Release Date:
07.31.2024
Hoporenkv Native American Podcast:
“A Preview of STTARS”
Special Guest:
Caroline LaPorte
(Immediate Descendant of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians)
Director
STTARS Indigenous Safe Housing Center
National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center
Episode Description:
In this episode, we delve into the critical issue of Indigenous homelessness with a special guest, Caroline LaPorte, the Director of the STTARS Indigenous Safe Housing Center. Learn about the invaluable work this organization is doing to provide safe and supportive housing for Indigenous individuals. Caroline shares insights into the challenges faced by Indigenous communities and the vital role STTARS plays in addressing them. Discover the range of services offered by the center, from housing assistance to cultural support, and gain a deeper understanding of the impact their work has on the lives of Indigenous people.
The STTARS Mission Statement explains that: “The mission of the STTARS Indigenous Safe Housing Center (STTARS) is to advocate for safe housing for all (their) relatives. (They) do this work through centering Indigeneity, acknowledging our relationship to Earth Mother, building on each other’s gifts, resisting oppression and erasure, and acting upon the prayers of our ancestors to honor diversity and create belonging for us all.”
Resources for Today’s Episode:
https://www.niwrc.org/housing
https://www.niwrc.org/housing/contact
https://www.niwrc.org/mailing-list
Guest Biography:
Caroline LaPorte (immediate descendant of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians) returns to NIWRC as the Director of the STTARS Indigenous Safe Housing Center after previously serving as NIWRC's Senior Native Affairs Policy Advisor. She graduated from the University of Miami School of Law, where she was named a Henry Bandier Fellow, and received the Natasha Pettigrew Memorial Award for her time as a fellow in the Children and Youth Law Clinic. She is an attorney/Judicial Advisor to the Tribal Court of the Seminole Tribe of Florida and is an Associate Judge for the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians.
Caroline's work focuses primarily on housing, human rights, children, firearms, and criminal justice focused within the gender-based violence framework. She serves on the American Bar Associations Victim’s Rights Task Force, co-chairs the Victim’s Committee for the Criminal Justice Section of the ABA, is a member of the Lenape Center’s MMIW Task Force, on the Board of Directors for StrongHearts Native Helpline, worked with Gwen Packard on helping to start the National Working Group on Safe Housing for American Indians and Alaska Natives, and is an adjunct instructor at the University of Miami teaching Native and Indigenous studies.