Join South Dakota Focus, Thursday, April 8, at 8pm (7 MT) on SDPB1 and SDPB.org to discuss the strict mitigation efforts South Dakota tribes took to put dampen the spread of COVID-19.
Live guests include:
- Harold Frazier, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Chairman
- J.R. LaPlante, Avera Director of Tribal Relations
Tribes in South Dakota put in some of the earliest and strictest mitigation efforts in place to dampen the spread of COVID-19—from highway checkpoints to curfews and mask mandates. In this week’s South Dakota Focus, community members look back on the past year of the pandemic and look ahead as vaccine distribution outpaces the state’s already impressive efforts.
Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Chairman Harold Frazier joins live to discuss the controversial highway checkpoints that earned national attention, along with a deeper conversation on how the pandemic has impacted his community. Avera Director of Tribal Relations and former Secretary of Tribal Relations J.R. LaPlante also joins live to explain the health disparities that put Native peoples at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19, and to talk about how healthcare entities can build relationships and trust with tribes in South Dakota.
SDPB's Lee Strubinger brings the last installment of "Pierre-to-Peer" to review the events of Veto Day in the South Dakota Legislature, and what South Dakota reporters expect from an impending special session.
Plus, SDPB premieres "Good Neighbors" -- short profiles highlighting the state’s high achievers and local heroes, including Rahele Megosha, a Sioux Falls Washington High School senior who recently won the statewide Poetry Out Loud competition.
ABOUT SOUTH DAKOTA FOCUS
Since 1995, South Dakota Focus has provided in-depth discussions with South Dakotans about issues and events impacting the state. South Dakota Focus takes the time to see matters more clearly. SDPB's Jackie Hendry hosts this statewide news and information program, Thursdays at 8pm (7 MT) on SDPB1 and SDPB.org. More at sdpb.org/tv/sdfocus/