_ __ _____ __ _ __ ___ ____ _ __ ___ ' ) / / ') / / ) ' ) ) / ) / ' ) ) / ) / / / / / / /--/ / / / ___ / / / / ___ (_(_/ (__/ ( / (_ / (_ (___/ '__/_ / (_ (___/ ' O ( N A T I V E A M E R I C A N ) O o O ____ _ , ___ _ , ___ O o O / ' ) / / ) ' ) / / ' O o o o o O / /-< / /--/ /-- VOLUME 02, ISSUE 019 O o O __/_ / ) (___/ / ( (___, 7 May 1994 O o O ( N E W S ) O This issue contains articles from NATIVE-L and NATCHAT Mailing Lists, FidoNet Indian Affairs Conference and by members of the Invisible Band. <----<<<< >>>>----> This newsletter is a way of keeping the brothers and sisters of the Invisible Band and those who share our spirit informed about current events within the lives of those who walk the Red Road. It is archived at the Native American FTP site ftp.cit.cornell.edu in the directory /pub/special/NativeProfs/newsletters; and is being sent to gst@gnosys.svle.ma.us (Gary S. Trujillo) should he wish to include it in his NATIVE-L or NATCHAT lists. "I have attended dinners among white people. Their ways are not our ways. "We eat in silence, quietly smoke a pipe, and depart. Thus is our host honored. "This is not the way of the white man. After his food has been eaten, one is expected to say foolish things. Then the host feels honored." __ Four Guns, Oglala +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | Indian Pledge of Allegiance | The Indian Pledge of Alleg- | | iance was first presented | I pledge allegiance to my Tribe,| on 2 December '93 during the | to the democratic principles | opening address of the Nat- | of the Republic | ional Congress of American | and to the individual freedoms | Indian Tribal-States Relat- | borrowed from the Iroquois and | ions Panel in Reno, NV. NCAI | Choctaw Confederacies, | plans distribution of the | as incorporated in the United | Indian Pledge to all Indian | States Constitution, | Nations. | so that my forefathers | | shall not have died in vain | Walk in Beauty! Night Owl +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ O'siyo Brothers and Sisters! Much of the second half of this issue is devoted to the meeting between President Clinton and many Native American leaders. History and the wisdom of the people will determine if the talks have been good. For now it is enough to know of the meeting and the things we have been told of it. There will be more next issue. More from the Whitehouse and more news from around Turtle Island such as the Navajo/Hopi dispute and Oregon's arrests of northwestern salmon fishers. There simply was not enough room in an already overflowing issue to include all the news the people need to read. Mitaquye Oyasin! Night Owl ------------------ clip here for news feature -- 8< ----------- --------- "RE: Momaday Receives Gibson Award" --------- Date: Apr-25-94 20:18:14 From: John StarWolf Subj: MOMADAY RECEIVES GIBSON AWARD FidoNet Indian Affairs Conference N. Scott Momaday was awarded the Arrell Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award from the Oklahoma Center for the Book "The Ancient Child". Momaday was honored during the 5th Annual Oklahoma book Awards on March 5, 1994 at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Center. The Oklahoma Book Awards are for books written by Oklahomans, or about Oklahoma. The Gibson Award signifies excellence in a body of literary work by an Oklahoman. Momaday was present to receive the award. Entertainment was provided by Nancy Tsoodle, a Kiowa-Cherokee, from Stillwater. She did a dramatic presentation on Momaday's poem " The Gourd Dancer". She interpreted the poem in sign language. Momaday was born in Lawton, Oklahoma. He teaches at the University of Arizona in Tucson in the Department of English. Momaday won the Pulitzer Price for fiction in 1969. He continues to write, not only about Kiowa culture, but other areas of literature. --- VFIDO 6.10.05 Origin: CYBERZONE (1:147/59) --------- "RE: Indian Chief's Grave May Slow Connector" --------- Date: Thu, 5 May 94 08:00 -0500 From: JANS Janet Smith (Evening Star) Subj: Indian Chief's Grave May Slow Connector GE Electronic Mail Charles O. Thurmond, an archaeologist and historian for the Dahlonega-based Georgia Tribe of the Eastern Cherokee claims a proposed bridge on an already-controversial stretch of a $20 million road project in Cobb County Georgia will disturb the grave of a Cherokee chief. Cobb County transportation officials have responded to his request for a "complete rundown" of the site with a map and a letter requesting he review it. They have indicated a willingness to work with Thurmond if he determines that proximity of the planned bridge will indeed impact the grave. Inquiries by reporters from the Marietta Daily Journal to the local library revealed no direct reference to a Chief Nickajack in books available there, although there are statements that Nickajack is among several place names in Cobb County (there is a Nickajack Road and a Nickajack Creek very close to the road site) that were named for Cherokees known to have been in that area prior to the "Trail of Tears" relocation of Cherokees in Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina to Oklahoma. --------- "RE: Ways of a Singer" --------- Date: Apr-24-94 02:33:30 From: Richard Villegas Subj: Borrowed Ceremonies Greeting -> The original post was on Natives doing the dances of other native As to the dances, at the pow wow here last nov. we did an interview with the main drum. That was a family, grandfather, father and grandchildren. Three generations at the drum there, and they were the main drum (there were three other drums there also). This topic came up, and I will paraphrase what the grandfather's comments were. Later on, I will transcribe the entire interview for everyone (it will be awhile). the conversation basically followed these lines.... interviewer: I noticed many dancers from various nations here today, and that you played many different songs for the dancers. Would you please tell us, is it common to sing songs from other nations and do the dancers all dance different dances from the various nations? grandfather: To sing at the drum, a person must know many songs. hundreds and hundreds of songs. But there is something many people don't know about, I will tell you some of these things now. There are certain songs that are for powwows, for the dancers, and they come from different nations. A singer meeds to know all these tunes because the dancers come from many nations and you never know if the caller will want your drum to play a song for the dancers from another nation. So, you have to know them all, it takes years and years to learn them, we begin when we are very young kids. You see my son is here, and children also are here at the drum too. Someday, they may learn them, they are doing that now. Sometimes they sing, sometimes they only play the drum. Sometimes they listen and learn. They grow up with it and our family does this, so they will learn it someday because they travel with us too. But there are some songs that should not be song at the pow wows, and some should not be song at all, except by the particular nation and at certain times and places. Sometimes a drum will record songs and it's ok to listen to them, but they are not supposed to be played by other drums. We know this, so we enjoy them, but we don't play those songs. They should not be played by "us". Then there are the dancers... they come from many nations, and they all have their own dances. Some dances are only social dances and anybody can do them, but many are only for those people from that nation, we don't do their dances, and they don't do ours. Some people do this, but they shouldn't do it, that's not the correct way to do it, but they do it anyway. that's not right, and we don't do that. We will play some of the songs for them to dance, but we have our own dances. We enjoy it and that's how we share, but we do it our own way, and some things we don't do at the pow wows. Some things we would never do, those are not our dances. Some dances you do, and some you don't. It's the same way with songs too. But people hear them on a tape and they copy them. But they don't know how to do it right. They don't know the language and so they copy it, but they don't know what it means because they don't speak it correctly. That's why it takes years to learn how to do it right. You can copy things, but it wont be right, and we can tell the difference even if they don't know that we see that. That's a problem, but it happens sometimes. We have made recording and people can listen to them, but they are not supposed to play them, that's not correct. It happens, but it's not right, they should just listen. If they want to play them, then they should take the time to learn what the words are and all that, it takes a long time to do that. interviewer: So there are songs you play and some that you don't, and that is the same for the dances? grandfather: Yes, that's right. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- That is a paraphrase, NOT a quote. However... I was there, I heard this interview. That is the drift of it. Sometime in the future, I will transcribe it and post it and then you will have quotes. But this is basically what this elder had to say about the topic. I hope it gives you some insight about it from the perspective of a family who's life is very close to the drum, the songs, the powwows, and the dances. Many of the singers are also dancers, and this was an interview with a family of both singers and dancers. I hope this is some help for you to understand something about the singing and dancing and all that. Take care >>>-------> Two Braids <-------<<< --- WM v3.10/93-0832 Origin: Turtle Island (512) 458-9311 Austin TX (1:382/900) --------- "RE: Kiowa Tribal Chairman Speaks" --------- Date: Apr-29-94 20:43:06 From: John StarWolf Subj: KIOWA TRIBAL CHAIRMAN SPEAKS! FidoNet Indian Affairs Conference Kiowa Tribal Chairman HERSHCELL ACE SAHMAUNT was elected by the Kiowa people on his platform to dedicate his administration to rebuild the non-functioning Kiowa Business Committee and to restore honesty to all governmental functions, including the Kiowa Comanche Apache Land Use Committee; to establish the authority of the committees to develop guidelines and accountability regulations for their operation. "The Kiowa Tribe can become a vibrant honest self government and true economic development will be pursued, says Sahmaunt. "Our tribe has suffered from restrictive legislation of a racist nature all built upon the concept of manifest destiny and the eventual termination of the government's obligation without having first lived up to those treaty obligations to the Indians that are still in effect. We, as a people, will no longer stand still for that." "The Kiowa people have never been able to keep pace with the whiteman's economy having been held subjected to the racist paternalism of the Bureaus of the Department of the Interior. This is not a matter of labels. This is a matter of attempting to end a governmental cold-war of genocide against the Kiowa tribe and its members. The land sanctions and economic sanctions will no longer be tolerated without a fight. The State of Oklahoma should review their history and limits of their constitutional authority before they proceed further the Kiowa Indians rights to true economic development and governmental development." "Kiowa Indians have special rights to "share in all tribal and other property" reserved to them as a proviso of their United States citizenship and Act of June 2, 1924, codified at Eight U.S. Code, Section 1401(b), and those Indian rights, rights non-Indian citizens cannot have, can not be denied to the Kiowa citizens in Oklahoma. Such rights, at least since 1924, when all citizens are protected property rights under the federal constitution. The old prejudice must give way to tribal priorities, immunities, and constitutional guarantees." "Our rights within our reservation boundaries far exceed any dream of the average non-Indian citizen in Western-Oklahoma. Before any one of them let their bias and prejudices show, they should realize the Kiowa Indians have not asserted their land and water rights to hurt them and that in many respects, the entire history of Oklahoma, from the lottery give away of our lands by power of government, to the sate and their white inhabitants, is nothing short of unconstitutional racism. We, as Kiowa Indians, with retained rights, can and will put a stop to all further governmental policies that are directed at our tribe which are founded upon the concepts of manifest destiny and ignorant genocidal racial prejudices. We will no longer allow non-Indian citizens to use the color of state laws - or federal "regulatory" acts to work unconstitutional restrictive racist concepts upon us." "We fully intend to exploit the law for the benefit of our people and will do so in the limits of our sovereign rights to peacefully proceed. Facades and false positions of ascendency will no longer be tolerated." "Our tribal jurisdictions will be protected and protected to the limits of our jurisdictions. Our intent is to protect our retained rights for the benefit of our people and our descendants yet to come. We must have every equal opportunity for economic development, on a government to government basis, and that does not depend upon whether you white people, as an invading conqueror or otherwise, might or might not like it. Our tribal future depends upon economic development under our self-determined guide- lines. Not upon someones state whims or a federal bureaucrats prejudices or their whims or stupidity." AH-HO CHAIRMAN, THE TRUTH WELL TOLD! KIOWAS MEAN BUSINE$$ --- VFIDO 6.10.05 Origin: CYBERZONE (1:147/59) --------- "RE: Conferences and Powwows - offline" --------- Date: Thu, 5 May 94 08:00 -0500 From: JANS Janet Smith (Evening Star) Subj: Upcoming conferences and powwows not previously posted to Mailing Lists NATCHAT or NATIVE-L GE Electronic Mail =Powwows= Folks, Powwow season is in full swing. Below is a list of only =some= of the powwows listed in _News From Indian Country_. May 11-13 4th Cherokee County Indian Festival Canton, GA Info: 404-735-6275 May 13-15 Glica: The Spring Planting Festival Lowell, MA Info: 508-453-7182 May 13-15 8th New Jersey American Indian Festival Old Bridge, NJ Info: 908-525-0066 May 13-14 Heritage Festival, Occaneechi State Park Clarksville, VA Info: 919-732-8512 May 13-14 3rd Dilkon NAC Dilkon, AZ Info: 602-686-6258 May 13-15 Buffalo Feast St. Ignatius, Montana Info: 406-745-2951 May 13-15 Lumbee Spring Lumberton, NC Info: 910-521-8602 May 14-15 San Diego Indian Cultural San Diego, CA Info: 619-281-5964 May 14-15 7th Mankato State University Mankato, MN Info: 507-389-6300 Send notices of forthcoming powwows, conferences and gatherings to: jans@genie.geis.com gars@netcom.com ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ all items below this line have already been distributed by our brother, Gary Trujillo, via the NATIVE-L or NATCHAT mailing lists. --------- "RE: Conferences and Powwows - online" --------- Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 22:00 -0500 From: JANS Janet Smith (Evening Star) Subj: Upcoming conferences and powwows already posted to Mailing Lists NATCHAT or NATIVE-L Original Sender: Rio Lara-Bellon Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) June 2-June 5 A Native American Film and Video Festival "Imaging Indians" is a comprehensive international forum on Indian issues in film and video from the indigenous perspective. The festival will focus on a series of films made by Indians as well as films about Indians, plus panel discussions, guest speakers, and screening of works-in-progress. Sample of Special Invitation Films: "Imagining Indians" by V. Masayesva (Hopi) "Kanehsatake" by A. Obomsawin (Abenaki) "The Seventh Fire" by Sandy Osawa (Makah) "Everything Has A Spirit" by Ava Hamilton (Arapaho) "Navajo Talking Pictures" by Arlene Bowman (Navajo) "Gathering Place" by Zachariah Kunuk (Inuit) "Surviving Columbus" by Diane Reyna (Taos Pueblo) "Mauri" by Merata Mita (Mauri) "Malangi" by Michael Riley (Aboriginal Australian) ... and much, much more. Panel Discussions: "Aesthetics of Native American Film" "Sound Tracks for Indian Films" "Intellectual Property Rights: Can Language, History, Stories, Designs, and Rituals be Exclusively Owned?" "Can a White Man Make A Film About An Indian?" "Fact & Fiction: A Look At Incident At Oglala and Thunderheart "Economic Opportunities For Tribal Peoples In Film" "The Life Of A Native American Actor" Workshop: "Copywriting Your Work" led by Ruth Ballard Continuous Film Screenings & Screening of Student Works (including the work of Pablo Lara Bellon (Mescalero Apache) :-) For tickets call the Scottsdale Center for the Arts Box Office at (602) 994-2787 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Original Sender: cats.ucsc.edu!lgc Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) May 14-15 Third Annual Pow-Wow, Univ. of California, Santa Cruz The Student Alliance of North American Indians East Field at UC Santa Cruz Grand Entries will be Saturday at 1pm and 7pm, Sunday 12 noon. Info: Don Hankins at (408) 459-2296. No Drugs or Alcohol allowed. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Original Sender: aspen.fhda.edu!harrington Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) May 13-15 14TH ANNUAL DE ANZA COLLEGE POW WOW AND AMERICAN INDIAN ARTS FAIR Cupertino, California 95014 Grand Entry: Fri. 7pm Sat. 1&7pm Sun. 1pm Host Northern Drum: Mockingbird Singers Host Southern Drum: Drum & Feather Master of Ceremonies: "T.C." Tommy Chaino (Kiowa) Arena Director: Al Chalepah (Kiowa-Apache) Head Man Dancer: Richard Blalock (Shawnee-Creek) Head Woman Dancer: Crystal Vigil (Jicarilla Apache) Head Boy Dancer: Leenkun Baca (Apache-Isleta-Laguna) Head Girl Dancer: Tanya Keough (Navajo) SPECIAL FEATURE: PLANETARIUM SHOW "Indian Storytelling Under the Stars" Sat. at 3:15pm & Sunday 12:00 noon, Free Admission Stories by Lorenzo Baca (Isleta-Mescalero) Pow Wow Hours: Fri. 7 - 11pm Sat. 1 - 11pm Sun. 1 - 5pm Arts Fair Hours: Fri. 5 - 10pm Sat.10am-10pm Sun.10am-5pm Contact: Gerri Parker 408-864-5448 (general) Diane Harrington 408-733-8315 (vendors) NO ALCOHOL OR DRUGS PERMITTED --------- "RE: Text: President Meeting with Tribal Leaders" --------- Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 13:19:21 -0500 From: ssc.wisc.edu!sweeney (Kim Sweeney) Subj: Text: President meeting with Tribal Leaders Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Subj: 1994-04-29 President in Meeting with Indian Tribal Leaders THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary ____________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release April 29, 1994 REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT IN HISTORIC MEETING WITH AMERICAN INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVE TRIBAL LEADERS The South Lawn 4:40 P.M. EDT THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very, very much. Chief Wilma Mankiller and to all the other distinguished leaders here today. Let me first welcome you here on behalf of the First Lady and Vice President and Mrs. Gore. All of us are honored by your presence. I also wanted to especially thank those who have spoken and participated to this point and those who will participate in the remainder of this program. I have listened carefully and learned a lot. This is, as all of you know, a time of great challenge and transition for our beloved country and for the world. As I travel across this country and talk to the people about the problems that all Americans share, whether it's crime or health care or the economy, I find a concern that goes deeper even in these specific matters. There is a great yearning in this nation for people to be able to reestablish a sense of community, a sense of oneness, a sense of cooperation, of shared values and spirit. Americans are searching for the chance to come together in friendship, instead of coming apart in anger and distrust. There is a yearning for us to be able to live together so that all of us can live up to our God-given potential and be respected for who and what we are. It is in that spirit and with great humility I say to the leaders of the first Americans, the American Indian and Alaska Natives, welcome to the White House. Welcome home. (Applause.) So much of who we are today comes from who you have been for a long time. Long before others came to these shores there were powerful and sophisticated cultures and societies here -- yours. Because of your ancestors, democracy existed here long before the Constitution was drafted and ratified. Just last week, people all around the world celebrated the 24th annual Earth Day. Yet for thousands of years, you have held nature in awe; celebrating the bond between Earth and the Creator. You have reminded people that all of us should make decisions not just for our children and their grandchildren, but for generation upon generation yet to come. I believe in your rich heritage and in our common heritage. What you have done to retain your identity, your dignity and your faith in the face of often immeasurable obstacles is profoundly moving -- an example of the enduring strength of the human spirit. We desperately need this lesson now. We must keep faith with you and with that spirit and with the common heritage so many of us cherish. That is what you came to talk to me about, and what I would like to respond to today. In every relationship between our people, our first principle must be to respect your right to remain who you are, and to live the way you wish to live. And I believe the best way to do that is to acknowledge the unique government-to-government relationship we have enjoyed over time. Today I reaffirm our commitment to self-determination for tribal governments. (Applause.) I pledge to fulfill the trust obligations of the federal government. I vow to honor and respect tribal sovereignty based upon our unique historic relationship. And I pledge to continue my efforts to protect your right to fully exercise your faith as you wish. (Applause.) Let me speak for a moment about religious freedom, something precious to you, something deeply enshrined in our Constitution. For many of you traditional religions and ceremonies are the essence of your culture and your very existence. Last year, I was pleased to sign a law that restored certain constitutional protections for those who want to express their faith in this country. No agenda for religious freedom will be complete until traditional Native American religious practices have received all the protections they deserve. Legislation is needed to protect Native American religious practices threatened by federal action. The Native American free exercise of religion act is long overdue. And I will continue to work closely with you and members of Congress to make sure the law is constitutional and strong. I want it passed so that I can invite you back here and sign it into law in your presence. (Applause.) And to make certain that you can obtain the ritual symbols of your religious faith, in a moment I will sign a directive to every executive department and agency of government, not just the Department of Interior, instructing them to cooperate with tribal governments to accommodate wherever possible the need for eagle feathers in the practice of Native American religions. (Applause.) This then is our first principle -- respecting your values, your religions, your identity and your sovereignty. This brings us to the second principle that should guide our relationship. We must dramatically improve the federal government's relationships with the tribes and become full partners with the tribal nations. I don't want there to be any mistake about our commitment to a stronger partnership between our people. Therefore, in a moment, I will also sign an historic government directive that requires every executive department and agency of government to take two simple steps: first, to remove all barriers that prevent them from working directly with tribal governments; and second, to make certain that if they take action affecting tribal trust resources, they consult with tribal governments prior to that decision. (Applause.) It is the entire government, not simply the Department of the Interior, that has a trust responsibility with tribal governments. And it is time the entire government recognized and honored that responsibility. Part of being better partners is also being better listeners. The Department of the Interior and the Department of Justice have never before joined together to listen to the leaders of the Indian nations. It's time to change that. Next week, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, both Attorney General Reno and Secretary Babbitt and many of their sub-Cabinet officials will meet with you for two days at the first National American Indian Listening Conference. I'm looking forward to hearing their specific ideas from the conference on ways to move our nations forward together. The same applies to the unprecedented series of 23 meetings that the Department of Housing and Urban Development, under Secretary Cisneros, will have with tribal governments by September -- to improve housing and living conditions in tribal communities, and to listen to you about how you can take the lead in doing it. All governments must work better. We must simply be more responsive to the people we serve and to each other. It's the only way we'll be able to do good things with the resources we have. I know that you agree with that. More and more of you are moving to assume fuller control of your governments. Many are moving aggressively to take responsibility for operating your own programs. Each year the Bureau of Indian Affairs is providing more technical services and fewer direct services. One avenue for greater tribal control is through self-governance contracts. There are about 30 self-compacting tribes today. We're working with Congress to raise that number by 20 tribes every year. We'd like self-governance to become a permanent program. But we must ensure services will still be provided to the smaller tribes that do not choose to participate. What is the goal of a better and more equal partnership, and more empowered tribes and more efficient government? Ultimately it must be to improve the living conditions of those whom we serve. And that must be our third and final principle. Together we must position American Indians and Alaska Natives to compete economically as we move toward the 21st century. I invited the leaders of every recognized tribe here today. But I'll be the first to acknowledge that not all have been able to join us because they simply don't have the resources to come. And I know well that many of you have come here at great personal sacrifice to yourselves and the members of your tribes. That only underscores the importance of our work. Let us dedicate ourselves to making certain that the next time we all meet together, conditions will be different and better and all of our brothers and sisters will be able to join us. (Applause.) We must do more to create jobs, raise incomes and develop capital for new businesses. I know there are more success stories in Indian country every year, but not nearly enough as the people who bore witness to your conditions here today so eloquently said. Strengthening tribal economies will require new thinking and the courage to change. It will require investing in the health, the education and the skills of American Indians and Alaska Natives, as we must do for all Americans. To the extent that some of the building blocks can be put in place here in Washington, we are working to do that. Our empowerment zone legislation, for example, contains at your request special new incentives for investing in reservations. This is only part of the solution. We can continue to enforce the regulations of the Community Reinvestment Act, to make sure local banks invest and lend in Indian communities. We've brought more tribal leaders than ever together with bankers to improve mortgage loans, financial services and to cut regulations. We must make these efforts permanent and more effective. And we know a more comprehensive approach is necessary. At my direction, the Vice President has established a working group on Indian economic development as part of our Community Enterprise Board. I've asked them to study the recommendations from last year's National Indian Economic Summit and to consult fully with you every step of the way. Our goal is clear -- to work with you to enhance economic development in every tribe. I'd like to emphasize that what I have asked them to do in this issue, I asked them to do on all issues. This great, historic meeting today must be the beginning of our new partnership, not the end of it. (Applause.) I'd like to make a point about economic development that has to do with gaming. As a former governor, I understand some of the concerns that the governors have raised. But as President, I know that gaming gives you a competitive edge when you've had precious few. And the benefits often extend to surrounding communities in full measure. Some of you are now able to invest more in housing and health care and child care and infrastructure in taking care of your elders. I know that gaming is controversial, even among tribes. As many of you has acknowledged, it's also important that tribal governments continue to diversify their economies. Many of you are working with congressional leaders, governors and Secretary Babbitt to resolve tough issues. My goal is this: I want the tribes to continue to benefit from gaming; and I want current disputes over the 1988 Gaming Regulatory Act to be worked out. I strongly support the process now underway to achieve that goal. But just as with the national economy, we know we can't solve every problem overnight. The important thing is to create policies that give every tribe the chance to have a strong economy in the long run; to develop the will and the consistency to stick with those policies over time; and to keep working and talking together. Last year, you were kind enough to invite the First Lady to the Indian Health Summit. You asked her to make certain your treaty rights to health care and your rights under the Indian Health Service be preserved and made a part of our health care proposal. Because we work together, and because of you and your input, only one of the health care plans now before the Congress addresses these issues and ensures that tribal members will receive the same high-quality health care as everyone else. That is our plan, thanks to you. (Applause.) There has been a great deal of debate this year about the budget of the Indian Health Service. It was mentioned earlier. The fact is that we are operating under the tightest spending limits in memory. In our efforts to bring the deficit down, I have recommended the total elimination of 100 programs and cuts in 200 others. And that is contributing to the country's economic revival. But I believe the health needs of tribal communities and families and children clearly require special attention. Therefore, I have amended next year's budget to restore more than $120 million in funding for the Indian Health Service. (Applause.) Finally, as we heard so eloquently today, there is in America, across the lines of race and class and region, a profound concern for our children. Too many are poor, or sick or unsupervised. Too many are likely to use violence or be the victims of violence. Too many are unprepared intellectually for life or work. Yet nothing is so striking in tribal communities as your love of family and extended family and your devotion to your children. Every segment of our society could well take a lesson from you. But in spite of your best efforts, too many of your children also suffer from poor health and inadequate education. And we are trying hard to address these problems. You mentioned Head Start -- our budget calls for continued, substantial increases and expansions of the Head Start program, as well as the Women and Infants and Children program. Our education plan, called Goals 2000, for the first time sets world-class education standards for every school and all our children, and gives local communities the grass roots support they need to achieve those goals. Goals 2000 contains millions more next year for BIA-funded schools and schools serving Native Alaskans. And these funds cannot be spent until the education goals of your community are considered. In the 1980s, our nation fell behind many third world countries in the rate at which we immunized children against communicable diseases. I know the Indian Health Service does a good job of immunizing children. Beginning this year, under the Vaccine For Children program, every Indian child -- no matter where he or she lives, and regardless of whether they are fortunate enough to live near an IHS facility -- will be eligible for free vaccine. (Applause.) The Great Law of the Six Nations Iroquois Confederacy contained this advice: "In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decision on the next seven generations." We are stewards, we are caretakers. That standard will keep us great if we have the vision of your forefathers. As we look back on the American journey, the test ahead is always whether we are moving in the right direction of more tolerance, wider justice and greater opportunity for all. It is the direction that counts, always the direction. And our choices will set that direction. Of course, as you well know, our history has not always been a proud one. But our future can be, and that is up to us. Together we can open the greatest era of cooperation, understanding and respect among our people ever. I know that we will. And when we do, the judgment of history will be that the President of the United States and the leaders of the sovereign Indian nations met and kept faith with each other and our common heritage, and together lifted our great nations to a new and better place. Thank you all. (Applause.) (The President signs Presidential Directive.) (Applause.) (The President, The Vice President, Mrs. Clinton, and Mrs. Gore are presented with gifts.) * * * * * THE PRESIDENT: Before we go, I wanted to make a brief announcement to thank you, on behalf of the First Lady, The Vice President, Mrs. Gore and our Cabinet for being here and for giving us a chance to be with you, and for the wonderful gifts we have received. In keeping with a tradition that goes back to the early days of our republic, I want each of you, in leaving, to receive a miniature replica of the Jefferson Indian Peace Medal. On the front is a picture of our third President, Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, and one of the chief architects of our democracy. When you receive your medal, you will see on the back two hands clasped -- one with a cuff showing three stripes and three buttons, the other wearing a bracelet engraved with an eagle. The hands join with the inscription, "Peace and Friendship." As we pray and as we leave, let us hope that this is the beginning of true peace, true friendship and true progress. Thank you. (Applause.) END 5:21 P.M. EDT --------- "RE: President Honoring Song" --------- Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 20:23:00 -0500 (CDT) From: Mary Ritchie Subj: Honoring Song Mailing List: NATCHAT (natchat@gnosys.svle.ma.us) More on the tent meeting on the White House lawn... After the speeching and signing and gifting, Mr. Wilbur Between Lodges, leader of the Oglala Lakota, sang an honoring song. Here are the words: "We are waiting for this moment. The President has said he will work with you in the future." \/--<>--\/--<>--\/--<>--\/--<>--\/--<>--\/--<>--\/--<>--\/--<>--\/ /\ Mary Ritchie :*: Of the people Europeans called...../\ /\ ritchie@cs.uwp.edu :*: Potawatomi...writer, feminist, Oma /\ /\--<>--/\--<>--/\--<>--/\--<>--/\--<>--/\--<>--/\--<>--/\--<>--/\ [ Note from Night Owl: Mr. Wilbur Between Lodges is the newly named Itacan (chief) of the Oglala Sioux. ] --------- "RE: President's Memo on Distribution of Eagle Feathers" --------- Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 13:20:44 -0500 From: ssc.wisc.edu!sweeney (Kim Sweeney) Subj: President's Memo on Distribution of Eagle Feathers Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Subj: 1994-04-29 President's Memo on Distribution of Eagle Feathers THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary _______________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release April 29, 1994 April 29, 1994 MEMORANDUM FOR THE HEADS OF EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES SUBJECT: Policy Concerning Distribution of Eagle Feathers for Native American Religious Purposes Eagle feathers hold a sacred place in Native American culture and religious practices. Because of the feathers' significance to Native American heritage and consistent with due respect for the government-to-government relationship between the Federal and Native American tribal governments, this Administration has undertaken policy and procedural changes to facilitate the collection and distribution of scarce eagle bodies and parts for this purpose. This memorandum affirms and formalizes executive branch policy to ensure that progress begun on this important matter continues across the executive branch. Today, as part of an historic meeting with all federally recognized tribal governments, I am directing executive departments and agencies (hereafter collectively "agency" or "agencies") to work cooperatively with tribal governments and to reexamine broadly their practices and procedures to seek opportunities to accommodate Native American religious practices to the fullest extent under the law. As part of these efforts, agencies shall take steps to improve their collection and transfer of eagle carcasses and eagle body parts ("eagles") for Native American religious purposes. The success of this initiative requires the participation, and is therefore the responsibility, of all Federal land managing agencies, not just those within the Department of the Interior. I therefore direct each agency responsible for managing Federal lands to diligently and expeditiously recover salvageable eagles found on lands under their jurisdiction and ensure that the eagles are promptly shipped to the National Eagle Repository ("Repository"). To assist agencies in this expanded effort, the Secretary of the Interior shall issue guidelines to all relevant agencies for the proper shipment of eagles to the Repository. After receiving these guidelines, agencies shall immediately adopt policies, practices, and procedures necessary in accordance with these guidelines to recover and transfer eagles to the Repository promptly. I support and encourage the initial steps taken by the Department of the Interior to improve the distribution of eagles for Native American religious purposes. In particular, the Department of the Interior shall continue to adopt policies and procedures and take those actions necessary to: (a) ensure the priority of distribution of eagles, upon permit application, first for traditional Native American religious purposes, to the extent permitted by law, and then to other uses; (b) simplify the eagle permit application process quickly and to the greatest extent possible to help achieve the objectives of this memorandum; (c) minimize the delay and ensure respect and dignity in the process of distributing eagles for Native American religious purposes to the greatest extent possible; (d) expand efforts to involve Native American tribes, organizations, and individuals in the distribution process, both at the Repository and on tribal lands, consistent with applicable laws; (e) review means to ensure that adequate refrigerated storage space is available to process the eagles; and (f) continue efforts to improve the Repository's ability to facilitate the objectives of this memorandum. The Department of the Interior shall be responsible for coordinating any interagency efforts to address continuing executive branch actions necessary to achieve the objectives of this memorandum. We must continue to be committed to greater intergovernmental communication and cooperation. In addition to working more closely with tribal governments, we must enlist the assistance of, and cooperate with, State and local governments to achieve the objectives of this memorandum. I therefore request that the Department of the Interior work with State fish and game agencies and other relevant State and local authorities to facilitate the objectives of this memorandum. With commitment and cooperation by all of the agencies in the executive branch and with tribal governments, I am confident that we will be able to accomplish meaningful progress in the distribution of eagles for Native American religious purposes. The Director of the Office of Management and Budget is authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register. WILLIAM J. CLINTON --------- "RE: Response to Tribal Leaders Traveling to D.C." --------- Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 08:40:39 -0700 (PDT) From: Rio Lara-Bellon Subj: Mailing List: NATCHAT (natchat@gnosys.svle.ma.us) In Response to Tribal Leaders Traveling to D.C. The trip many Tribal leaders made to Washington, DC, is more than what we see on T.V. Our discussions about who to send and why to send them covered everything from the obvious (meeting with the President) to seeing friends from other Tribes. While in D.C., many of our elected Tribal leaders will have a chance to meet with Senators, Congresspeople, other Tribal leaders, and program directors (people who make funding decisions that affect our people back home). The media is not a not a very good representation of what is going on in D.C. or back home and it does not define us or create 'meaning" for us. Aside from the politic atmosphere, it is good to get together with our people in Large Numbers no matter where or for what reason. The energy and support we give one another can sustain the spirit through many a difficult time. Personally, I was proud to see so many Tribal leaders assembled in one place: Jerry Meninick (Yakima), Ron Allen (Jamestown S'Kallam), Pearl Bayler (Quninault); these and the others (Mescalero, Lummi, Northern Cheyenne, Spokane, Dine, Tohono O'Odham, Paiute, Sisseton/Wahpeton Dakota, Warm Springs, Shoshone Bannock, Salish/Kootenai, Cherokee & many, many more) where sent to D.C. by their communities not because they were summoned, but because General Councils (the People) wanted them to go. And there were some who chose not to go for a wide variety of reasons. In discussions (at Councils, in communities, in Longhouses along the Big River and the Coast) questions of outcome were not that important. As for calculating outcomes, who knows what may come of this visit. Maybe the best outcomes will have nothing to do with the public politics and more to do with connections made between our Tribal leaders. Most people I know are proud to support their Tribal representative even if the trips are paid for with money from local raffles & community fund raising events. I hope our people back in D.C. will gain their own vision of outcomes. May they enjoy one another, smile together, dance, and share stories. It all has to do more with Us and our reality, than it does with them and their political agendas. Respectfully submitted: Rio Lara Bellon, from the Wapato Katnum ========================================================================== ------ "RE: White House Press Briefing (Secretaries Babbitt and Deer)" ------ Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 13:17:43 -0500 From: ssc.wisc.edu!sweeney (Kim Sweeney) Subj: White House Indian Press Briefing (29 April) Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary _____________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release April 29, 1994 PRESS BRIEFING BY SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR BRUCE BABBITT AND ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR FOR INDIAN AFFAIRS ADA DEER The Briefing Room 1:05 P.M. EDT SECRETARY BABBITT: Good afternoon. I would like to take a few minutes to see if I can cast this meeting, which I believe has historic significance, in the context of the evolution of the relationships between the United States government and the Indian tribes of this country. I think in order to do that, it's necessary to look backward to what's happened during the course of the 20th century. If you look back prior to World War II, the relationship between the federal government and Indian tribes was paternalistic in every sense. The Interior Department was virtually the only representative of the federal government on Indian reservations. And the Interior Department inherited that role in history from the United States Army. In fact, the Interior Department ran an operation that had many features of the United States Army. The BIA superintendents were on reservations not to consult, not to collaborate, but basically to run the show. And clear up into the 1950s, if you went to an Indian reservation, you would find a tribal council which, in reality, was an advisory committee to the BIA superintendent. And you would find a tribal chairman or a tribal president who would quite frankly say to you, the decisions on this reservation are made over there in this parallel structure by the Superintendent of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. This paternalistic sort of dependency kind of relationship really began to change in a very different direction in the 1950s and the 1960s. It began, first, at the hands of the United States Supreme Court which, during the 1960s, took a series of cases and began to look deeply into the history of treaties, of the constitutional provisions, of the early Supreme Court decisions and recast this relationship by writing a series of opinions which made it very clear that Indian tribes had as an inherent feature a reservoir of sovereignty; which meant that they were entitled to be genuine sovereign governmental entities; and that this tribal sovereignty which attached to Indian tribes and their reservations really stood independent not only of states, but in some measure of the federal government and the federal executive branch itself. Now, fortunately, just as the United States Supreme Court began to paint a larger picture of the potentiality for Indian sovereignty and of their right to self-determination and their right to govern their territory and their affairs, along came a new generation of Indian leaders. And you're going to see this generation with the President today. I can't overstress the extraordinary nature of the transition. Young Indian leaders in the 60s, 70s and the 80s began leaving reservations, graduating from Harvard and Stanford and national schools, entering the professions, and a great many of them then going back to their traditional cultures. And they have had a tremendous effect in making this transformation, because with this sophistication, with the technical skills and the education, they no longer listened to BIA bureaucrats in this old paternalistic mode. They have seized upon these concepts and have stepped forward to lead their tribes into a very new and very different world. Now, most recently, in this evolution of a brand new, entirely different kind of relationship, the United States Congress has stepped into the picture most interestingly, or perhaps, most notably, through the work of the Senate Select Committee on Indian Affairs, chaired by Senator Inouye. It's very important to recognize the role that Congress and Senator Inouye have had in this. Because Congress in the last several years has begun passing legislation to incorporate the leadership of the tribes and the background of the Supreme Court decisions into federal law. In the Indian Self-Determination Act and other pieces of legislation, Congress has mandated the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Department of the Interior and the Executive Branch to begin dealing with Indian tribes as sovereign governments. And Congress has said to the Executive Branch and the Department of the Interior, we want you to begin the process of restructuring and moving the services and programs of the Bureau of Indian Affairs out to the governments themselves. And Congress has created a mechanism in which the tribal leaders have, for several years now, been working directly with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Department of the Interior to structure these self-governance programs, to slenderize the Bureau of Indian Affairs, transfer the programs, sort of step away and begin recognizing and dealing with tribal governments much in the way that we would deal with state governments, for example. Now, it's in that context that I believe this meeting today has historic significance because, for the first time, the Executive Branch, the President are saying to every Indian tribe in this country, we invite you to Washington not to lay out a whole set of prescriptions for what it is that you ought to be doing in the old paternalistic mode, not just for ceremonial functions, but to heighten the reality of this government, the government dialogue. And I would suggest to all of you that as you listen to this proceeding, that you think about these concepts and look beneath the surface of this discussion. And think of it and listen to the responses and the comments in the same way, for example, that you would at a national governors' conference, when the governors of the 50 states come and, in assembly, begin to discuss all of the problems of governments in a federal system; because that's really in fact what's happening today. And you're likely to hear Native American leaders talking about a tax apportionment; talking about their frustrations with the welfare system; talking about health care; talking about the need for the national government to be more sensitive and more responsive to the needs of their governments. And if you think of it in the context of what you hear at a national governors' conference, I think you'll see a lot of similarities for precisely that reason. The President will sign several executive orders, one relating to a very important religious issue surrounding the use of -- the means of obtaining eagle feathers; a second executive order which stresses and says to all federal agencies, it's now time for you to deal as one government to another. When you deal with Indian tribes, no more of this business of simply sending out programs, making requests, rendering opinions. It's now time, when you deal with the government of an Indian tribe and its elected president or chairman, to deal with that tribe -- whether you're the Department of Housing and Urban Development, whether it's Health and Human Services, whatever department -- to deal with that tribal government in the same spirit that you deal with governors and states; because that's, in fact, a good analog for the way these tribes have recaptured and begun to develop their sovereignty in this governmental context. I'd next like to introduce Ada Deer, who is the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs, and ask her to make a few comments. And then I'll come back together with Ada and we'll respond to any questions. Ada. MS. DEER: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. It's very exciting to be here today at this historic time -- the first time that a President of the United States has invited all of the elected tribal leaders to a meeting, face-to-face, here in the White House. I'm very pleased to be a part of this administration, and bringing about change. I'm a former tribal leader of my tribe, the Menominee Indian tribe in Wisconsin. I'm a social worker, an activist, an advocate. And when Secretary Babbitt interviewed me on January 21st, I told him this and he said this is what he wanted, this is what the President wanted; and that's what I'm attempting to do in my capacity as Assistant Secretary. I'd like to emphasize that we are part of an ongoing process here in carrying out the instructions and working with the tribes in consultations with their desires and their requests. Just to mention a few of the ongoing accomplishments that we've been involved with, first is trust funds management. Some of you know that this has been an ongoing issue, but we are making substantial progress in bringing about a resolution of trust funds management. Early in the fall, I was very pleased to sign off on a memorandum resolving the status of Alaskan aid of villages and tribes. That has been a serious matter of question for a number of years, and it was a great pleasure to be able to do this -- to recognize the Alaskan aid of villages and their government-to-government relationship with the U.S. government. This administration is in support of religious freedom. That's a very important act that is now before the Congress. We are in support of self-governance. We are working to resolve many of the serious land settlement and water issues. And there are a number of initiatives that will be undertaken dealing with serious economic problems that confront native country. I was recently named co-chair -- along with Undersecretary Bob Nash and the Department of Agriculture -- co-chair of the Indian Economic Subcommittee of the Community Enterprise Zone. This will be a vehicle whereby we will focus many of the resources of the federal government in analyzing and working on the problems of Indian economic development. We have staffed, fully staffed our federal acknowledgement office. This means that the tribes that are petitioning for federal acknowledgement will have a much speedier action on their petitions. So there are many ongoing efforts within the administration and I want to stop here and then proceed with questions or comments. Q Mr. Secretary -- SECRETARY BABBITT: Mr Blitzer, first question, imagine that. Q What should the role of the federal government be, if any, in overseeing gambling on Indian reservations? SECRETARY BABBITT: Let me broaden the question, and then I'll come straight back to the answer. The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act has provided the basis for a number of very satisfactory gaming compacts involving my department, the tribes and the states. In fact, it has been the rule -- we hear about the exceptions, about states where there is still controversy. In fact, we now have workable, negotiated compacts in an enormous variety of states working quite well. The regulatory role of the states, the tribes and the federal government under those compacts has generally been negotiated. And I think that's a very appropriate way to go. The states have concerns; Indian Gaming Regulatory Commission has concerns. And if you look at those compacts, you're going to see a whole variety of arrangements, including a fairly significant state presence. And I guess to answer directly, it would be my belief that the best way to handle this is in the context of compact negotiations where the states can voice their concerns, the tribes can respond, and as a condition of signing, I can mediate any differences. Q Mr. Secretary, this administration says that it is committed to this new relationship and to a number of issues ranging from welfare reform to health care. But in its Bureau of Indian Affairs, it proposed a major cut in the budget. There's only -- partially retracted by Secretary Shalala apparently last week and which congressional members say that they have not been able to find offsetting cuts to fund the balance. So, how do your rationalize your budget prescription with your stated policy? SECRETARY BABBITT: There has been some vigorous discussion about the administration's initial set of budget proposals, specifically with regard to the Indian Health Service. Now, in the context of those discussions, Secretary Shalala has sent, through OMB, an amendment to the budget restoring approximately $125 million of the initial proposed cuts. Now, we are, at this point, back discussing the situation with the appropriation committees. And what I have said to the tribes is, this is something we need to continue discussing and work out. This is the kind of budget discussion we're having with states and lots of other agencies. And I think there's going to be -- the President will have some comments today. We've restored $125 million, and I think we'll continue discussing the issue. Q There's still a net loss. It's still less than was spent last year. SECRETARY BABBITT: That's correct, and that will be the subject of some additional discussions. We've made that clear. Q Mr. Secretary, can we look at this cut in the IHS budget as a prelude to the elimination of the Indian Health Service in the health care reform? SECRETARY BABBITT: Absolutely not. The President has made it clear that the health care reform is not about eliminating the Indian Health Service. I think, in fact, you should draw the opposite conclusion -- it empowers and strengthens the Indian Health Service. How does that happen? It happens because health care reform puts insurance behind every single consumer, every single Native American who chooses to utilize the services of the Indian Health Service. And, as the President has often explained, the health care proposal is broadening the choices of all Americans, including Native Americans. Now, as a practical matter, most Native Americans are probably for the foreseeable future -- especially with health care reform -- going to be looking to the Indian Health Service. Why? Because most of them live in remote areas where the best, most up-to-date infrastructure for health care is, in fact, the Indian Health Service. And the fact that they bring insurance to that system is going to provide the kinds of resources that the Indian Health Service needs as a purveyor of health care. Q Mr. Secretary, the President and you and your staff -- SECRETARY BABBITT: Joe, are you wearing press credentials today? Wait a minute. (Laughter.) Q out for a Timber Summit. We've had a River Basin Restoration Summit, 129 different tribes from Southeast Alaska, the Endangered Species Act has various impacts on tribal trust lands. And how do we work with you and your department to stop getting conflicting decisions from Fish and Wildlife in the northwest, the southwest and different parts of the country? We recommended we deal with our undersecretary to be the coordinator for the trust between the branches of Interior, because we don't have time to keep educating everybody if you keep changing staff. SECRETARY BABBITT: Good. If you're nominating Ada Deer to do that, I accept your nomination. (Laughter.) Joe, we've got to keep pushing our efforts to get the tribes to the table on resource issues. I think the next big one is going to be the salmon issue. And I think Judge Marsh's opinion is a sort of strong directive from the courts to make certain that, as we begin working those issues through, under Section 7 and the rest of the laws, that the tribes are at the table. Q Our problem is different interpretation from one region to the next within your agencies. And that's where we end up having problems with -- SECRETARY BABBITT: Good, I understand. Q Mr. Secretary, what is this expanded autonomy mean to the U.S. taxpayer? Will there be more or less federal dollars flowing to tribes? And also, what was that bit about eagles' feathers? SECRETARY BABBITT: What was that bit about eagles' feathers? Joe, would you like to answer that question? Q Could you answer the tax question first? SECRETARY BABBITT: The budget issues obviously are in the hands of the United States Congress each and every year. I think that the most important ramification is that as tribes begin to exercise their governmental functions, and we begin to devolve programs back, that we really ought to get a lot more bang for the buck. I'm absolutely certain that a tribe administering a resource program or an education program with a block grant from the Department of Education or the Department of the Interior is going to make that money go a lot further than when the program is being run from Washington, through a regional office, through a BIA office, over to the tribe and finally down to the intended recipients. Q So you don't see any decline in the federal budget, but -- SECRETARY BABBITT: No, I don't. And the tribes have been quite outspoken about this. We can't possibly make a case for sort of eliminating or slashing of federal budgets as a way of sort of getting rid of our responsibility. That's not what this is about at all. Q Mr. Secretary, while we're talking about the religious rights and religious freedoms of our people, the Native Americans, my concern is the fact that while we're banging the buck, the White House is wanting to increase taxes on tobacco. They're trying to outlaw the use of tobacco on all the federal properties and state properties and so forth. Yet, to our people, it's part of our religious prayers. So where are they going to open up religious freedom by restricting the use of tobacco in federal properties? SECRETARY BABBITT: Well, let me invite Ada to respond to the eagle feather question and the free exercise of religion questions. They're important. Ada. Q Could you add peyote to that, too, please? MS. DEER: There's been a coalition of tribal groups and other groups supportive of American Indian religious freedom acts. And this has been an ongoing process for the last couple of years. There's been some important conclusions, important settlements made on the American Indian Religious Freedom Act guaranteeing freedom of religion. It's a fairly complicated act, but I want to point out that it's extremely important that we, as American citizens, have the same rights as everyone else to practice our religion. Tobacco is an important part of this in some of the Native American ceremonies, and eagles are a very important part of this. Eagles are a sacred object. There's been a lot of discussion on how to resolve the use of feathers and eagle parts, and we have come to an agreement on this. And the President will be talking about this in more detail this afternoon. Q Mr. Secretary, in respect to the executive orders, the second part of that on federal -- you said that in dealing with the federal government, they'll have to deal as one government to another. But I'm having a little trouble understanding what will change with these executive orders in terms of how they deal? Will the Indian nation deal not through Interior specifically anymore? They can go directly to these agencies, or how does it actually functionally change? SECRETARY BABBITT: I think what you suggest is in fact a significant part of the thinking underlying this executive order. The old notion around this government was that Indian tribes went to the Department of the Interior where they said, mother, may I? And the Interior Department would then sort of check around the rest of the government and then, sort of from on high, pass back to the Indian tribes permission, directives or whatever. If you compare that to what happens when a governor comes to town, I think you can see the difference. When a governor comes to town representing a state, they go straight to Cabinet agencies, to the White House, moving in the fullness of the relationship. And behind this executive order implicitly is that kind of command to the other Cabinet agencies. And it's long overdue. Q So does the Indian nation itself, or do the different tribes, then, come and deal with the federal government in various agencies? SECRETARY BABBITT: I use tribe and nation interchangeably. I think nation is often the nomenclature that the Native Americans themselves prefer. But whether you call yourself a tribe or a nation, it is that sovereign tribal entity that becomes, in effect, the party to the government-to-government relationship. And that means there are approximately 540 recognized tribes, and that means 545 Native American leaders in that relationship. Now, the other thing I would point out is you are going to hear tremendous diversity of issues and opinions as you talk with the Native American leaders and listen to the dialogue with the President. That's something obviously that is implicit in this relationship. The Northwest tribes are going to have a certain number of issues. The Alaska natives will be talking about fishing and hunting subsistence; the Eastern tribes, often about issues relating to recognition. In the Southwest, it may be oil and gas. So there's going to be a bewildering array of issues. But, again, that simply is a reflection of the diversity of the country and the tribes, much as you would hear at a gathering of the 50 states. Q Mr. Secretary, would you talk just for a second about next week's conference as well. What's the purpose behind that, and what's that supposed to accomplish -- SECRETARY BABBITT: I think most of you know Attorney General Reno and I, accompanied by Ada Deer and numerous other assistant secretaries, are going to Albuquerque next week to spend a couple of days following up on today's meeting. The President has made it clear that in this relationship, we need to spend more time listening. And that's the reason that it's literally entitled a listening conference. The reason, I think, that it is centered on -- this particular conference -- on the Attorney General, myself, Secretary Cisneros is that there is an enormous amount of interest in the natural resource issues, and they may not get as detailed of coverage today at the beginning of this heightened dialogue. Q Can we ask Ms. Deer, as a fellow president of your nation, how this change will affect the nation -- the change, from your perspective, how it affects changes of the nations dealing with the federal government? MS. DEER: This effort, meeting with the President, the listening conference demonstrates the sensitivity, the openness, the willingness of this administration to deal government-to-government with the tribes -- Q In practical terms, what does that is going to mean? MS. DEER: This means there are open doors across the government. We've got open doors in my office, in the Interior, and many other offices here in the White House. The Cabinet secretaries have indicated their interest, their willingness, their desire to assume their obligations to American Indians and Alaska natives. Let me say that we will have a new partnership within the government. I will soon be meeting again with Dr. Trujillo, the new director of Indian Health Service. We expect to have a closer ongoing partnership between BIA and Indian Health as we position tribes for the 21st century, as we assist tribes to work toward progress in the 21st century. The Indian Economic Subcommittee will be focusing efforts of the agencies on Indian economic development. This will be done in close consultation with the tribes. We are not going to do for, we are going to do with. And so people need to understand this. Tribes are very sophisticated, they are knowledgeable, and we are going to be responsive to their needs and their goals. Q Does this cut red tape, or is it a change of attitude? MS. DEER: Both. Q How does this contrast with the experiences, Ms. Deer, that you've had in the past as an activist with previous administrations? MS. DEER: There's a great deal of difference. I want to stress again the openness, the sensitivity, the knowledge. We have a Secretary of Interior who is knowledgeable, who is experienced, who is sensitive to native interests. He spent three weeks in Alaska in August visiting many of the native villages, meeting with the native peoples there, as well as going to parks and dealing with some of the other responsibilities of the Department of Interior. So I want to stress that we have a knowledgeable people, a committed people, and we are embracing the tribes in a new partnership. Q Ms. Deer, to come back to religious freedom, I don't think you answered the other question earlier. Will the President today approve the killing and trapping of eagles for religious purposes? SECRETARY BABBITT: No, no, not at all. Not at all. Q Can you explain what's happening? SECRETARY BABBITT: The tribes have traditionally placed great reverence on the eagle, and used eagle feathers in a great variety of religious ceremonials. With the advent of the Endangered Species Act, the tribes -- obviously the ones with the most to gain from the restoration of the American eagle -- have abandoned any kinds of practices that would threaten eagles. The question is, to what extent can we -- where dead eagles are found on the land -- can we make feathers available, and create a system which says to the tribes, as we together work to conserve the American eagle, when feathers are available from carcasses, we want to make sure that everybody recognizes the importance of getting those back into the hands of those tribes that traditionally use them. Okay, thank you very much. Q Mr. Secretary, do you anticipate any changes that oil and gas leasing or payments to Indian tribes? END 1:38 P.M. EDT --------- "RE: BIA Budget Plans" --------- Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 18:20:59 -0400 (EDT) From: "Richard L. Haan" Subj: BIA Budget Plans Mailing List: NATCHAT (natchat@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Before anyone gets too excited about Clinton's meeting with American Indians, we should take a look at the recent Indian Country Today (April 20, 1994, p.1). According to an article sent in by Bunty Anquoe (I believe she is ICT's Washington D.C. correspondent), the Clinton administration has submitted a budget that cuts a number of programs: $4M for business development grants; $2.5M for a direct loan program; $4.3M in self- determination technical assistance grants; $1.4M for special tribal courts funding; as well as a 57% cut for alcohol and substance abuse programs, less money for child abuse programs, and "zero funding for new school construction." (All the above are cuts from the BIA budget). I do not know the political ins and outs of the above figures, but on their face value, they seem to undercut any meeting Clinton may hold with native peoples. Does anyone out there have more information than the above? (Including information that would suggest the ICT report is in error)