Does The NDN Live?

A page dedicated to Native American / First Nations characters who lived to see another day in their stories.

[the-aila-test]

CREATIVE PROMPT

Everything is chaotic and scary right now. I want everybody to be safe and to take care of yourselves during this time. But I also want us to experience joy. So I have a prompt that I posted on my MISKOmunication Discord and I wanted to share it here.

PROMPT: What does the perfect future look like for you as a Native person?

Use any media at your disposal. Drawing, painting, poetry, creative writing, music, just let yourself imagine and dream and wish.

What does the world look like in this vision of the future?

What are we reclaiming? What are we bringing back? What are we keeping? What are we changing? What are we getting rid of? What are we improving?

What does your home look like? What was your family and your relationships look like?

We have to know what we want. We have to know what we're hoping for. We have to create it. We have to make it real.

[the-aila-test]

Stand With Minnesota

A directory of places to give to as Minnesota defends itself from ICE occupation

STAND WITH MINNESOTA

[the-aila-test]

I've created a Discord for Indigenous Creatives. I'm adding the finishing touches tonight and tomorrow and then will start personally inviting people. This server is for Indigenous people ONLY who want to be in community with other Native artists, musicians, singers, content creators, writers, etc. If you're interested in this, comment here or DM me.

[the-aila-test]

I've created a Discord for Indigenous Creatives. I'm adding the finishing touches tonight and tomorrow and then will start personally inviting people. This server is for Indigenous people ONLY who want to be in community with other Native artists, musicians, singers, content creators, writers, etc. If you're interested in this, comment here or DM me.

[the-aila-test]

Western Alaska Communities Unite to Establish Disaster Response Fund Following Recent Storms  - Alaska Community Foundation

In response to recent severe storms, including Typhoon Halong, that devastated Alaska’s western coast, local …

Western Alaska Communities Unite to Establish Disaster Response Fund Following Recent Storms  - Alaska Community Foundation

In response to recent severe storms, including Typhoon Halong, that devastated Alaska’s western coast, local …

Donate to help the Alaskan Native communities hurt by the typhoon

[the-aila-test]

If I made a Discord channel specifically for Native American / First Nations / Indigenous Creatives with a focus on writing and content creation (Youtube, Tiktok, Twitch, etc) who would be interested in joining?

This would be my first time running a Discord so anybody (Indigenous ONLY) with experience who would be interested in being a mod would be most helpful!

[neechees]

Just because I've seen it online before, but a reminder that saying "Pocahontas/Matoaka was the first (or "first documented") MMIW" is factually incorrect. There were hundreds of Taíno, Indigenous Mexican, Eastern Native American, and kidnapped African Indigenous women who were victimized before her, both documented and undocumented.

Even just working within the framework of Native Americans, here's a list of Indigenous women who were documented cases of being MMIW that came before Matoaka (who was kidnapped in 1613 & died in 1617):

Anacaona (Taíno ruler who was murdered in 1504)

Yuisa (another Taíno ruler who was murdered in 1515)

Higuanama (Taíno ruler who was hanged by the Spanish in 1502)

Yayo (Taíno cacica & wife of leader Orocobix, who was captured & enslaved alongside her husband in 1514)

Opossunoquonuske (Matoaka's aunt, Werowansqua of the Appomattoc within the Powhatan confederacy, who was wounded & killed by the English in 1610)

Apacuana (Indigenous leader from Venezuela who was kidnapped & murdered by the Spanish in 1577 while trying to defend her land from invasion)

[the-aila-test]

LOOKING FOR NATIVES FOR UPCOMING PROJECT

For the sake of this specific project, I am looking for NATIVE AMERICAN volunteers. Specifically Natives from tribes/communities in the United States.

This is in response to the Trump administration's DEI purge of their military websites that honor the BIPOC and women in military history, including the Navajo Code Talkers, Ira Hayes, and all the non-white men and women at Arlington Cemetery.

If you are interested in being in my video please let me know.

Please send me a picture or a video of you holding a sign or saying aloud "MY _____ IS A VETERAN" or "I AM A VETERAN".

If you are not a veteran or don't have veterans/active military in your family, feel free to send pictures/videos of you saying "HONOR THE CODE TALKERS" I would really appreciate all of your help.

[alinahdee]

UPDATE:

Boozhoo everyone, I've decided to set a deadline for Memorial Day so expect this video up on May 26th, 2025.

With that said, I'm struggling with this, so I'm going to own my awkwardness and be very honest:

I'm trying to specifically address the mission of this video and I'm having trouble with it because I'm not Navajo and I'm not a Veteran. I'm afraid of overstepping, of being disrespectful, and of letting people down.

So I'm reaching out for some assistance on this and outsourcing where I'm able. Maybe I don't need a definitive answer and maybe it's just a matter of talking through these very complicated and complex feelings about what it means to be American and what it means to be Indigenous. 

When I think about the goal of this video, I think I want to make Native Veterans more sympathetic to non-Natives, and talk about their sacrifices and how they have to navigate between being within an oppressed group but also belonging to (what should be) a respected minority. 

We're fighting for our country because it is our home before America was ever a concept. But fighting for Indian Country and fighting for America mean two very different things. I'm afraid of doing more harm than good despite my intentions.

If you're Native and/or a Native Veteran and would like to offer insight or your opinions on this I'd be very grateful.

Miigwech

[doesthendnlive]

I read somewhere that Taylor Lautner’s agent was overhead in conversations that helped him lie about being native and no one would notice because he fits Jacob blacks description

I’m surprised no one cancelled him because he’s rich off of that but his career went no where and his doing nothing now

It's always funny when Pretendians lie about being Native to get a role in a movie or TV series and then can't get roles anywhere else because big studios aren't interested in Native actors/actresses unless it's for a very narrow, specific type of project. Like congrats dude, you played yourself.

[the-aila-test]

LOOKING FOR NATIVES FOR UPCOMING PROJECT

For the sake of this specific project, I am looking for NATIVE AMERICAN volunteers. Specifically Natives from tribes/communities in the United States.

This is in response to the Trump administration's DEI purge of their military websites that honor the BIPOC and women in military history, including the Navajo Code Talkers, Ira Hayes, and all the non-white men and women at Arlington Cemetery.

If you are interested in being in my video please let me know.

Please send me a picture or a video of you holding a sign or saying aloud "MY _____ IS A VETERAN" or "I AM A VETERAN".

If you are not a veteran or don't have veterans/active military in your family, feel free to send pictures/videos of you saying "HONOR THE CODE TALKERS" I would really appreciate all of your help.

[the-aila-test]

Good news:

Pentagon restores histories of Navajo Code Talkers, other Native veterans after public outcry

The Pentagon has restored some webpages highlighting the wartime contributions of Navajo Code Talkers and other Native American veterans.

I will continue the project as planned because we can't let up now. They're testing the waters to see what they can get away with.

[the-aila-test]

I'm getting some great submissions in!

I could use some more video footage of Natives talking about their veteran relatives or about their service as a Native veteran. It can be very brief, just a few seconds long.

Even if all you say is "HONOR THE CODE TALKERS" that is more than enough.

Thank you again for all of your help.

[the-aila-test]

Reminder that the deadline for submissions is THURSDAY MARCH 27 (tomorrow!) Please get your submissions in by tomorrow if you're able to <3 And thank you all for your help.

[the-aila-test]

LOOKING FOR NATIVES FOR UPCOMING PROJECT

For the sake of this specific project, I am looking for NATIVE AMERICAN volunteers. Specifically Natives from tribes/communities in the United States.

This is in response to the Trump administration's DEI purge of their military websites that honor the BIPOC and women in military history, including the Navajo Code Talkers, Ira Hayes, and all the non-white men and women at Arlington Cemetery.

If you are interested in being in my video please let me know.

Please send me a picture or a video of you holding a sign or saying aloud "MY _____ IS A VETERAN" or "I AM A VETERAN".

If you are not a veteran or don't have veterans/active military in your family, feel free to send pictures/videos of you saying "HONOR THE CODE TALKERS" I would really appreciate all of your help.

[the-aila-test]

Hi idk if someone s answered this yet but sjaja from north of north is an inuk main character who does not fall in love with a white man and does not end up raped or murdered, so she does pass the aila test

Yess!!!

[doesthendnlive]

The NDN Inuk lives!

[neechees]

Maybe it's because I'm Indigenous but I don't get the whole colonizer mentality of "x group of people were 'conquered' so you have to get over it" (meaning, we just have to lie down and take any discrimination, further oppression, further colonization against us, and not complain) because like we're still alive though. We aren't "conquered" we're still alive, fucker. I honestly think it's just their way of continuing to say something to make themselves believe it

[alinahdee]

From CourtYellowwolf

If you are a non-Native and thinking about asking Indigenous People for Emotional/Educational Labor:

[the-aila-test]

I think male indigenous characters should have something like the Aila Test, too, with similar criteria such as being main characters, not falling in love with white people, not getting murdered, etc.

Exists in a current timeline instead of 1800s and older

Doesn't interact with white people

Doesn't exist to teach white people a lesson

Doesn't turn into an animal

Man the list is endless...

[the-aila-test]

1. Is she a main character? YES.

2. Does this character fall in love with a white man? NO.

3. Does this character end up raped or killed at any point during the story? NO / NO.

Jax and Roki from Fancy Dance both pass The Ali Nahdee Test!

[tachiiniinishli]

God, I love being Diné. ♡

[doesthendnlive]

Jax and Roki both live! So does Crystle Lightning's character, Sapphire.

SPOILERS:

unfortunately Tawi does not survive, but you never see the body and the details of her death are not discussed.

[the-aila-test]

The Aila Test / Ali Nahdee Test turns 8 <3

January 21st, 2025 is the 8th birthday of the Aila Test, later called the Ali Nahdee Test. Thank you everybody.

Thank you Jeff Barnaby for creating Rhymes for Young Ghouls and thank you @kdeveryjacobs for bringing our girl to life <3