KILI
Encyclopedia
KILI licensed to Porcupine, South Dakota
, is a non-profit radio station broadcasting to the Lakota people on the Pine Ridge
, Cheyenne River
, and Rosebud Indian Reservation
s, part of the Great Sioux Nation
. The station started broadcasting in 1983 as the first American Indian-owned radio station in the United States
.
Owned and operated by Lakota Communications, KILI serves 30,000 people on the three reservations, along with the large American Indian urban community in Rapid City
, using a translator in the Mount Rushmore State's second-largest city. It seeks to preserve Native American culture and instill pride in the peoples' unique heritage.
, "the very first Indian-controlled, Indian-owned and Indian-run radio station in the U.S.," said activist Russell Means
in 2006.
In mid-2006, the station was off the air for several weeks when its transmitter was hit by lightning on April 15, sustaining more than $200,000 in damage.
As a non-profit endeavor, KILI is supported by public grants and tribal government funding. It is governed by a board of directors composed of community leaders, such as Nellie Two Bulls. Known as "Grandma Nellie", she was active at the local and national level as a strong proponent of the Lakota culture, beloved as a storyteller and singer prior to her death on February 18, 2007 at age 81.
On December 29, 2008; KILI has announced on its website that the station will be powered by a wind turbine
.
, as well as in English, from its studios on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Programs include: Morning Wakalyapi Show, an all-Lakota-language show by Francis Thunder Hawk, News of the Lakota Nation, live American Indian music performances in the evening, and frequent public service announcement
s.
One of its popular programs is the Blues Disc Jockey, hosted by Bryant High Horse on Sunday mornings. A Rapid City middle school teacher and guidance counselor during the week, he mixes blues
tunes with humor on the air. High Horse, whose Lakota name is "Oyate Nawicajin" (meaning "Stand for his People"), is one of a group striving to preserve the Lakota language so that Lokata youth may speak and write their native language fluently. KILI's schedule includes daily instruction in the Lakota language.
The station also simulcast
s live on the internet and hosts a daily national call-in show on American Indian issues, entitled Native America Calling.
Porcupine, South Dakota
Porcupine is a census-designated place in Shannon County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 1,062 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Porcupine is located at ....
, is a non-profit radio station broadcasting to the Lakota people on the Pine Ridge
Pine Ridge Indian Reservation
The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation is an Oglala Sioux Native American reservation located in the U.S. state of South Dakota. Originally included within the territory of the Great Sioux Reservation, Pine Ridge was established in 1889 in the southwest corner of South Dakota on the Nebraska border...
, Cheyenne River
Cheyenne River Indian Reservation
The Cheyenne River Indian Reservation was created by the United States in 1889 by breaking up the Great Sioux Reservation, following its victory over the Lakota in a series of wars in the 1870s. The reservation covers almost all of Dewey and Ziebach counties in South Dakota...
, and Rosebud Indian Reservation
Rosebud Indian Reservation
The Rosebud Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation in South Dakota, United States. It is the home of the federally recognized Sicangu Oyate, also known as Sicangu Lakota, the Upper Brulé Sioux Nation, and the Rosebud Sioux Tribe , a branch of the Lakota people...
s, part of the Great Sioux Nation
Great Sioux Nation
The Great Sioux Nation is a general term sometimes applied to the Sioux. The Great Sioux Nation is divided into three linguistically and regionally based groups and several subgroups:# Lakota...
. The station started broadcasting in 1983 as the first American Indian-owned radio station in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Owned and operated by Lakota Communications, KILI serves 30,000 people on the three reservations, along with the large American Indian urban community in Rapid City
Rapid City, South Dakota
Rapid City is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota, and the county seat of Pennington County. Named after Rapid Creek on which the city is established, it is set against the eastern slope of the Black Hills mountain range. The population was 67,956 as of the 2010 Census. Rapid...
, using a translator in the Mount Rushmore State's second-largest city. It seeks to preserve Native American culture and instill pride in the peoples' unique heritage.
History
The station was founded in 1983 by members of the American Indian MovementAmerican Indian Movement
The American Indian Movement is a Native American activist organization in the United States, founded in 1968 in Minneapolis, Minnesota by urban Native Americans. The national AIM agenda focuses on spirituality, leadership, and sovereignty...
, "the very first Indian-controlled, Indian-owned and Indian-run radio station in the U.S.," said activist Russell Means
Russell Means
Russell Charles Means is an Oglala Sioux activist for the rights of Native American people. He became a prominent member of the American Indian Movement after joining the organisation in 1968, and helped organize notable events that attracted national and international media coverage...
in 2006.
In mid-2006, the station was off the air for several weeks when its transmitter was hit by lightning on April 15, sustaining more than $200,000 in damage.
As a non-profit endeavor, KILI is supported by public grants and tribal government funding. It is governed by a board of directors composed of community leaders, such as Nellie Two Bulls. Known as "Grandma Nellie", she was active at the local and national level as a strong proponent of the Lakota culture, beloved as a storyteller and singer prior to her death on February 18, 2007 at age 81.
On December 29, 2008; KILI has announced on its website that the station will be powered by a wind turbine
Wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...
.
Programming
KILI broadcasts 22 hours daily in the Lakota languageLakota language
Lakota is a Siouan language spoken by the Lakota people of the Sioux tribes. While generally taught and considered by speakers as a separate language, Lakota is mutually understandable with the other two languages , and is considered by most linguists one of the three major varieties of the Sioux...
, as well as in English, from its studios on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Programs include: Morning Wakalyapi Show, an all-Lakota-language show by Francis Thunder Hawk, News of the Lakota Nation, live American Indian music performances in the evening, and frequent public service announcement
Public service announcement
A public service announcement or public service ad is a type of advertisement featured on television, radio, print or other media...
s.
One of its popular programs is the Blues Disc Jockey, hosted by Bryant High Horse on Sunday mornings. A Rapid City middle school teacher and guidance counselor during the week, he mixes blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
tunes with humor on the air. High Horse, whose Lakota name is "Oyate Nawicajin" (meaning "Stand for his People"), is one of a group striving to preserve the Lakota language so that Lokata youth may speak and write their native language fluently. KILI's schedule includes daily instruction in the Lakota language.
The station also simulcast
Simulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
s live on the internet and hosts a daily national call-in show on American Indian issues, entitled Native America Calling.