US Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) secured a key endorsement on Monday from President Donald Trump, bolstering his re-election campaign with the backing of the Republican Party’s most influential figure.
Trump announced his endorsement on Truth Social, praising Sullivan’s record and support for conservative priorities. The endorsement comes as Alaska’s political landscape heats up ahead of the 2026 elections, with Sullivan expected to seek a third term in the U.S. Senate.
“Senator Dan Sullivan is doing a fantastic job representing the Great People of Alaska! Prior to becoming a very distinguished and Highly Respected Senator, Dan served as State Attorney General and the Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources,” Trump wrote in his social media post.
Trump highlighted Sullivan’s work on national defense, energy policy, and economic growth, adding, “Dan is a GREAT man, has ALWAYS delivered for Alaska (which I won three times by BIG margins in 2016, 2020, and 2024!), and will continue doing so in the U.S. Senate.”
The former president pointed to Sullivan’s efforts to lower taxes, reduce regulations, and support American energy independence. He also emphasized Sullivan’s support for securing the nation’s borders, defending the Second Amendment, and backing military service members and veterans. Sullivan is a retired Marine colonel.
“Dan Sullivan has my Complete and Total Endorsement for Re-Election – HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN!” Trump wrote.
Trump carried Alaska by more than 54% of the vote in the 2024 presidential election, marking his third consecutive victory in the state. He won outright, without having to go though the complicated ranked-choice voting processs.
Sullivan, first elected to the Senate in 2014, has maintained strong ties to Alaska’s energy sector and military community and is considered a frontrunner for re-election.
No major Democratic challengers have announced a run against Sullivan as of Monday, but Alaska newcomer Ann Diener, a Democrat, is in the race. In 2020, the Democrats backed Al Gross, a medical doctor from Juneau-Petersburg-Anchorage, who failed to capture the trust of Alaska voters, garnering only 41.7% of the vote.
Alaska Democrats appear to have found their challenger in the 2026 US Senate race. Ann Diener, a Democrat and newspaper sales executive at the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, filed to run against incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, who has served since being elected in 2014.
Diener moved to Alaska in 2021 and was involved in Democratic politics through the unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign of Democrat Les Gara in 2022. With no other Democrat yet stepping forward and no signs of a late entry from former Rep. Mary Peltola, who is currently tied up in a lawsuit involving the death of her husband Buzzy, Diener looks to be the party’s default standard-bearer.
On her campaign website, Diener emphasizes themes of economic development and community-building. “We need to work hard to serve Alaskans and those who move to our state,” she writes, adding that Alaska must “create win-wins and care about creating flourishing local communities” amid concerns over population decline.
However, parts of Diener’s biographystand out for their unusual tone. She describes her political experience as including an effort to “defeat the overlord who had attempted to harm my planet” and claims to have stopped an attack on “our start (sic) system.” She often refers to herself as “we.”
In a section titled “Biography of Our Work for Sovereignty,” she pledges to uphold “Constitutionalism with Oversight against all Malfeasance.”
In comments about her political role models, Diener lists former US Sen. Dianne Feinstein (misspelled as “Diane” on her website), while also promoting a platform that mixes traditional Democrat priorities like workers’ rights and housing with a broad focus on foreign policy and energy. She also advocates for increased tourism promotion and attracting outside talent to Alaska. She claims to have vast foreign policy experience.
On her Ballotpedia profile she says, “We need to improve our state and encourage people to see that Alaska has a thriving future. This is something that is currently not happening, and it is time to elect someone with fresh eyes on the challenges we face. Coming from California, where we faced overdevelopment I stood against, I can work for Alaskans to encourage positive growth with constituents interest in mind. I will encourage direct communication and put your needs first. My goal is to engage everyone in an interactive way online, in person and over the phone.”
Her website features photos of protest signs, such as one that says, “No Justice No Peace.”
Diener has never run for elected office before and her professional background is in advertising sales. She was born in Colorado and got a college degree from San Diego State University, according to Ballotpedia, where she has completed the candidate profile and survey. She has a campaign website, a Facebook page, a campaign page on X, and some other social media tie downs.
Barring a last-minute entrant, Diener will face Sen. Sullivan, who is seeking his third term. The Alaska Democratic Party has yet to formally endorse a candidate, but Diener’s early filing in December 2024 and lack of alternatives suggest she may be their nominee by default.
The Department of Justice has initiated formal requests for voter registration records and other election-related data from at least nine states, according to official state confirmations and federal documentation. The states contacted include Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
The requests, sent through the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, focus on how states manage voter registration, clean their rolls, and identify ineligible voters.
The DOJ is seeking information on processes used to verify voter eligibility, such as checks against state databases to flag duplicate registrations, noncitizens, deceased individuals, and those disqualified due to felony convictions or mental incompetence.
Here is the letter sent to Alaska Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom:
Last week, nearly three weeks after the Justice Department request was made to Dahlstrom, the Alaska Division of Elections sent out a social media post explaining how voters are removed from the voter rolls:
In Colorado, the Justice Department asked for “all records” related to the 2024 general election, which may include ballots and voting equipment records. State officials have described the scope of the request as highly unusual.
Similar letters were sent to other states with varying levels of detail and specificity, ranging from general voter roll maintenance procedures to inquiries about voter verification methods, such as Arizona’s use of driver’s license numbers for identity confirmation.
These requests are issued under the authority of a March 2025 executive order signed by President Donald Trump, directing the Department of Justice to investigate suspected election-related crimes. The executive order also allows the DOJ to withhold certain federal funds from states that fail to comply with such investigations.
State responses to the DOJ inquiries have varied. Some, like Wisconsin, referred the DOJ to publicly accessible voter information portals that require payment of a nominal fee. Others, like Arizona, provided limited data consistent with federal law, while affirming their existing voter verification safeguards. Pennsylvania confirmed its cooperation with the DOJ but did not publicly disclose the extent of its data sharing.
The Alaska Division of Elections, under the direction of Dahlstrom, is working on a response.
Election officials in Colorado expressed concern over the unprecedented scope of the DOJ’s demand, noting that public voter data is readily accessible under state law but emphasizing restrictions on sensitive information such as Social Security numbers or drivers’ license numbers. Additionally, election officials in several states have cited statutory limitations on releasing certain types of data, even to federal agencies.
Under federal law, including the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, the Department of Justice is empowered to monitor voter roll maintenance to ensure accuracy and prevent ineligible voting. Federal law permits oversight of voter list maintenance, demands for records encompassing all election materials and voting infrastructure could test the boundaries of federal authority.
Multiple people were apparently injured early Sunday morning after gunfire erupted near the Gaslight Lounge in downtown Anchorage.
3:30 pm update: When officers arrived, they found three victims, one of whom had non-life-threatening injuries, one with life-threatening injuries; and one deceased adult male victim. Medics arrived and transported the victims to the hospital. A fourth victim was later located with non-life-threatening injuries. The Crime Scene Team has responded to process the scene. Suspect still not detained.
According to the Anchorage Police Department, officers responded to reports of shots fired at approximately 2:50 am in the area of 4th Avenue and G Street. Upon arrival, officers discovered several victims at the scene. The extent of their injuries has not yet been released.
As of Sunday morning, no suspects have reported to have been detained. Police say they are actively following up on leads but have not released any suspect description or details about what may have led to the violence.
Authorities are asking anyone with information about the shooting — including surveillance footage from nearby businesses or residences — to contact Anchorage Police Dispatch at 3-1-1 (option #1) or (907) 786-8900 (option #0).
The motive behind the shooting remains under investigation, as do any potential connections between those involved. Police said further updates will be provided as more information becomes available.
This story will be updated as new information is available.
Police have still not released information about the Friday shooting incident near an active baseball game at Mulcahy Stadium in midtown. The name of the suspect is still unknown, but he was reported to have been bitten by police K9 Kevin and was taken to the hospital for treatment of his injuries.
Former US Rep. Mary Peltola filed a civil lawsuit Friday in Bethel Superior Court, possibly seeking damages related to the plane crash that killed her husband, Eugene “Buzzy” Peltola Jr. on Sept. 12, 2023.
The lawsuit names defendants Bruce Werba, a registered master guide, and Alaska Pike Safari’s and Wilderness Adventures LLC, owned by Werba. Neitz Aviation, is also named in the complaint. Frank Neitz is the former owner of Arctic Circle Air.
Peltola’s husband died during a guided moose hunting trip along the Yukon River in 2023. The small plane he was piloting crashed shortly after takeoff from a remote wilderness camp. The accident drew national attention and widespread condolences, as Peltola was serving in Congress at the time.
The case, assigned to Bethel Superior Court Judge William Montgomery, was filed through Bethel attorney Myron E. Angstman and Anchorage attorney Russell L. Winner. Peltola is demanding a jury trial.
While the precise allegations are unknown to Must Read Alaska, the filing has a mark of someone seeking restitution for her husband’s death.
Werba, through his guiding business, conducts annual Yukon moose hunts. Neitz, known for decades of bush flying experience, previously owned a cargo airline before running his current aviation operation.
Bethel is one of the few jurisdictions in America known for high jury awards and it is a venue that plaintiffs’ lawyer prefer for that reason. In the courts, her claim to Buzzy Peltola’s estate is still open, and will likely be open for some time, at least until this matter is settled.
Peltola has been rumored to be preparing to run for statewide office, but these lawsuits throw that rumor into doubt.
On July 15, the US Senate took on one of the most controversial issues of our time — vaccine injuries and the power of Big Pharma. In a hearing titled “Voices of the Vaccine Injured,” Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), chairman of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, gave a national platform to families devastated by vaccine injuries, alongside medical experts who question the current system of pharmaceutical immunity.
The hearing exposed heartbreaking personal stories and raised bipartisan concerns about corporate accountability, government oversight, and the unchecked influence of pharmaceutical advertising.
The goal was to magnify the silenced stories of vaccine harm along with a broader debate on vaccine safety, efficacy, and policy. To ensure a balanced presentation, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) provided a counterpoint, focusing on the life-saving benefits of vaccines and sharing accounts of losses from preventable diseases. You can watch the entire meeting here.
“All of the witnesses presented powerful testimony and engaged in respectful discussion. I believe all of these stories needed to be told and listened to. I sincerely hope that the hearing helped to bridge the gap and demonstrate how to heal and unify our horribly divided nation,” said Sen. Johnson.
Five witnesses discussed vaccine injuries, and two witnesses discussed vaccine efficacy. One of the witnesses was one of our speakers from last year’s Alaskans 4 PersonalFreedom conference — Dr. Brian Hooker, chief scientist at the Childrens’ Health Defense. He spoke of his son who developed autism after an MMR vaccine.
Testimonies are available in links below.
Emily Tarsell, mother of Christina Tarsell, witness’ daughter died following Gardasil vaccination
Eric Stein, brother of Jessica Stein, witness’ sister died of influenza
Brian Hooker, PH.D., father of Steven Hooker, witness’ son is vaccine injured with autism
Polly Tommey, mother of Billy Tommey, witness’ son is vaccine injured
Serese Marotta, mother of Joseph Marotta, witness’ son died following flu illness
Krystle Cordingley, mother of Corbyn Cordingley, witness’ son died following quadrivalent flu vaccination
One of the positives that came out of the hearing was a shared belief between Democrats and Republicans that the pharmaceutical industry does not have much oversight. Both sides showed concern for the “immunity from legal responsibility” enjoyed by Big Pharma since 1986.
Johnson brought up one of my pet peeves that the FDA allows pharmaceutical companies to advertise on TV. I can’t watch a show without hearing about some new drug for some disease I should ask my doctor about.
Johnson said a whopping $10 Billion was spent by Big Pharma on consumer advertising in 2024, making up just about 25% of the evening ad minutes.
Wouldn’t it be great if that money instead could be directed to those injured by these new great “wonderful” drugs?
Johnson stated the massive amount of money gained from this advertising allows the industry to “control the narrative and suppress stories of drug and vaccine injuries.”
The panel’s ranking Democrat Sen. Blumenthal agreed with Johnson’s concerns of Big Pharma and stated he’d co-sponsor a bill banning pharmaceutical advertisements on TV.
That would certainly be a step in the right direction. I pray it’s time now. A bipartisan push in the Senate would make a difference.
Committee members also shared an interest in reforming the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. This is the program established in 1986 that gave legal immunity to pharmaceutical manufacturers.
The vaccine manufacturer immunity occurred when lawsuits threatened to drive companies out of the market. Since they received immunity and we went to VICP instead, the explosion in childhood vaccine recommended doses went from 7 to 76 today.
Although the government does have the VICP, one witness on the panel stated the program has not provided relief to his family over 16 years to support his son who requires around-the-clock care.
Blumenthal asked if the U.S. government holds the pharmaceutical industry to the same standards as other industries.
“I am extremely suspicious as a lawyer that immunity is granted in any blanket way across the board to any manufacturer,” Blumenthal said.
It looks like the Senate (or at least some of the members of this committee) may be looking to write similar legislation.
Sen. Johnson should be applauded for exposing the serious injuries from vaccinations. The testimonies from the family members were hard to listen to without tearing up. Something needs to be done to stop the protection of Big Pharma and its shareholders.
Instead of protecting the industry, we should be protecting our children and ourselves. Remember, the Hippocratic Oath says, “First Do No Harm.” That is the principle that should always be followed, especially for our defenseless children.
Linda Boyle, RN, MSN, DM, was formerly the chief nurse for the 3rd Medical Group, JBER, and was the interim director of the Alaska VA. Most recently, she served as Director for Central Alabama VA Healthcare System. She is the director of the Alaska Covid Alliance/Alaskans 4 Personal Freedom.
I am seeing a barrage of ads on TV addressing our US Sen. Dan Sullivan over the issue of Medicaid. While Medicaid is an important issue, the ads are curious in their content and focus. Just a couple of weeks ago we saw similar ads aimed at Sen. Murkowski. Why the switch?
Are these ads really about Medicaid? Or are they just political ads since Sen. Sullivan will be running for reelection in 2026?
There are a couple of clues that can tell us. First, the claims made about the impact of the Big Beautiful Bill on Medicaid are patently false. They claim that one-third of Alaskans and 50% of our children will lose coverage.
Read the bill. All children under the age of 19 will continue to have coverage, as will pregnant women, families with children under the age of 13, and people with disabilities. That is almost everyone currently being covered.
As for the able-bodied people who will have to show they will work, the political opponents of Sen. Sullivan claim that “most people who are on Medicaid are already working.” Well, OK then, they won’t lose coverage either. Do Alaskans, who have a strong work ethic, really think it is unreasonable to require able bodied people to work for benefits? Everyone else does.
And thanks to the efforts of Senators Murkowski and Sullivan, there are other carve outs for rural areas and areas with high unemployment. For everywhere else, you see business after business posting to hire people for work. Ask any company, and they will tell you that is a very real economic issue.
There are already several groups who help people with Medicaid paperwork, and I am sure they will be very active in supporting eligible people to qualify for and keep their coverage.
The other clue for the meaning of these ads is to look up who is behind the ads: Majority Forward. Look them up at Influence Watch and you will see their report. It will give you some perspective. Turns out they are completely political, with no connection to health policy, and the darkest of the ‘dark money’ groups.
I am sure there will be other Alaskans who will run for election, and will provide an alternative to Sen. Sullivan, and that is welcome in our democracy. But hopefully they will not base their campaigns on the patently false claims about medicaid.
As I said, Medicaid is a legitimate issue, but what else is in the bill that caused our senators and congressman to vote for it?
On balance, this is the most important bill for the future of Alaska that we have seen in the past several decades. Alaska is a resource based economy, and the bill contains many important and enforceable requirements for leasing in NPRA, ANWR and Cook Inlet. It also contains conditions on lawsuits aimed at stopping development, timelines for completion of environmental impact statements, recision of the Roadless Rule in Southeast, loan guarantees for the Alaska gasline project, etc. And these are statutory provisions than can’t be overturned by executive order of a subsequent Presidential administration.
It also gives Alaska 70% of the revenues from oil and gas development on federal lands. We have all recently witnessed the difficult decisions our legislature has had to make due to lack of funding for basic services.
There are more Alaska specific benefits in this bill than for any other state, and I have to give credit to our Congressman Nick Begich for getting these included in the House version of the bill. An amazing feat for a freshman representative.
When combined with President Trump’s executive order on Alaska resource development, and the recent Supreme Court cases of Chevron and the 7 Counties Infrastructure Coalition, we are now positioned for a very strong improvement in Alaska’s economy through the next decade and beyond.
These measures aren’t meant to keep legitimate issues from being raised regarding resource development projects. They are meant to address the constant onslaught of lawsuits and delaying administrative actions intended to block any development in Alaska. For instance, the Center for Biological Diversity has already filed 266 lawsuits against the Trump administration. This doesn’t count suits by Earth Justice, Greenpeace, Sierra Club, Trustees, Natural Resources Defense Council, etc, etc.
What does this have to do with Medicaid?
First, with the jobs that will be available from these developments, Alaskans, if they are willing to take the training, should be able to earn a lot more than would qualify them for medicaid. For instance, the average annual wage for a miner in Alaska is $112,000 per year. For a directional oil driller on the North Slope, it is $149,000 per year. It could lift them and their children out of poverty. To keep the money in Alaska, let’s stop the flow of outside workers by training our own people.
The other connection with medicaid is the state matching requirement for the program, which has been escalating almost every year. That matching money comes from money earned by the state in oil taxes and the oil based permanent fund. You might wonder what that amount is. It wass $455 million last year. Without resource development, we wouldn’t be able to afford the match.
So, let’s take a larger overview look at the Big Beautiful Bill and what is does for Alaska. I am sure we will have a very lively election in 2026 over many issues, but let’s hope it is honest and based on a realistic view of what the Big Beautiful Bill did or didn’t do.
Paul Fuhs is former Mayor of Unalaska, Former Commissioner of Commerce and Economic Development, and Chairman of the board of AIDEA, the Alaska Energy Authority and the State Bond Bank.
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard wants the US Department of Justice to investigate what she says is a “treasonous conspiracy” by former President Barack Obama and his senior advisors to concoct evidence that Russia interfered in the 2016 election.
Gabbard on Friday declassified documents that she said provides “overwhelming evidence” that Obama and his national security advisers conspired to create “a politicized piece of intelligence” to launch a years-long investigation into the now debunked Trump-Russia collusion claims.
“These documents detail a treasonous conspiracy by officials at the highest levels of the Obama White House to subvert the will of the American people and try to usurp the President from fulfilling his mandate,” Gabbard wrote on X.
Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election.
In a news release, Gabbard said the intelligence community had concluded prior to the 2016 election that Russia was “probably not trying … to influence the election by using cyber means.”
After the election in early December, “talking points were prepared for DNI James Clapper stating, ‘Foreign adversaries did not use cyberattacks on election infrastructure to alter the US Presidential election outcome,’” the news release said, but after a top meeting of key Obama advisers, a new intelligence assessment was prepared, “per the President’s request,” that “directly contradicted the IC assessments that were made throughout the previous six months.”
Gabbard said she is referring the matter to DOJ for further investigation.
“After months of investigation into this matter, the facts reveal this new assessment was based on information that was known by those involved to be manufactured i.e. the Steele Dossier or deemed as not credible,” the news release said. “This was politicized intelligence that was used as the basis for countless smears seeking to delegitimize President Trump’s victory, the years-long Mueller investigation, two Congressional impeachments, high level officials being investigated, arrested, and thrown in jail, heightened US-Russia tensions, and more.”
The long-debunked Steele dossier alleged that Trump worked with Russie to interfere in the 2016 presidential election.
Cross–cultural communication requires a knowledge of how culturally different people groups communicate with each other. Studying other languages helps us understand what people and societies have in common, and it has profound implications in developing a critical awareness of social relationships. Indeed, understanding these relationships and the way other cultures function is the groundwork of successful business, foreign affairs, and interpersonal relationships.
Elements of language are culturally relevant and should be considered. There are, however, several challenges that come with language socialization. Sometimes people can over-generalize or label cultures with stereotypical and subjective characterizations. For instance, one may stereotype by saying that Americans eat hamburgers and French fries in the McDonald’s restaurant daily, and Russians eat borshch (beet and cabbage soup) for breakfast and drink vodka before bedtime. Both stereotypes are far from the truth.
With increasing international trade and travels, it is unavoidable that different cultures will meet, conflict, cooperate and blend together. People from different cultures often find it difficult to communicate, not only due to language barriers but also because of different culture, styles, customs, and traditions. These differences contribute to some of the biggest challenges of effective cross–cultural communication.
Cultures provide people with ways of thinking, seeing, hearing, behaving, understanding and interpreting the world. Thus, the same words or gestures can mean very different things to people from different cultures—even when they speak the same language (e.g., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, England, South Africa and the United States).
The quote “Two nations divided by a common language,” often attributed to George Bernard Shaw, highlights the differences in vocabulary, pronunciation, and cultural nuances that can exist between speakers of the same language. When languages are different, however, and translation is needed just to communicate, the potential for misunderstandings significantly increases.
From the mid–1980s to early–2000s, I was an unofficial Russian translator in Alaska for the US and State of Alaska governments, as well as for various public institutions and private individuals. The most challenging aspect of the translation was relaying specific terminology, such as that used by the US Coast Guard, medical professionals, political protocols and verbiage and, especially, jokes and humorous expressions. Often, I had to provide cultural and historic backgrounds before translating a joke.
Ones, a member of the Russian delegation, in an informal setting over dinner, told a joke to his Alaskan counterparts:
“Archaeologists found an ancient sarcophagus in Egypt with human–made artifacts and skeletal remains. Experts around the world thoroughly investigated this finding to identify the person buried in the sarcophagus but had no success. So, they invited a KGB agent (Soviet Committee for State Security) Major Ivan Ivanov to investigate this matter. Major Ivanov spent nearly three hours in solitude with the skeleton and, finally, with a confidence in his voice, reported to the archaeologists that the remains and skeleton belong to the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses the Second. Archaeologists were impressed by this quick revelation and asked Ivanov, “How certain are you of this remarkable conclusion?” Then Ivanov replied with a great pride, ‘After three hours of the bulldozer interrogation, the skeleton itself revealed to me his identity!’”
The Russian jokester was a large, broad-shouldered man, his voice deep and curt. No one among the Alaskan delegation laughed after hearing the joke. They sat still at the table, holding crystal shots of vodka, and just stared with alarm at the joke-teller.
I had to provide the Alaskans with some background about the notorious brutality of the Soviet KGB. Unfortunately, in the process of explaining the joke, the humor disappeared.
In teaching Russian language at the University of Alaska Southeast for 16 years, my very first message to students was to emphasize that a language must always be understood and learned in a cultural context. As an example, I shared with them a personal and rather humorous story of my early arrival to the United States in Philadelphia during the winter of 1978.
In the early years of my immigration, I watched a lot of TV to learn English, American traditions and lifestyles. Many advertisements described food items and dishes, including various salads, using the word “delicious.”
It was a new experience for me because there were no TV ads for commercial products in the former Soviet Union due to a lack of commercial competition. The government controlled standardized prices for commercial products throughout the entire country.
So, I understood the word “delicious” as a name of the salad (a noun) rather than the quality of the salad (an adjective). In fact, food dishes have a particular name in Russia — Chicken Kiev, Salad Stolichniy (salad capital), Borshch (beet and cabbage soup), Beef Stroganoff (meat stew), Blini (Russian for pancakes), etc.
Later that year, my uncle from Canada, accompanied by his wife and daughter, visited me in Philadelphia. As a welcome greeting to America, they invited me to a fancy restaurant downtown. When the waiter asked for my order, I requested a steak, shot of vodka and “delicious” salad, hoping my order would match the “delicious” salad that I had seen on TV.
The puzzled waiter leaned slightly and whispered to me, “Sir, all our food is delicious.” Then, I clarified to the waiter, “I want a delicious salad.” The confused waiter served me a cabbage with mustard.
So, that evening in the fancy restaurant, I enjoyed a delicious steak and stuffed myself with a cut-in-half cabbage with mustard. This was a prime lesson in cross-cultural miscommunication.
Indeed, the demographics and cultural complexity of our nation changes rapidly. It is only a matter of time before ethnic minorities in our country take a lead in shaping the cultural and ethnic landscape of our nation and, eventually, become a significant ethnic majority. These demographic and cultural changes are unavoidable. However, our society should learn to make inclusive and, yet, conservative cross–cultural adjustments without undermining the fundamental core of American Judeo–Christian religious, cultural and moral values.
Alexander Dolitsky was born and raised in Kiev in the former Soviet Union. He received an M.A. in history from Kiev Pedagogical Institute, Ukraine in 1976; an M.A. in anthropology and archaeology from Brown University in 1983; and enrolled in the Ph.D. program in anthropology at Bryn Mawr College from 1983 to 1985, where he was also lecturer in the Russian Center. In the USSR, he was a social studies teacher for three years and an archaeologist for five years for the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences. In 1978, he settled in the United States. Dolitsky visited Alaska for the first time in 1981, while conducting field research for graduate school at Brown. He then settled first in Sitka in 1985 and then in Juneau in 1986. From 1985 to 1987, he was U.S. Forest Service archaeologist and social scientist. He was an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Russian Studies at the University of Alaska Southeast from 1985 to 1999; Social Studies Instructor at the Alyeska Central School, Alaska Department of Education and Yukon-Koyukuk School District from 1988 to 2006; and Director of the Alaska-Siberia Research Center from 1990 to 2022. From 2006 to 2010, Alexander Dolitsky served as a Delegate of the Russian Federation in the United States for the Russian Compatriots program. He has done 30 field studies in various areas of the former Soviet Union (including Siberia), Central Asia, South America, Eastern Europe and the United States (including Alaska). Dolitsky was a lecturer on the World Discoverer, Spirit of Oceanus, and Clipper Odyssey vessels in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic regions. He was a Project Manager for the WWII Alaska-Siberia Lend Lease Memorial, which was erected in Fairbanks in 2006. Dolitsky has published extensively in the fields of anthropology, history, archaeology and ethnography. His more recent publications include Fairy Tales and Myths of the Bering Strait Chukchi, Ancient Tales of Kamchatka, Tales and Legends of the Yupik Eskimos of Siberia, Old Russia in Modern America: Living Traditions of the Russian Old Believers in Alaska, Allies in Wartime: The Alaska-Siberia Airway During World War II, Spirit of the Siberian Tiger: Folktales of the Russian Far East, Living Wisdom of the Russian Far East: Tales and Legends from Chukotka and Alaska, and Pipeline to Russia: The Alaska-Siberia Air Route in World War II.
