Native communities confront harms, focus on healing
Tribal leaders in the Northern Plains demand federal accountability, a bereaved mother seeks answers and families and dancers find strength in the powwow community
MMIP groups and tribal councils condemn violence by federal law enforcement
North and South Dakota tribes issue joint statement
By Jolan Kruse
Tribes in the Northern Plains are speaking out in response to immigration enforcement activity following the second fatal shooting of a U.S. citizen in Minneapolis and the arrest of a Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate tribal member by federal agents.
Goodbye, cabin fever: Bismarck winter powwow promotes healing
Over 200 dancers participated in the 3rd annual Winter Jam Powwow
The coldest weekend yet of 2026 didn’t stop dancers, singers, vendors and observers from gathering for Bismarck’s third annual Winter Jam Powwow on Jan. 24 at the Bismarck Event Center. The contest powwow organized by Native Inc. featured dozens of Native-owned craft vendors, nearly a dozen drum groups and around 200 dancers from tribal nations around the region.
Standing Rock man assaulted hours before death by train
Hoksila Running Bear was struck by a train following months of threats. His mother seeks answers
By Jolan Kruse
On Oct. 25, in Mandan, North Dakota, Hoksila Running Bear left a friend’s trailer park around 10 p.m. and headed home. At 10:20 p.m., he is seen on a security camera crossing the street at the intersection of Bisman Avenue and Memorial Highway, his mother, Brittney Rough Surface-Arnett, said. Another five minutes of walking and he would be home.
The Daily Spark – quick, must-read micro stories to start your day
Our Daily Spark feature delivers news summaries each day to give you a quick overview of current events in Indian Country. The format prioritizes brevity, providing key updates in short, digestible summaries. This makes it a valuable resource for quickly grasping important developments on a broad range of issues affecting Indigenous communities.
Here are some of the stories you may have missed this week:
Strong reporting on interconnected Indigenous issues. The contrast between federal enforcement violence and the healing powwow community reveals deep tensions in how safety gets defined. I worked briefly with MMIP advocacy groups and the consistent thread was how institutional responses often amplify trauma instead of addressing it. The Running Bear case especialy shows this, when someone facing threats gets no protection but later becomes a statistic.