Diné Studies Conference, Inc.

22nd Diné Studies Virtual Conference

Friday-Saturday, June 25-26, 2021

9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

For Zoom links to the sessions, please check your email you used to register for the conference. Any questions, email us at dine.studies@gmail.com.

Day 1: Friday June 25, 2021

9:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.              Opening

• Prayer

• Welcome

• Introduction of DSCI Board Members

9:30 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. Keynote Speaker

Melanie K. Yazzie (Diné), Ph.D. - Red Nation Rising: From Bordertown Violence to Native Liberation

Dr. Melanie K. Yazzie will discuss her co-authored book Red Nation Rising: From Bordertown Violence to Native Liberation (Bordertown Violence Working Group: David Correia, Nick Estes, Jennifer Denetdale; Foreword by Radmilla Cody and Brandon Benallie).  The book investigates and explains the violent dynamics of bordertowns.  It is a manual for navigating the violence Native peoples experience in reservation bordertowns and a manifesto for Indigenous liberation built on traditions of Native resistance. 

10:15 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Raffle of Gift Baskets *Must be present and registered to win

10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.            Concurrent Sessions One

Session One: Innovation in Education - Moderated by Dr. Colin Ben, Vice President

• “The Corn Pollen Model: Following a Holistic Pathway to Diné Well-Being and Success” - Shawn Secatero, Ph.D.

• “Diné Research Practices and Protocols: An Intersectional Paradigm Incorporating Indigenous Feminism, Critical Indigenous Research Methodologies and Indigenous Knowledge Systems” - Sharon Henderson, Ph.D.

Session Two: Innovation in Community - Moderated by Dr. Wendy S. Greyeyes, President

• “Diné Youth Living in Two Worlds: Teachings from the Hooghan and How it Provided the Foundation for a Diné Psychiatrist” - Mary Hasbah Roessel, M.D.

• “Null curriculum among Diné, 1863-1928 USA, federal responsibilities and shortcomings.” - R. G. Wakeland

• “Indigenous Student Responses in Adversarial Situations” - Aaron Billie

Session Three: Innovation in Diné History - Moderated by Dr. Lloyd Lee, Treasurer

• “The Horse has been with Us since the Beginning” - Kelsey Dayle John, Ph.D.

• “Navajo Nation Enrollment Criteria for the 21st Century and Beyond” - Lloyd L. Lee, Ph.D.

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.          Lunch Entertainment

While you take a break and enjoy your lunch, enjoy some music from Ed Kabotie and Indige Femme. Introduction by Mr. Homer Hubbell, DSCI Board of Director.

Ed Kabotie is from the Hopi village of Shungopavi and the Tewa village of Khap'o Owinge (Santa Clara Pueblo, NM). Kabotie’s culture is the greatest inspiration of my music. By mixing genres, languages, and instrumentation, he seeks to express the virtues, values, and vices of my people. Kabotie states, “Outside of my culture, the musical groups that I find most inspiring are the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley & the Wailers, & Metallica. I grew up playing drums in rock & metal bands and studied guitar as a songwriting instrument.” Link: https://www.reverbnation.com/edkabotie

Indigie Femme is a female group from the Diné Nation and New Zealand. They interweave the connection of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The weavings from their cultural matrilineage, of Dine (Black Mountain, Arizona, USA) and Maori, Samoa (Aotearoa - New Zealand) exude through Tash Terry and Elena Higgins’ dynamic performances! Indigie Femme’s thought-provoking lyrics combined with their powerful voices and fusion of percussions - cajun, medicine drum, djembe, guitars, & harmonica leave their audiences spell bound! The multi award winning duo, Indigie Femme’s music has been described as, “A twist of world beats lavish the acoustic folk duo who tap into their indigenous roots.” Indigie Femme’s worldly vibrations ignite the collective consciousness to bring hope and healing to Mother Earth through their powerful performances. Link: https://indigiefemme.com/index.html

1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.          Concurrent Sessions Two

Session One: Innovation in Language - Moderated by Sam Slater, DSCI Board of Directors

• "Disrupting Spaces to Perpetuate and Sustain the Navajo Language" Panelists: Cynthia Benally, Ph.D., University of Utah; Amelia A. Black, Diné College; Daniel Piper, Ph.D.,Utah State University; Clara Bedonie, Murray City School District

Session Two: Innovation in Healing - Moderated by Dr. Colin Ben, Vice President

• "A Hozhooji (Blessing Way) Ceremonial Song" - Panelists: Homer Hubbell, Diné Studies Conference, Inc. and Lorene Legah, Diné Language Instructor

Session Three: Innovation in Education - Moderated by Mr. Triston Black, DSCI Board of Director

• "Decolonizing Diné Education: Building a New Educational System for Navajo Nation" - Panelists: Wendy S. Greyeyes, Ph.D., University of New Mexico; Greg Bigman, Clara Pratte, Harvey Rude, Ph.D. and Darrick Franklin

Day 2: Saturday June 26, 2021

9:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.            Business Meeting

• Community Awards Presentation

• Election of New Board members

• Resolutions

  1) Approving $75 Stipends for DSCI Board of Directors for 4 Quarterly Meetings

  2) Approving 25% Administrative Indirect Cost for DSCI for Future Grants

10:15 a.m. -10:30 a.m.  Break

10:30 a.m. -12:00 p.m.           Concurrent Sessions Three

Session One: Innovation in Language - Moderated by Sam Slater, DSCI Board of Directors

• “Saad K'ídilyé: Planting the Diné Language Seed” - Panelists: Tiffany S. Lee, Ph.D., University of New Mexico; Melvatha Chee, Ph.D., University of New Mexico; Mary Whitehair Frazier, Southwest Indian Polytechnic Institute and First Nations Community Healthsource; Warlance Chee, Native American Community Academy; Cheryl Yazzie, University of New Mexico; Manuel Fernandez, Graduate Student, University of New Mexico

Session Two: Innovation in Education - Moderated by Dr. Colin Ben, Vice President

•  "Diné Resistance and Transformation for and in Education" - Panelists: Amanda Tachine, Ph.D., Arizona State University; Cynthia Benally, Ph.D., University of Utah; Colin Ben, Ph.D., Arizona State University

Session Three: Innovation in Climate Change - Moderated by Homer Hubbell, Board of Director

• "Groundswell: Indigenous Knowledge and a Call to Action for Climate Change" - Panelists: Mary Hasbah Roessel, M.D. and Joe Neidhardt, M.D.

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.       Lunch Keynote Speaker

Rex Lee Jim (Navajo) - Rhetorical Sovereignty: The Voice of the Blue Bird

Mr. Rex Lee Jim will do a reading from his recent book, 'Saad Lá Tah Hózhóón: A Collection of Diné Poetry'. He will interweave his talk with Navajo songs and prayers, speak about freedom of voice as expressed through the Blue Bird, and how we can translate that to contemporary forms of expressions, especially in written and published forms (in Navajo). 

1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.            Concurrent Sessions Four

Session One: Innovation in Environmental Justice - Moderated by Dr. Lloyd Lee, Treasurer

• "From Yellow Dirt to Yellow Water: Community Responses to Environmental Contamination in Diné Bikéyah" - Panelists: Teresa Montoya, Ph.D.; Tommy Rock, Ph.D.; Janene Yazzie; and Marc Emerson, Ph.D.

Session Two: Innovation in Image and Art - Moderated by Davina Morris, Secretary

• “Dislocated Landscapes: Visualizing Diné Bikéyah in the Colonial Medium” - Ryuichi Nakayama

• "It Belongs to All of Us": Sis Łichii'í as a Uniquely Diné Object” - Isabella Robbins

• “The High Desert Asdzaan and Her Neo-Matriarch Identity” - Venaya Yazzie

Any corrections or questions, please contact us at dine.studies@gmail.com.