University of Montana: Forum on contemporary Native issues

On Tuesday night, two really super speakers will be talking about Native issues — Patty LaPlant and Chuck Trimble. It’s a nice way to get back into the swing of important topics after a nice, long Labor Day weekend. Here’s the UM press release:

The University of Montana will host the Calvin B. Stott Forum on Contemporary Native American Issues at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 8, in the University Center Ballroom.The forum, titled “Native American Futures: The Path to Self-Sufficiency,” will feature speakers Charles Trimble, an Oglala Lakota Indian who grew up on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Reservation, and Patty LaPlant, a Blackfeet Indian. Trimble and LaPlant will discuss current issues plaguing Indian Country, including high rates of unemployment, infant mortality and teen suicide, as well as epidemics of diabetes and substance abuse.

Trimble is a well-known journalist and activist who helped found the American Indian Press Association. He also served as executive director of the National Congress of American Indians and as president of Red Willow Institute, an organization he founded to provide technical and management assistance to American Indian nonprofits.

Jodi Rave

LaPlant worked in social services program administration for more than 25 years for several organizations on the Blackfeet Reservation, including Blackfeet Community College. More recently, she worked with the National Native Children’s Trauma Center at the University of Montana Institute of Educational Research and Service and at the Casey Family Programs Indian Child Welfare Unit in Denver.

A reception is scheduled immediately following the forum. The event is free and open to the public.

For more information, call Kathryn Shanley, special assistant to the provost for Native American and Indigenous Education, at 406-243-5832 or e-mail kathryn.shanley@umontana.edu This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ; or call Lanell Curry, assistant to the provost, at 406-243-4689 or e-mail lanell.curry@umontana.edu This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .