Blackfeet initiative
The Blackfoot language is an Algonquian language spoken by the Blackfoot tribe in Montana and Alberta, Canada. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Blackfoot language and culture experienced a sharp decline due to the US government's federal policies and boarding schools. In the summer of 2025, initiative leader Tiger Song travelled to the Blackfoot reservation, interviewing elders about the language's endangerment and revitalization.
Basic information
Name: Niitsíʼpowahsin
Speakers: <1500
UNESCO Classification: Definitely Endangered
Emmette Dusty Bull and Kolton Running Crane are members of Blackfoot Eco Knowledge (BEK), an organization that seeks to revitalize Blackfoot culture through intergenerational connection and practicing Traditional Ecological Knowledge. I interviewed Emmettee and Colton at the Blackfoot tribe’s annual circle camp, a private ceremony that combines prayer with traditional cultural ceremonies.
Description
Joe Kipp is a rancher and farmer on the Blackfoot Reservation. He is a Okan/Sun Dance host. Kipp was a direct survivor of the federal government’s assimilation policies, even taking part in the Sun Dance during the 1960s, when doing so was illegal under Federal law.
Leon Rattler is a language preservationist and cultural activist. A Retired leader of the Crazy Dog warrior society, he took part in the 1972 American Indian Movement’s Occupation of Wounded Knee, South Dakota. He has continued his cultural activism since then, practicing a traditional Blackfoot lifestyle and participating in rites such as the Okan, Crazy Dog Society, Beaver Bundle, Medicine Pipe Bundle and Sun Dance societies.