The 4th Annual Two Spirit Pow Wow in Minneapolis welcomes and celebrates all relatives. Meanwhile, proposed federal Medicaid cuts are heading to the Senate, raising concerns for community health.
Transcript
ANCHOR (Marie Rock): I'm Marie Rock, and this is Minnesota Native News. This week, the fourth annual Two-Spirit Pow Wow welcomes all relatives and allies to the Minneapolis American Indian Center to celebrate and honor identity. Meanwhile, community health leaders are concerned about the proposed federal Medicaid cuts on their way to the Senate.
First, reporter CJ Younger has more on the upcoming celebration for Two Spirit relatives.
CJ Younger: On June 24th, you'll hear the newly renovated Minneapolis American Indian Center come alive with drumming, dancing, and feasting as Native community members gather to celebrate Two Spirit identity.
[ambient audio: crowd gathering outdoors]
Genevieve Lane: We're going to have two food trucks, Tricker Tacos, Steven D's, a community feast
Younger: Genevieve Lane is a senior artistic producer for New Native Theater. She's Lakota and Ojibwe.
Lane: There's going to be special dances, tiny tots, that's a big draw. A potato dance, probably some switch dances, and a few other special surprises.
[pow wow drum and song]
Rhiana Yazzie: This is a place where folks have chosen family, chosen community, and everybody is celebrated…It's a safe space, which I think, unfortunately, that is not always the experience of two spirit folks when they go to Pow Wows.
Younger: Rhiana Yazzi is the artistic director of New Native Theater and an enrolled citizen of the Navajo Nation.
Yazzie: I think that it's our responsibility as family members in this Indian community to hold space for our two spirit relatives.
Richard Horse: Two Spirit, at least to me personally, has always felt like it has given me the ability to be perceived as somebody that wants to not only engage in the male aspects of the ceremony, but also in the female aspects of ceremony.
Younger: That's Richard Horse, who is Mescalaero Apache, and Two Spirit. New Native Theatre created the powwow with a team of Native community members, including Horse and Desmond Big Eagle, a Sicangu Lakota from
Rosebud, South Dakota.
Desmond Big Eagle: What I'm looking forward to the most about this Two Spirit powwow is is all the smiling faces, all of the happy people, all of the people coming together and feeling safe and comfortable and celebrating Native American culture together.
Younger: This year's Two Spirit powwow is free and open to all. Doors open on Tuesday, June 24, from 3 to 9 pm at the Minneapolis American Indian Center. For Minnesota Native News, I'm CJ Younger.
ANCHOR (Marie Rock): Next, Medicaid and Medicare programs face federal cuts that could impact Indigenous and community health. Here's reporter Emma Needham.
Emma Needham: Proposed federal budget cuts to Medicaid and Medicare could affect millions of Americans, particularly low income families and individuals, including those in rural and urban native communities.
[person checking into clinic desk/ER or waiting room audio w/medical sounds]
Dr. Antony Stately: This is the new reality that we live in, which is just frightening and so incredibly challenging, you know? In my 30 year career, I've never really experienced anything like this.
Needham: Dr. Anthony Stately is the Chief Executive Officer and president of the Native American Community Clinic in Minneapolis. He says the clinic's programs have already faced cuts this year, including support for a maternal health program.
Stately: Somewhere in the half million dollar marker or so, of funding we lost so far. Native people, native women, in South Minneapolis and in county and Hennepin and across the state of Minnesota, they have some of the highest infant mortality rates. And, this is a program that was critically needed and we ended up losing the funding.
Needham: The proposed plan to cut Medicaid falls under the administration's one big, beautiful bill, supporters cite the need to reduce federal spending and the federal deficit. The plan reduces Medicaid expansion and creates tighter eligibility rules for Medicare. At the same time, millions of people could lose coverage altogether.
[Heart monitor beeps in background]
Stately: We are trading the health of a very large sector of the United States population of human beings. We're trading their health instability for prioritizing the wealth of a very small number of people in the United States.
Needham: Hospitals, clinics and Indian health service sites risk losing critical funding. Health advocates like Dr. Stately warn that the changes could force people to forego essential care.
[Heartbeat through stethoscope sound]
Stately: People who can't afford. People who can't afford to pay for those out of the pocket, they'll stop going to things like that. They'll stop doing those kinds of things that prevent large scale health outbreaks of that impact many, many people. That's what we're looking at here when we talk about like reducing and cutting Medicaid benefits significantly.
Needham: The proposed bill passed narrowly in the House and is now heading to the US Senate. Supporters cite the need to reduce federal spending, while opponents say the cuts target the nation's most vulnerable. Dr. Stately spoke about feelings of uncertainty and anxiety in the community, but says:
Stately: I am making all of my decisions as the leader of this organization from a place of strength and courage. I'm not operating out of fear. I think that's what they want. I just refuse to do it. This is what I know to be true. Like NACC and the other organizations like ours, Indian Health Board, other community health centers that are committed to providing healthcare services to the people, who rely on the safety net. We're gonna continue to do this work until we can't do it. We're gonna continue to do this work no matter or high water and we will find the resources to do it.
Needham: For Minnesota Native News, I'm Emma Needham.