Alaska

98: Shamanism

Yaari Toolie-Walker is a member of the Alaska-Native Yupik community, an activist, an educator, and a healer. Yaari is also a returning guest, and we highly encourage you to listen to our first conversation with her about the Yupik community, in episode 16 of Latitude Adjustment.

The topic of today’s conversation is shamanism, or spiritually-guided healing practices. It might surprise you to learn who is able to be a shaman, its relationship to conventional/Western healing practices, and how shamanism is thriving.

Be sure to visit the Alaska Native Heritage Center online, and even better, see it in person.

 
 

Revisited: Episode 16 - Indigenous Alaskan

For our first ever re-released episode we decided to commemorate Indigenous Peoples’ Day with an audience favorite and one of our earliest shows.

Yaari Walker is a member of the Yupik tribe, and originally from the town of Savoonga, on St. Lawrence Island, Alaska. She now resides in Anchorage, Alaska, where, in addition to being an activist, author, and entrepreneur, she works at the Alaska Native Heritage Center. Yaari has been on a journey, as a survivor of physical abuse, substance abuse, and incarceration, to recovery, writing a book, starting a business in Native medicinals, activism, and going back to college to study Psychology. We cover a lot of issues facing indigenous communities in Alaska, North America, and around the world, as well as the issue of community itself and how industrialized Western society often seems to be at odds with the values of sharing, communal responsibility, and compassion.

A warning that we talk about addiction and substance abuse, physical and sexual abuse, and the legacy of boarding school placement amongst the indigenous communities of North America. For those who have personally been through these traumas, or who have loved ones who have, just a note that some parts of this show may be upsetting.

 
 
 
 

Episode 9: Anarchist Librarian of Slab City

Cornelius Vango, is a traveler, musician, artist, and the genderqueer anarchist librarian of Slab City. Cornelius recently finished hitchhiking across Alaska with their dog Satan, and I caught up with them in Fresno, during the last segment of their long bus drive back to the Southern California desert.

And, we’ve just launched a Patreon page for Latitude Adjustment podcast. The show will remain free to the public, but if you find value in it then please consider supporting us with a dollar or more per month to help make our efforts sustainable. And remember to tell your friends about us! Thank you for your support!

 
 

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