Questions about ABDO's COMANCHE in its "Native American Nations" series

Yesterday, I shared a resolution issued by the Comanche Nation that denounces Gwynne's Empire of the Summer Moon. 

Today I looked for children's books about the Comanche Nation. The one that popped up a lot is published by ABDO. Comanche is part of a "Native American Nations" series they did in which all the books are by "F. A. Bird." It came out in 2022. 

The cover of each book has the name of a tribal nation, the logo for the series, and the author's name:

Who is F. A. Bird? When I got the book, I decided to do this post because there's a lot wrong with this book, and my guess is F. A. Bird made similar errors in the other books. I can't find any information about who F. A. Bird is, anywhere. Help me! If you know who that is, please let me know. 

The series has 10 titles: Algonquin, Apache, Cherokee, Cheyenne, Comanche, Iroquois, Navajo, Nez Perce, Seminole, Sioux. I'll try to get the other books, but for now, I'm looking at the title for the first one: Algonquin. Who is that book about? There is no "Algonquin" tribal nation in what is currently called the US. 

The format for each book consists of thirteen two-page chapters. One of those pages is a photograph; the other has about 3 paragraphs of information. The first twelve chapters are historical in nature and use past tense verbs as if the Comanche people of today don't do any of the things presented on those pages. Let's consider what we see in Chapter 8, "Children." It says their babies "were placed on a cradleboard." Many Native families still use cradleboards. Another example is that "grandparents helped raise the children" and "told their grandchildren stories." That still happens. Grandparents help today, and they tell their grandchildren stories. 

Though the series title includes the word "Nations," it only appears once in the entire book! Chapter 13, "The Comanche Today," is primarily about the "Comanche Nation Homecoming Powwow." How is a teacher meant to teach children the fact of nationhood if that fact is not included in the book? 

Chapter 6 is "Crafts." It is about bows and arrows. Why is that being called a craft? The page is primarily about hunting. In that context, it was not (and is not) a craft. Calling it a craft situates it in a hobbyist space. 

After looking over the information in the Comanche book, I wonder what the Comanche people would want included? How would they want that information presented? Chapter 9 is "Traditions" and talks about "the Great Spirit" and "the Evil Spirit." It tells us that the Evil Spirit was cast out of the "Spirit World" when it refused to recognize humans as "the Great Spirit's best creation." That Evil Spirit hides in fangs and stingers of poisonous creatures. The accompanying photo is of a scorpion. Is that what the Comanche people say in their traditional stories? What is the source for that page of info? 

At the moment, I am full of questions about this book--and the entire series! 

American Indian Library Association Announces its 2022 Youth Literature Awards

On Monday, January 24, 2022, the American Indian Library Association announced its 2022 Youth Literature Awards at the livestream of the American Library Association's youth media awards. Below, we are sharing their press release and am inserting screen captures Debbie did while the announcements were being made. 

Source: https://ailanet.org/2022-aila-youth-literature-awards-announcement/

For Immediate Release
January 24, 2022

AILA announces 2022 American Indian Youth Literature Awards
CHICAGO — Today American Indian Youth Literature Award winning titles were highlighted during the American Library Association (ALA) Youth Media Awards, the premier announcement of the best of the best in children’s and young adult literature.

Awarded biennially, the award identifies and honors the very best writings and illustrations for youth, by and about Native American and Indigenous peoples of North America. Works selected to receive the award, in picture book, middle grade, and young adult categories, present Native American and Indigenous North American peoples in the fullness of their humanity in present, past and future contexts.

The 2022 American Indian Youth Literature Award winner for best Picture Book is “Herizon,” written by Daniel W. Vandever (Diné), illustrated by Corey Begay (Diné), and published by South of Sunrise Creative. Herizon follows the journey of a Diné girl as she helps her grandmother retrieve a flock of sheep. Join her venture across land and water with the help of a magical scarf that will expand your imagination and transform what you thought possible. The inspiring story celebrates creativity and bravery, while promoting an inclusive future made possible through intergenerational strength and knowledge.

The committee selected five Picture Book Honor(s) titles including:

• “Diné Bich’eekę Yishłeeh (Diné Bizaad)/Becoming Miss Navajo (English),” written by Jolyana Begay-Kroupa (Diné), designed by Corey Begay (Diné), and published by Salina Bookshelf, Inc.
• “Classified: The Secret Career of Mary Gold Ross, Cherokee Aerospace Engineer,” written by Traci Sorell (Cherokee), illustrated by Natasha Donovan (Métis), and published by Millbrook Press.
• “Learning My Rights with Mousewoman,” written and illustrated by Morgan Asoyuf (Ts’msyen), and published by Native Northwest.
• “I Sang You Down From the Stars,” written by Tasha Spillet-Sumner (Cree and Trinidadian), illustrated by Michaela Goade (Tlingit & Haida), and published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, a division of Hachette Book Group.
• “We Are Still Here! Native American Truths Everyone Should Know,” written by Traci Sorell (Cherokee), illustrated by Frané Lessac, narrated by a cast of Cherokee, Navajo, Choctaw and Chickasaw Tribal representation, and published by Charlesbridge Publishing, Inc. / Live Oak Media.

The 2022 American Indian Youth Literature Award winner for best Middle Grade Book is “Healer of the Water Monster,” written by Brian Young (Diné), cover art by Shonto Begay (Diné), and published by Heartdrum, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. When Nathan goes to visit his grandma, Nali, at her home on the Navajo reservation, he knows he’s in for a summer with no running water and no electricity. That’s okay, though. He loves spending time with Nali. One night, Nathan finds something extraordinary, a Holy Being from the Navajo Creation Story – a Water Monster- in need of help. With electric adventure and powerful love, Brian Young’s debut novel tells the tale of a seemingly ordinary boy who realizes he’s a hero at heart.

The committee selected five Middle School Book Honor(s) titles including:

• “Ella Cara Deloria: Dakota Language Protector,” written by Diane Wilson (Dakota), illustrated by Tashia Hart (Red Lake Anishinaabe), and published by Minnesota Humanities Center.
• “Indigenous Peoples’ Day,” written by Katrina M. Phillips (Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe), and published by Pebble, an imprint of Capstone.
• “Jo Jo Makoons: The Used-to-Be Best Friend,” written by Dawn Quigley (Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe), illustrated by Tara Audibert (Wolastoqey), and published by Heartdrum, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
• “Peggy Flanagan: Ogimaa Kwe, Lieutenant Governor,” written by Jessica Engelking (White Earth Band of Ojibwe), illustrated by Tashia Hart (Red Lake Anishinaabe), and published by Minnesota Humanities Center.
• “The Sea in Winter,” written by Christine Day (Upper Skagit), cover art by Michaela Goade (Tlingit and Haida), and published by Heartdrum, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

The American Indian Youth Literature Award for best Young Adult Book is “Apple (Skin to the Core),” written by Eric Gansworth (Onondaga), cover art by Filip Peraić, and published by Levine Querido. The term “Apple” is a slur in Native communities across the country. It’s for someone supposedly “red on the outside, white on the inside.” In Apple (Skin to the Core), Eric Gansworth tells his story, the story of his family, of Onondaga among Tuscaroras, of Native folks everywhere. Eric shatters that slur and reclaims it in verse and prose and imagery that truly lives up to the word heartbreaking.

The award committee selected five Young Adult Book Honor(s) including:

• “Elatsoe,” written by Darcie Little Badger (Lipan Apache Tribe), cover art and illustrations by Rovina Cai, and published by Levine Querido.
• “Firekeeper’s Daughter,” written by Angeline Boulley (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians), cover art by Moses Lunham (Ojibway and Chippewa), and published by Henry Holt Books for Young Readers / Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group.
• “Hunting by Stars,” written by Cherie Dimaline (Metis Nation of Ontario), cover art by Stephen Flaude (Métis), and published by Amulet Books, an imprint of ABRAMS.
• “Notable Native People: 50 Indigenous Leaders, Dreamers, and Changemakers from Past and Present,” written by Adrienne Keene (Cherokee Nation), illustrated by Ciara Sana (Chamoru), and published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House.
• “Soldiers Unknown,” written by Chag Lowry (Yurok, Maidu and Achumawi), illustrated by Rahsan Ekedal, and published by Great Oak Press.

Members of the American Indian Youth Literature Award jury are AILA President Aaron LaFromboise, Blackfeet Nation, Browning, Montana; Chair Vanessa ‘Chacha’ Centeno, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Sacramento, California; Co-Chair Anne Heidemann, Mount Pleasant, Michigan; Lara Aase, San Marcos, California; Catherine Anton Baty, Big Sandy Rancheria, Austin, Texas; Naomi Bishop, Akimel O’odham, Tucson, Arizona; Joy Bridwell, Chippewa Cree Tribe, Box Elder, Montana; Erin Hollingsworth, Utqiaġvik, Alaska; Janice Kowemy, Laguna Pueblo, New Mexico; Sunny Day Real Bird, Apsaalooke Crow Tribe, Billings, Montana; and Allison Waukau, Menominee and Navajo, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The American Indian Library Association is a membership action group that addresses the library-related needs of American Indians and Alaska Natives. Members are individuals and institutions interested in the development of programs to improve library cultural and informational services in school, public, and academic libraries. AILA is committed to disseminating information about Indian cultures, languages, values, and traditions to the library community. https://ailanet.org/

Milestones: Indigenous Peoples and Children's Literature

Indigenous Milestones in Children's Literature

Compiled by Debbie Reese (Nambé Owingeh) and Jean Mendoza (White)

American Indians in Children's Literature

In Milestones for Diversity in Children's Literature and Library Services (published in the fall 2015 issue of Children and Libraries) Kathleen T. Horning lays out significant developments in children's literature. In the article she makes the point that progress "is often measured by firsts--the first Newbery Medal given to an author of color" and so on. 

Debbie Reese (tribally enrolled, Nambé Owingeh) launched American Indians in Children's Literature in 2006 with the intent of sharing what she learned as she researched, analyzed, and wrote about representations of Indigenous peoples in children's and young adult books. In some places she has written about key moments that mark progress, but she has not gathered them together in a list of milestones--until now. 

With this post on July 21, 2021, American Indians in Children's Literature begins our effort to bring forth a list of milestones. It includes general milestones (like when the Newbery Medal was established) but its focus is on milestones of achievement--for Native peoples in children's literature. Its focus is on Indigenous Peoples of the Tribal Nations in what is currently known as the United States. Please submit comments about items that can be added, and corrections that need doing! Anything--by anyone--that attempts to list milestones is a work-in-progress. We find new things, and those milestones shift! What we share below is accurate to the best of our knowledge. When we learn that a milestone we've listed is not "a first" as we describe, we will make a correction. [Note: this post will be copy/pasted into a Page that you can see in the menu bar beneath AICL's logo. When updates are done, they will be made there rather than here.]

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1881

"Nedawi"--a short story written by Susette LaFlesche (Omaha) is published in the children's magazine, St. Nicholas: An Illustrated Magazine for Young Folks. For the author's name, the magazine used "Bright Eyes" -- an English translation of her Omaha name. It is the first Native-authored story to be published in that magazine.

1900

The Middle Five: Indian Boys at School by Francis LaFlesche (Omaha) is published by Small, Maynard & Company. The cover illustration was by Angel De Cora (Hōcąk Nīšoc Haci [commonly known as Ho-Chunk]). The original printing of the book is available online through Google Books. the book is an account of the author's life as a student in a Presbyterian mission school in Nebraska. On page 93, Robert is asked to read aloud from their reading lesson for the day. He reads "Come, come, come, the Summer now is here." That poem appears on page 17 of My Little Hymn Book published in 1850. For more on boarding schools run by the churches or the US government where the goal was to "kill the Indian, save the man" and to "civilize and Christianize" Native people, see AICL's list of recommended materials (children/YA books/college-level texts, websites, videos) on boarding and residential schools. The Middle Five was used at the Day School at Santa Clara Pueblo (day schools were part of the US government's boarding school system), in 1904. 

1902

Indian Boyhood by Charles Alexander Eastman (Dakota) is published by McClure, Philips & Co. Illustrated by E. L. Blumenschein (not Native). It is based on stories Eastman published in St. Nicholas: An Illustrated Magazine for Young Folks in 1893.  Indian Boyhood was used at the Day School at Santa Clara Pueblo (day schools were part of the US government's boarding school system), in 1904. 

1922

The Newbery Medal is established by the American Library Association, with the intent of encouraging distinguished writing for children. 

*

TayTay's Tales, illustrated by Fred Kabotie (Hopi) and Otis Polelonema (Hopi) is published by Harcourt, Brace and Company. Written by Elizabeth Willis DeHuff (not Native), it is advertised in Volume 130 of The Atlantic Monthly. Kabotie became known around the world for his art. In the preface, DeHuff writes that "Taytay" means "grandfather." It is, in Debbie's view, a phonetic spelling for the Tewa word for grandfather and is the word she used when speaking to her Hopi grandfather. Some of the stories in the book are from the pueblos that speak Tewa; some are not. Also in the preface, DeHuff calls the stories "folktales" but we disagree with that label, when applied to origin or creation stories told by Native peoples. We have not analyzed the stories for authenticity. 

1936

Feast Day in Nambe is published by the Office of Indian Affairs, Department of Interior, with illustrations by students who attended Santa Fe Indian School, including Emilio Sanchez, Ben Quintana, Paul Lucardio, and Seferino Pino. It is the first in a series of primers for use with Native children. The Report of the Department of the Interior for 1936 states the primers were printed as student projects by the Haskell Institute and Chilocco printing department, that the selections were written by Native children (and were edited "only slightly"). 

School Days in San Juan is published by the Office of Indian Affairs, Department of Interior, with illustrations by students who attended Santa Fe Indian School: Jose Dolores Pecos, Tom Jay, Lorenzo Garcia, Margaret Naranjo, Clarence Gutierrez, Joe Aguilar, Marie Trujillo, Tomacita Vigil, and Ben Quintana. It is the fourth booklet in the primer series published at Haskell Institute. It includes writings by children at San Juan Pueblo (currently known as Ohkay Owingeh). 

*

Third Grade Home Geography is published by Tesuque Printers. Five children at Tesuque Pueblo's day school were the Tesuque Printers. Their teacher was Ann Nolan Clark. They made seven copies of the book in their classroom. The entries in Third Home Geography were written by Clark, based on the children's writings about their homes. Over the next years, Clark went on to do similar books for children at other U.S. boarding schools. Some of the books were also available in a tribal language. One example is Singing Sioux Cowboy / Lak'ota pte'ole hoksila lowansa, published in 1945. Written by Clark, it was translated by Emil Afraid-of-Hawk and illustrated by Andrew Standing Soldier. 

 

1937

The Caldecott Medal is established by the American Library Association, to recognize the most distinguished American picture book. 

1939

I Am A Pueblo Indian Girl a picture book written by E-Yeh-Shure (English name: Louise Abeita) of Isleta Pueblo was published by William Morrow and Company (founded in 1926 and now an imprint of HarperCollins). Illustration's were done by Allan C. Houser (Chiricahua Apache). E-Yeh-Shure was thirteen at the time of the book's publication. 

 

1942

Velino Herrera of Zia Pueblo, wins a Caldecott Honor for illustrations in In My Mother's House. It was first published as part of a series of readers for Native children. In that series, its title was Third Grade Home Geography (for more details see the entry for 1936). 

1954

Runner in the Sun: A Story of Indian Maize, written by D'Arcy McNickle (Flathead), illustrated by Allan C. Houser (Apache), is published by John C. Winston Company. It was listed in Anna Lee Stensland's Literature by and about the American Indian: An Annotated Bibliography for Junior and Senior High School Students, published in 1973 by the National Council of Teachers of English and we include it here as the first middle grade book published by a Native writer.

1966

Summer Water and Shirley by Durango Mendoza, Muscogee, takes the Mahan Short Fiction Award at University of Missouri, Columbia. It is the first work by a Native writer to win this award. Mendoza's story has appeared in anthologies used with high school students.

1972

Jimmy Yellow Hawk, written by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve (Rosebud Sioux) and illustrated by Oren Lyons (Seneca) is published by Holiday House. Sneve's publication was the outcome of advocacy by the Council on Interracial Books for Children, founded in 1965 to promote literature that better reflected society. In 1969, the Council on Interracial Books for Children sponsored its first writing contest, designed to locate and encourage previously unpublished African American, Asian American, and Native American writers. Sneve was among the people CIBC selected. 

1977

Simon Ortiz (Acoma) and Sharol Graves's (Absentee Shawnee) epic history, The People Shall Continue, is published by Children's Book Press. It is the first use of the word "Nation" in a book for children. A 40th Anniversary edition was published by Lee and Low in 2017.

1981-1982

Acoma Partners in Basics, a writing workshop funded by VISTA (a federally funded program created in 1964, called Volunteers in Service to America) to develop materials for instructional use in tribal communities like Acoma Pueblo, publishes two booklets for children of Acoma: Simon Ortiz's Little Blue and Little Red (illustrated by Hilda Aragon) in 1981 and in 1982, The Importance of Childhood.  Unlike the primers written by Ann Nolan Clark in the 1930s, these books are written by a tribal member.  

1983

Homer Little Bird's Rabbit by Limana Kachel is published by the Montana Council for Indian Education. Illustrated by Northern Cheyenne children from Lame Deer School, and from Labre Indian School, it is the first children's picture book about boarding school. 

1989

W. W. Norton & Co. publishes New Worlds of Literature  (Jerome Beaty and J. Paul Hunter, eds.) its first intentionally "multicultural" anthology of US literature. The Norton anthologies were/are widely used in literature survey courses, as they both reflected and (to an extent) determined the canon encountered by freshman and sophomore university students. New Worlds features work by several Native-identified writers, including Lance Henson (Cheyenne), Carter Revard (Osage), Louise Erdrich (Ojibway), Simon J. Ortiz (Acoma), Linda Hogan (Chickasaw), Wendy Rose (Hopi/Miwok), Paula Gunn Allen (Sioux-Laguna), Peter Blue Cloud (Mohawk), Ray A. Young Bear (Meskwaki), Leslie Marmon Silko (Laguna Pueblo), Nora Dauenhauer (Tlingit), N. Scott Momaday (Kiowa), Durango Mendoza (Muscogee).

 

1999

The Birchbark House written and illustrated by Louise Erdrich (Turtle Mountain) is a finalist for the National Book Award. Set in 1847 on Lake Superior, it is followed by several books that chronicle the story of an Ojibwe family through decades of life as they grow older and adjust to Europeans who come onto their homelands. They are The Game of Silence, The Porcupine Year, Chickadee, and Makoons.

2001

Our Journey written by Lyz Jaakola (Ojibwe) and illustrated by Karen Savage-Blue (Ojibwe) is the first board book written and illustrated by Native people. A bilingual book, it is published by the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.

2006

The American Indian Library Association presents its first biennial American Indian Youth Literature Awards (AIYLA) at the Joint Conference of Librarians of Color. The awards honors the very best writing and illustration by Native Americans and Indigenous Peoples of North America in three categories. The inaugural award winning books are Beaver Steals Fire: A Salish Coyote Story in the Best Picture Book category; Birchbark House in the Best Middle Grade Book category, and Hidden Roots in theBest Young Adult Book category. 

2008

Welcome Song for Baby: A Lullaby for Newborns by Richard Van Camp (Dogrib) is gifted to every baby born in British Columbia that year. It is the first mass distribution of a book by a Native writer. 

2012

Super Indian by Argon Starr (Kickapoo) is published. It is the first comic to be written and illustrated by a Native woman.

2018

The American Indian Library Association's Executive Board and its Youth Literature Award Committee rescinds the youth literature award it bestowed on Sherman Alexie in 2008 for The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian due to allegations of sexual misconduct. It is the first time a children's literature award has been rescinded. Their statement reads, in part, 

"The books we select represent the very best for our kids and our communities. We believe that writers are members of our communities who we can look to as role models for our youth.  We cannot, therefore, recommend Mr. Alexie's books, and we have decided to rescind our 2008 Best YA Book Award for The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. In rescinding this award, we hope to send an unequivocal message that Alexie's actions are unacceptable."

2019

Joy Harjo (Muscogee Creek) appointed to be U.S. Poet Laureate. She is the first Native poet appointed to that honor, and was appointed again in 2020 and in 2021. 

*

Debbie Reese (Nambé Owingeh) is selected to deliver the 2019 Arbuthnot Honor Lecture by the Association of Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association. 

*

HarperCollins launches Heartdrum, a Native-focused imprint. It is led by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Muscogee Creek) and Rosemary Brosnan (white). Its logo is designed by Nasuġraq Rainey Hopson (Inupiaq).

2020

Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story written by Kevin Maillard (Seminole) is the first book by a Native writer to win the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal. 

*

Marcie Rendon, citizen of the White Earth Nation, is the first Native writer to win the McKnight Distinguished Artist award. 

*

When the Light of the World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through: A Norton Anthology of Native Nations Poetry edited by Joy Harjo (Muscogee Creek), is the first Norton anthology edited by a Native writer, and that contains only Native poets. 

2021

We Are Water Protectors illustrated by Michaela Goade (Tlingit) is the first book by a not-white woman to win the Caldecott Medal. Authored by Carole Lindstrom (Turtle Mountain) We Are Water Protectors is published by Roaring Book Press. Goade's acceptance speech is published in Horn Book on June 28, 2021 and is viewable at the ALA YouTube channel: 2021 Newbery-Caldecott-Legacy Virtual Banquet. 

*

Apple (Skin to the Core) by Eric Gansworth (Onondaga) is the first Native author to win a Michael L. Printz Honor. The Printz awards exemplify literary excellence in young adult literature. It was established in 2000. 

*

Jo Jo Makoons: The Used-To-Be Best Friend written by Dawn Quigley (Turtle Mountain Ojibwe) and illustrated by Tara Audibert is the first chapter book series for early readers. 

*

Sharice's Big Voice: A Native Kid Becomes a Congresswoman, written by Sharice Davids (Ho-Chunk) and Nancy K. Mays (non-Native) and illustrated by Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley (Ojibwe) is the first picture book about one of the first Native women elected to the U.S. Congress.

*

The Diné Reader: An Anthology of Navajo Literature,  is the first publication of an anthology of all-Navajo literature.  

*

Healer of the Water Monster, written by Brian Young (Navajo) and illustrated by Shonto Begay (Navajo) is the first book for middle grade readers, written and illustrated by two people of the Navajo Nation. It is published by HarperCollins.

*

Sisters of the Neversea, written by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Muscogee) and illustrated by Floyd Cooper (Muscogee), and published under the Heartdrum imprint of Harper Collins, is the first book written and illustrated by two people of the Muscogee Nation.

*

Josie Dances, written by Denise Lajimodiere (Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe) and illustrated by Angela Erdrich (Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe) is the first book written and illustrated by two people of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe Nation. 

*

The first young adult hardcover to debut at the #1 spot on the New York Times best-selling books list is Angeline Boulley's (Ojibwe) Firekeeper's Daughter. 

2020: AICL's Best Books of 2020

This is the time of the year when annual "Best of" booklists come out. AICL has published our own Best Books lists for many years now. We like to make sure teachers have those suggestions as they think about what to bring into their classrooms. And as the winter holidays approach, we want families to know what's new and good in books with Native content, that they can give to the young people in their lives.

The year 2020 has been difficult for us at AICL. We've only been able to create 38 posts. We've read some books that we like and haven't yet created reviews for, but will list them below and when we can we'll get a review done. We also find ourselves in the unusual position of not having been able to get to all the 2020 books by Native creators -- this may be one of most prolific years ever for publications by Native and First Nations writers and illustrators. So we promise to add to the Best Books list as we have a chance to read the ones we may have missed. 

In not posting reviews for all books on our Best Books list, we realize we are asking you to trust us but we hope that 15 years of work on AICL demonstrates that our assessments are careful and attentive to children and how they may be impacted by the Native content in a book. 

That said, below is AICL's list of Best Books published in 2020. Books are arranged by age of reader but any book in any category can--and should be--read by every reader. Teens and adults can gain tremendously by studying the words and illustrations in a picture book and you can share content of middle or young adult books with younger children. 

In parenthesis following the names of individuals, we provide information about their tribal nation. We use information that the individual uses. Some writers say they are an "enrolled citizen" and some say "tribal member." Some only list a nation (or more than one) but due to those nation's determinations of its citizenry, there are people who can't be enrolled or claim to be citizens of any nation. They are, however, recognized by people of those nations. 

We hope you share our list with parents, teachers, librarians, caregivers, professors... anybody who works with children and books! Don't miss Best Books of previous years! And if there is a book that we did not list, please submit a comment to let us know. 

Best Books of 2020

American Indians in Children's Literature

Books by Native Writers or Illustrators

Comics and Graphic Novels

• Vermette, Katherena (Metis). Illustrated by Scott B. Henderson & Donovan Yaciuk. A Girl Called Echo, Vol. 3: Northwest Resistance. Highwater Press. Canada

Board Books

• Gonzales, Angela Y. (Koyukon Athabascan). Button Up! Fall in Alaska. Best Beginnings Alaska, US. [Added on December 13, 2020.]
• Haayk Foundation, Illustrated by Huk Yuunsk (Tsimshian, Gitsbutwada Clan) [Note: Huk Yuunsk includes his English name, David Lang, in parenthesis.] Wilgyigyet: Learn the Colors in Sm'algyax. Sealaska Heritage. 
• Robertson, Joanne (Atikameksheng Anishnawbek). nibi is water, nibi aawon nbiish. Second Story Press, Canada. 
• Snow, Carla (Yup'ik Upper). Bye-Bye Ice! Springtime in Alaska. Best Beginnings Alaska, US. [Added on December 13, 2020.]
• Spiess, Joni (Inupiaq). Mittens and Mukluks! Winter in Alaska. Best Beginnings Alaska, US. [Added on December 13, 2020.]
• Toolie-Walker, Yaari (Siberian Yupik). Let's Play Out! Summer in Alaska. Best Beginnings Alaska, US. [Added on December 13, 2020.]

Picture Books

• Baker, Darryl (Inuit). Kamik Takes the Lead illustrated by Ali Hinch. Inhabit Media, Canada.
• Begay-Kroupa, Jolyana (Navajo). Becoming Miss Navajo. Salina Bookshelf. US.
• Brink, Heather (Ojibwe), illustrated by Jordan Rodgers (Lakota). Rez Dog. Black Bears and Blueberries. US.
• Callaghan, Jodie (Listuguj First Nation). The Train. Second Story Press. Canada.
• Cooper, Nancy (Band member of the Chippewas of Rama First Nation. E Meshkwadooniged mitig/Trading Tree illustrated by Heather Charles (Member of the Chippewas of Georgina Island First Nation), translated by Myrtle Jamieson (Waaseyaankwot Kwe). The Prince's Trust and Clear Water Farm, Canada.
• Erdrich, Louise (Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians). The Range Eternal, paintings by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher). University of Minnesota Press. US.
• Gyetxw, Hetxw'ms (Gitxsan) The Eagle Mother, illustrated by Natasha Donovan. Highwater Press. Canada. [Note: the author includes his English name, Brett D. Huson, in parenthesis after his Native name. For our list, we put an author's tribal nation in parenthesis.]
• Lindstrom, Carole (Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians), illustrated by Michaela Goade (Tlingit, member of the Kiks.ådi Clan). We Are Water Protectors. Roaring Brook Press. US.
• Sammurtok, Nadia (Inuit), illustrated by Lenny Lishchenko (Ukrainian/Canadian). In My Anaana's Amuatik. Inhabit Media. Canada.
• Smith, Monique Gray (Cree/Lakota), illustrated by Nicole Neidhardt (Diné), translated by Mildred Waters (Diné). When We Are Kind. Orca Books. 

For Middle Grades

• Note from Debbie on Nov 28, 2023: Due to my concerns over Art Coulson's claim of being Cherokee, I am no longer recommending his books.  Coulson, Art (Cherokee), illustrations by Carlin Bear Don't Walk (Crow and Northern Cheyenne). The Reluctant Storyteller. Includes "The Energy of the Thunder Beings" by Art Coulson, illustrated by Roy Boney Jr. (full blood citizen of the Cherokee Nation) and "Cherokee Life Today" by Traci Sorell (enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation). Reycraft Books, US.
• Day, Christine (enrolled, Upper Skagit). The Sea In Winter. Heartdrum (HarperCollins), U.S. [Note: we read an advanced copy of the book; its official publication date is 2021.]
• Engleking, Jessica (White Earth Band of Ojibwe), illustrated by Tashia Hart (Red Lake Anishinaabe). Peggy Flanagan: Ogimaa Kwe, Lieutenant Governor. Wise Ink Creative Publishing. US.
• Ferris, Kade (Turtle Mountain Chippewa and Canadian Metis descent), illustrated by Tashia Hart (Red Lake Anishinaabe). Charles Albert Bender: National Hall of Fame Pitcher. Wise Ink Creative Publishing. US.
• Hopson, Nasuġraq Rainey (Inupiaq). "The Cabin" in Rural Voices edited by Nora Shalaway Carpenter, Candlewick Press. US.
• Peacock, Thomas (Ojibwe). The Wolf's Trail: An Ojibwe Story, Told by Wolves. Holy Cow! Press. US.
• Pokiak-Fenton, Margaret-Olemaun (Inuvialuk of the Inuvialuit) and Christy Jordan-Fenton. Fatty Legs (10th Anniversary Edition). Annick Press. 2020.
• Rogers, Andrea L. (Cherokee). Mary and the Trail of Tears: A Cherokee Removal Story. Stone Arch Books (Capstone). US.
• Sorell, Traci. (Enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation). "The Way of the Anigiduwagi" illustrated by MaryBeth Timothy (Cherokee), in The Talk: Conversations about Race, Love & Truth edited by Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson. Random House Children's Books. US.
• Wilson, Diane (Dakota Mdewakanton Oyate enrolled on the Rosebud Reservation), illustrated by Tashia Hart (Red Lake Anishinaabe). Ella Cara Deloria: Dakota Language Protector. Wise Ink Creative Publishing. US.

For High School

• Boivin, Lisa (Member of the Deninu Kue First Nation). I Will See You Again. Highwater Press. Canada.
• Gansworth, Eric (Enrolled member of the Onondaga Nation). Apple (Skin to the Core). Levine Querido. US.
• Little Badger, Darcie (Lipan Apache). Elatsoe. Levine Querido. US. 

Cross-Over Books (Written for adults; appeal to young adults)

• Harjo, Joy. (Mvskoke). When the Light of the World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through: A Norton Anthology of Native Nations Poetry. Edited by Joy Harjo. W. W. Norton and Company. US.
• Kwaymullina, Ambelin. (Palyku of the Pilbara region of Western Australia). Living on Stolen Land. Magabala Books. Australia.
• Rendon, Marcie. (White Earth Anishinabe). What's an Indian Woman to do? In When the Light of the World was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through: A Norton Anthology of Native Nations Poetry. Edited by Joy Harjo. W. W. Norton and Company. US.

Books by Writers or Illustrators Who Are Not Native

For Middle Grade

• LeZotte, Ann Clare. Show Me A Sign. Scholastic.

---------------

*We are grateful to readers who write to tell us about errors we make in our lists. We welcome your emails. 

The Monster That Eats Villages: White Anti-Indigenous Raceshifting in Canada

by Jean Mendoza

Pre-COVID, when Durango and I took road trips with our grandkids, they often asked to hear our storytelling CDs by Dovie Thomason (Lakota/Kiowa Apache). One of her creepiest stories, from Wopila: A Giveaway, is a tale that begins when some men, on the way home from hunting, hear a baby's cry. One man follows the sound, and returns to the group carrying an infant. The others are wary about this, but he insists that they take the baby to their village. 

There, the child is welcomed and given to a young woman to raise. But that night, she notices something strange about the sleeping child: echoes of human cries and screams seem to emanate from him. Soon, it's (quietly) determined that the "baby" is actually Iya, a shape-shifting monster that gains access to villages by trickery, then swallows them whole. 

I won't spoil Dovie's gift by giving away the ending. But I do want to talk about how that story intersects with some scholarly reading I've been doing.

Darryl Leroux's Distorted Descent: White Claims to Indigenous Identity (University of Manitoba Press, 2019) takes a close look at a particular set of non-Native people who claim Native identity. 

As you may already know, that phenomenon has been around a long time on what's currently called North America. The perpetrators tend to be white, and have a variety of motivations for their claims. Some "admire" Native people and view Nativeness as a space where they can somehow belong just because they want to. For some, it's a career boost. It helps them to stand out from other white people in otherwise crowded fields. Maybe it helps them get a job in academia or with a Native nation, or garners them extra attention as an artist, novelist, or speaker. Sometimes the motives (and the individual's confidence that they won't eventually get called out) are hard to figure out, as with white writers like Joseph Boyden, "Jamake Highwater," and John Smelcer who have falsely claimed to be Indigenous. Recently, Native and mainstream media covered a case of faux-Indigenous identity with an especially sick twist: a white person essentially created the persona of a Native scholar, and posted on social media under that identity for several years. This masquerade became public knowledge (though some, especially Native scholars, had long suspected it) when the perpetrator decided to kill off the alter-ego via COVID, and the "death" couldn't be confirmed.

Then there are the faux-"tribal" organizations that a white person in what's currently the United States can join, often for some amount of money. Many of these provide cover for non-Natives seeking personal gain, such as through lucrative government contracts that give priority to businesses owned by BIPOC.

Those fakeries are not a part of Leroux's research. Though they are examples of what he calls "raceshifting," what Leroux has studied takes the identity fraud to a whole different level. Leroux is not Native, by the way. He's looking at what amounts to a movement, in which large numbers of French-descendant white Canadians have begun "self-Indigenizing" with very particular anti-Indigenous goals. This practice, Leroux says, has been growing by leaps and bounds for the past 20 years. Though it's not confined to white-presenting people of French descent or to Canadians, his primary focus is on people who claim to be "Eastern Métis" (or sometimes "Quebec métis), a category that Leroux notes has no real historical basis.

To be clear: there are peoples with legitimate Métis identity. If what I say here is incorrect in any way, I hope Métis readers will jump in and correct me. Their homelands mainly are considered to be in what are currently known as Canada's Western provinces, and parts of the northern US. Their culture and language are based on kinship relations between early French-speaking settlers and the Plains Cree, Salteaux, Assiniboine, and Dene peoples. Métis in French is equivalent to the English word "mixed." According to what I've read about the language (Michif), it combines elements of French, Cree, and some Ojibwe, and has a complex grammar and syntax. It is considered an endangered language. 

The true Métis identity comes with a history of struggle, bloodshed, and heroism. You can find some of this history woven into the graphic novel series A Girl Called Echo by Katharena Vermette. We've recommended Echo books on AICL. 

But the self-Indigenizing "Eastern Métis" have no interest in that history. They do not claim to be descendants of people stolen from their Indigenous families by boarding schools, "adopting out", or other government policies and practices. They're not trying to find a way home. If they were, Leroux points out, First Nations have mechanisms for dealing with their circumstances.

Instead, these raceshifters tend to be openly contemptuous of Indigenous peoples. They hold (one might say they cherish) negative stereotypes and blatantly white supremacist beliefs about First Nations. They have no interest in traditions (unlike white New-Agers in the US), or in revitalizing endangered Native languages. French is the only language they express concern about preserving.

Their sole interest lies in Native rights -- specifically, in getting those rights for themselves. Hunting and fishing rights are particularly important to a number of the raceshifters. In fact, Leroux found, hunting and fishing organizations are where a great many of them got to know each other.  Some have met through white-rights groups. Leroux found them openly, actively committed to opposing Indigenous land and territorial negotiations. They make no secret of these goals -- not in online forums, in court, nor in their conversations with Leroux. You might say they are deeply and proudly committed to making sure the part of the world they're in stays as colonized as possible.

They have no real understanding of the background of the legal relations between Canada and First Nations and Métis, nor do they care about it. What they know is that the First Nations people seem to have some things they feel should be theirs (e.g., the right to hunt or fish freely in certain places over which Indigenous people -- with good reason -- have jurisdiction). They saw that the quickest way to get those things would be to claim Indigenous ancestry.

So how do these proudly white-presenting raceshifters go about making themselves Indigenous? 

They can't simply claim that Great-Grandma was an Ojibwe princess; that doesn't work any more. Instead, Leroux found, they use circuitous genealogical and legal-system maneuvers. They comb through genealogies -- readily available partly because of the long-standing French Canadian interest in European heritage. They manage to trace their lineages to a few specific 17th-century women. Those women's birth records, marriage records, etc. indicate that they were French immigrants to what is now called Canada. But (sometimes with the help of genealogists of questionable repute) the raceshifters concoct Indigenous identities for the women, "discovering" that this or that ancestor from the 1600s was Ojibwe, Wendat, or some other Native identity --even when records clearly show that the supposed forebear was born in France, to French parents. Often with encouragement from others on online forums, aspiring "Eastern Métis" sidestep or ignore or flat-out lie about evidence that in fact their ancestry is purely European. Some have gone so far as to claim that there were obviously TWO persons named X in a given area in the 1600s, and THEIR ancestor of that name was Indigenous. 

All of this might be comical if the raceshifters didn't pose a threat to the political well-being of First Nations/Métis peoples. The (white) "Eastern Métis" number in the thousands. One of their manufactured "tribal" identities has some 20,000 members. There may be enough of them to turn the heads of elected officials who need Métis votes. Leroux recounts a situation in which they worked hard to mobilize local residents against the Innu and Mi'kmaq First Nations. Raceshifters may even get elected to office themselves, with direct power over the interpretation of First Nations' rights. 

Leroux's Raceshifting Web site includes a map showing the locations of faux-Metis organizations, and lists the court cases they've been involved in. In none of those cases were the fakers seeking greater rights for actual Indigenous people. Invariably, they saw those rights as illegitimate, and sought to erode them.   

At first, I was reading Distorted Descent in the end-of-the-day calm when I could take in Leroux's careful scholarship and the complexities of his research (not having encountered words like "haploid" for many years). But after a certain point in the book, I was so angry and horrified it was hard to fall asleep. My dreams were populated by monsters and I was unable to shout to spread an alarm. 

It seemed to me that in those dreams, the faux-Métis were the monsters -- like the evil Iya in Dovie's story, they disguise themselves in order to destroy and devour. Their unapologetic contempt for actual First Nations and Métis peoples, their self-justification, their racism, their trickery, and their ultimate goals, are infuriating and terrifying. Now I read Leroux's book in the full light of day, in small doses. Horror has never been a good genre for me, and Distorted Descent is, to me, a real-life, research-based horror story.

So why talk about this academic work on AICL? Because I have no doubt that before long, someone who claims to be "Eastern Métis" will write a children's book in what purports to be an authentic Métis voice. Readers, educators, librarians: be wary. Be informed. 

By all means, read Vermette's A Girl Called Echo series! And buy Dovie Thomason's CDs, and go see her in person when the COVID monster is vanquished.  

I'm not done reading Distorted Descent yet. Not wanting to make any unwarranted negative judgments in this post, I skimmed the conclusion to see if at least some of Leroux's subjects found a conscience and moved toward more ethical behavior.  I am sorry to say that -- as is the case with the monster Iya -- the antagonists in this story have no redemption arc.

Recommended: "Grace" and "Homecoming" by Darcie Little Badger in TAKE THE MIC

"Grace" and "Homecoming" 

Written by Dr. Darcie Little Badger

Published in 2019 in Take the Mic

Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books (Scholastic)

Reviewed by Debbie Reese

Status: Recommended

****

Dr. Darcie Little Badger has two stories in Take the Mic: Fictional Stories of Everyday Resistance. In the final pages of the book you can read a little about her. I follow her on Twitter (@ShiningComic) and it has been terrific reading her tweets as she's made her way to that PhD in Oceanography from Texas A&M. 

Edited by Bethany Morrow, Take the Mic: Fictional Stories of Everyday Resistance came out in 2019 from Scholastic. Here's the description:

You might be the kind of person who stands up to online trolls.Or who marches to protest injustice. 

Perhaps you are #DisabledAndCute and dancing around your living room, alive and proud. 

Or perhaps you are the trans mentor that you wish you had when you were younger. 

Maybe you call out false allies, or stand up to loved ones. 

Maybe you speak your truth and drop the mic, or maybe you take it with you when you leave. 

This anthology features fictional stories--in poems, prose, and art--that reflect a slice of the varied and limitless ways that readers like you resist every day. Take the Mic's powerful collection of stories features work by literary luminaries and emerging talent alike, including Newbery-winner Jason Reynolds, New York Times bestseller Samira Ahmed, anthologist and contributor Bethany C. Morrow, Darcie Little Badger, Keah Brown, Laura Silverman, L.D. Lewis, Sofia Quintero, Ray Stoeve, Yamile Mendez, and Connie Sun, with cover and interior art by Richie Pope.

The first and last story in the book are Darcie's. The first one is "Grace" and the last is "Homecoming." In her introduction, Bethany wrote that the resistance in "Grace" is an Indigenous girl who doesn't stand for unwanted physical advances. That does happen in the story and I love how it is done. As an Indigenous person, I see several other acts of resistance in Darcie's stories.

"I'm Lipan Apache" is one. With those three words in the story, Grace is pushing back on the notion that Native peoples are monolithic. Another misguided notion is that Native peoples live on reservations. In fact, some of us do and some of us don't. Some are on our reservations sometime, but not all the time. And some of our nations don't have reservations. Some of us have ancestral land that isn't reservation land, that we return to periodically. That theme in "Grace" is embodied by her account of where she's lived, where she's living when the story takes place, and where she's going to live.

Turning now to "Homecoming," Grace, her mom, and her mama are home, on the ancestral lands of the Lipan Apache people. Summer is over; it is the first day of school. Grace is doing that thing that many teens do: going through her closet trying to decide what to wear. She settles on a T-shirt with Silver Synapse on it. He's an Apache superhero. Grace got the shirt at Indigenous Comic Con. At school, she's one of the few Native students.

Her mom is driving her to school. When they get there, they see that a protest is taking place in front of the high school. People are carrying signs. On one, Grace sees that it says "BRING BACK OUR BRAVE." Painted on it is a cartoonish and stereotypical image.

Inside the school, Grace heads to her first class and meets a girl named Naomi who, noticing Grace's shirt, thinks Grace is part of the protest. When Grace tells her who Silver Synapse is, Naomi asks if Grace is Native--and then--"how much are you?"

Grace's reply to Naomi is another act of resistance:

"Blood quantum isn't our thing," I said. "My mother is Lipan and I am too." 

Naomi is satisfied with that and doesn't probe further. The two go on to talk about the protesters who want the mascot reinstated. People who don't read Native news, or news stories about mascots, may not know that schools do the right thing and get rid of mascots, but then alums object and mascots get reinstated.

The Jan 11, 2020 issue of The New York Times ran a story about this: Officials Called 'Redmen' a Racist Mascot. Then Voters Weighed In; and see the Timeline in "American Indian Mascots" by Paulette Fairbanks Molin in American Indian Stereotypes in the World of Children edited by Arlene Hirschfelder, Paulette F. Molin, Yvonne Wakim, and Michael A. Dorris.

As "Homecoming" draws to a close, Grace is at a protest. She's scheduled to speak but learns that the event is set up to give "both sides" equal time to respond to an issue. Grace is indignant at that idea--as anybody should be, about issues of social justice. She takes the mic and says:

“Hóóyíí, Shizhách’i’íí ashíí Shitsiłki’ii!” I boomed. “My name is Grace. Like my mama, grandmothers, great-grandmothers, and great-great-grandmothers, I am Lipan Apache. To my Native siblings, mínì’ níáá dààgó̱ó̱t́í!”  

I paused to look every Bring-Back-the-Braves protester in the eye.  

“My humanity,” I continued, “is not up for debate. Xásteyo.”

Those last words are so powerful (Xásteyo means thank you)!

I've read several of Darcie Little Badger's stories and each time, I'm deeply moved by what she writes. I highly recommend "Grace" and "Homecoming."

Native Perspectives on Nathan Phillips and the Covington Catholic School boys

I am creating this curated list of Native responses to what happened on Friday, January 18, 2019 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC.

Everyone involved in the moments at the end of the march was in DC for a political reason. Many people are calling Nathan Phillips an activist, but the students from Covington Catholic School were also there to participate in a political march. They, too, are activists.

Many Native people are frustrated with the media coverage. Initial reports condemned the boys but that quickly turned to criticism of Phillips. Some writers and professors wrote to those outlets, expressing concern and offering to write something from a Native perspective. They were rebuffed. Some are using their own platforms, and some are using outlets that most people in the US do not read or know about. Some have been asked to be on NPR.

The list is arranged, chronologically. Unless otherwise indicated, the items were added to the list on January 24, 2019. If you are Native and have written something you want me to add, or if you read something written by a Native person that you want me to add, please provide the link in a comment.

Note at 3:42 PM: I will not publish comments that tell me to "watch the whole video." I watched that whole video on Jan 20. My observations on it are in a long Twitter thread I start on the the 19th. However you choose to characterize the earlier interactions between the Covington students and the Hebrew Israelites is of no consequence. It does not justify the subsequent behaviors towards Nathan Phillips. Regardless of what happened before Mr. Phillips approached the boys, doing the tomahawk chop and singing the tune that goes with that action, is stereotypical and inappropriate. 

~~~~

December 23, 2018

Cultural Survival: "We Are Still Here!" Indigenous Peoples March is Heading to D.C.  The article is co-written by Kelly Holmes of the Cheyenne River Reservation.

January 18, 2019

Indian Country Today: #IndigenousPeoplesMarch #IPMDC19 social media photo and video posts

Indian Country Today: The Nathan Phillips incident: A long day of worldwide news and a school apology by Vincent Shilling, Akwesasne Mohawk, and associate editor at Indian Country Today.

On Facebook: The National Congress of American Indians posted this graphic that says "Thank you Nathan Phillips for showing the world yesterday what tolerance and resilience look like. In the face of ignorance and intimidation, you reminded us that the song cannot stop, and our prayers for our people will never stop."

January 19, 2019

On Twitter: Congressman Sharice Davids: "Nathan Phillips' behavior in the face of that crowd demonstrates why we have so much respect for our elders..." (Added on Friday, Jan 25)

On Facebook: Louise Erdrich: "Why I keep writing. To all Native writers and poets who know his song was a prayer for that boy. Keep telling our stories." (Added on Friday, Jan 25)

Note: for lists of books for children and teens, see AICL's Best Books lists. With very few exceptions, they are books by Native writers, including Louise Erdrich. 

January 20, 2019

Indian Country Today: Yakama Nation Chairman [JoDe Goudy] on Covington Catholic boys' hatred towards Native elder.

Splinter: The Smile Is What Stays With You by Nick Martin, Sappony.

The Hill: Haaland condemns students' behavior towards Native elder at Indigenous Peoples March. Haaland is a member of Laguna Pueblo.

January 21, 2019

Native News Online: The Story of Two Videos at the Lincoln Memorial with American Indian Elder Singing is by Levi Rickert of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation.

Indian Country Today: A Summary of Indian Country Today's coverage on Nathan Phillips and #MAGAyouth by Vincent Shilling, Akwesasne Mohawk, and associate editor at Indian Country Today.

On Facebook: Dina Gilio-Whitaker's (Colville Confederated Tribes) response to to an article in The Atlantic (includes link to the article).

NY Daily News: Native Elder Nathan Phillips reflects on his stare down with Kentucky students and the lingering legacy of white privilege includes an interview with Nathan Phillips (Omaha) conducted by Theresa Braine, who is not Native.

MSNBC: Organizer of Indigenous Peoples Day March responds to viral video is an interview with Tara Houska, Couchiching First Nation. 

January 22, 2019

Democracy Now: "I Was Absolutely Afraid": Indigenous Elder on "Mob Mentality" of MAGA Hat-Wearing Students in D.C. is an interview of Nathan Phillips, Omaha.

NPR's On Point: In Our Viral World, A Closer Look at Teen's Confrontation with Native American Elder. Guests include Tristan Ahtone of the Kiowa Tribe. He is the president of the Native American Journalists Association. Second guest is Jacqueline Keeler, member of the Navajo Nation, on the board of the Native American Journalists Association.

Native News Online: Leonard Peltier on the Elder Singing AIM Song at Lincoln Memorial; Breaks Down Songs Origin.

CBC: Two photos: Different times, same outrage by Dan David Taiorenhote, Mohawk.

Bad NDNS: "First" Encounters by Deborah A. Miranda, Ohlone/Costanoan Esselen Nation.

Sojourners: The Voices of Indigenous People Continue to be Silenced by Kaitlin Curtice, enrolled citizen of the Potawatomi Citizen Band Nation.

The Globe and Mail: The confrontation between the Covington students and Nathan Phillips is America, laid bare by Niigaan Sinclair, Anishinaabe (St. Peter's/Little Peguis).

Pacific Standard: Why the video of the Catholic boys felt so shameful by Terese Marie Mailhot, Seabird Island Band.

Medium: An Open Letter of Apology to Native Americans From One of the Covington Catholic School Students  (note: this is not by one of the student; rather it is what we imagine they could say) by Tiffany Midge, enrolled citizen of the Standing Rock Sioux.

The Star: Indifference and disrespect are constants in the lives of Indigenous peoples by Tanya Talaga, Anishinaabe.

January 23, 2019

Native America Calling: Face-to-face with disrespect included four individuals who were in DC for the march: Quese Imc (Pawnee/Seminole) – hip hop emcee and independent music producer, Nathan Phillips (Omaha) -U.S. Marine Vietnam Era Veteran and Elder, Lance Gumbs (Shinnecock Indian Nation) – a senior trustee and councilman of the Council of the Shinnecock Indian Nation and the regional vice president of the National Congress of American Indians, and Kansas Middletent (Lakota) – ambassador for Native Hope. The fifth guest was Dr. Marisa Duarte (Pascua Yaqui Tribe) – assistant professor of Justice and Sociotechnical Change in the School of Social Transformation at Arizona State University.

Think Progress: I know what I saw when I watched the Covington video by Rebecca Nagle, a citizen of the Cherokee Nation. 

The Guardian: The US is still not ready to look at the ugly racism against Native Americans, by Julian Brave NoiseCat, member of the Canim Lake Band Tsq'escen and a descendant of the Lil'Wat Nation of Mount Currie.

The Daily Beast: The History of the Covington MAGA Teens' Racist 'Tomahawk Chop' by Robert Silverman includes comments from Amanda Blackhorse and Jacqueline Keeler. Both are members of the Diné or Navajo Nation.

Sierra Club: "Land Gets Stolen. That's How it Works." What happened at the Lincoln Memorial proves most Americans are still not hearing the Native American experience by Jacqueline Keeler, member of the Navajo Nation.

NPR's Code Switch: The Fight for Native Voices To Be Heard is Audie Cornish's interview with Jacqueline Keeler, member of the Navajo Nation.

Truthout: The MAGA Boys are Racist Brats by Kelly Hayes, member of the Menominee nation.

CNN: America mocks and dehumanizes natives at ever turn by Simon Moya-Smith, Oglala Lakota and Chicano.

UPROXX: How It Feels To Be An Indigenous American At This Moment In History by Zach Johnston, Skokomish Indian Reservation, Twana (təw'ánəxʷ) people.

Cartoons and Caricatures statement by the Native American Rights Fund.

Last Real Indians: Nathan Phillips Offers to Meet with Covington Catholic High School Students by Matt Remle, Standing Rock Sioux.

On Facebook: Weshoyot Alvitre, shared her sketch of Nathan Phillips. Alvitre is Tongva. (Added here on Jan 25)

On Facebook: The Omaha Tribal Council says "Wi'btha'hon (thank you) to Mr. Nathan Phillips", Omaha Tribal Member and Elder. (Added here on Jan 26):

NBC News Think: Noah Berlatsky's Nick Sandmann, a student at Covington Catholic, says he was a silent bystander in viral video. But his MAGA hat spoke for him includes an interview with Chase Iron Eyes, Lakota. 

January 24, 2019

On Twitter: Kaitlin Curtice (enrolled citizen of the Potawatomi Citizen Band Nation) does an analysis of interviews of Nathan Phillips on Democracy Now and on the Today show.

The Intercept: Portraying the MAGA Teens as Victims is an Extension of Native American Erasure by Nick Estes, citizen of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe.

Walking Eagle News [satire]: New 528-year-long video sheds light on confrontation between Indigenous Peoples, Canada, by Tim Fontaine, Anishinaabe.

On Facebook: Beverly Singer of Santa Clara Pueblo, a comment to Debbie Reese's post.

Quora: Alex Jacobs, Mohawk, replies to What is the most serious or wrong part of what students from Covington Catholic School did to an elderly Native American? 

Splinter: The Smearing of Nathan Phillips by Nick Martin, Sappony.


January 25, 2019

Rewire: What Covington Catholic Students Should Know About the Church's History with Indigenous People by Mary Annette Pember, Ojibwe.

In addition to Pember's article, consider getting a copy of Jenny Kay Dupuis's book, I Am Not A Number. As the figure on the left margin indicates, the book is about a Native child at a Catholic school. 

Very Good Light: As a young Navajo the Catholic Covington boys are a painful reminder of my people's past by Kolton Nephew, Navajo Nation. (added here on Jan 26)

The Hollywod Reporter: Nathan Phillips, Yalitza Aparicio and the Long History of Media (Mis)representations of Native Peoples by N. Bird Runningwater, Cheyenne/Mescalero Apache. (added here on Jan 26)

The Washington Post: The Mishandling of the MAGA teens story shows why I gave up on mainstream media by Tristan Ahtone, Kiowa.

January 26, 2019

CBC: Importance of Indigenous Peoples March overshadowed by 'the face of white privilege' by Doug Cuthand, member of the Little Pine First Nation, Saskatchewan. (added on Jan 27)

January 27, 2019

MSNBC: It's inexcusable how media is trying to flip the script on coverage of Native American activist and teens by Dallas Goldtooth, Mdewakanton Dakota and Diné. (added on Jan 27)

Vanity Fair: Podcast interview. True Detective's Michael Greyeyes on His Brutal, "Cathartic," and Topical Story Line.  Greyeyes is Nêhiyaw/ Muskeg Lake Cree Nation. (added on Jan 31)

January 28, 2019

Beacon Press: Cutting to the Chase of the Covington Catholic Fiasco, by Dina Gilio-Whitaker, Colville Confederated Tribes.

January 29, 2019
Native Commentary and Opinion: We All Saw What We Saw and Don't Let Anyone Tell you Different by Alex Jacobs, Mohawk. (added on Jan 31)

January 30, 2019

Bustle: Racism Against Native Americans is Happening Daily & You Need to Know What We Face by Rebecca Nagle, citizen of the Cherokee Nation.

Osage News: Respect by Ruby Hansen Murray (added on Jan 31).

The Hollywood Reporter: Indigenous People's Long Road to Visibility in Hollywood by Sierra Teller Ornelas, Navajo. (added on Jan 31).

February 4, 2019

The Guardian: His side of the story: Nathan Phillips wants to talk about Covington by Julian Brave NoiseCat, member of the Canim Lake Band Tsq'escen and a descendant of the Lil'Wat Nation of Mount Currie. (added on Feb 4).