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 Christina Woods (Bois Forte Tribal Nation) who is the first Anishinaabikwe to be the Executive Director of the Duluth Art Institute. Christina is also currently performing in the play The UnPlugging presented by New Native Theatre in Minneapolis.
We caught up with Christina during a break in the rehearsal of the play, which will be performed on the site of the old Migizi building and the Gandhi Mahal restaurant, both of which were destroyed by fire and water in the uprising following the murder of George Floyd.
Christina shares her path as a teacher, media-maker, and diversity/inclusion consultant and explains how visual arts and advocacy all can work together for positive change and learning. Christina’s enthusiasm for all her cools projects is contagious. Christina was awarded an AARP 50 over 50 most influential people in MN award as a bias buster. Enjoy this fun and hilarious conversation!
More information about the Chesley Antoinette exhibition that Christina mentioned is here: https://www.duluthartinstitute.org/Steffl
Check out the play that Christina is in – The UnPlugging, by Yvette Nolan and presented by New Native Theatre at https://newnativetheatre.org/ Outdoor performances run through Sept 19th.
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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- Levi Brown’s Gift for Building Relationships Across the TableToday we’re speaking with Levi Brown, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe citizen and Director of Tribal Affairs at the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDot). Levi talks with Leah and Cole about acknowledgement on a person-to-person level and on an institutional level. In his current position at MnDot, Levi helped facilitate the highway signs marking the 1854 Treaty boundaries in Northern MN, a step toward acknowledgment and a point of education. Levi is also a part of the Tribal State Relationship Training Program that helps develop collaboration and understanding between tribes and Minnesota state departments.
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