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Noel Smith

@smithnoel

Three items in my bag: Wired earphones, reading glasses and measuring tape • Diné (Navajo) • My reporter’s notebook is over there.

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15.11.2024
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Latest posts by Noel Smith @smithnoel

Nearly 3 years in, unscrupulous sober living home providers continue recruiting and exploiting Native Americans. Lawmakers say systemic oversight failures persist at AHCCCS, while legitimate providers contend the agency’s response is still hindering care for vulnerable patients.

26.02.2026 15:59 👍 1 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0
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Kansas informs trans residents their driver’s licenses become invalid on Thursday Some transgender Kansans said they had received the letters from the Department of Revenue. Others hadn’t by Wednesday evening.

Some transgender Kansans said they had received the letters from the Department of Revenue. Others hadn’t by Wednesday evening.

26.02.2026 04:20 👍 6 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 1
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Social Distortion's Mike Ness on Kicking Cancer, New Album, and Learning to Love Oasis Social Distortion's Mike Ness on overcoming cancer to make new album 'Born to Kill,' the visceral reaction he has toward ICE, and loving Tom Petty.

Social Distortion's Mike Ness on the state of the world:

"They’re suppressing free speech right now. It’s fucking insane. I’ve never seen this in my 60 years of being on this earth. It’s bad, and maybe it’s subconscious."

25.02.2026 21:40 👍 137 🔁 32 💬 3 📌 1
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Alysa Liu surges into medal range as US teammates stumble in Olympic short program Alysa Liu is left to carry the hopes of the United States into the women’s free skate at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

Alysa Liu is left to carry the hopes of the “Blade Angels” into the women’s free skate at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

The reigning world champion was the only one of America’s figure skating trio to put herself in contention for gold after the short program on Tuesday night.

18.02.2026 05:30 👍 87 🔁 11 💬 2 📌 3
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The Holocaust's youngest survivors: born in a labor camp, on a death train, and in a concentration camp Eva Clarke, Hana Berger-Moran, and Mark Olsky are survivors born to survivors. During the Holocaust, their mothers were young Jewish women sent to concentration camps when they were newly pregnant.

Weeks before Germany's May 1945 surrender in WWII, three babies were born to three Nazi prisoners. Remarkably, their mothers managed to deceive their Nazi captors and keep their babies alive. cbsn.ws/4aEnyDX

16.02.2026 00:24 👍 56 🔁 24 💬 2 📌 2
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U.S. ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates win Olympic silver, in a stunning upset Chock and Bates, four-time Olympians, were heavily favored for gold. But they lost by less than two points to a French duo who has been clouded by controversy involving their former partners.

This is the fourth Winter Olympics for the married U.S. ice dancing pair Madison Chock and Evan Bates, and likely their last, best shot at a medal. They have two as part of the team competition, but not on their own. n.pr/403pXmC

12.02.2026 02:18 👍 270 🔁 20 💬 11 📌 2
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Malinin made history with his Olympic backflip, but some say the glory was owed to a Black skater U.S. figure skater Ilia Malinin has become the first person to legally land a backflip on Olympic ice.

Ilia Malinin, the U.S. figure skater nicknamed the “Quad God,” became the first person to legally land a backflip on one skate in the Olympics — but he’s not the first to pull it off at the Winter Games.

10.02.2026 01:00 👍 151 🔁 24 💬 8 📌 21
Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and Native American individuals in traditional regalia participating in a cultural event inside a The Roundhouse routunda.

Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and Native American individuals in traditional regalia participating in a cultural event inside a The Roundhouse routunda.

It was an honor to speak at American Indian Day at the Roundhouse today. New Mexico's tribes, nations, and pueblos play an essential role in weaving the unique fabric of our state's culture, history, and identity.

#AmericanIndianDay #NativeAmericanHeritage #TribalCommunities

06.02.2026 22:21 👍 18 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0
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“No one is illegal on stolen land,” Billie Eilish said while accepting the award for the song from her 2024 album “Hit Me Hard and Soft.” bit.ly/4ruKqg8

02.02.2026 04:01 👍 221 🔁 36 💬 3 📌 4

Liam is home now and we are grateful to @joaquincastrotx.bsky.social for traveling to Minneapolis with him and his dad.

Welcome home Liam ❤️❤️

01.02.2026 17:40 👍 21425 🔁 3813 💬 353 📌 184
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'Shutting it down': Gallup newspaper will publish final edition Saturday Publisher Bob Zollinger said financial considerations led to the decision to shutter the paper his father bought in 1964.

A decades-old New Mexico newspaper soon will be a thing of the past, as the publisher of the Independent in Gallup said Friday the publication will release its last edition Saturday. sfnm.co/4rlNN8K

31.01.2026 00:30 👍 4 🔁 5 💬 0 📌 1
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A rare step forward for a US pumped hydro project Rye Development got a federal permit for a massive grid megaproject in the Pacific Northwest. Construction will start once it finds buyers for the…

Washington state is on track to host the first pumped hydro storage project the U.S. has built in decades.

27.01.2026 13:30 👍 4 🔁 1 💬 1 📌 0
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Accidental 'crying horse' toy wins hearts in China At Yiwu International Trade City, China’s largest wholesale market, customers crowd into a small shop searching for an unlikely bestseller ahead of the Lunar New Year.

Accidental 'crying horse' toy wins hearts in China reut.rs/4sXQbEj

26.01.2026 01:10 👍 92 🔁 20 💬 3 📌 10
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[1/3] The JHR team is saddened by the passing of Kanienke:haka (Mohawk) journalist Thaioronióhte Dan David.

Over a 45-year career, Dan reshaped Indigenous journalism in Canada, most notably as the founding force behind APTN News.

19.01.2026 19:17 👍 21 🔁 11 💬 1 📌 0
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It's just wild to see in the federal government's own models how close the nation's second largest reservoir is to losing hydropower production, potentially for months on end in early 2027.

Is the plan to just drain Flaming Gorge, Blue Mesa and Navajo to keep it propped up another year?

16.01.2026 22:07 👍 11 🔁 7 💬 0 📌 1

Things are pretty fucked up when Native Tribes are telling their citizens to carry multiple forms of identification 🪪 make sure they are not detained by ICE.

16.01.2026 20:33 👍 6 🔁 3 💬 1 📌 0
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Monkey Sounds, “White Power” and the N-Word: Racial Harassment Against Black Students Ignored Under Trump Since Trump returned to office, the Education Department’s civil rights office has not resolved a single racial harassment investigation. It sends a message that “people impacted by racial discriminat...

NEW: A Texas district in which Black students were allegedly taunted with monkey noises.

An Arizona school where students admitted saying “slavery is good.”

These are some of the incidents Trump’s Education Department has ignored:

19.12.2025 12:34 👍 2150 🔁 1009 💬 107 📌 67
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Reflecting on an era of fortune and deviousness: The Jackson Barnett saga Photo Courtesy: Library of Congress Written By Noel Lyn Smith (OKLAHOMA) Ronald Barnett recalled a time in 2022, when he stood on a patch of eastern Oklahoma land that once belonged to his great-gre...

Writing this story was challenging because it relies on historical documents & spotlighting MMIP in the early 20th century. It’s my first time reporting about a Muscogee Creek Nation citizen. The story introduces this person & serves as part one of two stories. www.crosswindsnews.net/reflecting-o...

04.12.2025 16:47 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Newspapers are closing at an emergency-level rate—over the past 20 years, America has lost more than 3,000. For the past six years, the photographer Ann Hermes has been documenting the lives lived in these dying places across the country. See more images: https://newyorkermag.visitlink.me/059DXx

30.11.2025 00:00 👍 116 🔁 41 💬 7 📌 2
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Trump ramps up reporter attacks with White House media bias tracker A new White House webpage presents a “Hall of Shame” for news reports that the president disagrees with, coming after Trump voiced personal attacks on female reporters at ABC, CBS, the New York Times ...

The White House launched a page on its website, titled the “Hall of Shame,” devoted to naming and shaming media outlets and reporters that publish stories President Trump disagrees with.

“Misleading. Biased. Exposed,” the site reads.

29.11.2025 15:00 👍 110 🔁 57 💬 74 📌 59
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Is the journalism industry turning its back on (some) women and people of color? The deafening silence from industry leaders as people lose jobs and are marginalized - again - leaves me wondering exactly what they stand for.

As the news media struggles for relevance in a diversifying country, why does it seem as if the journalism industry has turned its back on (some) women and people of color? My Substack essay: https://loom.ly/lz9wJqg

17.11.2025 05:56 👍 18 🔁 2 💬 1 📌 0
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In Arizona, a fading Route 66 motel hides a story of the Navajo Code Talkers Only two of the Navajo Code Talkers are still alive. The Route 66 motel where some of these World War II heroes were recruited may not outlive them.

Only two of the Navajo Code Talkers are still alive. The Route 66 motel where some of these World War II heroes were recruited may not outlive them.

11.11.2025 16:00 👍 16 🔁 9 💬 0 📌 0
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The opening of an all-Native group art exhibition inside L.A. City Hall was filled with heartfelt thanks and celebrations from First Nations members and city council members alike.

The full story: lataco.com/indigenous-l...

By Héctor Zaldívar

14.11.2025 20:38 👍 147 🔁 40 💬 1 📌 1
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Arizona tribal member nearly deported after Iowa jail issues ICE detainer by mistake Native American ICE detainer mistake nearly leads to deportation of Arizona tribal member after Iowa jail clerical error

The woman's family had to scramble to prove she was Indigenous and shouldn't be turned over to federal immigration authorities

story via @glorihuh.bsky.social

12.11.2025 23:01 👍 220 🔁 169 💬 8 📌 13
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Adelita Grijalva sworn in after 50-day delay, immediately signs Epstein files petition | Arizona Mirror Grijalva sworn in after 50-day delay immediately signs Epstein files petition, forcing House vote on FBI documents

“One individual should not be able to unilaterally obstruct the swearing-in of a duly elected member of Congress for political reasons.”

12.11.2025 23:33 👍 73 🔁 20 💬 4 📌 1
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Adelita Grijalva sworn in as the House's newest member, paving the way for an Epstein files vote After weeks of delay, Democrat Adelita Grijalva of Arizona is a member of the U.S. House. Grijalva was sworn into office Wednesday, more than seven weeks after she won a special election in Arizona to fill the House seat last held by her late father.

BREAKING: Arizona Democrat Adelita Grijalva is sworn into office, ending weeks of delay as the House reconvenes for a vote on funding deal.

12.11.2025 21:17 👍 834 🔁 126 💬 17 📌 16
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Kansas county agrees to pay $3 million over police raid on a small-town newspaper, editor says The editor of a small-town Kansas newspaper says the local county has agreed to pay a little more than $3 million and apologize over police raid on the paper in August 2023.

BREAKING: A Kansas county agrees to pay $3 million and apologize over a 2023 police raid on a small-town newspaper, editor says.

11.11.2025 19:57 👍 444 🔁 111 💬 11 📌 11
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Western States Brace for a Uranium Boom as the Nation Looks to Recharge its Nuclear Power Industry - Inside Climate News After years of federal efforts to revive nuclear power, old mines are stirring again in Wyoming, Texas and Arizona, while new ones line up for permitting expedited by a Trump executive order.

Efforts to revive U.S. production of fuel for atomic energy could impact communities and landscapes across the country.

02.11.2025 20:06 👍 9 🔁 11 💬 0 📌 0
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Trump nominates former New Mexico Congressman Steve Pearce to lead BLM Environmental organizations immediately criticized the nomination, calling Steve Pearce "a notorious public lands hater."

NEW: President Donald Trump has nominated former U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, a conservative Republican who represented New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District for multiple terms, to serve as director of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. sfnm.co/47t1oUZ

05.11.2025 21:58 👍 2 🔁 1 💬 5 📌 3
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Greetings, this reminder is on a sidewalk in Washington, D.C.

04.11.2025 13:27 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0