Chelsea Curtis

No Turquoise Alert for Navajo teen amplifies questions about Arizona's endangered children and new missing person system - AZ Luminaria When 14-year-old Neveah Alessandro Campos ran away from her uncle’s home in Glendale Saturday afternoon, her mother Ashley Alessandro gave her a day to come back. But when she didn’t, Ashley did what ...

NEW from me: No Turquoise Alert for Navajo teen amplifies questions about Arizona's endangered children and new missing person system azluminaria.org/2025/11/06/n... via @azluminaria.org

Pascua Yaqui Tribe pauses council meeting livestream change after community concerns over access, transparency - AZ Luminaria The Pascua Yaqui Tribe’s decision to stop livestreaming its council meetings on social media was paused this week following community concerns over transparency and access. Chairman Julian Hernandez r...

New from me: Pascua Yaqui Tribe pauses council meeting livestream change after community concerns over access, transparency azluminaria.org/2025/10/10/p... via @azluminaria.org

Huge thanks to @azluminaria.org & Tara Gatewood + IWMF’s Fund for Indigenous Journalists for believing in this work from the beginning & the Data-Driven Reporting Project for carrying it forward. Even bigger thanks to my family for supporting me behind the scenes. Ayóó anííníshní ❤️

I share this recognition w/ all the Indigenous journalists, storytellers & grassroots organizers who paved the way for this work to be possible. This award is a reflection of what our communities have always known to be true: Indigenous storytelling is invaluable and necessary.

15 years after a 7-year-old’s life was taken, her light guides her family’s path forward - AZ Luminaria Ahead of the National Day of Awareness for #MMIWG, Rhia Almeida’s family remembers her life and light. She was killed in 2009 in Ajo, Arizona.

I can’t begin to express how grateful I am to the families and communities who trusted me with the most tender and painful parts of their lives. Your voices are the heart of this work, and I only hope I honored them. azluminaria.org/2024/05/03/1...

MMIP Arizona database - AZ Luminaria A searchable database and map of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, Two-Spirit and Transgender People in Arizona, MMIP, MMIW

When set out on this project to uncover data and stories about #MMIP
in Arizona, my goal was to lend my seat in this privileged space I hold as a journalist to Indigenous people who’ve long said they don’t feel heard or seen. azluminaria.org/mmip-arizona/

✨Some personal news, as they say✨

While I’m still half expecting a correction any day now, I’m incredibly honored to be named a 2024 Virg Hill Arizona Journalist of the Year. Congrats to @emilybregel.bsky.social & Jason Wolf, who were also recognized for this award.

Letter demanding release of journalist Mario Guevara

For over 100 days, journalist Mario Guevara has been detained by U.S. law enforcement for his livestream reporting.

He is the only journalist behind bars for his journalism, and he could be deported for doing his job.

We demand his immediate release.

freedomformario.com

Safety changes to Maricopa County sheriff meetings in Latino racial profiling case await federal judge’s order - AZ Luminaria Amid growing concern over political violence, Latino community leaders and Republican officials alike await a federal judge’s orders on tightening security at community meetings tied to a longstanding...

#ICYMI Safety changes to Maricopa County sheriff meetings in Latino racial profiling case await federal judge’s order via @azluminaria.org azluminaria.org/2025/09/22/s...

That said, here's a friendly reminder: credit matters. When you lift someone's work without attribution, you're not just erasing a byline, you're erasing the community-centered reporting behind it.

*gets off soapbox*

I tried to shrug it off, but the reality is @azluminaria.org is a small, nonprofit newsroom so we don't have the same reach as corporate media. Still, I'm glad the story gained traction and I hope it helped inform GRIC citizens about upcoming plans for their community.

In an industry where Indigenous journalists remain underrepresented, it’s frustrating that our nuanced and thoughtful reporting is often what it takes to bring attention to some of these issues only to later see stripped-down versions of our work online without a single nod to us.

Gila River Indian Community weighs banishment ordinance, a first for Arizona tribes - AZ Luminaria The Gila River Indian Community is weighing a new ordinance that would allow for the banishment and disenrollment of tribal members convicted of violent crimes. If adopted, the proposal would mark the...

Despite the tribe sharing its plans a whole month prior, no other newsroom covered the story until ours went live. Multiple outlets have since published their own versions and not one credited our original reporting here: azluminaria.org/2025/08/29/g...

Gila River Indian Community considers ordinance to banish or disenroll members who commit crimes The Gila River Indian Community in Arizona is considering a new ordinance that would allow for tribal members to be banished or disenrolled if they are convicted of crimes.

Thanks so much @apnews.com for sharing! Last week, @azluminaria.org broke the story on the Gila River Indian Community’s proposed banishment ordinance for tribal members convicted of violent crimes, marking the first move of its kind in Arizona. apnews.com/article/crim...

Gila River Indian Community weighs banishment ordinance, a first for Arizona tribes - AZ Luminaria The Gila River Indian Community is weighing a new ordinance that would allow for the banishment and disenrollment of tribal members convicted of violent crimes. If adopted, the proposal would mark the...

New, from me: Gila River Indian Community weighs banishment ordinance, a first for Arizona tribes azluminaria.org/2025/08/29/g...

“Being an immigrant is risky:" ICE enforcement drives Arizona families to online fundraising platforms - AZ Luminaria Georges Maskini is no stranger to being told he doesn’t belong. His parents fled political persecution in the Democratic Republic of Congo and sought refuge in South Africa in 2000, where Georges was ...

“Being an immigrant is risky:" ICE enforcement drives Arizona families to online fundraising platforms azluminaria.org/2025/07/30/b... via @azluminaria.org

Wrong ballots sent to hundreds in Tucson – here’s how to fix yours before Aug. 5 primary - AZ Luminaria If you live in Wards 3, 5 or 6 and received a ballot that doesn’t match your party affiliation, you’re not alone.  Pima County officials last Friday confirmed a recent data error resulted in 358 voter...

Wrong ballots sent to hundreds in Tucson – here’s how to fix yours before Aug. 5 primary azluminaria.org/2025/07/29/w... via @azluminaria.org

Amazon Web Services is company behind Tucson’s Project Blue, according to 2023 county memo - AZ Luminaria Amazon Web Services is revealed to be the company behind the Project Blue data center proposed for Tucson.

Exclusive: Records obtained by Arizona Luminaria tie Amazon to a massive Tucson area data center that has been shrouded in secrecy until now

Runaway label concerns raised at Hobbs’ bill signing ceremony for law named to honor Emily Pike - AZ Luminaria During Gov. Katie Hobbs' ceremonial signing of "Emily's Law" on Wednesday, an Arizona Department of Public Safety official confirmed the new Turquoise Alert will not cover runaways.

Officials confirm Emily’s Law wouldn’t have applied to Emily Pike’s case, bringing renewed attention to gaps in missing person alerts for children labeled runaways azluminaria.org/2025/05/22/r... via @azluminaria.org #MMIP

Gov. Katie Hobbs signs Turquoise Alert System into law - AZ Luminaria A bill establishing a new missing person alert system in Arizona was signed into law Tuesday by Gov. Katie Hobbs.  House Bill 2281 proposed the creation of a new Turquoise Alert System that, once acti...

Gov. Katie Hobbs signs Turquoise Alert System into law azluminaria.org/2025/05/13/g... via @azluminaria

“This is for shíyázhí Emily Pike”: New missing person alert bill unanimously passes AZ House - AZ Luminaria A measure that would establish a new missing person alert system in Arizona was unanimously passed by the House of Representatives on Wednesday, advancing to Gov. Katie Hobbs for final approval.  Hous...

“This is for shíyázhí Emily Pike”: New missing person alert bill unanimously passes AZ House, heads to Gov. Hobbs for signature azluminaria.org/2025/05/07/t... via @azluminaria.org #MMIP

Membership - AZ Luminaria Support quality journalism by joining us today!

Celebrate #WorldPressFreedomDay by supporting independent journalism! 🌎 @azluminaria.org has launched its 2025 Spring membership campaign that doubles every donation made to our newsroom. Help us continue to bring you more of the coverage that matters and strengthen local news! 🕯️🔗 shorturl.at/nuu2n

Hopi family’s search for Keisha Kootswatewa may be nearing an answer 3 years after disappearance - AZ Luminaria A Hopi family’s search for Keisha Kootswatewa — missing since 2022 — has been unwavering.  Leading the charge was her cousin, Yolanda Bydonie. She created missing person flyers. Organized ground searc...

UPDATE: Keisha Kootswatewa’s family believes she may be among multiple sets of remains found on the Navajo Nation, potentially bringing their three-year search to an end. Charges have been filed in connection with some of the remains — but not hers. via @azluminaria.org #MMIP

Arizona’s missing person alert bill amended to address exclusion of Emily Pike’s case A measure that would establish a new missing person alert system in Arizona was amended Wednesday to include minors

Recent amendments to the bill address a discrepancy that would have excluded Emily Pike’s case, despite recently renaming the legislation in her honor

story via @chelcurtis.bsky.social/@azluminaria.org

Arizona’s missing person alert bill amended to address exclusion of Emily Pike’s case - AZ Luminaria A measure that would establish a new missing person alert system in Arizona was amended Wednesday to include minors — addressing a previous gap in the bill’s language that excluded Emily Pike, an Indi...

Lawmakers have amended Arizona’s Turquoise Alert bill — addressing a previous gap in the bill’s language that would’ve excluded Emily Pike, the Indigenous teen it was named after azluminaria.org/2025/05/01/a... via @azluminaria.org #MMIP

Emily’s Law wouldn’t have helped Emily: Proposed Arizona alert highlights gaps for runaway youth - AZ Luminaria A proposed state law named for 14-year-old Emily Pike — a member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe who went missing and was later found dead — would not have applied to her disappearance. That’s because ...

Emily Pike’s brutal murder has been used to rally support for legislation creating a new alert system for missing people. But as it’s written, the proposed law — now named in the San Carlos Apache teen’s honor — wouldn’t help in missing cases like hers because of its age criteria.

ICYMI: A critical report created to address Missing and Murdered Indigenous People in Arizona and across the country has been removed from federal websites as the Trump administration continues to slash DEI measures

Landmark MMIP report removed from federal websites as Trump administration targets DEI initiatives  • Arizona Mirror The MMIP report, created under the Not Invisible Act, was hailed as a groundbreaking effort to combat violence and systemic challenges Indigenous communities face nationwide

Trump's anti-DEI crusade deleted a report on Missing and Murdered Indigenous People. It was created under the Not Invisible Act, which Trump signed in his first term.

via @chelcurtis.bsky.social/@azluminaria.bsky.social

I was honored to write for @lookoutnews.bsky.social Spring Issue! I spoke with Tucson’s trans Poet Laureate, TC Tolbert on resilience, the power of poetry & community, Indigenous & genderqueer history and our future

@transjournalists.org #transjoy #queerpoets

www.lookoutnews.org/how-poetry-a...

Chelsea Curtis speaks at Sunshine Fest

Listening to Chelsea Curtis talk about how she used freedom of information laws to uncover stories & build a database about Indigenous people who are missing or were murdered across Arizona: azluminaria.org/mmip-arizona/ #SunshineFest #SunshineWeek #OpenGov #ddj