Teen Suicide in SD
SDPB1: Thursday, Jan. 24, 8pm (7 MT)
In 2017, suicide was the second leading cause of death for South Dakotans aged 15 to 25, according to the SD Department of Health. We’ll discuss the issue with mental health experts and advocates. Gear Up Investigation
SDPB1: Thursday, Jan. 31, 8pm (7 MT)
South Dakota Focus in January
This month SDPB’s live public affairs program discusses some of the hardest-hitting issues affecting our state. State Legislative Preview: Live from Pierre
SDPB1: Thursday, Jan. 10, 8pm (7 MT)
Invited guests include House Majority Leader Rep. Lee Qualm (R) Platte; House Minority Leader Rep. Jamie Smith (D) Sioux Falls; and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Troy Heinert (D) Mission. Homelessness in SD
SDPB1: Thursday, Jan. 17, 8pm (7 MT)
A 2018 report compiled by
(My Country No More, continued)
replace me with somebody at a lesser rate.” Now Valdez does day labor. He sees the industry picking up again and says, with his experience, he can be very selective. “Soon the major oil-industry companies will be hiring again and I hope I’ll find a good, reliable job I can hopefully retire on.” But Valdez says he remains in Williston for the quality of life and the people. “You can’t beat the folks here, the slower pace.” Eight years on since Rider initially contacted filmmaker Hammerling, Rider says the “craziness” in the Trenton area has slowed as oil prices have declined and the frenzy of widening roads and constructing storage, loading terminals, and housing has decreased. One irony that has transpired since the oil industry changed the area is Rider’s attitude toward it. “I’ve always loved where I live and feel connected to it,” says Rider. “But to be honest I like 16
Learn. Dream. Grow.
CreditLoan.com from Housing and Urban Development Exchange data between 2007 and 2016 shows South Dakota had the largest increase in homelessness in the U.S. A 2017 assessment from the South Dakota Housing for the Homeless Consortium (SDHHC) found that over 1 in 5 homeless in South Dakota were children. The SDHHC is organizing its next Statewide Pointin-Time Homeless Count on January 22.
Williston now more than my whole time growing up. We have such an interesting diversity of people now. The influx of outsiders has created demand for all the stuff I’m really interested in, like healthier food. But what has happened to the rural landscape has gotten worse. It’s a tradeoff, and not a good one, overall.” When My Country No More was recently screened at a film festival in Missoula, Rider and Valdez spent a lot of time together. “Yeah, we hung out,” says Rider. “A lot of people I know, clients and friends, they’re in the oil field. I co-exist with everybody. It’s not like you can be separate. I think for the most part people understand each other. It’s the influx of money, at the land level, at the neighbor level, that really turns people against each other. My fights, if you can call them that, were not against people coming in. It was against people I’ve known my whole life.”
Keith More (Rosebud Sioux), former state Indian Education Director and former chairman of MidCentral Educational Cooperative’s GEAR UP committee, joins the program to discuss the federal investigation into alleged wrongdoing in connection with a moneyfunneling scheme at the Platte-based educational cooperative. South Dakotans — join the conversation! Submit a question to Focus. SDPB invites your questions and comments: Text: 605-956-7372 Email: SDFocus@SDPB.org
Independent Lens: My Country No More premieres Monday, Jan. 7, at 9pm (8 MT) on SDPB1.
Oil worker Ruben Valdez shows his North Dakota pride.
