In recognition of 2024 Indigenous Peoples’ Day, the MPR Archive Portal presents a curated sampling of varied stories, documentaries, arts, interviews, and reports on Native people, their culture, and history.
Please note: Most content related to this topic that is contemporary or created after 2005 can be found on our main content pages of MPR News, YourClassical MPR, The Current, APM Reports, and Marketplace.
July 7, 1994 - On this Mainstreet Radio feature, MPR’s Leif Enger profiles Native American rock artist Jake Reum. The Garrison musician talks about his musical journey that led to album release “Make Love Real.”
September 8, 1994 - MPR’s Dan Gunderson reports on restoring the Anishinabe land of White Earth. Both tribal government and a land recovery project are working to regain control of reservation lands.
December 28, 1994 - MPR’s Joelle Audette profiles Native American enivironmentalist activist Winona LaDuke, who is involved in a land recovery project for the White Earth Indian Reservation. Report includes interview with LaDuke on her various activities.
February 24, 1995 - On this Voices from the Heartland segment, Chickasaw novelist and poet Linda Hogan reads about the langauge of corn and the land.
June 26, 1995 - On this Voices of Minnesota segment, MPR’s Dan Olson interviews Ojibwe writer Jim Northrup about his book “Walking The Rez Road.” Northrup disusses the Vietnam War, writing, and casino gaming impact on reservations.
June 26, 1995 - On this Voices of Minnesota segment, MPR’s Dan Olson interviews Ojibwe writer Jim Northrup about his book “Walking The Rez Road.” Northrup discusses boarding school, teaching writing, his family tree, and traditional ways.
October 27, 1995 - MPR’s Joaqlin Estus profiles Native American composer Brent Michael Davids. Estus interviews Davids about his instrumentations and composition “Native American Suite.” Jerry Rubino, assistant-conductor of the Dale Warland Singers, is also interviewed.
November 10, 1995 - David Treuer, an Ojibwe author from the Leech Lake Reservation in northern Minnesota, reads an excerpt of his debut book Little. The story follows three generations of Little's family, including Stan, a veteran of the Vietnam War.
November 20, 1995 - MPR’s Marianne Combs interviews Native American author Jim Northrup about writing, his film projects, and family.
March 22, 1996 - There are many creation stories explaining how the Earth took its form and how civilizations came to be, including the massive waters of Lake Superior. People gathered at the Lake Superior Center in Duluth to hear the stories and myths of the Ojibwe culture…here's a sampling of what they heard.