Native Circles
This podcast features Native American and Indigenous voices, stories, and experiences for everyone to learn, not only in North America but also throughout the world. The founders of Native Circles are Dr. Farina King (Diné) and Sarah Newcomb (Tsimshian), who were inspired to start this podcast to educate wider publics about the interconnections and significance of Native American, Alaska Native, and Indigenous experiences and matters. The primary co-hosts of the podcast are Dr. King, Dr. Davina Two Bears, and Eva Bighorse. Dr. King is the Horizon Chair of Native American Ecology and Culture and an associate professor of Native American Studies at the University of Oklahoma. Newcomb works as a freelance editor, writer, and blogger with degrees in English and a focus in Non-Fiction Creative Writing. Dr. Two Bears (Diné) is a Presidential Postdoctoral Fellow in the School for Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. Bighorse (Cayuga and Diné) is an Indigenous human development advocate with expertise in tribal healthcare relations. Learn more about the podcast and episodes on the official website of "Native Circles" at https://nativecirclespodcast.com/.
Native Circles
Farina King talks about "Diné dóó Gáamalii"
Dr. Davina Two Bears and Eva Bighorse talk with Dr. Farina King about her book, Diné dóó Gáamalii: Navajo Latter-day Experiences in the Twentieth Century that the University Press of Kansas published through the Lyda Conley Series on Trailblazing Indigenous Futures (2023). Diné dóó Gáamalii, which means “Navajo and Mormon” in Diné bizaad (the Navajo language), traces Diné Latter-day Saint experiences in the Southwest Indian Mission, congregations, and church educational programs such as the Indian Student Placement Program, seminaries, and Brigham Young University American Indian services and studies. King shares insights from oral histories and the voices of Diné Latter-day Saints, the development of their communities, and how their affiliation with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints affected their Diné identity between the 1950s and early 2000s. King's book addresses how Diné Latter-day Saints like her father engaged with a community that faced a flux of challenges and contradictions in the late twentieth century. Diné dóó Gáamalii communities persisted through tense interactions of different Diné, Indigenous, and Mormon peoples.
King is the Horizon Chair in Native American Ecology and Culture and Associate Professor of Native American Studies at the University of Oklahoma (OU), homelands of the Hasinais, or Caddo Nation, and Kirikirʔi:s, or Wichita & Affiliated Tribes. She currently serves as the Interim Department Chair of Native American Studies at OU. She is the author of various publications, including the books The Earth Memory Compass: Diné Landscapes and Education in the Twentieth Century and co-author of Returning Home: Diné Creative Works from the Intermountain Indian School.
Additional Resources and Links:
Diné dóó Gáamalii (University Press of Kansas online book order)
Farina King's professional website
"Diné Latter-day Saints" blog piece, Times and Seasons
"Who Are the Navajo Latter-day Saints?" From the Desk
King, “Diné dóó Gáamalii: Navajo Latter-day Saint Experiences in the Twentieth Century” (Reviewed by Greg Seppi), Dawning of a Brighter Day
Native BYU website
Native American Studies Department, University of Oklahoma
