First Voices Radio

In the first segment, Tiokasin talks with Michaeleen Doucleff. A correspondent for National Public Radio’s Science Desk, Michaeleen was part of the 2015 team that earned a George Foster Peabody award for its coverage of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Prior to joining NPR, Michaeleen was an editor at the journal Cell, where she wrote about the science behind pop culture. Michaeleen has a doctorate in chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley, and a master’s degree in viticulture and enology from the University of California, Davis. She lives with her husband, daughter, and German shepherd, Mango, in San Francisco. Tiokasin will be talking with Michaeleen about her first book, Hunt, Gather, Parent, which was an instant New York Times bestseller.

In the second segment, we hear from regular guest Manuel Rozental, who was interviewed on Friday, April 30 by Mario A. Murillo. This is an international story where the Covid-19 pandemic seems to be once again on the rise. In Colombia as of last Friday, over 500 people died in one day, as a result of Covid-19. It was the worst daily total since the pandemic began last year, and is the equivalent of 5,000 people dying in one day here in the U.S. And while the crisis continues, Colombia is witnessing massive protests in large cities and small towns throughout the country, protesting the government’s proposal for a comprehensive tax reform bill that will adversely impact working people. This past Sunday, Colombia President Iván Duque withdrew the controversial tax reform bill following four days of huge protests across the country. In a televised statement, he said his government would work to produce new proposals and seek consensus with other parties and organizations. He had previously insisted tax hikes were needed to respond to the economic crisis generated by the pandemic. But tens of thousands of people took to the streets in anger at the bill. Unions, who organized the protests, said it would disproportionately impact on the poorest people who were already struggling with the economic impact of Covid-19. This comes as Indigenous communities in Colombia continue to face ongoing threats to their way of life. A number of Indigenous leaders were killed in recent months, which has concerned activists in Colombia and around the world. One of them is Colombian physician and veteran human rights activist Manuel Rozental. During this interview Manuel first explained what the general strike was calling for and how it was tied to the Indigenous movement in Colombia. Mario A. Murillo — a regular guest, commentator and contributor to First Voices Radio — is a journalist, author and Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Radio, Television and Film in the School of Communication at Hofstra University.

Production Credits:
Tiokasin Ghosthorse (Lakota), Host and Executive Producer
Liz Hill (Red Lake Ojibwe), Producer
Tiokasin Ghosthorse, Studio Engineer and Audio Editor, WIOX 91.3 FM, Roxbury, NY

Music Selections:
1. Song Title: Tahi Roots Mix (First Voices Radio Theme Song)
Artist: Moana and the Moa Hunters
CD: Tahi (1993)
Label: Southside Records (Australia and New Zealand)
(00:00:44)

2. Song Title: Amassakoul ’N’Ténéré
Artist: Tinariwen
CD: Amassakoul (2004)
Label: World Village
(00:33:18)

3. Song Title: Riders on the Storm
Artist: Doors
CD: The Very Best of the Doors (2007)
Label: Electra Records / Rhino
(00:55:30)