_ __ _____ __ _ __ ___ ____ _ __ ___ ' ) / / ') / / ) ' ) ) / ) / ' ) ) / ) / / / / / / /--/ / / / ___ / / / / ___ (_(_/ (__/ ( / (_ / (_ (___/ '__/_ / (_ (___/ ' ____ _ , ___ _ , ___ / ' ) / / ) ' ) / / ' VOLUME 13, ISSUE 018 / /-< / /--/ /-- __/_ / ) (___/ / ( (___, WOTANGING IKCHE - Lakota - Common News Wotanging Ikche and Native American News Copyright c. 1996-2005 nanews.org Aboriginal/AmerIndian Perspective about the First Nations of Turtle Island April 30, 2005 Hopi kwiyamuyaw/windbreaks moon Assiniboine Tabehatawi/frog moon Passamaquoddy Ponatom/spring moon Abenaki Sogalikas/sugar maker moon +-------------------------------------------------------+ | Much more happens in Indian Country than is reported | | in this weekly newsletter. For daily updates & events | | go to http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm | +-------------------------------------------------------+ Otapi'sin Atsinikiisinaakssin -- Blackfeet -- News for All the People Ni-mah-mi-kwa-zoo-min -- Ojibwe -- We Are Talking About Ourselves Aunchemokauhettittea -- Naragansett -- Let Us Share News Kanoheda Aniyvwiya -- Cherokee -- Journal of the People O Es'te Opunvk'vmucvse -- Creek -- People's New News O o O Acimowin -- Plains Cree -- Story or Account O o O Tlaixmatiliztli -- Nahuatl -- News O o o o o O Agnutmaqan -- Listuguj Mi'kmaq -- News O o O Sho-da-ku-ye -- Teehahnahmah -- Talking Birchbark O o O Un Chota -- Susquehannic Seneca -- The People Speak O Ha-Sah-Sliltha -- Ditidaht Nation -- News of the People Ximopanolti tehuatzin, inin Mexika tlahtolli -- Nahuatl -- For you we offer these words It-hah-pe-hah Ah-num pah-le -- Chickasaw -- Together We Are Talking Dineh jii' adah' ho'nil'e'gii ba' ha' neh -- Navajo Nation -- What's Happening among The People News Okla Humma Holisso Nowat Anya -- Choctaw -- People(s) Red Newspaper Hi'a chu ah gaa -- Pima -- The stories or the talk of the People s ch mA mL tL squee Lux -- Okanogan -- News from the People Native American News -- Language of the Occupation Forces ++>If you speak a Native American language not listed above, please send us your words for "News of the People." We'd rather take up this whole page saving these few words of our hundreds of nations than present a nice clean banner in the language of the occupation forces who came here determined to replace our words with their own. email gars@nanews.org with the equivalent of "News of the People" in your tribal language along with the english translation <================<<<< >>>>================> This newsletter is produced in straight ASCII text for greatest portability across platforms. Read it with a fixed-pitch font, such as Courier, Monaco, FixedSys or CG Times. Proportional fonts will be difficult to read. <================<<<< >>>>================> This issue contains articles from www.owlstar.com; www.indianz.com; www.pechanga.net; News and Information,Frostys AmerIndian & NDNAIM Lists: UUCP email IMPORTANT!! ----------- In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, all material appearing in this newsletter is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for educational purposes. <================<<<< >>>>================> This newsletter is a way of keeping the brothers and sisters who share our Spirit informed about current events within the lives of those who walk the Red Road. ++ It may be subscribed to via email by sending a request from your own internet addressable account to gars@speakeasy.org ++ It is archived at http://www.nanews.org <================<<<< >>>>================> +-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --+ + -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- + | As historian Patricia Nelson | | Once a language is lost, it is | | Limerick summarized in "The | | gone forever | | Legacy of Conquest: The Unbroken | | * Of the 300 original Native | | Past of the American West... | | languages in North America, | | "Set the blood quantum at | | only 175 exist today. | | one-quarter, hold to it as a | | * 125 of these are no longer | | rigid definition of Indians, | | learned by children. | | let intermarriage proceed as | | * 55 are spoken by 1 to 6 elders;| | it had for centuries, and | | when they die, their language | | eventually Indians will be | | will disappear. | | defined out of existence." | | * Without action, only 20 | | "When that happens, the federal | | languages will survive the next| | government will be freed of | | 50 years. | | its persistent 'Indian problem.'"| | Source: Indigenous Language | +-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --+ | Institute | |http://www.indigenous-language.org| This issue's Elder Quote: + -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- + ======================== "In the year since the Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable, First Nations have been actively engaged in crafting our own plans and initiatives that will strengthen our citizens, communities and nations, build our economies and move us towards real self-determination..." __ Phil Fontaine, AFN National Chief +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | 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 +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | Journey | In the summer and early fall | The Bloodline | of 1998 the Treaty Unity Riders | | rode a thousand miles on horse- | For all that live and live by law | back, carrying a staff and | We Stand, we Call, We Ride | praying each step of the way. | For All that fear and fear by sight | | We Hear, we Listen, we Ride | These prayers were offered for | For all that pray and pray by strength| each of us, and that the Unity | We Feel, we Move, we Ride | of all Peoples might happen. | For all that die and die by greed | | We Hurt, we Cry, we Ride | Tatanka Cante forwarded this | For all that birth and birth by right | poem on behalf of all the Unity | We Smile, we Hold, we Ride | Riders that we might stop and | For all that need and need by heart | ask if the next words we say, the | We Came, we Went, we Rode. | next act we make is for the good | | of the People or is it from ego | Treaty Unity Riders | for self. +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ O'siyo Brothers and Sisters! There is hope that understanding can be reached between the dominant society and Indian country - not at the national level, that appears to be lies, lies and more damn lies as long as Norton heads the Department of Interior and Bush is in the White House. The hope exists in a few of State Governors. Bill Richardson has signed seventeen (17) Indian bills into law in New Mexico, most recognizing or strengthening the sovereignty of Native Nations residing in that state. Rather than the "English Only" paranoia that has possessed neighboring Arizona, New Mexico remains bilingual by law. Week before last severl stories ran focusing on the "literal" open door policy to Indians in Montana by Governor Brian Schweitzer. He has openly reached out to include the seven Tribal Nations with reservations in Montana, from symbolically flying their flags next to the state flag in the rotunda to seeking tribal input and including native people in his staff. He isn't kissing up to the administration in DC, either. At the annual state governors' meeting at the White House, where Mr. Schweitzer upbraided both President Bush and Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt. He likened the president to a bad cattle auctioneer and Mr. Leavitt to a cowpoke "riding for the brand." Last week Governor Christine Gregoire of Washington State noted before a symposium at Evergreen State College that treaties with tribes aren't special rights, they were part of the original deal in return for ceded land. "This is about respect, and living by the obligations in the treaties." Gregoire told a crowd of about 300, including tribal members from an estimated 56 nations, that she would like to see the state's partnership with the tribes go beyond co-management of fisheries and gambling compacts, to partnerships in education and health care. Her idea brought much applause. Tribal leaders also took heart from two bills Gregoire is expected to sign, one requiring lawyers to show proficiency in Indian law to pass the bar exam in the state and another encouraging public schools to teach the history of tribes in their area. Three Governors are but a start, but they set strong examples others will be watching. I am sure there are others who are similarily enlightened. We need to make sure they know they are very much appreciated. We also need to support them in every way we can. Movements start with small ripples that move out. These three actually represent significant ripples, and with our help can initiate true government-to-government relations with their tribal neighbors. Dohiyi Ani Oginalii , , Gary Smith (*,*) wotanging@bellsouth.net P. O. Box 672168 (`-') gars@nanews.org Marietta, GA 30006, U.S.A. ===w=w=== http://www.nanews.org ----------- News of the people featured in this issue ----------- - Supreme Court refuses - Modern Day Medicineman: Bush appeal of Trust Case Reinvention of Convention - Lamberth holds hearing - LOUIS GRAY: Is it right on Indian Trust Security to celebrate the Land Run - Cobell: Ross Swimmer - GIAGO: Democrats torpedoed and the Truth rarely mix by Gay Marriage Issue - Tribes win case against Government - JODI RAVE: Indian voices - Apology resolution declining within News back before the Senate - Aboriginal Voters - How Tribes regained could make difference Self-Rule, Homelands - Assembly of First Nations - High Court ruling hosts Policy Forum also helps Tribes - Nunavut eyes - Haudenosaunee meet Green Energy Alternatives to map out Strategy - Band strikes deal - Temporary fix with Junior Exploration Company for Tribe's Water intake - Metis Hunting Deal - Mining interests worries Conservationists before its Citizens - Colombia's Indians - Navajo Nation threatened by High Death Rates outlaws Uranium Mining - Indigenous Groups - Hopi, Peabody Cases welcome decision on Reserve top Navajo Council's Agenda - Supreme Court Roundup - Twins of the Turtle Clan - Sisseton-Wahpeton - A singular chance Law Enforcement Center for Upper Klamath Lake Salmon - Native Prisoner - Schweitzer signs measure -- Prison Pen Pal requests for Fort Belknap Water - Verse: Hawaiian Book of Days - Tribe plans to preserve - Rustywire: First Thunder Uncas Family Burial Site - Virginia Tribes will host - Project Moccasins Congressman Bobby Scott gives Native Soldiers comfort - Tuscarora Pow-Wow - Rice Wars - 5th Annual Veterans Pow wow --------- "RE: Supreme Court refuses Bush appeal of Trust Case" --------- Date: Tue, 19 Apr 2005 08:38:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="BUSH "WHACK" DENIED" http://www.indianz.com/News/2005/007684.asp Supreme Court refuses Bush appeal of trust case April 19, 2005 The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected another attempt by the Bush administration to limit the federal government's trust responsibilities. Without comment, the justices denied an appeal involving two Wyoming tribes whose trust assets have been mismanaged by the Interior Department. The Eastern Shoshone Tribe and the Northern Arapaho Tribe have won key rulings in a long-running case over oil, gas, sand and gravel resources on the Wind River Reservation. The Bush administration sought to overturn those rulings, claiming that they would pave the way for billions of dollars in lawsuits by tribal governments and individual Indians. "Both the number and the potential dollar value of possible breach-of-trust claims against the United States are enormous," Department of Justice attorneys wrote in a court brief. Three years ago, the administration made a similar argument in two tribal trust cases that went before the high court. The justices ruled for one tribe and went against another but, in both instances, they refused to limit the federal government's fiduciary obligations to Indian beneficiaries. In the years following, tribes and individual Indians have won a series of rulings in the federal courts. In addition to the Wyoming tribes, the Osage Nation from Oklahoma and the Cobell plaintiffs have relied on the Supreme Court precedents to press an accounting of billions of dollars in trust funds. The administration's appeal threatened these victories because it challenged a Congressional rider that gives Indian beneficiaries more time to file lawsuits. The provision, first placed in the Interior Department's appropriations bill in 1990, lifts the standard six-year statute of limitations for trust accounting cases. The rider has been included in every appropriations bill since and it was the subject of a separate measure sponsored by former Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-Colorado). "It is about avoiding litigation which I think is in everyone's interest," Campbell said at a February 2002 hearing. The bill was signed into law by President Bush a month later. Key members of Congress have continued to press the government and Indian Country to resolve trust management issues. Sen. John McCain (R- Arizona), the chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, said he will give everyone "one good shot" this session to work out a potential solution. The National Congress of American Indians and the Inter-Tribal Trust Monitoring Association have since started a workgroup to draft legislation to present to Congress. The Native American Rights Fund, on behalf of the Cobell plaintiffs, is involved in the talks. The effort proceeds as the White House and the Interior Department have refused to yield on a key issue in the debate -- how far in history an accounting of trust funds should go. In the appeal to the Supreme Court, government attorneys sought a ruling to endorse their limited view of the costly project. Meanwhile, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has asked for a substantial increase in resources to fight tribal trust lawsuits. In testimony to Congress in March, he requested $7.4 million and 18 positions, a figure that doesn't include the amount being used to battle the Cobell case. "The United States' potential exposure in these cases is more than $200 billion," Gonzales said. "Adequate resources are necessary to limit exposure and establish proper precedent for the United States." In the Wind River case, the tribes have settled claims related to oil and gas mismanagement for $12 million and claims related to sand and gravel mismanagement for $2 million. Other parts of the case are still pending. The tribes also filed an appeal to the Supreme Court that was rejected yesterday. They wanted a ruling to determine whether they are entitled to the best price for their sand and gravel assets. The lower court ruled they had no claim on this point. Copyright c. 2000-2005 Indianz.Com. --------- "RE: Lamberth holds hearing on Indian Trust Security" --------- Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2005 08:51.10 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="BUSH ADMIN CONTINUES TO TRY TO WIGGLE OUT" http://www.indianz.com/News/2005/007734.asp Lamberth holds hearing on Indian trust security April 21, 2005 The federal judge handling the Indian trust fund case moved forward with his oversight of the Interior Department's computer systems on Wednesday in light of new reports of vulnerabilities. U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth held a two-hour hearing in Washington, D.C., on the state of information technology at the department. It was his first foray into the subject since a federal appeals court last December lifted an order that disconnected the department's computer systems from the Internet. In recent testimony to Congress, associate deputy secretary Jim Cason characterized the decision as one of the Bush administration's "victories" in the long-running Cobell v. Norton case. But information technology woes continue to plague the department, with an internal report forcing the Bureau of Land Management to shut down its website due to the "poor state of network security." Lamberth said he was willing to hold an evidentiary hearing and call witnesses - potentially including Cason - to get to the heart of the matter. The appeals court cited the lack of such a hearing when it lifted the shutdown order. Dennis Gingold, an attorney for the Cobell plaintiffs, said he was ready to go to trial on the issue "next week." He told the court that that billions in individual Indian trust funds are at risk to computer hackers unless the relevant computer systems are removed from the Internet and turned off. "The consequences are terrible," Gingold said. "You can transfer property, you can transfer money, you can order checks" without being detected, he said. Glenn Gillette, a Department of Justice attorney, didn't immediately object to holding of the evidentiary hearing. But he suggested it should be delayed until both sides can collect more evidence to determine whether the computer systems are secure. "Clearly, the individual Indian trust data today is more secure than it has been," Gillette told the court. He said the department has spent $100 million over the past three years to install firewalls, redesign the network and take other measures to beef up the systems. Lamberth indicated he welcomed some of the changes that have been made, including the department's decision to conduct "penetration" tests to identify security gaps. "It's exactly what I was asking to be done" in ordering the shutdown that was lifted by the appeals court, he said. But he voiced concerns about Interior's continued management of the Indian trust. In fighting the Internet shutdown, the department complained that its day-to-day operations were harmed, a situation that could be avoided if trust and non-trust data were separated. "Why doesn't Interior keep the trust data in a separate system?" Lamberth asked. "Why do they want to keep the data intermingled?" Gillette said the department's long-term goal was to keep the data separate but he didn't know when that would be accomplished. Currently, if all of the systems are shut down, "You have almost no ability to do any work," he told the court. Lamberth also said he had problems with the department's proposal to keep secret the internal report that prompted the BLM shutdown. "I don't think it's fair to the public," he told Interior Secretary Gale Norton's defense team, who have not provided the entire report to the court or to the Cobell plaintiffs but provided a key detail in a filing. On April 6, the Inspector General at Interior issued a report that outlined the results of a penetration test at an unknown agency. "Given the poor state of network security at [agency] and the weak access controls we encountered on many systems, it is safe to say that we could have easily compromised the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the identified Indian Trust data residing on those systems," the document stated, according to the filing. Two days later, Norton's attorneys asked the court to seal the IG report but Lamberth said their proposed order was "overbroad" and would prevent its release in its entirety. "I'm not going to buy an argument like that," he said before asking the lawyers to draft language that would identify which parts of the report might be redacted and under what standard. In their filings, Norton's attorneys refused to discuss further details of the security vulnerabilities. But shortly afterward, two computer- related publications reported that the BLM was the agency at issue. Gillette yesterday did offer additional information when pressed by the court. He said the penetration test found problems with a BLM e-mail server and "other associated servers" that he didn't identify. He said the systems failed due to a lack of "adequate encryption and password protection." "This penetration test was run under a program initiated by Interior," he told Lamberth. "This testing is well beyond the normal standard done for [similar] systems." The contractors hired by the IG were able to exploit the vulnerabilities and "get into BLM systems," Gillette acknowledged. "These folks were good," he said, suggesting that an ordinary hacker would not be able to compromise the network. The IG has issued similar penetration test reports for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Special Trustee and Office of Hearings and Appeals, and issued another one for the National Business Center in Denver just two days ago, Gillette said. Similar tests are underway for the Minerals Management System, which handles $6 billion in Indian and other royalties a year. Information technology surfaced as an issue in November 2001 when the former special master in the case hired a computer security firm that was able to break into the Indian trust systems easily. The discovery led to the first Internet shutdown a month later. Since then, the overwhelming majority of the department's computer systems are back online. The only major exception is the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The Bush administration, however, has continued to dispute whether Lamberth has the authority to oversee the computer systems. The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals lifted the most recent shutdown order but supported Lamberth and the Cobell plaintiffs on this point. "It is indisputable that the Secretary has current and prospective trust management duties that necessitate maintaining secure IT systems in order to render accurate accountings now and in the future," the court said. Copyright c. 2000-2005 Indianz.Com. --------- "RE: Cobell: Ross Swimmer and the Truth rarely mix" --------- Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 09:14:58 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="COBELL: ROSS SWIMMER" http://www.indianz.com/News/ http://www.newsok.com/article/1479904 Indians not being told truth By Elouise Cobell April 22, 2005 The way Ross Swimmer, the Interior Department's special trustee, is talking these days you'd think there really wasn't any reason for Indians to be upset over the thousands of individual Indian trust accounts the Oklahoman is supposed to be overseeing. After years of attempting to find the billions of dollars that are missing, Swimmer told a group of reporters recently that his department hasn't been able to find any serious problems with the accounts it has been checking. There may be some missing money, he conceded. But Swimmer insisted that any losses are perhaps in the millions -- not the billions of dollars that plaintiffs in a nine-year-old lawsuit against the federal government have been suggesting. What Swimmer isn't telling his listeners is that his department has only begun to check the records. And the records it is still checking are those from the most recent years -- 1985 forward, the so-called "electronic era" of trust records. Even there, the "accounting" is laughable -- they don't review the over 95 percent of "unrecorded" transactions and presume that unverified transactions are correct. But as Swimmer well knows, the government's trust records date from 1887. Study after study by the government has documented that massive amounts of documents are missing from the Interior Department's files. So how can Swimmer, or any Interior official, truthfully say they're verifying that the trust records are in good shape? That every thing indicates most Indians were being properly paid? As the former head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Swimmer knows firsthand how bad the trust records are. When he was head of the BIA in the Reagan administration, it was so fouled up that he tried to convince Congress to turn the entire trust operation over to commercial banks. Congress heeded the warning of Indian tribes and issued a resounding "no" to that idea. First, fix the records, the lawmakers said. That's the part of the problem Swimmer would just as soon Congress forget. He can't fix documents he can't find. Investigators have documented that massive numbers of the records are missing. Destroyed. Lost. Years after our lawsuit was filed, someone discovered a barn filled with discarded and missing trust records in Anadarko. These records were being watched only by the rats in that leaky building. Interior officials testified that when the barn filled up, they just tossed out the oldest records and stacked in newer ones. As for the leases of Indian lands that were supposed to be the sources of trust account funds, thousands of those leases were never recorded. So how can the trust records be accurate? They can't. That makes all the statements from Swimmer and others at Interior that everything is fine with the records a bald-faced lie. What they want you to think is that they can paint an accurate picture of the trust accounts by relying on the tiny percentage of the total records that they can lay their hands on. That's like saying you can tell the entire story of America by beginning with the Jamestown settlement in 1607. All you have to do is forget about the Indians - the first Americans. But forgetting about Indians is what Interior has been doing since 1887. That's when it was supposed to create trust accounts for individual Indians. It never did the job right then and just saying that its current records are accurate won't cut it. It's time to tell Swimmer and his friends at Interior, no, we won't forget about the Indians this time. A member of Montana's Blackfeet Nation, Elouise Cobell is the lead plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit that is seeking to correct the government's accounting abuses in thousands of individual Indian money accounts held in trust for the nation's Indians by the Interior Department. Copyright c. 2005 The Oklahoman - News 9, Produced by NewsOK.com. --------- "RE: Tribes win case against Government" --------- Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 08:13:57 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="TRUST CASE WON" http://www.casperstartribune.net//6c2a85e1ab593b4f87256fe800038fa8.txt Tribes win case against government By BRODIE FARQUHAR Star-Tribune correspondent with wire reports April 19, 2005 LANDER - Wind River Indian Reservation tribes could realize about $6.5 million in federal payments after the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to consider the government's appeal of a lower-court ruling in favor of the tribes. Earlier this month, the Bush administration argued the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone tribes waited too long to sue the Interior Department over federal management of minerals on the reservation dating back nearly 60 years. Without comment, justices let stand the lower-court ruling that allowed most of the claims by the Wyoming tribes. The tribes allege the federal government mismanaged oil, gas, timber and grazing royalties from 1946 to 1973. An attorney for the tribes, speaking on condition of anonymity, estimated an ultimate payment of $6.5 million to the tribes from the Interior Department. The refusal of the Supreme Court to reopen the case, the tribal attorney said, secures a $12 million payment received last year, as well as additional interest, at a rate yet to be determined. "My general estimate is that the tribes will see a payment of $6 million, by settlement or negotiation, within the next six months," the attorney said. The $6 million anticipated payment arises from an accounting of oil and gas royalties owed the tribes, but not enforced by the federal government, from 1973 to 2000, he said. In addition, and as a separate issue, the Supreme Court's denial of the federal appeal sets the stage for an additional $550,000 payment to the tribes, based on an earlier settlement about sand and gravel royalties, he said. The attorney readily acknowledged that compared to a potential federal liability of $200 billion in a class-action trust management lawsuit (Cobell v. Norton), this victory for the Wind River tribes is relatively minor. "It is good for the tribes," he said, but was uncertain whether it will have any implications for the larger lawsuit, potentially affecting 500, 000 American Indians. Background Ordinarily, fraud claims have a six-year time limit for filing suit. But a federal statute allows the tribes to postpone that deadline if the government hasn't provided an accounting of the trust funds set up on their behalf. The Interior Department has not done that yet. At issue was the scope of the federal law allowing the delayed claims if they concern "losses to or mismanagement of trust funds." The tribes argued that should include alleged mismanagement of natural resources, such as failure to negotiate adequate prices for sand and gravel leases, that they say devalued their trust fund. The government disagreed and argued they should be limited to mismanagement of funds actually contained in the trust accounts. In a ruling last year, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit staked a middle ground. It allowed claims involving the actual trust funds as well as alleged losses due to the government's failure to collect payments under sand and gravel payments. But it rejected the tribes' claims of losses due to inadequate negotiation of lease prices. The Justice Department had urged the Supreme Court to hear the appeal, arguing that the lower ruling "will revive long-moribund claims and substantially increase the potential liability and litigation burdens of the United States." In 1887, Congress created a trust fund for Indians managed by the government. Copyright c. 2005 by the Casper Star-Tribune published by Lee Publications, Inc. --------- "RE: Apology resolution back before the Senate" --------- Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2005 08:51.10 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="U.S. HAVING HARD TIME SAYING RIGHT THING" http://nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=6343 Apology resolution back before the Senate NCAI's Hall praises Brownback for sponsoring it WASHINGTON DC Native American Times April 20, 2005 A few words can go along way-and the head of the National Congress of American Indians is praising a Kansas Republican for reintroducing the United States Apology Resolution. Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) put the measure to the floor of the Senate, joined by Senators Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Christopher Dodd (D-CT). The language is the same resolution that passed the out of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs last year and specifically addresses the Trail of Tears, the Long Walk, the Wounded Knee Massacre, Assimilation and Termination policies and asks President Bush to "bring healing to this land" by acknowledging the government's offensive history. "Once again I want to let everyone in America know that Indian Country has a friend and advocate in Senator Sam Brownback," said NCAI President Tex Hall. "It has been his vision to push Congress to begin taking the steps to right the wrongs committed against our people and nations in the past centuries. I want to also praise Senators Byron Dorgan and Christopher Dodd for stepping in and joining this fight. This is a great moment and while the Senate Resolution does not come with compensation, it is a meaningful start for fixing what is wrong. The fact that Congress is even considering an official policy to Indian Country is a testament to our growing political strength." The apology generated controversy when Brownback first introduced it last year. At the time it was co-sponsored by Hawaii Democrat Daniel Inouye Colorado Republican Ben Nighthorse Campbell. "It is the right first step," NCAI Treasurer Ron Allen said at the time. "However, we have a long way to go. Indian people are still being left behind in this country." Chickasaw Nation Lt. Governor Jefferson Keel said that until monetary issues are addressed, a resolution is simply "words on paper." "This resolution recognizes and honors the importance of Native Americans to this land and to our nation - in the past and today - and offers an official apology to the Native peoples for the poor and painful past choices our government sometimes made to disregard its solemn word," Brownback said. "This is a resolution of apology and a resolution of reconciliation. It is a first step toward healing the wounds that have divided us for so long - a potential foundation for a new era of positive relations between Tribal governments and the federal government. It is past time for us to heal our land of division, and bring us together as one people." Native American Times. Copyright c. 2005 All Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: How Tribes regained Self-Rule, Homelands " --------- Date: Tuesday, April 19, 2005 3:12 AM From: "Chris Milda (_Akimel O`odham_)" AkimelOodham@EarthLink.net Subj: How tribes regained self-rule, homelands (Fwd) Mailing List: News and Information - - - - - - -- - - - - - - http://www.azcentral.com//articles/0327indians0327.html How tribes regained self-rule, homelands *By Charles Wilkinson* March 27, 2005 When Ronnie Lupe became chairman of the White Mountain Apache Tribe, it was hardly an auspicious time. The year was 1966 and his eastern Arizona tribe, like all the others, had hit rock bottom. Indians faced the deepest poverty in the country. Infant mortality was high and adult life expectancy low. Few had attended college, much less graduated. Despite treaties recognizing tribal authority, outside interests ran the reservations. Peabody Coal strip-mined sacred Black Mesa in northeastern Arizona through unfair leases with the Hopis and Navajos. The Bureau of Indian Affairs trashed Apache and other tribal forests with high-yield, unsustainable logging. Lupe passionately believed in Apache self-determination. "I am an Apache," he said. "I look at the world differently. The way I do things, the things I believe, the choices I make are all because I am an Apache." Yet the proud Apaches had no say on their high-country homeland. "We couldn't even open our mail," Lupe recalls. "It all went straight into the BIA's hands." The words of Chief Justice John Marshall, who described Indian tribes as nations, had turned to dust. Against all odds, tribal leaders came together, decided to fight back and succeeded. In a historic revival that can be compared to the civil rights, environmental and women's movements, Indian tribes took back their reservations. Leaders such as Lupe and Peterson Zah of the Navajos planned congressional initiatives and litigation offensives. The Supreme Court upheld the treaties. Congress supported tribal self-determination. It also affirmed Tribal Court jurisdiction over adoptions. Before that, 25 percent to 35 percent of all Indian children had been adopted into non-Indian homes. Tribal leaders took those national laws and put them to work in Indian country, making tribes into full-service governments. In the 1960s, the Apache, like other tribes, had only a handful of employees. Today, about 70 tribes each have 300 or more employees, excluding gaming operations. Natural resources are a priority. Tribes have large and expert environmental agencies. Since the 1960s, they have added 7.5 million acres, an area 1 1/2 times the size of Massachusetts, to the tribal land base. Tribal institutions have earned respect. On the Tohono O'odham Reservation in southern Arizona, cases are heard in a new justice complex with five courtrooms and many counselors specialize in juvenile justice. The Navajo courts, using traditional "peacemaking" practices, are national leaders in dispute resolution. Tribes operate 34 tribal colleges and more than 100 elementary and secondary schools. To be sure, much still must be done. Poverty rates, although dramatically reduced, remain high. Health problems, notably diabetes, still stalk Indian country. Gaming has been a positive force because most proceeds go to tribal programs, the best way to meet Indian needs. Tribal leaders have had a long struggle to make tribal sovereignty a reality. When he first came to office, Lupe was determined to bring the Apache's magnificent ponderosa forest under tribal management. It took 20 years to wrench control from the BIA, but now trees are harvested by the tribe on a conservative, sustained-yield basis. Instead of going off the reservation for processing, logs are milled at the tribal mill by tribal employees. Another Apache forestland decision is noteworthy. The tribe's sacred peak is Dzil Ligai Si'an (Mount Baldy, in English). The tribe has closed the entire western slope to non-members. Even tribal members must obtain a permit to enter. Perhaps this sacred area and the Apache timber mill together stand as fit testament to the tribes' determination to govern their homelands on their own terms, to make them places of both jobs and culture, places of both modernity and tradition. *Charles Wilkinson is a distinguished university professor and Moses Lasky professor of law at the University of Colorado and author of "Blood Struggle: The Rise of Modern Indian Nations" (W.W. Norton). Copyright c. 2005 azcentral.com. --------- "RE: High Court ruling also helps Tribes" --------- Date: Sun, 17 Apr 2005 16:52:04 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="SHERRILL DECISION" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.auburnpub.com/articles/2005/04/24/news/news03.txt High court ruling also helps tribes By Amaris Elliott-Engel / The Citizen April 24, 2005 The U.S. Supreme Court's March 29 decision in the city of Sherrill vs. Oneida Indian Nation case is being celebrated as a major - and rare - victory for non-Indian property owners. The case blocked tribes from buying land within their New York land claim area in order to return the property to sovereign status, a decision that cleared the way for municipalities to begin collecting taxes and enforcing local laws. But the high court's 22-page ruling has also bolstered some of the tribes' legal positions, and they are now using the decision to guide strategy. Some Indian law experts are saying the Sherrill ruling affirms the validity of the land claims by the Oneidas and the other New York-based tribes. In fact, Rob Porter, a former attorney general with the Seneca Nation and the director of the Syracuse University's law school's Center for Indigenous Law, Governance and Citizenship, said the Sherrill case even gave added credence to the land claims. Porter spoke during a conference held last week for journalists about the Indian law field. The Sherrill case didn't address the validity of the non-Intercourse claims, said Bridget Garcia, an attorney with the Department of Interior's Office of Solicitor, who also spoke at the same conference. Many of the New York land claims are legally based on treaties negotiated by the state in violation of the federal 1790 Non-Intercourse Act, which required Congressional approval of all new Indian treaties. Both the Cayuga Nation of New York and the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma recently filed briefs with the U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals arguing the Sherrill case supports their cross-appeal of the 2001 $247.9 billion judgment award in the claim. The 2nd Circuit is now hearing appeals on the 2001 jury trial decision finding in favor of the tribes that the state illegally obtained 64,000 of the tribes' historic territory. The state appealed the decision seeking a smaller judgment, and the tribes cross-appealed the decision seeking $1.7 billion in damages. The tribes were asked to indicate how they thought the Sherrill case would affect their claim. The case over the land area cup -ping Cayuga Lake in both Cayuga and Seneca counties has been stayed pending the Sherrill decision. Daniel French, an attorney for Clint Halftown, the Cayuga Nations' current federal representative, also said the Sherrill case "didn't disturb the fact that the lands were illegally purchased by the state .... (the Cayugas are) still entitled for damages for lands illegally purchased." William Dorr, the attorney representing Cayuga County in the land claim, did not respond to requests for an interview. Another attorney in the Indian law field said the language of the Sherrill decision didn't disrupt the tribes' right to claim the land. But Sarah Krakoff, an associate professor with extensive experience in Indian tax cases at the University of Colorado School of Law, said the case involves a huge change. "If tribes do get land back that was originally part of their claim to their aboriginal territory, they aren't instantly entitled to the all of the immunities of what's normally called tribal trust land," she said. Krakow also said the language of the case reflects the slow abandonment by the Supreme Court of generally interpreting statutes in favor of the tribes if there is ambiguity in the laws. Past decisions generally sided in favor of tribal arguments that the historical wrong of their land being taken must be redressed. The Sherrill case is the "final nail in the coffin for tribes being able to argue lands they owned in fee should be free from state and local taxation," Krakow said. The Oneidas' land outside of their 30-acre reservation is considered land "owned in fee." Such land status developed after the 1887 General Allotment Act, which divided tribal land into individual parcels assigned to individual Indians. The law's goal was the assimilation of Indians from a tribal, collective land-holding culture, but as the land became the property of individual tribal members and subject to taxes, many Indian allottees often sold the land when they were unable to pay. The Sherrill case ruling said because of the lapse in time from when land in Madison and Oneida counties was lost by the Oneidas and because of current non-Indian character of the land, the Oneidas' reacquired property is not exempt from local taxes and other regulation. The Sherrill case was primarily a taxation case, in which the Supreme Court indicated that open-market land purchases were not the means for tribes to seek their land being free of taxation and other governmental regulation, Garcia said. But the justices still allowed - and even pointed out in their ruling - that the tribes can apply to the federal government for their land to be placed in trust. No tribes currently have land held in trust on their behalf by the federal government in New York state, but the Akwesane/St. Regis Mohawks, the Oneidas and the Cayugas have applied for that status since the Supreme Court ruling. The land-in-trust application process through the Department of Interior is a lengthy, involved process and does not always result in favor of the tribes, Garcia said. "If the stars are aligned and everything, it's not a closed possibility - just more, more difficult" for tribes get land held in trust, Garcia said. Staff writer Amaris Elliott-Engel can be reached at 253-5311 x282 or at amaris.elliot-engel@lee.net The Citizen Copyright c. 2005, A division of Lee Publications, Inc. --------- "RE: Haudenosaunee meet to map out Strategy" --------- Date: Thursday, April 21, 2005 11:16 AM From: Frosty Deere [frostyca2000@yahoo.com] Subj: THE MOVEMENT HAS BEGUN! HAUDENOSAUNEE MEET TO MAP OUT STRATEGY Mailing List: Frostys AmerIndian THE MOVEMENT HAS BEGUN! HAUDENOSAUNEE MEET TO MAP OUT STRATEGY We are of one people. We are of one cause MNN. April 19, 2005. The political movement of consequence of our people has begun. We are ready to go forward. On short notice, we, the People, met on April 18th 2005 to discuss the path we are about to take. Many came. A wonderful array of food was set out for us. In our way, food has always been kept at the ready. It means that kinship continues between those who had shared food. Our host knew that hungry clanfolk can discuss important matters after a good meal. Agenda. Our host handed out the agenda. It was a photocopy of a photo of famous Indigenous leader, Geromino, standing with his three men, at the ready. The caption was, "Homeland Security - Fighting Terrorism Since 1492". That said it all! Suggestions. After hours of discussion, the first suggestion was to organize a gathering of the People of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois Confederacy). Many have already started working on this. From what we saw, many are new to this whole Iroquois Confederacy situation of ineffective leadership. We all know that the Grand Council has to change. As one speaker said, "This is not about you, me or any individual. It is about our People". The second suggestion is setting up the Haudenosaunee Womens Council. The colonial strategy was to destroy the traditional role of our women. They knew that the women were the foundation of our society from whom our nations derived their strength. The hearts of our women are not on the ground. We are regaining the balance between the duties of the women and the duties of the men. Our complementary political activities will take us safely through these difficulties times we are facing. We will achieve peace through consultation and consensus. Inclusive. One speaker referred to combing the snakes out of the hair. There will come a time when we will have to extend our hospitality to those who are suffering from moral and ethical derangements which have harmed us. They can come back. Everyone had the same concerns. We are facing attacks by New York State. We are fighting back. If we don't fight back, it is the death of our People. Kaienrekowa (Great Law of Peace, our constitution) reflects the natural world, the perfect reality, which is ongoing, and changing constantly. Because of the Kaienerekowa, we are open to the natural reality and are therefore able to adapt without compromising who we are. Major reorganization. There is an important connection between our struggle for self-determination, the development of our people and the preservation of the environment. There needs to be a major rethinking of how colonial government is organized. Defending our rights is not just a matter of "giving" us a chunk of land here or there, a casino and carrying on according to the colonial mode. It is reorganizing how everything is done. It will take some time for us to complete. It involves a major rethinking of how an economy is run. If we don't embark on this work, there will be a major environmental collapse. We are of one people. We are of one cause Kahentinetha Horn, MNN Mohawk Nation News, kahntineta@hotmail.com --------- "RE: Temporary fix for Tribe's Water intake" --------- Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 09:14:58 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="CRST WATER" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.aberdeennews.com/mld/aberdeennews/news/11450322.htm Temporary fix for tribe's water intake From staff and wire reports April 21, 2005 The Army Corps of Engineers will keep water flowing to the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation by moving the intake to a deeper part of Lake Oahe, South Dakota's congressional delegation said Wednesday. The short-term fix will move the Eagle Butte intake, which is nearly out of the water, to another location about four miles downstream, said Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D. He said the project will take about nine months. "The corps in the meantime, then, will be managing water levels on the Oahe to see to it that the existing water intake continues to function," Johnson said. Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., said $6 million in federal emergency funding will help address low water levels on Lake Oahe. "This is a great relief to the thousands of South Dakotans who faced a water shortage this summer," Thune said in a news release. The water level of Lake Oahe, which stretches from central South Dakota into North Dakota, is about 28 feet below normal after six years of drought. Officials are anticipating record-low water levels this summer. Johnson said the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe still needs a long-term solution. Rep. Stephanie Herseth, D-S.D., agreed. "I am pleased that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has recognized the urgency of this situation and is moving to ensure communities in South Dakota are not left without water. This action is clearly necessary," Herseth said in a press release. "However, the solution is decidedly short-term, and the delegation must work with the corps, the state, local and tribal governments, and other federal agencies to craft a permanent solution to the problem of low water levels in the Missouri River in South Dakota." Tribal officials have said that involves moving the intake 12 miles to the Missouri River's main channel. That project could cost $70 million or more and take at least several years, but planning should start now, they have said. Copyright c. 2005 Aberdeen American News. --------- "RE: Mining interests before its Citizens" --------- Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 08:13:57 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="PEABODY BEFORE PEOPLE" http://www.gallupindependent.com/2005/apr/041905protest.html Sell outs? Protestors say council puts mining interests before its citizens By Kathy Helms Dine' Bureau April 19, 2005 WINDOW ROCK - In some people's minds, the 20th Navajo Nation Council may go down in history as the one which sold out the grassroots people, but Black Mesa/Rough Rock/Forest Lake delegate Amos Johnson said Monday that he is not going down with them. From the front sidewalk leading to the council chambers, as well as on the floor, Johnson said, "I'm not going to sell my people out. I'm not going to sell our coal, our water for the next 25-50 years. I'm not going to be the one that's going to sell out to the energy company just so the Navajo Nation can get a little bit of money." Johnson spoke of Peabody Coal Co's proposed expansion of Black Mesa and Kayenta mines and the company's transition from the fairly pristine N- aquifer to the lesser-quality C-aquifer for the purpose of slurrying coal to Mohave Generating Station in Nevada. The switchover also involves an increase in the volume of water to be used. Children, grandmas, and young adults from Black Mesa critical of the Peabody plan marched to the council chambers Monday morning. When residents protested a Peabody expansion in 1997, they were carted off to jail by Navajo Nation Police. This time they were given a police escort. Speaking with protesters outside the chambers, Johnson said, "It's about time we take a position that we protect our water, we protect our coal, we protect our sovereignty and these minerals. We don't want to repeat history, and I'm not going to be one who is going to take that position to sell out." Under current negotiations, he said, the Navajo Nation would receive $30 million a year from Peabody. That amount is 10 percent of the company's projected revenue of $300 million from mining Navajo coal. Peabody sweetened the pot by offering a bonus of 10 percent of the $30 million, he said. Johnson was unimpressed. Norman Benally of Black Mesa, whose family members were arrested in front of their home in the '97 protest, said residents were there Monday not only because of Peabody's new permit application, but also because the tribal government is renegotiating a long-term lease agreement behind closed doors. "We're here to request that the tribal council deny Peabody's request for additional coal on Black Mesa and additional water use on Black Mesa because Peabody never acquired a permit for its Black Mesa operations or its slurry line," he said. "After more than 25 years, since the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act was signed into law, Peabody is finally in the process of getting a permit. They had an interim permit in 1989, but they've stretched it over 15 years. "Peabody enjoys a certain sovereign immunity on Black Mesa which no other company does," Benally said. If the renegotiated contract is approved, the Navajo and Hopi people would have to present the contract to Congress. "If Congress approved it also, it would make it a federal law, which gives Peabody sovereign immunity over the Navajo and Hopi people for the next 50 years," Benally said. The way it is Before Marshall Johnson and his family of four from Black Mesa went to see the tribal council Monday morning, they took a bath a sponge bath. "We don't have no running water up there. We took a bath with three gallons of water. We come here and we feel clean. The amount Peabody is using is 46 gallons per second. They want to raise that to 6,000 acre feet. That's going to be 60 gallons per second." He voiced concerns that there possibly are plans to rescind the resolution passed by council to wean Peabody from the N-aquifer. "This needs to be upheld and not let any sort of leeway be given to corporations or to government. I have been hearing that there is a negotiating team negotiating our whole water," Johnson said. "The people of Black Mesa and surrounding communities that rely on the N aquifer should be the ones at the table," he said. They have not been invited. "We would like to see that and them be the first to be notified, not the people here in Window Rock that are representing other chapters." The people of Black Mesa should be the ones to speak for themselves, he said. "I think we are educated enough to understand what is happening there, environmentally and daily, because we live there. Our people need to realize what is really taking place. "The amount of water that this corporation is using, they're paying us 1 cent for every four gallons. ... That is morally wrong. It may be right in the minds of U.S. government laws and state government laws and tribal government laws, but morally and universally, that is wrong," he said. "That is our birthright. We have a right to say something on it. We should be at the table." Sustain this Nicole Horseherder said protesters didn't come to the chambers throwing protest signs around and getting in the faces of council delegates. "We didn't come here angry," she said. Instead, they came prepared with studies and documentation to back their concerns, and they did it "in the traditional kinship way of our people." "We sought the prayers and the guidance of medicine people all over," Horseherder said. "That's the way we approach this Navajo Nation Council: out of utmost respect, bringing the true concerns of the people who live on the land and still tend to the fireplace, the foundation. That's where we're coming from," she said. They have been called traditionalists and activists, but Horseherder doesn't see them that way. "I just see myself as a person who wants to make a living on Black Mesa. I have three children. I speak to them in Navajo. We get our children in the morning and run," she said, raising them based on traditional methods and techniques. "Yet people look at that and say, 'Oh, you're a traditionalist. You want to go back to the 1800s.' Well that's not the case. We're seriously talking about land restoration. We're talking about solar energy. We brought a solar proposal before the Navajo Nation Council" on a previous occasion, she said. "Today we're researching sustainable, renewable energy. But those things mean nothing if you can't even see 20, 30, 50 years into your future. If the water's gone, no one's going to pipe it to us. No one's going to give it to us. We are here to be responsible for the elements of life that God gave us, that the Creator gave us." Best for Navajo The energy companies don't have what's best for Navajo in mind, Horseherder said. "The Navajo Nation Council needs to start speaking for the people and not for the energy companies and the corporations." Lucy Benally said that she and her family have lived by the Black Mesa pipeline for over 30 years. All those years, she said, they have been asking for water but just got shuffled back and forth between Peabody and Indian Health Service. In all the years they have asked Peabody for water, "we've never got it. If they've never given it to the people in the past 30 years, how can they do it in the future?" she asked. Norman Benally said there needs to be leadership in Window Rock that's representing the people. "This building here," he said, pointing to the council chambers, "it only represents energy companies and labor unions, and that's like less than 1 percent of the people on the reservation. "The people here want civil rights, property rights, individual rights, the right to free speech," he said. They want the American dream. "We ought to bring that here and not just let the energy companies run our government. It's got to come to an end. The people have to get control of their government. If they really think that the government belongs to the people, then it should be restored to the people," he said. John Benally of Black Mesa said earth changes, brought on by pollution from fossil-fueled plants, are now occurring. "Global warming, it's for real. When you talk to corporate people, they don't really understand it. They only think one way. They don't have heart. You plead with them, you cry, you ask for mercy nothing. People sacrifice every day," he said. Copyright c. 2005 the Gallup Independent. --------- "RE: Navajo Nation outlaws Uranium Mining" --------- Date: Saturday, April 23, 2005 1:59 AM From: ellis [smithorg@yahoo.com] Subj: Navajo Nation Outlaws Uranium Mining Mailing List: NDNAIM http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,1282,-4955325,00.html Navajo Nation Outlaws Uranium Mining April 22, 2005 WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) - The Navajo Nation has outlawed uranium mining and processing on its reservation, which sprawls across parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah and contains one of the world's largest deposits of uranium ore. Tribal President Joe Shirley Jr. must give the bill final approval. His spokesman said Thursday that Shirley "strongly" supports it. Mining companies began blasting holes on the reservation, which covers 27,000 square miles, in the 1940s and continued for nearly 40 years until decreased demand closed the operations. By then, the Navajos were left with radiation sickness, contaminated tailings and abandoned mines. To avoid repeating the past, Navajo leaders and grassroots organizations have been working for years to keep mining from starting again. The Navajo Nation Council voted 63-19 Tuesday in favor of the mining ban. Several council delegates predicted the legislation will be challenged in court - possibly as far as the Supreme Court. Members of Navajo grassroots organizations celebrated outside the council's chambers after the measure was approved. "This legislation just chopped the legs off the uranium monster," said Norman Brown, a member of one of the groups, Dine Bidzii. Dine is the Navajos' name for themselves. The legislation prohibits pit mining as well as "in-situ" processing, which involves using a solution to leach out uranium and pump it to the surface. Hydro Resources Inc. has been working with the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission for years to get approval for in-situ mining near the Navajo communities of Crownpoint and Church Rock. The company estimated nearly 100 million pounds of uranium exist at the sites. Hydro Resources has argued that in-situ mining is safer than older methods, but opponents note that 15,000 people rely on the area's underground aquifer and they fear contamination from the proposed operation. --------- "RE: Hopi, Peabody Cases top Navajo Council's Agenda" --------- Date: Tue, 26 Apr 2005 08:47:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="NAVAJO NATION COUNCIL" http://www.gallupindependent.com/2005/apr/042505agenda.html Hopi, Peabody cases top council's agenda By Jim Maniaci Dine' Bureau April 25, 2005 WINDOW ROCK - Major cases involving the Navajo-Hopi land dispute and coal mining on Black Mesa once again dominate the annual litigation update to be given to the Navajo Nation Council in executive session Thursday and Friday. And this doesn't count the four major water rights cases, one of which involves the recent signing with New Mexico of the San Juan River rights settlement. The other three are the mainstream Colorado River, its Little Colorado River tributary and the related larger Gila River adjudication in Arizona. The Gila River case in Phoenix involves a settlement worked out with Sen. Jeff Bingaman to reserve 6,400 acre-feet a year of Central Arizona Project water for Window Rock. This would be part of the Navajo-Gallup pipeline project which is one of the keys, for the tribe, to the San Juan settlement. For the mainstream case, Navajo Nation Attorney General Louis Denetsosie said in his quarterly April 18 report in the Executive Branch quarterly book that the tribe and U.S. are in a two-year court-ordered delay "to pursue negotiations." On March 22, he said, the tribe met with the U.S. Justice and Interior departments, the Arizona Water Resources Department, the Central Arizona Water Conservation District and the states of California and Nevada to tell them of future domestic and non-domestic needs of the Din. Meanwhile, he added, "Navajo experts continue technical work to refine claims." Navajo-Hopi litigation includes the 1934 and Owelty cases, plus the Bennett Freeze takings case and settling the rent in post-partition cases. Some cases Listed on the agenda as "Peabody cases" are the breach of trust case against the federal government, the tribe verses the St. Louis-based coal giant and a related one involving Peabody with the Salt River Project and Southern California Edison. There also are the various cases in mediation. In his latest quarterly report, Denetsosie said the 1934 case "is in its final stages of a mediated settlement," noting an inter-government agreement (contract) "providing for the dismissal of all litigation has been negotiated," with only the cost and schedule of an eagle study pending. But he admitted further mediation may be needed. As to the Owelty case, the quarterly report of April 18 repeats the Jan. 24 status that the federal district court in Phoenix has yet to decide if Navajo can reduce the $2 million the Hopi's want for seven trading posts now in the Navajo Partitioned Lands. Denetsosie reported that in the suit against Peabody, seeking to recover $8 million paid to Hopi, a mediation order which expired Jan. 31 was extended at the request of all parties. An extended period of motions, counter motions and cross motions were heard in July. In the tribe's suit against the U.S., the attorney general said a decision should be issued by the end of the year in the breach of trust suit. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the Navajo Nation, based on the Indian Mineral Leasing Act, but sent part of the case back to the lower courts on March 4, 2003. The tribe claimed $600 million was due because Don Hodell approved the standard royalty rate rather than the BIA-recommended 20 percent through the company's improper contact with the secretary. Tribal lawyers are working on a reply brief in response to federal lawyers' submission in March. The Supreme Court ordered the Appeals Court and Federal Claims Court to decide if Navajo waived certain rights in the IMLA decision and whether there is a network of other laws and regulations that would result in a trust duty by the U.S. Related case A related case involves Peabody along with SRP and Edison and is in mediation, involving the replacement of the high-quality Navajo "N" Aquifer with the much larger Coconino "C" Aquifer as Peabody's water source for the Black Mesa Mine, which exclusively supplies the Mohave Generating Station. The suit stems from alleged interference with the U.S. Interior Department Secretary's trust duty involving royalty rates decided in the 1980s. Denetsosie said SRP has been released, except for appeals of a dismissal order. The stay (delay) order expired Jan. 25, but was mutually extended, the attorney general added. As to the Mohave Generating Station, he reports that when the current C Aquifer studies underway in the Leupp Chapter are done, Mohave's owners (Edison is the managing partner) "will make a business decision whether to proceed with the environment impact study for the C Aquifer pipeline and mine rededication plan." Denetsosie concluded this section of his report by pointing out the "generating station will close after Dec. 31, 2005. Layoffs at the Black Mesa Mine may begin earlier than that." This is based on the California Public Utilities Commission granting the necessary permits. "If all goes as contemplated and the CPUC approves the CPCN (Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity) the MGS will resume operation in late 2009 or early 2010," Denetsosie said. Since the CPUC in December found that the costs were reasonable for Edison to install air pollution control equipment and build the new waterline, it ordered the Los Angeles area-based electric company "to continue to negotiate in good faith with the two tribes to secure stable water and coal supplies for the power plant." President Joe Shirley Jr. in his quarterly "State of the Navajo Nation" speech said the tribes will meet soon with the three environmental groups whose federal suit resulted in an order for the Mohave improvements to be in operation no later than Dec. 31, 2005. The three groups will be asked to support "relief from the consent decree." - To contact reporter Jim Maniaci, telephone (505) 371-5443. Copyright c. 2005 the Gallup Independent. --------- "RE: Twins of the Turtle Clan" --------- Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 09:14:58 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="DIABETES AMPUTEES: INDIAN HEALTH CARE" http://nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=6359 Twins of the Turtle Clan Cherokee/Choctaw sisters struggle to make a better future for American Indians Rick Bowers April 21, 2005 As members of the Choctaw Tribe of Mississippi, Fay Givens and Kay Givens McGowan can tell you all about the lost status of American Indians in their own homeland and the numerous problems Indians face in modern-day America. In fact, they consider it their duty to do so. It's a responsibility the 52-year-old identical twins believe they inherited at birth as members of their tribe's Turtle Clan. "Each clan has different responsibilities, and the members of the Turtle Clan are responsible for the future of the tribe," McGowan explains. "We're responsible for making decisions that are right for Indian people and for working together to see that those things happen." It's something their Choctaw grandmother taught them as little girls, and it's something they take very seriously. They've trained for it all of their lives. The Healthcare Crisis Though the sisters speak softly and laugh often in conversation, their voices betray a hint of sadness and frustration when they talk about the current state of American Indian life. Two of the most devastating problems today, the black-haired sisters say, are the healthcare crisis and diabetes epidemic that are destroying the lives of so many Native Americans. One of the main reasons for the problems, Givens asserts, is that "the United States government spends less per capita for the healthcare of American Indians than it does for the healthcare of federal prisoners." Although this statement might sound shocking, Givens isn't just voicing a baseless complaint. As a holder of a Master's Degree in Labor Relations and the director of American Indian Services, a local organization in Michigan that provides social services to American Indians, she has the experience, education, and knowledge to back it up. In addition, she has a U.S. Commission on Civil Rights report on 2003 healthcare spending that supports her claim. Though the government spends about $3,803 per federal prisoner each year for healthcare, the report says, it only spends $1,914 per Indian each year for healthcare. Even more shocking, it spends about $5,065 per person for those in the general population = about 2.5 times more than it spends per Indian. And this makes the two sisters angry. What bothers them, Givens says, is the U.S. government's failure to fulfill its treaty obligation to pay for the healthcare of American Indians. It bothers them so much that three years ago, they founded the National Urban Indian Coalition (NUIC), a coalition made up of Indian agencies from around the U.S. that represents the interests of Indians who live in cities. "American Indians have the highest rate of diabetes and disability in America and the highest rate of alcoholism, suicide, homicide, infant mortality, high-school dropout and unemployment," Given says. "We're at the bottom of every socioeconomic indicator in America today. We also have the highest rate of amputation, mostly as a result of diabetes." The statistics are indeed grim. Overall, American Indian diabetes rates are thought to be four times the national average, and for some tribes even more. In addition, the rate of lower-limb amputations for American Indians with diabetes is also approximately 3.5 times higher than that for non-Hispanic whites with the disease. These problems, the twins contend, are largely caused by or worsened by poor healthcare. "And that all goes back to the government's failure to provide adequate funding," Givens says. The Fight Against Diabetes and Amputation In addition to trying to increase funding for healthcare on a national level, the sisters and the NUIC are trying to prevent diabetes and its terrible consequences on a more personal level. "We're concerned about nutrition, about educating Indians on what they can and can't do, and about educating them about the risks of diabetes and amputation and the ways to prevent these problems," says McGowan, an anthropologist and a professor of Native American Studies for 16 years. She argues that the high diabetes rate among American Indians is directly related to their change of diet from the traditional native diet to a high-sugar, high-fat diet. "When Indians were put on reservations," she explains, "the reservations tended to be the poorest, driest land in America, and there was not enough good land to grow enough food to feed Indian people. So the U.S. government started giving Indians foods that are high in sugar and foods like cheese and SPAM. And that type of food is directly responsible for the high rate of diabetes among Indians." Then, once Indians get the disease, she continues, they become less physically active, which worsens their health even more. "It's a vicious cycle." Part of Their World Today, as part of their work and part of their attempt to keep American Indian culture alive, Givens and McGowan attend many Native American events where they often see something that most Americans rarely see in one place = a high percentage of amputees. Recently, for example, they attended a meeting of American Indians in Detroit, Michigan, not far from Givens' home in Downriver and McGowan's home in Grosse Ile. "Indians were coming in in wheelchairs, with artificial limbs, and with bandaged feet with their toes missing from diabetes," McGowan says. "Whenever we come together for social events, you're going to see Indians who are sick with diabetes. It's just part of our world." To make matters worse, she says, rehabilitative and prosthetic care for American Indian amputees is virtually nonexistent. "Some Indians never have a prosthesis, and most only use a crutch or a wheelchair." This problem is especially close to their hearts because it has touched them personally. Both their father and grandfather were amputees as a result of workplace accidents, and they've witnessed the many problems that amputees live with on a daily basis. Especially when they have little or no prosthetic care. Moving Toward Solutions Unfortunately, because American Indians are only 1 percent of the population now and have the highest infant mortality and the lowest life expectancy in the country, Givens says, "we have no voice in our own land." Though she believes that part of the solution is for American Indians to have more children, she insists there's more. The key is having more children and getting them educated, she says. "Education is the ticket out of poverty. Without it, our people will remain at the bottom." The value of education is something else the twins learned from their Choctaw grandmother when they themselves were just little girls. "Our grandmother was one of the first Indian women in America to go to college, " McGowan explains. "She graduated in 1896 with 32 white men. She said if we got `the white man's knowledge' and our people's knowledge, we would be something. And she was right." Though the attainment of higher education is by no means the norm for American Indians, they both followed their grandmother's advice and somehow managed to succeed despite the odds against them. So how did they make it? "It was sheer determination," McGowan says. "I remember telling the head of the anthropology department that the only way they would get rid of me was to run over me with a truck. I told him I was going to be an educated Indian." The Importance of Diabetes Education Education about diabetes and its consequences is also essential, the sisters say. "The better educated you are, the more you realize the effect that diet has on diseases, especially diabetes," Givens says. "The hardest thing is getting people to understand the correlation between diet, exercise and diabetes." Much of this type of education is done at Indian centers and at the Indian Health Service. "At our Indian health center here in Detroit, we have nutrition classes, and we're teaching native women how to again prepare the healthy native foods that Indians ate before the coming of the Europeans," McGowan says. "Unfortunately, because of poverty, most Indians still depend on government-provided commodity food at certain times of the month, which is not healthy food." As bad as the diabetes epidemic among Indians already is, it's getting worse, they say. Today, approximately 40 percent of American Indian children are overweight, and they are getting Type 2 diabetes faster than any other group. To try to solve these problems, some tribes have been using incentive programs to encourage Indian youths to participate in diabetes awareness programs, to be tested for diabetes, or to participate in physical activity. For doing so, Indian youths might receive such incentives as a bicycle, tennis shoes, or clothing. American Indians are also helping to develop diabetes education campaigns that are targeted to their own people. In its We Have the Power to Prevent Diabetes campaign, for example, the National Diabetes Education Program used testimonials from American Indians who have made lifestyle changes to encourage other Indians to do the same (www.ndep.nih. gov/diabetes/pubs/Power_tips.pdf). "We want to give people the knowledge to prevent this disease," McGowan says, "and we want to provide good healthcare so that when people become borderline diabetic, they can be alerted and warned that they're `playing with fire' and that they need to eat better and get more exercise." Moreover, once they have diabetes, they need the treatment that will help them prevent the additional problems it can lead to, such as heart disease, stroke, dysvascular disease, eye and kidney problems, lower-limb amputations, and even death. The Lesson of the Turtle In the end, Givens says, additional funding for healthcare will be essential to bring Indian health up to where it should be. "Unfortunately, " she points out, "most elected officials don't know anything about Indian people or the issues that affect us." Though Givens and McGowan both know that getting additional funding and defeating all of the problems that American Indians face is an uphill battle, like Aesop's fabled turtle racing against the hare, they believe that persistence will ultimately pay off. "We feel that by forming this advocacy organization and by coming back at them = by being there every time they open the door = eventually maybe someone will do something," Givens says. "That's right," McGowan agrees. "We haven't gone down without a fight yet, and we're not going to." ---- For more information about the National Urban Indian Coalition, please contact Givens or McGowan at 1110 Southfield Road, Lincoln Park, Michigan 48146. Reprinted with permission of the Amputee Coalition of America (www.amputee-coalition.org) Native American Times. Copyright c. 2005 All Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: A singular chance for Upper Klamath Lake Salmon" --------- Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 08:13:57 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="KLAMATH SALMON" http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096410755 A singular chance for Upper Klamath Lake salmon by: Jean Johnson / Indian Country Today April 18, 2005 PORTLAND, Ore. - The salmon that return to the Klamath River have been in a holding pattern of sorts since 2001, waiting on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's relicensing process. PacifiCorps, a subsidiary of multinational energy giant Scottish Power, operates seven dams on the Klamath River. Their licenses will expire in 2006. Those who are interested in bringing the salmon back home to the Upper Klamath Lake see the current window as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to decommission or remove the most egregious hydropower obstacles so the fish can have the run of the river. FERC, which controls the operation and fate of federal hydroelectric dams, generally authorizes licenses for 30 to 50 years at a time. The Klamath River was once the third most productive salmon fishery in America, with as many as 1.2 million adult fish coming back upstream to their spawning grounds every year. After almost a century of dam-building, one-tenth of that number successfully return - and are relegated to the lower stretch of the river. As Carl Ullman, longtime water attorney for the Klamath Tribes (Klamath, Modoc, and Yahoosking Band of Snake) said, "The Klamaths have treaty rights in perpetuity to the fishery that was shut off by Copco Dam in 1917. Since then the tribes have never stopped trying to get the fish back, and now it looks like the relicensing of the dams is an opportunity to move in that direction." In 2001 the Klamath, Oregon's largest tribe, joined the three biggest tribes in California (Yurok, Hoopa Valley and Karuk) and representatives from a range of agencies and interest groups to form the Klamath Hydroelectric Relicensing Fish Passage Advisory Team. The group researched and provided FERC with information that supports bringing the salmon back home. Jeff Mitchell, of the Klamath River Inter-Tribal Fish and Water Commission, said "We know that dam removal won't solve all of our problems, but reopening the 350 miles of habitat upstream of the dams is a prerequisite to any other restoration programs." Documents filed with FERC suggest that water quality problems in the Upper Klamath Basin may be used to question whether salmon can be reintroduced there. The Klamath have pointed out that while it's true that water quality problems exist, there are areas that would support the fish even in the lake's present condition. "Another contentious point is whether the fish really did get clear up into the upper basin in the first place," Ullman said. "In that area as well, the tribe has done its research and made a solid case for the fact that the fishery used the entire Klamath Basin." In addition to formal FERC proceedings in which there are no oral arguments, confidential negotiations are taking place. Mediators have been hired to facilitate the process, and most of the interested parties are represented. While FERC and the mediated group work in private, members of the Klamath tribes and the three California tribes joined a gathering of over 200 at the California Capitol in Sacramento. They called for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to serve as "Conan the Riparian" and throw added clout toward his support of the Klamath River salmon. "We need the governor to take strong steps to restore the Klamath River to benefit not only the tribes, but all Californians and Oregonians," said Leaf Hillman, vice chairman of the Karuk Tribe. Off-the-record sources indicate the fish might find their way back home, but only time will tell. Come 2006, the mediated group will make its proceedings available to FERC, which ultimately will make its pronouncement on the fate of the dams and the fishery. Copyright c. 2005 Indian Country Today. All Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: Schweitzer signs measure for Fort Belknap Water" --------- Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2005 08:51.10 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="REZ WATER TREATMENT" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.billingsgazette.com//2005/04/19/build/state/24-minewaterlaw.incApril 19, 2005 Schweitzer signs measure for Fort Belknap water treatment By SUSAN GALLAGHER Associated Press April 19, 2005 HELENA - Representatives of the Fort Belknap tribes gathered around Gov. Brian Schweitzer on Tuesday as he signed a bill addressing their top environmental concern: the treatment of water contaminated by the defunct Zortman and Landusky gold mines. The Fort Belknap Indian Reservation's KGVA-FM even broadcast from the Capitol to give the station's audience up-to-the-minute coverage of the signing, preceded by an interview with Schweitzer. The Fort Belknap flag stood prominently behind the governor as he put his pen to the legislation. Cameras snapped as Schweitzer's border collie, Jag, took a position next to him and put a paw on the table when told to do so. The legislation is "a victory for the people of Fort Belknap" and "a victory for the state of Montana," Rep. Jonathan Windy Boy, D-Box Elder, said later. "This is the right thing to do." Windy Boy sponsored the bill that establishes funding for the perpetual treatment of water contaminated by the mines, which operated along the reservation's southern border. Mining took place in the 1980s and '90s, ending in 1998 when Pegasus filed for bankruptcy. The company's reclamation bond was too small to cover cleanup costs. Under the new law, the state will deposit nearly $1.5 million a year into a trust fund, its earnings designated for Zortman-Landusky water treatment beginning in 2018. That is when current funding to treat the water will expire. At a legislative hearing earlier this month, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality described long-term water treatment as the one aspect of Zortman-Landusky reclamation that is underfunded substantially. About $34 million is needed by 2018, DEQ said. The legislation is intended to resolve a $19.3 million shortfall in reaching that goal. A long-term funding bill proposed by Windy Boy in the last legislative session, two years ago, failed. Julia Doney, Fort Belknap tribal president, and other leaders have described spiritual sites ruined and drinking water supplies made suspect by contamination from mining. "The signing ... begins to rebuild a trust that has been lost," Doney said Tuesday. Copyright c. 2005 Associated Press. All rights reserved. Copyright c. The Billings Gazette, a division of Lee Enterprises. --------- "RE: Tribe plans to preserve Uncas Family Burial Site" --------- Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2005 08:51.10 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="SAVING MOHEGAN SITE" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.theday.com/~re=c27e290b-2120-4933-b417-5337e86b3c5c Tribe Plans To Preserve Uncas Family Burial Site By CLAIRE BESSETTE Day Staff Writer, Norwich April 19, 2005 Norwich - A new Mohegan tribal committee was established Monday to research issues and decide how best to protect the last segment of the tribe's royal burial ground that lies beneath the Masonic Temple at the corner or Washington and Sachem streets. The answer could come within the next few weeks, said Melissa Tantaquidgeon Zobel, executive director of the tribal department of historical preservation. Zobel will be chairwoman of a new committee established Monday to compile history of both the Masonic Temple and the tribal burial ground and talk to local historians for input. The information and the plan for the property - owned by the Mohegan tribe - will be presented to the Mohegan Tribal Council and eventually to the state Historic Preservation Council for approval. The Mohegan Tribe purchased the temple property in 1999 from the Masons for $1.1 million with the idea of creating a memorial to Mohegan Sachem Uncas as well as a community theater for use by both the tribe and the city. But tribal officials soon realized they could not do the necessary renovations without digging into the ground beneath or around the building - for an elevator shaft and utility trenches and the like. That would desecrate the remaining graves in the burial ground. "What makes this particular site so special, is that you had to be of the lineage of Uncas to be buried there, a very close family member or a linear descendent," Zobel said. A small fenced in cemetery on Sachem Street near the Masonic Temple is dominated by an obelisk carved with Uncas' name. Tribal legend has it that though Uncas was buried in the royal cemetery, his body was later removed to a secret location to prevent looting, Zobel said. Since the Mohegans gained federal recognition, tribal leaders have been trying to identify and bring back Mohegan Indian remains held by museums throughout the country. Zobel said the tribe has in possession about six remains from the royal burial ground, including a couple who had been buried together in clothing that appeared to be wedding garb. Many of the remains are accompanied with funerary objects that had been buried with them, she said. It's likely that the tribe's plan for the property will include reburial of those remains along with the creation of a memorial park. "In the world, there are only a handful of what we call royal burial grounds, based on hereditary lineage of leaders," Zobel said. "And this is one of them." c.bessette@theday.com Copyright c. 1998-2005 The Day Publishing Co. --------- "RE: Project Moccasins gives Native Soldiers comfort" --------- Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 08:13:57 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="PROJECT MOCCASINS" http://nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=6340 Project Moccasins gives Native soldiers comfort, tie to culture Know a soldier in need? Or perhaps you want to donate. Sam Lewin April 19, 2005 A project spanning across the country aims to deliver moccasins to every Native soldier currently serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. It all starts with Anthony DeClue, a 38-year-old Lakota man living in St. Cloud, Minnesota. "What I do is thread them up," DeClue told the Native American Times. "We have a guy that does the leatherwork-he stamps the leather with eagle feathers and sends it to me and I start painting them. The moccasins are smudged and we put a dream catcher in each one." DeClue knows firsthand why such a project can be so valuable to those soldiers serving thousands of miles from home. "I spent seven years in the Special Forces and I was disconnected from my heritage," he said. "I want the warriors over there to feel connected. When they take off their boots and put their feet in the moccasins they might feel a little closer to where they are from." The project has attracted the attention of the National Native American Veterans Association of Oklahoma City and the American Indian Chamber of Commerce of Oklahoma. It also caught the eye of Sherry Girty, a 38-year-old office manager from Lawrence, Kansas. Girty, Cherokee and Creek, runs a website, Support our Native Troops Overseas, that assists American Indian veterans. If you know of an Indian soldier that could use the moccasins, e-mail her at shergirt@yahoo.com. "We want to do something to let [the soldiers] know they are appreciated,," Girty said. Even with little publicity, the project has been a success. "I have been getting e-mails from troops overseas who get in touch and say they would like the moccasins," she said. DeClue says he makes sure that the moccasins contain a "piece of Mother Earth so that our warriors will come home." He estimates that there are 300 requests that have yet to be filled, but "we are doing it until all the Natives come home and everyone has one." DeClue is performing the service free-of-charge because "I wish there was something like this when I was serving." If you would like to donate, send to: Anthony DeClue PO Box 5158 St. Cloud MN. 56302 Native American Times. Copyright c. 2005 All Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: Rice Wars" --------- Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2005 08:51.10 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="SAVING TRUE WILD RICE HARVESTS" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.womenspress.com/newspaper/2005/2102rice.html Rice wars White Earth Land Recovery Project and Slow Food join forces to protect native stands of wild rice in northern Minnesota by Elizabeth Noll April 20, 2005 A grain of rice is an unlikely object to be at the eye of the storm. But that's just where the chewy brown grains of Minnesota's hand- harvested wild rice are these days. Wild rice is at the center of a controversy that pits the cultural traditions and environmental concerns of Native Americans against the University of Minnesota's commitment to academic freedom, and puts the politics of an international movement to preserve unique and local foods up against an agricultural industry concerned foremost with producing a profitable crop. The controversy is now brewing in the state legislature. Economic and spiritual sustenance This year, bills were proposed in both the state House and Senate that would ban the cultivation and sale of genetically modified wild rice. But the battle to ban genetically engineered wild rice began several years ago, when Joe LaGarde, a board member of the White Earth Land Recovery Project, learned that Ron Phillips, a researcher at the University of Minnesota, was mapping the wild rice genome. LaGarde and others on the White Earth reservation were concerned that by mapping the grain's genetic code, researchers were taking the first step toward creating genetically modified wild rice, and that would mean the end of native wild rice. "It would genetically contaminate wild rice stands," explained Jennifer Tlumak, media coordinator for WELRP. "[In Minnesota] there are 60,000 acres of natural wild rice, and 20,000 acres of paddy rice. They're often located right next to each other. Studies have shown that genetic drift can occur up to 13 miles from test plots. There's nothing one can do to separate these two." The study Tlumak refers to was done on a grass in the same family as wild rice. Even the possibility of contamination was enough to cause alarm. Wild rice is economically and spiritually essential to people on White Earth and other northern Minnesota reservations, Tlumak said. "Wild rice is an important part of the Ojibwe creation story," she explained. "They followed a shell in the sky and were told that when they found the place they were meant to be, they would find the food that grows on the water." The Ojibwe (or Anishinaabe, as they often call themselves) use wild rice in traditional ceremonies, she said, and harvesting of wild rice is a culturally important event. "People have been ricing for thousands of years," Tlumak said. "It's part of the landscape of northern Minnesota, and it's part of the Minnesota way of life." That way of life has been slowly eroding for years, however. The University has been cross-breeding wild rice for decades and long ago developed varieties that are more easily cultivated. Most of the wild rice in the state that reaches consumers isn't hand-harvested; it's grown on paddies and harvested by combines. Minnesota isn't the top producer in the country, either; California has held that position for over a decade. In 2000, California produced about two-thirds of the nation's wild rice. The widespread cultivation of wild rice has lowered the market value of hand-harvested rice, but genetic engineering poses an even bigger threat than economic insecurity. Unlike hybridization, in which researchers select for particular traits in wild rice using a variation of Mother Nature's method, genetic modification tampers with the genetic code of wild rice in a way that would never happen without human intervention. The pleasure principle In November 2003, WELRP and its founder, activist and former vice presidential candidate Winona LaDuke, found an unexpected ally in the International Slow Food movement, which gave the organization an award for their efforts to protect wild rice. Slow Food began in Italy nearly 20 years ago, as a protest against the opening of a McDonald's in Rome. The organization seeks to educate consumers about the pleasures of good food and wine and the unique qualities of local foods; they also work to defend biodiversity around the world. Erika Lesser, executive director of Slow Food USA, believes that protecting wild rice is critical for cultural, environmental and economic reasons. "WELRP is working with an entire culture to identify the traditions they have and encourage those people to retain and reclaim them, " she said. "[It's about] respecting a traditional food system. We'd like to see a GMO-free zone created in the state of Minnesota. These foods represent our cultures and if that food is compromised by genetically modified strains of wild rice, it's gone forever." "This whole concept of protecting biodiversity in our food supply is one that has real consequences," she added. "One of the main reasons you have the incredible amount of chemical inputs is that we're only growing one or two different kinds or varieties of eight or nine foods: that's 95 percent of our food supply. Because they're so homogeneous they're incredibly vulnerable to disease and insects." For instance, a farmer who grows 10 varieties of corn - some of it drought-resistant - is more likely to bring in a harvest after a drought than a farmer growing just one variety, she said. "The way we translate it is `Diversity tastes better,'" she explained. Ronald Huff, a certified chef and the founder and leader of Slow Food Minnesota, wouldn't argue that point. He says he can taste the difference between uncultivated, hand-harvested wild rice and paddy-grown wild rice that's harvested by machines and gas-parched. "I've cooked them both," said Huff. "The paddy rice, once it's cooked, it's lackluster and turns into a gray mush. Whereas true native-grown wild rice is chewy. I insist that I can taste the lake from which it came. Its flavor is much more pronounced and has many undertones to it." The wild rice in Uncle Ben's pilaf is black because it's gas-parched, he said. That method of treating the rice also makes it harder to cook. "Most consumers complain about cooking wild rice because it takes so long, and that's because they're cooking paddy rice," Huff explained. He once asked a wild rice harvester in northern Minnesota how he fixed the grain. "He said, `We just cook it in some boiled salt water, and drain it, add some good cream and a spoonful of sugar and eat it like that.' So simple. I like that recipe because it reminds me of true regional Italian cuisine," said Huff. The University and White Earth In 2000, LaGarde came to LaDuke and asked for her help. LaDuke remembers his plea. "He said, `Winona, go use your big mouth and help us, because we need help,'" LaDuke recalled. The first thing LaDuke did was teach herself something about the issue: what it means to genetically modify an organism - often by implanting genes from another species; how common that is in U.S. agriculture; and what the environmental consequences are. "For me it's been a learning curve," she said. "I didn't know [much about this] and I don't think most of the public knows. The more I learned the more upset I got." LaDuke and other WELRP representatives started meeting with University administrators and researchers, hoping to convince them to agree to a ban on genetic engineering of wild rice. But it was no use: though some of them were sympathetic, they would not commit to a ban. Charles Muscoplat, vice president for agricultural policy and dean of the College of Agricultural Food and Environmental Sciences at the University of Minnesota, was at many of those meetings. He says he is on friendly terms with LaDuke and he values the University's relationship with Minnesota tribes. He has driven to White Earth many times, he said, and he has visited the lakes where the native stands of wild rice grow and he has talked to the harvesters. He has tried to reassure them that what they fear isn't even close to happening. "We're not doing genetic engineering on wild rice," Muscoplat said. "Ron Phillips has promised that he wouldn't do it. And we have no other faculty member doing it." He admits, though, that only the Board of Regents has the authority to halt research. He also admits that it could be argued that mapping the genome will make it easier for someone, someday, to genetically modify wild rice. But he believes no one will because there's not enough money in it. "There's no market for wild rice that would justify that kind of return. It's just not practical," he said. In spite of the uncertainty surrounding the issue, the University will never voluntarily agree to halt genetic research on wild rice, said Muscoplat. To do so would compromise the U's commitment to academic freedom. "We are not going to agree to anything that's going to restrict our ability to do research. We would never, ever do that," he said. "Any special interest group could come in and say `Please don't ever do this.' We can't agree to anything like that. We are here to pursue knowledge if it's legal, ethical and fundable." Muscoplat and Tlumak agree that there are different perspectives at work. "We look at the world differently than the Native Americans," said Muscoplat. In the European scientific tradition, he said, "We dig, we explore, we find more knowledge. And that's the antithesis of Native American knowledge. They accept that it's a gift from the creator." "We're looking at it from a Native perspective," agreed Tlumak. "But this is an issue that should concern all Minnesotans. It's a native grain of North America. It's a national treasure. And Minnesota is the center for biodiversity for wild rice. That's one of the reasons our campaign was chosen for the Slow Food award." On the feet of birds According to Tlumak, members of WELRP felt that they'd gained some ground when the Senate bill, introduced by Sen. Becky Lourey (DFL-Kerrick), was held over until next session: it wasn't an outright rejection, and it gives them time to strengthen their case. "We felt it was a victory," she said. "What we're working on in coming months is to bring stakeholders together, so when it's brought up from the table next year, that it will be passed." LaDuke's assessment was more cautious. "The campaign is going well, [but] we have a long way to go." Muscoplat doesn't think the bill has any future. "The traditional agriculture [supporters] don't want to restrict anything like this. They'll not act on these kinds of bills." He reiterated that the legislation isn't necessary. Even if genetically modified wild rice were developed, he said, researchers would have to go through a lengthy approval process with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration - and he doesn't think it would ever be approved because of the high probability of genetic drift. "We would need to prove to state and federal agencies that we've taken the risk out of it," he said. "Right now, [wild rice] pollen from one lake gets to another lake. On the feet of birds, on the bottoms of boats, on the wind. It's a small light pollen, it probably sheds pretty far. I promise you, wild rice pollen gets to another lake." Said LaDuke: "I hope Minnesotans care about their wild rice." ----- The proposed ban on genetically engineered rice In March, Sen. Becky Lourey (DFL-Kerrick) and Rep. Karen Clark (DFL- Minneapolis) introduced bills in the state Senate and House, respectively, to prohibit "the release, planting, cultivation, harvest, and sale of genetically engineered wild rice" within Minnesota. The legislation wouldn't halt current University of Minnesota research on the wild rice genome, nor would it prevent the University from any other laboratory- based research. It would, however, prevent the University (and everyone else) from planting test plots of genetically engineered wild rice, if researchers were ever to develop such a grain. The Senate Agriculture, Veterans, and Gaming Committee, of which Sen. Lourey is a member, decided to lay the bill over until next session when any committee member can bring the bill back. During the summer, legislators plan to meet with tribal representatives, paddy rice farmers, staff from the state Department of Natural Resources and other people with vested interest in wild rice. ----- What is wild rice? Wild rice is the official Minnesota state grain. The Anishinaabe name for wild rice is manoomin. According to their mythology, their ancestors were told by their creator to settle "where the food grows on the water." When wild rice is harvested by hand, by tapping the grains into a canoe, and parched over a wood fire, its color ranges from cream to chocolate brown. Many say this type of harvesting and preparation makes a rice superior in texture and taste to paddy rice, which is harvested by combines and typically gas-parched. The gas parching turns the rice black. The University of Minnesota has been cross-breeding wild rice for decades to develop varieties that are easier to cultivate. Armed with these new varieties, paddy farmers have made California the nation's largest producer of wild rice. Copyright c. 2005 Minnesota Women's Press, Inc. --------- "RE: Modern Day Medicineman: Reinvention of Convention" --------- Date: Tue, 19 Apr 2005 08:38:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="CHANGING THE PEOPLE" http://nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=6336 Modern Day Medicineman, New Series "Living Environments" PART ONE: CHANGING THE PEOPLE: The Reinvention of Convention NORMAN, OK Randy Veitenheimer April 19, 2005 PART ONE: CHANGING THE PEOPLE: The Reinvention of Convention Sometimes when you try to become healthier as a person or a family or culture, you find it doesn't go well. The strength of your environment is greater than what you are able to deal with or effectively make a difference in. Strength comes from the self. We are all strong in our selves, this is the gift of Spirit. Do you limit your own health and well being? This is the environment of the self. Do your relations hold you from becoming better? This is the environment of the family. Are you happy with your job or work? This is the work environment. How does your tribe make you feel? Alive? This is the environment of your culture. How to you relate to Great Spirit, the Creator, and all that exists? This is the soul's environment. We are influenced by all our environments. Good or Bad. These environments are yours and working for you and on you. So, only one question becomes important to us at this time: How's it going? How about this one: What are you going to do about your environment? Pick one or all the above in a way that improves or changes you or your environment so that you are healthy. How we got here is one way to look at ourselves. Our cultural environment is someplace we can start. We were living in what is now called the country, when country was all that existed. We lived in a way that is called old fashioned, to be polite, or traditional, to reflect our need to hold on to what has worked in the past. This worked for us in creating a lifestyle that is less influenced by what is outside of us. This is our strength. The opposite of this is to have a modern culture. One, without any norms of behavior or existence because they are always changing, the only requirement being that you change with everyone else or get left behind. Our culture is "country" or "natural", strong or cohesive, fairly conservative, concentrating on being self sufficient, sharing similar customs and similar in face or form. We had strong families and clan structure. Our spiritual practices were common and recognizable to all the nations. Our order of existence was maintained through our relationships as given by our "religion", or stories as education, and family. Our interpersonal relationships were strong. Our traditions were the fabric of our life and we changed slowly. Each person in our society was taught many ways, so that all tasks in life were familiar. We are craftspeople - we make things. Our way of life recognized the individual as a person. We cooperated in existence, this was not the loss of ourselves as an individual, but the gift of our selves to our family, clan, tribe, and society. Our history is not unaltered. We have changed. The "country" for the most part is disappearing and no longer exists as we remember. We are not weak as individuals or as a class of people, but we may be weak in the face of change, and the ability to identify ourselves and our environment in a way the lets us grow and be healthy. This is where we find ourselves today. The largely impersonal or underlying hostile way of modern culture is there for us to see from our traditional and historical way of life. That which is not seen by those who live it is a source of illness in relationships with all our environments. The path of our life was in the way we lived as individuals, as families, as clans, tribes, and nations. Control wasn't required from outside of us. This is our personal environment and was not apart from ourselves. We lived it. Modern culture requires outside control because it was not lived, taught, experienced, and required of each individual. The strength of the individual self is the source of the strength of all of us. Each of us is required to be healthy, to make life healthy for all. ---- If you have questions for Randy, please e-mail them to askrandy@okit.com or send them to: Randy, c/o Native Times, P.O. Box 692050, Tulsa, Ok 74169. For more information, go to http://www.creativeenergetichealth.com Native American Times. Copyright c. 2005 All Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: LOUIS GRAY: Is it right to celebrate the Land Run" --------- Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 09:14:58 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="GRAY: LAND RUSH" http://nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=6360 Commentary: Is it right to celebrate the Land Run? Some believe it is a tragic day TULSA OK Louis Gray April 21, 2005 Many Oklahoma Schools will be celebrating the Oklahoma Land Run. Some will dress up in costume to deplict in detail the clothes of White settlers back in 1889. While many Oklahomans are eager to celebrate the taking of the Indian land, many Native Americans believe it nothing short of throwing a party for thiefs. It would be as unseemly as going to the hometown of Gen. George Armstong Custer and having a victory parade. That would be clearly wrong. In truth there were some Indian people kept to the side by the calvary. They stood and cried. I wonder if the schools will show that? I wonder if they will show the planning of the theft? I wonder if the schools will teach the childdren the truth? Some historians might argue that the Indians were paid for their land. It is also reasoned that the tribes were being punished for fighting for the the confederacy during the civil war. Of course thousands of Native American Oklahomas fought and died for the Union. It was their opportunity to rush into Indian territory and stake their claim on the richest grass on earth. The Land Run was always about power, money and greed. Some tribes were paid against their will as little as 60 cents per acre. Or as some might theorize outright theft. Who would want to sell their home when they didn't want to and only recieve pennies on the dollar for their land? It is wrong for anyone to object to such a famous event in Oklanoma history? Is it wrong to steal from humble people? Some parents are sending notes asking educators to not humiliate their child by making them take part in the racially insensitive reinactment. Wrong is wrong no matter how few agree the celebration is incorrect. Oklahoma schools have a long history of selling everyone on the idea it could rewrite history. Why not? Native American Times. Copyright c. 2005 All Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: GIAGO: Democrats torpedoed by Gay Marriage Issue" --------- Date: Tue, 19 Apr 2005 08:38:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="GIAGO: DEMOCRAT FAILING" http://nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=6328 Tim Giago: Daschle and Kerry torpedoed by the issue of gay marriage Notes from Indian Country Tim Giago (Nanwica Kciji) April 18, 2005 Copyright c. 2005, Native American Journalists Foundation, Inc. COMMENTARY: Tom Daschle and John Kerry were herded on a fast train to defeat by one of the cleverest ploys ever created by any political party. It was the "gay marriage" railroad to disaster. Tacked on the election ballots of many of the states that eventually went "red" was an initiative against gay marriage. The initiative turned into a tsunami that pushed aside everything in its path. President George W. Bush had said earlier in the election that he favored a Constitutional Amendment against gay marriage knowing full well that he was only lending political lip service to an amendment that would never pass through Congress. But he got the message out and his name became synonymous with opposition to gay marriage. It is not hard to imagine that when a voter stepped behind the magic curtain to peruse the ballot the words "Vote NO on gay marriage" and the name of President Bush became joined. In the minds of many voters their opposition to gay marriage was the centerpiece of how they cast their votes. One of the cornerstones of the John Thune campaign in South Dakota was his opposition to gay marriage and his determination to make it an amendment to the U. S. Constitution if he was elected to the United States Senate. Like his mentor, George W., Thune knew in his heart of hearts that no such amendment would ever succeed, but he latched on to the swelling tide opposing gay marriage and rode it to victory. Daschle was liberal in the sense that he never came out openly or strongly against gay marriage, but instead said it should be left in the hands of each individual state and sorrowfully, that is exactly what happened when the initiative found its way on to so many election ballots. It appears that no one in the Democratic Party made the connection. So what the Republicans later claimed as a "morals values" issue for so many of their eventual political victories across America really was constructed on the foundation of anti-gay marriages. The Republicans found a moral issue they could attack vigorously without much fear of retaliation by a small minority. Even the openly gay Congressman Barney Frank saw the rising danger in this Republican tactic and was roundly criticized by members of the gay community for "not having more backbone." Frank saw the issue of gay marriage as a political quagmire for the Democrats and although he may not have been personally opposed to it, he saw the pitfalls the Democrats faced by virtue of being caught between a rock and a hard place. The fact of the matter is that gay marriage is not embraced by the majority of Americans. It is an issue that stirs heightened feelings amongst all Americans, those for and those against. South Dakota has always been one of those red states that keep electing Democrats to serve in the Congress. As a matter of fact, the lone member of the U. S. House of Representatives, Stephanie Herseth, is a Democrat and the other U. S. Senator, Tim Johnson, is a Democrat. Johnson won his senate seat against the same John Thune before gay marriage found its way on so many state ballots. It was not on the ballot in South Dakota this past election because it had already won the approval of the State's voters several years before. But it didn't really matter if gay marriage was on South Dakota's ballot or not because it was the idea of gay marriage and of Thune's outspoken opposition to it that swayed many voters. The out-of-state political hacks were very successful in convincing the voters of the state about two things; Daschle's supposed support of gay marriage by not speaking out strongly against it and his supposed obstruction of the appointment of judges named by President Bush. Daschle went into the election with these two pieces of baggage and Thune and his supporters knew exactly how to exploit it. Daschle said he would not support an Amendment to the Constitution against gay marriage because he believed that each state should make that decision individually. Thune and his supporters made duck soup out of Daschle on this one issue. But by challenging many of the appointments of so many judges made by President Bush, Dashcle left himself wide open to be labeled as an obstructionist by the Republican Party. I firmly believe that it was on these two issues alone that Daschle lost his seat in the U. S. Senate. Just as so many Democrats found themselves seated on the fence by supporting state's rights on gay marriage, the Republican Party had found a weapon that was so deadly and so silent that no one even gave it a thought until after the election was over. Most political pundits have still not made the connection. No matter how one feels about it the issue of gay marriage it was a brilliant ploy by the Republicans and if it came from the mind of Karl Rove, one must consider him the next thing to a political genius. After riding that midnight train, I'm sure that Tom Daschle and John Kerry would have to agree, although reluctantly. Even the overwhelming Indian vote could not derail that train. ---- (Tim Giago is the founder and the former editor and publisher of the Lakota Times, Indian Country Today and the Lakota and Dakota Journals. He can be reached at giagobooks@iw.net) Native American Times. Copyright c. 2005 All Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: JODI RAVE: Indian voices declining within News" --------- Date: Sun, 24 Apr 2005 16:52:04 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="JODI RAVE: INDIAN NEWS VOICE DECLINING" http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2005/04/25/jodirave/rave49.txt Indian voices declining within news industry By JODI RAVE of the Missoulian April 25, 2005 The powerbrokers of journalism met and mingled earlier this month during their annual conference to deliberate the state of newspapers. The American Society of Newspaper Editors conference drew the industry's gatekeepers - editors from major dailies to small papers - whose concerns ranged from declining circulation to reaching young readers to freedom of information to the future of newspapers. But the conference included something more significant - the release of the group's annual report that measures how the industry is doing in hiring and keeping minority journalists. The good news: The number of Asians, blacks and Hispanics increased between 2004 and 2005. And the bad: Native people were the only group to see a decrease, dropping from 313 to 295 news people. The report is a tool used to measure industry success at bringing diverse perspectives to the newsroom. The organization first took note of this situation in 1978, when 1,700 minority journalists represented only 3. 95 percent of newsroom employees. Today, 7,300 people of color make up 13.42 percent of those working in the newsroom. Still, 40 percent of newspapers don't have any minorities to edit or assign or photograph or write stories. Progress has been slow. ASNE has missed its goal of having the percentage of newsroom minorities nationwide equal the percentage of minorities in the country. The group's new goal will give newsrooms until 2025 to reach parity. People of color now make up 31.7 percent of the U.S. population. Meanwhile, the fluctuating annual number of Natives in the newsroom belies an industry failure to consistently attract and keep Native reporters, photographers, copy editors and editors. As I attended sessions at the ASNE conference - in between editing student newspaper copy - I never met another Native person during the entire four-day event attended by some 500 people. My reality? I face the same thing in the newsroom every day. And I'd likely be in a similar situation at any newspaper in Montana. Here's what the newsroom numbers look like for state newspapers that responded to the ASNE survey: the Billings Gazette, Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Montana Standard of Butte, Miles City Star and the Livingston Enterprise - zero minorities. The Great Falls Tribune, 12.8 percent; the Missoulian, 3 percent (that's me). The numbers are dismal, deplorable and depressing considering minorities make up 10 percent of Montana's population. Show me the parity. Until then, one is left to wonder about newsroom commitment to diversity. A typical newspaper is staffed heavily with white people. This was evident during a conference luncheon in which seven past ASNE presidents were recognized for their roles. At the table? Six white men and one white woman. The more enlightening news is ASNE's outgoing president, Karla Garrett Harshaw, is a black woman. And the incoming president, Rick Rodriguez, is Hispanic. Their presence verified the slow, steady and sometimes backsliding progress of newsroom diversity. In my experience, newsroom cultures don't change unless the directive comes from the top. Because newsroom diversity has increased by fractions - last year, the number of minority women increased to 17.2 percent, up from 16.27 percent - it's evident that efforts to make change often amount to cheap chit-chat. For example, the theme at the ASNE conference was "Connecting With Communities and Cultures." The convention brochure prominently showed a collage of five people, an Asian, a Hispanic and two blacks. My guess is the fifth person in the photo was supposed to be Native. Yet when Milton Coleman, deputy managing editor for the Washington Post, led a discussion on diversity leadership in one of the largest conference rooms, only about 20 people showed up. It's not important to have a minority in the newsroom to add visual color; it is important that person bring thoughts and views from their community. We all have an instinctual need to be informed about the world in which we live. And if people don't see themselves reflected in the newspaper, they have no reason to read it. With that in mind, minority newspaper readers ought to demand more from their newspapers. They have many choices, including not buying the paper. Or they can hold the paper accountable. The latter can be done by writing letters to the editor, calling reporters or asking for a meeting with senior editors to let them know about news they are missing in communities of color. Another alternative? Apply for a job at your local newspaper. Jodi Rave covers Native issues for Lee Enterprises. She can be reached at 1-800-366-7186 or jodi.rave@lee.net Copyright c. 2005 Missoulian, a division of Lee Enterprises. --------- "RE: Aboriginal Voters could make difference" --------- Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 09:14:58 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="ABORIGINAL VOTE" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.canada.com/~54ed406d-c332-4459-ae8d-029d7bea984b Aboriginal voters could make difference in next election, Phil Fontaine says Peter Rakobowchuk Canadian Press April 20, 2005 MONTREAL (CP) - Aboriginal voters could make a difference in the next federal election and efforts will continue to mobilize them, the head of the Assembly of First Nations said Tuesday. Talk of an election has created some uncertainty for the group's plan for self-government, national chief Phil Fontaine told a news conference. He said the plan was to be discussed at a May 31 cabinet retreat with the prime minister that Fontaine has been invited to. "We know the steps that have to be taken and we trust that the federal and provincial governments are willing to join with us in ensuring that we achieve transformative change," he said at a national policy forum. An AFN official said the retreat is still expected to go ahead as scheduled. Fontaine said the AFN will work hard to continue to mobilize aboriginals to get out and "participate fully" in the next federal election. "If there is an election we will be watching closely to see which parties are ready and willing to work with us. "We know that there are 63 federal ridings where First Nations have a sizable presence, but we will only be able to make a difference if we participate," he added. "I respect those who will choose not to vote for political reasons . . but we want to be an influence and a factor. "We have a large population of young people who will be voters for many years to come and political parties would be well advised to speak to our issues and our agenda." Ghislain Picard, head of the Quebec Assembly of First Nations, said he would not be the only one who believes there would be some uneasiness if the Conservatives formed a majority government. "But things could evolve and everyone is looking at what's going on," Picard said. Copyright c. 2005 The Canadian Press. Copyright c. 2005 CanWest Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: Assembly of First Nations hosts Policy Forum" --------- Date: Tue, 19 Apr 2005 08:38:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="AFN POLICY MEETING" http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/April2005/19/c7489.html Assembly of First Nations Hosts National Policy Forum in Montreal: First Nations Leaders and Experts Meet to Develop Action Plans for Education, Environmental Stewardship and Housing OTTAWA, April 19 /CNW Telbec/ - On April 19, the one year anniversary of Prime Minister Paul Martin's Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable, Assembly of First Nations National Chief Phil Fontaine opened the AFN National Policy Forum on Education, Environmental Stewardship and Housing in Montreal, Quebec. "In the year since the Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable, First Nations have been actively engaged in crafting our own plans and initiatives that will strengthen our citizens, communities and nations, build our economies and move us towards real self-determination," said National Chief Fontaine. "The Prime Minister stated at the Roundtable that the days of unilateral decision-making by the federal government are over and partnership is the cornerstone of our new relationship. We are honouring our side of the commitment by creating plans that address our goals and are supported by First Nations. This gives us the mandate and direction we need as we head into the proposed Cabinet Retreat with the Prime Minister and his government on May 31. We can say 'we have the plan'." The Roundtable process was presented as a historic opportunity for the federal government and First Nations to begin a new era of cooperation that would lead to dramatic change. The Assembly of First Nations has been leading the process by presenting detailed plans that present new directions for work in housing, health, economic opportunities, l