This year, October 8, 2023, is Indigenous People’s Day. The day was officially proclaimed a national holiday by President Joe Biden in 2021. To celebrate the holiday, the editors of Black. decided to explore the often unrecognized intersection of the Black and Indigenous communities. To help us and others create a better understanding of what it means to be Indigenous and Black in 2023 we reached out to Radmilla Cody. Cody was born and raised in the Navajo Nation. She was raised by her grandmother and spent her childhood herding sheep, horseback riding, and singing. In 1997, she was crowned the 46th Miss Navajo Nation, becoming the first Black Navajo to do so. She is a Grammy award-nominated singer, domestic violence advocate, educator,co-founder of K’é Infoshop, Shimá Storytelling Literacy Program, founder of “Strong Spirit: Life is Beautiful not Abusive” campaign and a proud mother. This was our conversation:
Radmilla Cody:
My name is Radmilla Cody and I am of the Tłááschí'í (Red Ochre on Cheeks People or Red Bottom People) Nishłi Naahiłií (African American) Bashishchiin Nakai Diné'é (Mexican People Clan) Dashicheii/Maternal Grandparents Naahiłií (African American) Dashinali/Paternal Grandparents. I grew up in the Grand Falls area, and that is where I call home.
Maya Packer:
You have accomplished so much in your life. How have your identities contributed to your success?
Radmilla Cody:
On so many levels, and so many ways. I’m a singer…Music runs in both of my lineages and my heritage. So definitely through my singing and then just being Diné, Black, Navajo. It’s just been holding truth and [the] personification of two beautiful heritages: joy, pain, resistance and endurance, right? I think in what I have accomplished as a former Miss Navajo, and as a Navajo who broke down racial barriers during my reign as Miss Navajo Nation in 1997-98, coming from two beautiful heritages…has really given me that endurance and that perseverance to continue forward in the work that I do.
Maya Broomfield
Have you ever felt pressure to embrace one of your cultures over the other?
Radmilla Cody:
Yes, I have felt pressured because growing up in a predominantly Indigenous society, I always felt like I was not Diné enough. You’ll hear this a lot with a lot of Afro-Indigenous relatives because we’re told we’re not Indigenous enough, whatever the nations or tribes that we come from, in my case Dinè [enough].Then when I was with my Black relatives– same thing. I always felt that pressure because I wasn’t Black enough.
I think how I was able to work through that was my grandmother. She raised me to learn the life sustaining methods of the Dinè people. Whether I grew up in the predominantly Diné society and learned the life sustaining methods and ways of our people [and] the language, it still allowed me to be able to be proud of who I am as a Black person. My grandmother always stressed the importance of that because I came from two beautiful heritages. My mom was also very connected to the Black community in Flagstaff, Arizona. I would visit my dad’s side of the family there. I would stay with my mom’s friends and we’d hang out. The balance was there in terms of being able to go back, to be able to be proud to be among the Diné and also be proud to be among my Black relatives. Those relationships have continued on today.
Maya Packer:
Your bio reads “The Naahiłií is a new term that was passed down to Radmilla from a Diné practitioner when she inquired about a more positive, respectful and empowering term to identify those whom she is calling for the African Americans.” How had your African American heritage been previously referred to?
Radmilla Cody:
To provide some context behind the Naahiłií term movement: As a child, my grandmother who raised me told me to use Naakaii Łizhinii to identify my father’s side and those that I’m born for, which is Black people or African American. Naakaii Łizhinii generally translates to the dark-complected people because our language is very descriptive. Over time [it] has become a derogatory racist term and is now referred to as the “Z term”. Hearing the term zhinii in a racist manner all your life is traumatizing. I then proactively began looking for a new word inclined to describe our Black relatives in Navajo because I was tired of hearing the Z term. I sat down with an uncle of mine who is a Diné practitioner and shared with him that we needed to come up with a new term to replace the Z term. He told me “This is the new term that you will now use. And this is a term that we use in our ceremonies. But now I’m passing it down to you to use.” I began using this term as a part of my clans.
I first introduced it to the community of Tsé Bit’a’í , which is Shiprock. The community of Tsé Bit’a’í proudly embraced it. They applauded with acceptance and said “This is beautiful.” This educator came up to me and then said “What can we do to help you incorporate this new term into our curriculum?” She was the one who later researched the term with the breakdown of its meaning.
The meaning “Na(a)” - Those who have come across, “hił” - dark, calm, have overcome, persevered and we have come to like “ií” - oneness across the dark, come, have overcome and persevered.
It has been well-received by the vast majority of people.There has been some resistance as expected, with certain individuals stating that there’s nothing wrong with the previous term.
Since then our youth– I refer to you all as our modern day Monster Slayers– have been proactive in centering Black and Indigenous voices. I credit the youth and social media platforms like Diné Aesthetics and Keana Gorman for their roles in elevating the Naahiłií term. Even when translating Black Lives Matter , which is Naahiłií Beda’iina’ Nihił Danilį. This is who we are and what we represent as a people of kinship.
Maya Broomfield:
How did you feel when the Biden administration made an official proclamation for Indigenous Peoples Day in 2021?
Radmilla Cody
Proclamations are as bad as land acknowledgments. What is the proclamation when the land has been destroyed? Rivers and lakes poisoned. Generations lost through the violence of colonization, especially capitalism and Christianity. Why do we solely suffer the consequences of settlers attempting to regain their consciousness? Only 60% of households within the Navajo reservation have running water. The remaining 40% must haul water many miles for their families, livestock and farms. Resource extraction and exploitation have depleted much of our direct water sources. The lives, lands and natural rights of the Diné and Hopi have been sacrificed so that the capitalist economy of the Southwest US may thrive.
The crumbling infrastructure of reservation roads, agriculture, water and communication makes the situation ripe for Indigenous people to top every list where violence and death are measured. By outsourcing our kinship in hopes to an inhumane structure, we have erased many semblance of self-determination for the false promises of peace. We are striving to recenter our purpose of upholding healthy and dignified lives for all based on kinship with human and non-human relatives.
A recent and stark example of the influence [of] a proclamation is to look at what has happened in Espanola in so-called Albuquerque, New Mexico within the Tewa territory. On September 28, a fascist, pro-American terrorist shot Jacob Johns point blank in his chest as Johns was protecting people peacefully, celebrating the delay in reinstalling a monument to a monster known as Juan de Oñate.
A proclamation in 2021 didn’t stop Johns from being shot in 2023. A proclamation in 2021 didn’t help in any modern matters in restoring our kinship with what’s now called the Colorado River. The U.S. Supreme Court relied on the racist and paternalistic moralities of the 1860s to strike down our case in 2023. So again, why do we solely suffer the consequences of settlers attempting to regain their conscience?
Maya Broomfield:
How do you feel about the country’s alarming decisions of trying to get rid of diversity and inclusion in schools?
Radmilla Cody:
For Indigenous people, this is nothing new. We’ve been censored and fighting erasure since this country was founded. I think racism and patriarchy are weapons of capitalism, of imperialism and schools have long been a stronghold of indoctrination of U.S. exceptionalism. When the school started to become more human focused, some states, some sooner than others, are going to limit any threat to its mythologies. When we study the facts of history through disciplined and free discourse, we unravel the mythology and fantasy of the U.S.. Unhealthy, unwell people have risen to immense power based on the fantasy of the United States.
I am also optimistic that the reason more pressure is being placed on shutting down diversity is because we’re beginning to see our struggles are the same. Black and Native people have a long intertwined history of kinship and resistance that predates the so-called United States. Settlers are starting to see the monsters that have terrorized us for centuries have been haunting them this whole time as well.
Maya Packer:
As a mother, what is the most important lesson that you’re passing on to your children about their heritage?
Radmilla Cody:
What my child knows in terms of his history is what he’ll be able to carry forward and his language. Just like my grandmother raised me to know who I am as a Diné woman.
One of the main things that she really emphasized to me growing up was the language. There’s so much power in language and there’s so much power in culture. There’s so much power in our life ways as Diné and there’s so much power in history when you know where you’ve been, where you come from and how you are going to move forward. With my little one, my little monster slayer, what I am instilling in him is the truth. The truth about the so-called United States, the truth about our struggles that continue today and our resistance to that. But also the pride that he has as a Diné, Black, and Hopi person and the power that lies in that. What’s also very important in our parenting is whatever intergenerational trauma or violence that I may have experienced or my partner may have experienced ends with us.
Maya Packer: Do you think the trauma that Indigenous communities have experienced, because it’s so tied to the foundation of the United States, that there is still a way forward, a way up and out from the trauma? Will there be generations that don’t have to bear the weight of their communities having experienced genocide?
Radmilla Cody:
We may not see it in our time, but we’re putting in the work. As long as we continue to put in the work, that effort. And a big part of that is happening right now with the Black Lives Matter movement, we’re seeing and we’re continuing to inspire our younger generations. For all the young folks, I have nothing but the utmost respect for you because you’re a big part of that. You’re a big part of this shift that’s happening right now in our time towards that liberation. That’s hopeful. You’re that hope.
As much effort Black and Indigenous people of color have put into resisting and moving forward, in a way we’re dismantling these oppressive systems that continue to be in our way. It’s a part of that process of dismantling these systems of oppression, in order for us to be able to see what is next in terms of reaching that place of liberation.
Hopefully it’ll happen soon. Definitely not going to probably happen in our time, but it’s going to happen and I really believe that. That’s the hope that lies in your generation and the generations to follow.
Maya Brooomfield:
What do you want people to know about the Navajo Nation? And are there any misconceptions that you often hear or see about Navajo people or other Indigenous groups that you feel are incorrect?
Radmilla Cody:
Well, the Diné are the largest Indigenous nation with over 400,000 tribal members. We live on our original territory homeland and as a matrilineal society, we’re strongly rooted in our lifeways culture and language.
Some commonly held misconceptions [are] that we no longer exist. We only live on the reserves. We don’t pay our taxes. We live free. We get special privileges like free money or tax exemptions. We’re all rich from casinos. We’re all the same. And our tribes are fully part of the so-called USA. There’s a lot of issues from the subjugation of Indigenous people in the society and including societal discrimination, racism, cultural appropriation through sports mascots and depictions in art. The list goes on. I think the thing to do is for us to recognize [these]. That is why it’s so important for Indigenous people to continue to take up space and share their own stories to break down and dismantle those misconceptions.
Maya Broomfield:
A lot of this conversation has been stifled by the government or powers that be. What are some resources that you are personally aware of that you think people should look into if they want to know about Navajo or other Indigenous communities, where should they start? I feel like that’s the gap that’s missing. Honestly, when we grew up the most I knew about Indigenous people was from watching Pocahontas, which is horrible. But that’s all we had. So where do you think we should start to educate ourselves?
Radmilla Cody:
Well, definitely reach out to those communities. I can’t speak for other Indigenous tribes. In this case, if you want to learn about Diné culture, I’m here as a resource for that and I can help. I can assist you with as much as I can.
But if you want to know more about the history of the Diné then I can recommend you to Dr. Jennifer Nez Denetdale. She’s an amazing historian [and] a professor who’s very knowledgeable of the history of the Diné people.
If you want to know how to support and elevate our LGBTQ+ relatives, then you go to those organizations. In this case, if it’s a Diné, trans or LGBTQ+ relative, then I can recommend Mattee Jim or Stella Elise Martin.
I think just reaching out to those organizations that are specific to those resources that you would like to tap into or to learn about.
You don’t want to have them to do all the work for you. You want to make sure that you’re [being] respectful in terms of compensating these individuals for their time but also elevating their work in the process of that.
There’s a lot of podcasts, like “All My Relations”, there’s a lot of grassroot movements, like Not Your Mascot. There’s a lot of anti-colonial spaces like The Red Nation, Taala Hooghan, and K’É.
These are amazing organizations that continue to do work at the grassroots level with a lot of our Indigenous relatives and many more.