The Native Blog

Radio Station to apologize for racist remarks

Radio Station to apologize for racist remarks

"A popular Twin Cities  radio station will apologize for offending Native Americans in Minnesota.

KQRS agreed to air apologies from the hosts of its morning program. Tom Barnard and Terri Traen blamed a high rate of suicides on "incest" within the Red Lake Nation and criticized the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community for its wealth.

"These were irresponsible comments that are way out of bounds and intolerable," Red Lake Chairman Floyd Jourdain said, according to Minnesota Public Radio."

KQRS remarks upset Indian Leaders and other news of the day

Today at ten o'clock Indian leaders in Minnesota are going to protest KQRS on-air remarks about the Red Lake and Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Tribes. KQRS has a history of racist trash talk not only against Native Americans but other minority groups:

"Minority groups have long criticized Barnard and his crew for their on-air banter.

In the late 1990s, members of the Somali community picketed over Barnard and Co.'s mocking of Somali dialects after a Somali cabdriver        was slain. Before that, the Asian-American community was irate when Barnard and his co-hosts made fun of a teenage Hmong girl who was    charged with killing her newborn son.

They said of her potential $10,000 fine: "That's a lot of eggrolls."

And in other news of the day there is a article in the Lawrence, Kansas newspaper called Haunted Haskell. That must be a first to address: all those Halloween stories one heard on the Haskell campus over the decades!

Jacoby Ellsbury gets his first World Series ring as the Boston Red Sox wins the World Series in a four game sweep. Also the Boston Red Sox outfielder won free tacos for America for stealing a base in the Thursday's World Series game...!

Toto, I don't think we are in Kansas anymore...!

I used to listen to KQRS in Minneapolis back in the ’90’s. KQRS is  a rock and roll station and they had some great music on there! But after awhile the KQRS Morning talk show started to get really racist toward Indians 'cos of treaty rights and stuff, so I just quit listening to them. After all these years it looks like they haven't changed in their racist attitudes towards Native Americans here in Minnesota, This is a recent transcript from the KQRS Morning Show.

Also the Shakopee Mdewakantion Sioux Community gave 12.5 million to the University of Minnesota and that really brought the non-Indian gambling people out of the woodwork. They blasted the tribe for giving that amount. In this state it seems no good deed goes unpunished...!

Vernon Bellecourt, Ojibwe leader dies at 75

Vernon Bellecourt, Ojibwe leader dies at 75

"Vernon Bellecourt, a longtime leader of the American Indian Movement, died Saturday. He was 75.

Bellecourt died at Abbott Northwestern Hospital of complications of pneumonia, said his brother, Clyde Bellecourt, a founder of the group.

Clyde Bellecourt said his brother had been in Venezuela about four weeks ago to meet with President Hugo Chavez to discuss Chavez's program for providing heating assistance to American Indian tribes. He fell ill around the time of his return.

His condition continued to deteriorate, and he was put on a respirator a week ago. He died within a minute after being disconnected Saturday, his brother said."

White Earth Enrollee Picnic

Around noon today we are going to the White Earth Ojibwe enrollee picnic here in the Twin Cites! I am going to wear my '07 Potawatomi Gathering T-Shirt and try to blend in...

From the Circle

'Fond du Lac Follies' by Jim Northrup

Last week's Red Lake Powwow...

On the Red Lake Ojibwe News website they have tons of photos from last week's Red Lake Independence Day Celebration 2007.

Prairie Island Powwow-July 13-15, Welch, Minnesota

Fond du lac Follies

Fond du lac Follies is a column that appears in Northern Ojibwe tribal papers and is by Ojibwe Vietnam Veteran & Author Jim Northrup.