Ridge South Dakota, and a descendant of the White Earth Nation. Binesikwe is the lead instructor for Migizi’s First Person Productions, a youth-led social enterprise that produces videos, design work, and social media campaigns for businesses and non-profits.
We loved hearing about Binesikwe’s passion for storytelling and helping Native youth develop their talents through her work at Migizi. We were moved by hearing how the organization survived the devasting loss of its building, which caught fire and was destroyed during the uprising in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in 2020.
We were inspired by Binesikwe, as she shared how the community continues to support Migizi, so it can help Native youth find their voices, develop skills, share stories, and become experienced media makers.
Native Lights: Where Indigenous Voices Shine is produced by Minnesota Native News and Ampers, Diverse Radio for Minnesota’s Communities with support from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage fund.
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- Tony Drews: Capturing Excitement for Native Culture and Language Through Games Native Lights is a weekly, half-hour radio program hosted by Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe members and siblings, Leah Lemm and Cole Premo. Native Lights is a space for people in Native communities around Mni Sota Mkoce — a.k.a. Minnesota — to tell their stories about finding their gifts and sharing them with the community. …
- Shaun Chosa: Reimagining Indigenous Presence in Pop CultureNative Lights is a weekly, half-hour radio program hosted by Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe members and siblings, Leah Lemm and Cole Premo. Native Lights is a space for people in Native communities around Mni Sota Mkoce — a.k.a. Minnesota — to tell their stories about finding their gifts and sharing them with the community. …
- Tashia Hart: Art, Nature and The Path to Growing JoyThis week, Leah and Cole chat with Tashia Hart (Red Lake Nation), a culinary ethnobotanist, artist, photographer, award-winning author, and cook. As a multifaceted artist, Tashia’s art reflects the stages of her life, connections to nature and food. She shares about the making of her most recent work, Native Love Jams, a “sweet” romance that explores the relationships of love and food.
- Sam Zimmerman’s Journey Back to Painting and the HomelandsHis artwork explores his Ojibwe heritage, as well as his learnings and experiences in nature after returning to his ancestral homelands. Sam shares about learning language and culture through community collaborations, illustrating books for Native authors, and collaborating with family.
- Rhiana Yazzie: Empowering Indigenous CreativityLeah and Cole are joined by the multi-talented Rhiana Yazzie (Diné Nation), a remarkable theatre artist, filmmaker, playwright, and the visionary force behind New Native Theatre.