_ __ _____ __ _ __ ___ ____ _ __ ___ ' ) / / ') / / ) ' ) ) / ) / ' ) ) / ) / / / / / / /--/ / / / ___ / / / / ___ (_(_/ (__/ ( / (_ / (_ (___/ '__/_ / (_ (___/ ' ____ _ , ___ _ , ___ / ' ) / / ) ' ) / / ' VOLUME 15, ISSUE 038 / /-< / /--/ /-- __/_ / ) (___/ / ( (___, WOTANGING IKCHE - Lakota - Common News Wotanging Ikche and Native American News Copyright c. 1996-2007 nanews.org Aboriginal/AmerIndian Perspective about the First Nations of Turtle Island September 17, 2007 Blackfeet awakaasiiki'somm/deer moon Yuchi Tsogalinetsee/hay cutting moon Mvskogee Otowoskucee/little chestnut moon Lakota Canwahpegi Wi/moon when leaves turn brown +-------------------------------------------------------+ | 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.indianz.com; www.pechanga.net; www.indiancountrytoday.com; Mailing Lists: Mohawk Nations News, Native American Poetry UUCP Mail 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 Quote: + -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- + "When soldiers go overseas, we give them warrior ceremonies to armor and protect them against the battle." "When the soldier comes back, we have to remove that armor, to help him reconnect with his home." __ Alfred Gibson, Navajo Healer +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | 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 Mining interests are drooling all over themselves over several finds. Maybe the motherlode of all gold and copper deposits in Alaska. In Northern Canada and the Four Corners area of the US, uranium is the lure. Northern Territory First Nations and the Navajo Nation have made it crystal clear there will be no uranium mining on tribal lands. Did that end the persistant requests to mine the ore? No! In fact, they became demands and court orders. Anyone who reads this newsletter or Mohawk Nation News (www.mohawknationnews.com) knows Fronenac Ventures, with help from the Ontario government, has trespassed on unsurrendered Algonquin land with intent to extract uranium ore in the Sharbot Lake area. In Alaska hundreds of test drillings have occured. The results of these sample drillings not only proved the value of the deposits, but also proved the game in the Bristol Bay area will vacate the area. Oh, and in case you didn't know, the mines would also destroy the nesting waters of Atlantic Sockeye Salmon. The mining interests do not care if they destroy the game, the salmon or even Mother Earth herself, as long as they can reap the bounty that lies beneath. Destruction of wild places, a rich source of food for a hungry world, and the resultant damage to rain forests just don't register as important when greed is the only fire in corporate eyes. Couple this with the United States and Canadas' shameful vote against the U.N. Daclaration of Indigenous Rights, and you have a very good understanding of what Mother Earth and the Peoples who have sworn to protect her mean to Kanada and Amerikka. And don't bother expecting the US or Canada to respect the UN Declaration approved without their stamp of approval. Both countries have proven by their treatment of indigenous populations and their lands what they think of any such agreements that work against their corporations' interest. Study your prophesies and pray. ' ' Gary Smith (*,*) wotanging@bellsouth.net P. O. Box 672168 (`-') gars@nanews.org Marietta, GA 30007, U.S.A. ===w=w=== http://www.nanews.org ----------- News of the people featured in this issue ----------- Editorial Section: - ED: Candidates can't afford to . When Greed and Theft are OK ignore Indian vote - Bush Administration - YELLOW BIRD: Sharing objects to Cobell data request breaks down Culture Barriers - Saving Sacred Sites; - JODI RAVE: Workshop focuses on Protecting Artifacts respect for Culture - Court: Navajo Nation - AMBROSE: Over-regulation owed Money for bungled Lease killing Indian Country - Navajo stands behind - OPINION: ban on Uranium Mining Stop blaming Southern Paiutes - Interior's James Cason - JODI RAVE: UN passes under examination Indigenous Rights Declaration - Atakapas say Culture still alive - YELLOW BIRD: Wild Fruit Season - Feds react to - MANN: AISES: Powerful Medicine Tribal Duck-Hunting Request for Spirit and Education - Nice save: - Takla First Nation Maneuver by Boren buys Tribe time to block public access to Lands - Approved: - First Nation wasn't consulted Native American Housing Act on Pulp Mill - Former Interior Official - Who is Frontenac Ventures to Lead Indian Museum and why the Mystery? - Cobell blasts - Five thugs Gover's appointment to NMAI attack 2 Six Nations Youth - Rocky Boy getting money - Native Police to fight Alcoholism should hunt Serial Killer - Tough Season for - County's first Columbia River Tribal Fishermen Crow Indian Justice of the Peace - Gigantic Mine proposal - Self-proclaimed Indian Chief tests values of Alaskans remains in Jail - Ancient healing methods - Native Justice used to treat NA Soldiers -- Civil Suit filed in detention, - Tradition intersects shackling of 11-year-old witness with Soldier's Life at Powwow - Rustywire: Toadlena, - MCT holds strong against Where the Mountain is Split the use Blood Quantum - Lee Goins Poem: My Daughter's Eyes - Tlingits welcome - Ellsbury is Red Sox's non-Natives into Family exciting Native American --------- "RE: Bush Admin. objects to Cobell data request" --------- Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 07:28:16 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="MORE ROADBLOCKS BY BUSH ADMINISTRATION" http://www.indianz.com/News/2007/004845.asp Bush administration objects to Cobell data request September 11, 2007 Despite an order from a federal judge, the Interior Department said on Monday it would not turn over electronic trust data to the Cobell plaintiffs. In a 20-page filing, lawyers for Secretary Dirk Kempthorne objected to the plaintiffs' request for data on 67 Indian trust beneficiaries. According to the government, the request was too broad and would take too long to fulfill. "To date, Interior defendants have devoted over 40 man-hours of computer search and data collection time - more than 20 times the effort plaintiffs proposed - and the search results and data gathering for three computer systems are not yet complete," the brief from the Department of Justice said. The objection comes a month before the Bush administration heads to trial over its historical accounting of the Individual Indian Money (IIM) trust. Judge James Robertson ordered an October 10 hearing to determine how much Indian beneficiaries have or have not been paid. As a prelude to the trial, Robertson on July 9 allowed the Cobell plaintiffs to seek electronic records for no more than 100 trust beneficiaries. He said it was more than reasonable to obtain the data, since it's a part of the accounting process. At the hearing, Robertson said "the plaintiffs are certainly entitled in their way in this proceeding to essentially test what you have got, and I think that is the way they are choosing to do it." According to the government, however, the plaintiffs are seeking far too much information than anticipated. DOJ lawyers said the request was filed a month late and said the plaintiffs only provided names of beneficiaries without other identifying information, such as IIM account numbers. "Plaintiffs provided no addresses; no account numbers; and no dates of birth or death. The omission of such helpful information is unexplained, and seems unusual in light of the fact that plaintiffs' list appears to include some individuals who may have been dead almost a century or more," yesterday's court filing stated. The government also said too many of the beneficiaries represent the Blackfeet Nation of Montana. Elouise Cobell, the lead plaintiff, is a tribal member and the tribe's former treasurer. "According to an Interior Department breakdown of IIM accounts as of June 30, 1992, only about 14.3% of IIM accounts and fewer than 8% of IIM funds related to what was then referred to as the BIA Billings Area Office, " the filing stated. "Without proof that the 67 names fairly correspond to and represent the class as a whole, their anecdotal experience will provide no probative or reliable information for trial." Finally, the brief said the plaintiffs' request goes too far in seeking data from nearly a half dozen computer systems, plus other electronic documents that may not be housed in those systems. According to the government, the plaintiffs are even seeking information from systems that don't contain Indian trust data. What the government said it would provide only comes from three systems - the Trust Fund Accounting System (TFAS), the Trust Asset and Accounting Management System (TAAMS) and the Historical Accounting Project (HAP) database, a new database created by the Office of Historical Trust Accounting. The Office of Special Trustee spent 13 man-house searching TFAS but only matched 14 out of 67 names, the brief stated. A search of HAP turned up matches to 47 names while a search of TAAMS turned up 27 names after a "full day" of work, according to the government. The Bureau of Indian Affairs has been performing the TAAMS work, the brief stated. The Bush administration opposed opening up the trust data to the plaintiffs. A government lawyer said Special Trustee Ross Swimmer told him a search of the systems would be "very involved" and "labor intensive." The data is crucial to the upcoming trial because the Bush administration has been relying on the data to tell Congress and the public that Indian account holders are owed very little for the management of their trust funds. Associate deputy secretary Jim Cason said in April that the historical accounting of the electronic records has uncovered only a handful of errors. Both sides agree at least $13 billion has passed through the IIM trust since the early 1900s. They disagree on how much has been paid out, whether it was the right amount and whether it went to the right beneficiaries. The Cobell plaintiffs, along with national Indian and tribal organizations, have called for a $27.5 billion payment, which includes interest. The figure is based on the assumption that a certain percentage of the $13 billion throughput was paid to the proper beneficiaries. Independent experts have agreed that a settlement should be in the billions, with figures ranging from $6 billion to $10 billion. A bill that was introduced last year would have provided $8 billion to end the case. The Bush administration, on the other hand, believes account holders are owed in the low millions. A counterproposal to the settlement bill would have provided up to $3.5 billion to end the Cobell case and extinguish any future damages claims. Copyright c. 2007 Indianz.Com --------- "RE: Saving Sacred Sites; Protecting Artifacts" --------- Date: Mon, 10 Sep 2007 07:39:11 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="PROTECTING SACRED SITES" http://www.pechanga.net/ http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/ PE_News_Local_D_sacred09.1214e51.html# Saving Sacred Sites; Protecting Artifacts A law to protect Indian history is helping keep burial grounds and ancient villages from being built over, but recognition, cooperation are still spotty By JULIA GLICK and MICHELLE DeARMOND The Press-Enterprise September 8, 2007 Indian remains lie buried beneath shopping complexes in La Quinta and Temecula. In Big Bear Valley, a sewage treatment plant stands in the lakebed where the Serrano people believe their creator died and was cremated. For decades, developers' bulldozers obliterated and obscured Indian gravesites, ancient villages and other pieces of California's early history, and descendents of those civilizations had little say in the process. A state law - passed in 2004 after painstaking compromise among local governments, developers and tribes - was created to turn that tide of destruction. But a review finds the law, which has been derided as toothless by some and excessive by others, has been slow to bring about change. The law requires local governments and tribes to consult on projects but does not mandate they reach an agreement or provide any way to enforce one. Local governments carry out the legislation in vastly different ways. Riverside County has its own stricter procedures for preserving sacred and archaeological sites, while some Inland governments all but ignore the state law. As developers rapidly transform raw land into homes, shopping centers and roads for the Inland region, supporters of the law say the battle for sacred sites protection is far from over. Pottery shards, rock art, dance grounds, weapon points and other remnants of the Serrano, Cahuilla, Luiseno, Chemehuevi and Gabrieleno people that inhabited the Inland region for thousands of years remain at the mercy of scrapers and graders, they say. "I feel really sad about it," said Britt Wilson, project manager for the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, who has worked on several consultations to preserve sacred sites. "This is everybody's history. This is my history, as a white person; this is the state's history; the country's history. It's not just Indian history." Hidden History In Temecula, shoppers at one Highway 79 strip mall pass a piece of that history every time they zip into the fast-food restaurants and stores that fill the busy complex. A dirt lot shoehorned in among parking spaces is an old Indian cemetery. A concrete wall helps insulate from car horns and shoppers the burial spot of dozens of Luiseno Indians killed in battle during the Mexican War in the mid-1800s, county historical commissioner Darell Farnbach said. A developer built the retail complex several years ago in then- unincorporated Riverside County. Although the county and Indian tribes succeeded in convincing the developer not to dig up and move all the remains elsewhere, the cemetery's less-than-peaceful surroundings show why governments around the state needed to do more, said county Principal Planner Jim Fagelson, who was not in that position when the project was approved. "It's a sad place. It's sad that the shopping center is surrounding it," said Paul Macarro of the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians, who are descendents of the people buried at the cemetery. "It wasn't supposed to be like that." Macarro, Pechanga cultural coordinator and a tribal member, said Luisen os know the site as "a place where you get choked up." The cemetery should have been identified earlier in the building process and been given a buffer between it and the development, he said. In San Bernardino County, the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians trace the death of their creator and the birth of their clan to the Baldwin Lake area of the Big Bear Valley. The creator Kruktat died near a hot springs there, and the people cremated his body. Generations of San Manuel tribe members have been traveling to the lakebed and surrounding mountains to gather and pray, said James Ramos, tribal unity and cultural awareness program director. It is also the location where the Big Bear area's wastewater agency built its valley-wide sewage treatment plant in the 1970s. The tribe was never informed about the project, so the members had no say in the plant's location or opportunity to protect their holy site, said Ramos, who is a tribal member. The spot is on unincorporated San Bernardino County land about 30 miles from the tribe's reservation, which abuts the city of San Bernardino. "The various governments ignored the tribes," Fagelson said of the general mindset at the time when the sewage plant was built. "It wasn't even on their radar screens." Before the sacred sites law, known commonly as SB 18, tribes would have to comb through city and county agendas to learn about projects that could impact their heritage, said Wilson, Morongo's project manager. A tribe might send a letter to a local government, raising concerns about a development, but officials might not heed them or even respond, he said. Many tribes also didn't have staff members trained to navigate the government process. "There was a general feeling that these archaeological sites were being wiped out, and the Indians didn't have a place at the table," Wilson said. Mandated Talks That worry drove the creation of SB 18, which sought to give the tribes more input on projects in their ancestral territories. Early versions of the state bill proposed adding sacred sites protections to each project's environmental review process and would have given tribes what some saw as veto power over certain developments. Years of negotiations pitted tribes - many with newfound gaming resources to finance a legislative fight - against developers opposed to what they saw as costly delays and restrictions. "We were trying to bring these two different perspectives together, trying to find some place where we could find some agreement," said Alison Harvey, an experienced legislative aide who was instrumental in drafting the measure for then-Senate President Pro Tempore John Burton. "It was the most difficult thing I've ever done." Britt Wilson, project manager for the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, explores a recently discovered rock shelter. The existing law, believed to be the first of its kind in the nation, reflects that uneasy compromise. Enacted in March 2005, it mandates that city and county governments notify and request consultation with tribes only when projects require general plan amendments, open-space plans or specific plans - that usually means projects that are exceptionally large, that combine commercial and residential uses or that deviate from existing roadmaps. The law does not mandate that the negotiating parties reach an agreement and it does not provide any way to enforce the terms of one. If local governments neglect the law entirely, the law offers little recourse for tribes outside of litigation, a route that does not appear to have been tested yet anywhere in the state. The law also dictates a level of confidentiality that could potentially leave even developers in the dark about the nature of a sacred site on their property. Learning Curve Inland tribes say it is difficult to know if local governments or builders have intentionally flouted SB 18 and ignored, hidden or destroyed any archaeological discoveries over the more than two years the law has been in place. "It comes down to an honors system," Ramos said. The most obvious problem now with the law appears to be ignorance, tribes and officials say. Two years in, they say there still are cities and counties that don't know about the law or don't understand how it applies to them. Just months ago, the Agua Caliente tribe had to request a consultation with one city in the tribe's ancestral territory. The city was preparing for developments that should have triggered an SB 18 consultation but officials didn't follow even the first step of the law and contact the tribe, said Richard Begay, director of tribal historic preservation for the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians. The Morongo tribe has been sending out general letters to local governments to inform them of the law's existence and how to contact the tribe, said Ernest Siva, a tribal elder who participates in consultations. Some small cities with Luiseno history appear to be just "getting up to speed" about the legislation, said Laura Miranda, Pechanga's deputy general counsel and a tribal member. After two years, they are just establishing initial contact with the tribe about plans, she said. "I don't think people (in local governments) are avoiding it because they want to avoid it," said Kenneth Lord, an archaeologist who advises the Building Industry Association and spoke on behalf of the Riverside County chapter. "I think it's just because it hasn't made it to the front part of their brain. I think as the process is used more and more, it will," he said. A partial survey of local governments around the state conducted by the Governor's Office of Planning and Research in 2006 found many not heeding the law and its recommendations. The vast majority of the cities and counties that responded to the survey had not followed the state's recommendations that they establish their own protocol for complying with SB 18. Most also had failed to hold get-acquainted meetings with local tribes, as recommended by the state, to prepare for future consultations. Several-dozen cities and counties, out of the roughly 200 that responded to the 2007 survey, said they had failed to meet the law's requirements that they notify tribes in their mailings about specific types of projects. "I think there are a lot of planners who have yet to get on board," Begay said. "People don't get it still." Harvey, the former legislative aide who helped write SB 18, now is executive director of the California Tribal Business Alliance, a coalition of tribes. She has worked with state officials to hold regular workshops to better educate city and county governments around California about SB 18. "Some of the local governments were daunted by the whole thing," she said of early sessions. "We would go to some of the counties, and it was clear some of the planners didn't know they had tribes in their county, let alone had to consult with them." Better communication among cities, counties and tribes is key to protecting ancient history in California and making sure ancestors are treated with respect, tribes say. "Once these places are gone, you can't get them back. It's irreparable damage," Miranda said. Preserving the Sites Tribes often do not agree with developers and their archaeologists who may seek to remove remains and artifacts for further study or display, said Clifford Trafzer, professor of American Indian Affairs at UC Riverside and a member of the state's Native American Heritage Commission. "If you take them out of the ground and willy-nilly put them in a box and run them off to a museum or a university, the belief is that ill things will happen," Trafzer said. "This dates back to the creation story and beliefs about where people go after death." Out of respect for tribal ancestors, Morongo elder Siva said he avoids the removal of artifacts unless they serve an educational purpose, and moving the ashes or bodies of the dead is an onerous thing. In a recent instance, a city's slow learning curve on SB 18 meant human remains and vast amounts of artifacts were already unearthed before the tribe could voice those concerns in formal consultations, said Wilson, Morongo's project manager. A developer in Desert Hot Springs began working on a massive expansion of Two Bunch Palms Resort and Spa to include about 120,000 square feet of retail space and more than a thousand homes and hotel units. The developer had archaeologists excavating for about a year before the city government decided the project required a specific plan, Wilson said. That slow decision triggered SB 18 consultations so late in the process they were almost moot, he said. The Morongo and the Agua Caliente bands arranged for the remains' reburial, but Siva said he would have liked SB 18 to have functioned better and informed the tribe sooner about the human ashes and artifacts. The Agua Caliente tribe, also involved with the Two Bunch Palms project, said fortunately the developer's archaeologists reached out to the tribes early on during the project's state-mandated environmental review, making the city's slow implementation of SB 18 less problematic for them. Working with the tribe was a learning experience for the city, Begay said. Since then, the different parties involved have worked closely on the project, he said. A Desert Hot Springs councilman familiar with Two Bunch Palms did not return a phone call, and the city manager recently resigned and was not available. For some builders and local governments, the new law has emerged as a potentially costly and time-consuming hurdle to development. While a good bill, the consultations law is yet another demand added to a sticky web of often-contradictory state mandates and legislation that cities and counties must navigate, said Dan Carrigg, legislative director for the California League of Cities. "If it comes down to building housing which is listed as an issue of critical importance for the state ... should we be building housing or protecting sacred sites?" he asked. For big builders, the added costs and delays from SB 18 and Riverside County's procedures can be frustrating, said Fred Bell, executive director of the Desert chapter of the Building Industry Association. They have become just more expenses and more hurdles before a builder can put a shovel in the ground, he said. And cities and counties that are slow to consult with tribes can cause builders even more costly delays late in the process, said Lord, who has a doctorate in archaeology and works for Michael Brandman Associates, an environmental planning services firm. Building Block Those frustrations for builders could grow someday. Although there are no concrete efforts under way to beef up SB 18, several tribal representatives and their supporters say they hope the law eventually can be expanded. Ramos described the bill as a "baby step" that opened the door to stronger, more equal relationships among tribal and local governments, but the tribes will continue to push for more say in the future, he said. "SB 18 is nice. It's just a consultation tool. No real teeth," Begay said. "I think we all need to work on that." While the building industry mostly supported the final, diluted version of SB 18, developers would definitely speak out strongly if the state legislature revisited the matter and looked at toughening up the law, Lord said. Casino wealth has given some tribes more clout with local governments and also the ability to hire more staff to address matters like sacred sites, Wilson said. Tribes are establishing their own records of where archaeological and sacred sites are located so they can know right away when there is a threat. Some tribes are buying what are called cultural easements, purchases that mitigate or stop development on a given parcel. Morongo is currently negotiating to prevent future development on a swath of raw, unincorporated land near Desert Hot Springs, because of the land's cultural significance, Wilson said. The Pechanga tribe is trying to purchase the Temecula property with the Indian cemetery, although the tribe won't own the surrounding strip mall, Miranda said. Tribes' and government efforts to protect cultural heritage come at a time when Riverside and San Bernardino counties are experiencing their largest growth spurt. If Los Angeles and Orange counties had taken steps 50 and 60 years ago to preserve sacred sites, a lot more might be known now about Southern California's history, Fagelson said. The most important thing, however, is to teach people, both Indian and non-Indian, the value of these places, these objects, their cultural significance and the stories they tell, said Siva, the Morongo elder. "The main thing is the sites are protected for the good of all," he said. "If I don't speak up and someone else doesn't speak up, then people will just do what they want, and the sites will be destroyed." Reach Julia Glick at 951-368-9460 or jglick@PE.com Reach Michelle DeArmond at 951-368-9441 or mdearmond@PE.com Copyright c. 2007 Press-Enterprise Company. --------- "RE: Court: Navajo Nation owed Money for bungled Lease" --------- Date: Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:13:59 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="DoI BLEW PEABODY LEASE" http://www.indianz.com/News/2007/004906.asp Court: Navajo Nation owed money for bungled lease September 14, 2007 The Interior Department breached its trust to the Navajo Nation and must pay damages for mishandling a coal mining lease, a federal appeals court ruled on Thursday. In a unanimous decision, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals said the "undisputed facts" prove Interior breached its fiduciary duties to the largest tribe in the country. Swayed by a lobbyist, the Reagan administration approved a coal mining lease for a less than a "reasonable" royalty rate, the three-judge panel concluded. That action violated common trust law, as well as a "network" of federal laws and regulations aimed at protecting the tribe's coal resources and keeping the tribe informed about its assets, the court said. "Accordingly, this court holds that the nation has a cognizable money- mandating claim against the United States for the alleged breaches of trust and that the government breached its trust duties," Judge Arthur J. Gajarsa, a Reagan nominee, wrote in the 39-page ruling. Barring further appeals, the Court of Federal Claims will now determine the damages the government must pay for mishandling the lease. The tribe claims it lost out on at least $600 million in royalties for one of the most valuable coal deposits in the U.S. But a trip to the Supreme Court is possible, a move that would delay resolution of one of the longest-running breach of trust cases in history. The Bush administration already took the Navajo case to the justices and won a ruling in 2003 that limited the tribe's legal maneuvers. In that 6-3 ruling, the high court said the two laws the tribe cited to make its case weren't enough to create a damages-enforceable trust relationship. The justices noted that the Indian Mineral Leasing Act and the Indian Mineral Development Act, in fact, give more power to tribes to exercise self-determination over their trust assets. The Navajo Nation, however, was able to revive its claim by citing other federal laws and regulations that put the government in control. This "network" included the Navajo-Hopi Rehabilitation Act, which the Federal Circuit said imposes a duty on the government to keep the tribe informed about its coal resources and the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act, which deals with coal mining and contains an Indian lands section. The Federal Circuit also said the government violated its "common law trust duties of care, candor, and loyalty" by approving a lease with a royalty rate that was more favorable to Peabody Coal than to the Navajo Nation. Peabody is the world's largest coal company and has been mining the reservation for decades. When the Bureau of Indian Affairs recommended the tribe receive a 20 percent royalty rate on its coal, Peabody hired a lobbyist who was a "a former aide and friend" to then-Interior Secretary Don Hodel, the court said. After a meeting that was kept secret from the tribe, Hodel told the BIA to stand down from the higher rate and to urge the tribe to negotiate with Peabody. "Facing severe economic pressure," the court said, the tribe was forced to agree to a lease with a 12.5 percent royalty rate. The difference cost the tribe at least $600 million in royalties, according to the lawsuit. Although the actions at issue took place more than 20 years ago, they remain fresh in the minds of many Navajo leaders, who feel betrayed by their trustee. Their feelings worsened when Hodel's previously unknown dealings with the lobbyist came to light through the course of the lawsuit. "I feel like they've been doing an injustice to us all along, and right now we're beginning to call their hand," said President Joe Shirley Jr. Navajo leaders were further dismayed when two of the officials who were involved in the debacle secured top positions in the Bush administration. One was former deputy secretary J. Steven Griles, who oversaw the mining division that supported the higher royalty rate, and who was deposed under oath for the case. Griles, a former lobbyist for the coal industry, eventually pleaded guilty for lying to Congress about his dealings with another lobbyist. He will be serving 10 months in federal prison. The second official was Ross Swimmer, who currently serves as Special Trustee for American Indians and is responsible for ensuring the government meets its trust obligations. He approved the lease with the lower royalty rate without studying the effect it would have on the tribe. Swimmer was also deposed for the case but failed to recall doing so when asked about it during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Indian Affairs Committee and during a federal court trial for the Cobell trust fund case. He also told Native reporter Jodi Rave that he couldn't remember whether he was deposed. Separate from the suit against the government, the Navajo Nation is suing Peabody Coal, alleging a violation of federal racketeering laws over the collusion between the lobbyist and Interior. The case remains alive despite Peabody's numerous attempts to have it dismissed or delayed indefinitely. If the tribe wins the suit, it could be entitled to up to three times the damages for the lease. "It's very good to hear that the nation got what it had coming all this time, being neglected and not getting what it's supposed to get," said former President Kelsey Begaye, whose administration filed the Peabody suit. Copyright c. 2007 Indianz.Com. --------- "RE: Navajo stands behind ban on Uranium Mining" --------- Date: Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:13:59 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="NAVAJO FIRMLY OPPOSE YELLOW DEATH" http://www.gallupindependent.com/2007/september/091307kh_recareform.html RECA reform Navajo stands behind ban on uranium mining By Kathy Helms Dine' Bureau September 13, 2007 WINDOW ROCK - When the Navajo Nation approved a ban in 2005 on uranium mining and processing within Navajo Indian County, it was done with the realization that the Nation would be losing out on millions of dollars in fees and royalties. But as Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley Jr. and numerous council delegates have said, "The lives of the people are more important than the money to be obtained, and there is no answer to the illnesses that have resulted from uranium mining," according to presidential spokesman George Hardeen. "We still have people today who are sick and are dying as a result of past uranium mining. The president has said countless times, `Show us the cure to this before we reconsider allowing uranium mining to come back on Navajoland.' "At the time there was uranium mining, it was known to be dangerous. However, it was known to everyone except the Navajos who were mining. That has been well-documented. And that's perpetrating a fraud on the Navajo people to get access to a potentially hazardous ore. This is the reason that the Navajo Nation passed its law," Hardeen said. But the Navajo people were not the only ones kept in the dark. While they were laboring in underground mines in New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Colorado - drinking the cool water that trickled down the walls and breathing the dust that permeated the mine shafts as they blasted their way deeper into the earth - people across the United States also were being exposed to radiation. From 1945 through 1962, the United States conducted a series of above- ground atomic weapons tests which spewed radioactive fallout from test sites in Nevada and New Mexico. To date, New Mexico downwinders are not covered under RECA, established in 1990 to compensate the survivors of radiation exposure. According to GAO, the Radiation Exposure Compensation Program, or RECP, has authorized payments totaling $1.2 billion for 18,110 claims since RECP began processing claims in April 1992. Almost half of the $1.2 billion was paid to claimants who lived downwind of the Nevada Test Site. The 18,110 claims represent about two-thirds of the 26,550 claims filed since 1992. The remaining one-third of the claims was denied, because RECA's eligibility criteria were not satisfied. The RECA Amendments of 2000 broadened the scope of eligibility for benefits and added uranium mill workers and ore transporters to the categories of beneficiaries. Congress also added San Juan County, Utah, and Coconino, Yavapai, Navajo, Apache, and Gila, Ariz., to the list of "downwinder" counties, making those residents potentially eligible for compensation. This past May, Utah Rep. Jim Matheson and Rep. Mike Simpson sent a letter to the House Judiciary Committee requesting a hearing on the expansion of RECA, stating, "As you know, over the course of more than two decades, the United States carried out more than 1,000 nuclear weapons tests. "The radioactive debris from these tests entered our nation's atmosphere and was later deposited, in the form of radioactive fallout, all across our nation ... For decades, individuals living within the fallout areas have lived with adverse health effects caused by radiation exposure. "Eligibility for compensation, however, is limited to certain counties in just a few states. These geographic boundaries are, quite frankly, arbitrary boundaries that do not account for the fact that radioactive fallout does not abide by lines on a map. Some of the counties experiencing the largest concentration of fallout in the entire nation are not included in the current RECA program." The congressmen said they do not believe RECA has received serious review by Congress in the last seven years and that the time for review is now appropriate. Last month, bipartisan legislation was introduced in the Senate (S. 1917) to amend RECA to include downwinders in Idaho and Montana. U.S. Rep. Tom Udall, D-N.M., said Wednesday, "Over time it's become clear that Congress should begin the process of revising the Radiation Exposure act. I am eager to start working to reform and expand this program and am currently working with the Navajo Nation and other members of Congress from the Four Corners region to begin laying the foundation for such reform. "The first step is for Congress to fully evaluate RECA through our oversight mechanisms. In order to make the substantive and necessary reform we need, the Congress must fully evaluate the program and find out the successes and downfalls individuals have experienced with the act since its inception. "In the coming months, along with the Navajo Nation and other members of Congress, I will be one of the hosts of a roundtable on the issue at which time we will discuss uranium mine issues and the steps we can take to move forward on remedying a difficult situation," Udall said. In August, following introduction of the legislation, Jude McCartin of U. S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman's office, said, "Sen. Bingaman is studying the legislation." He has not yet said whether he will support it, or propose inclusion of New Mexico as a downwinder state. Staffers for U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici, a proponent of "clean nuclear energy," have not responded to questions from the Independent regarding whether Domenici will support the legislation. Media representatives for New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, a presidential candidate and former U.S. Energy Secretary, also have not responded as to whether the governor might push for New Mexico to be included under RECA. Regarding Navajo and the revival of the nuclear age, Hardeen, said, "The companies make an argument that their method of mining uranium now is safe. But there are still people who have been hurt by uranium mining. These are the elderly people and people who were uranium miners. "As a result, the Navajo Nation has said `No more.' It doesn't need to put itself into that situation again. These people are still hurt, and it affects entire families. "President Shirley has said it has cost the Navajo Nation its own culture because these elders who are dying from various types of illnesses and cancers, they are the repositories of Navajo culture. They have the songs, the ceremonies, the teachings; and we are losing them and losing that. The cost is just tremendous, measured in that way," Hardeen said. Copyright c. 2007 the Gallup Independent. --------- "RE: Interior's James Cason under examination" --------- Date: Mon, 17 Sep 2007 07:34:06 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="SCHAGHTICOKE CASE FOCUSES ON CASON RFD" http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096415764 Interior's James Cason under examination by: Gale Courey Toensing / Indian Country Today September 14, 2007 WASHINGTON - As the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation's court case against the Interior Department moves toward conclusion, the tribe has focused attention recently on Associate Deputy Secretary James Cason. Cason is the Interior Department official who signed off on the BIA's Reconsidered Final Determination that stripped the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation of its federal acknowledgement. He notified the tribe of his decision by fax on Columbus Day two years ago. As part of its administration procedures appeal, the tribe has challenged Cason's authority to issue the RFD, contending that his action as the "decision maker" violated the Appointments Clause of the Constitution, because he was acting as a "principal officer" of the United States without being nominated by the president and approved by Congress, and the Vacancies Reform Act, which was passed to enforce the Appointments Clause. Cason has a long history of involvement at Interior. He is among a group of current and former Interior officials from Colorado who all shared the common experience of having been advocates or lobbyists for big oil, gas, coal and mining corporations that operate on public and Indian lands, including former Interior Secretary Gale Norton, Solicitor David Bernhardt, and former Deputy Secretary Steven Griles, who was indicted earlier this year on obstruction of justice charges over his involvement with criminal former lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Cason has mixed reviews in Indian county. While some people have praised him as a "good manager" who has tried to improve education, others - especially the large land-based tribes in the West - have vehemently opposed his plan to restructure the education bureaucracy. Others question his involvement in ordering a computer system that has since been determined to have so many glitches in it that it created chaos over land leases. And most people oppose his proposal to end the federal government's trust responsibilities with Cobell plaintiffs when the case concludes. If Indian country has given Cason mixed reviews, the environmental community has universally disapproved of him, beginning with his appointment by Norton on Aug. 9, 2001, as associate deputy secretary. On Aug. 24, 2001, the nonprofit environmental organization Friends of the Earth issued a press release headlined "Position created for Watt Clone at Interior," referring to Cason's tenure as deputy assistant secretary under former Interior Secretary James Watt during the Reagan presidency. As Watt's No. 2 man, Cason tried to stop regulations that called for modest limits on drilling in national forests and made it easier to mine in national parks. The group also questioned the title of associate deputy secretary - a title that has not been used for more than a decade and does not appear on the agency's organizational chart. "Apparently the Bush Administration has taken to creating new positions at Interior in order to ram more appointees with pro-extractive industries, anti-environmental interests down the throat of the American public. Like Norton and Griles, James Cason has been a soldier for moneyed interests who seek to exploit public lands for personal profit," Kristen Sykes, of Friends of the Earth, wrote. From 1982 to 1985, Cason served as special assistant to the director of Interior's Bureau of Land Management, and from 1985 to 1990, he served as acting assistant secretary and principal deputy assistant secretary of the Interior Department for Land and Minerals Management. In 1989, President George H.W. Bush nominated Cason for the position of Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and the Environment at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, but he faced a torrent of opposition from both the Senate and the environmental community because of his extreme anti-environmental and anti-taxpayer record. According to www.earthjustice.org, among the concerns raised during Cason's failed 1989 confirmation bid were his authorization of a rule that would make federally protected lands such as national parks, national wildlife refuges, and wilderness areas vulnerable to strip mining, and his key role in 1986 in Interior's decision to resume selling titles to federal oil and shale tracts for $2.50 an acre, far below their market value. Cason then approved granting titles to some 82,000 acres, even though Congress had made clear its intent to revise the program. One set of 17,000 acres was purchased by private developers for $42,000 and sold months later for $37 million. R. Max Peterson, the chief of the U.S. Forest Service during the Reagan years, said: "Mr. Cason's decisions at the Department of the Interior were uniformly bad when measured against any reasonable standard of public interest and fairness to the public which owns the public lands." Copyright c. 1998 - 2007 Indian Country Today. All Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: Atakapas say Culture still alive" --------- Date: Mon, 17 Sep 2007 07:34:06 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="ATAKAPA REVITALIZATION" http://www.pechanga.net/ http://www.star-telegram.com/448/story/237200.html Atakapas say culture still alive By MIKE D. SMITH Beaumont Enterprise September 16, 2007 BEAUMONT, Texas - Thousands of years before Southeast Texas was even a concept, strong men and women fished its waters, hunted its game, walked its forests and thrived off raw nature. They were the Atakapas, the group that history says traded with colonists and helped them fight wars before vanishing in the early 1900s. But Texans and Louisianans claiming to be of Atakapan descent who say the culture is alive and well are mounting an effort to scratch their ancestral name off the federal government's extinct cultures list. The Atakapas were hunters and gatherers who occasionally roamed from present-day southern Louisiana, through Southeast Texas to Matagorda Bay, said Pam Wheat, executive director of the Texas Archaeological Society. "What's pretty amazing is that they did what they did and survived as long as they did by using their natural resources," Wheat said. The Smithsonian Institute sent linguist Albert Gatschet to the Gulf Coast during the late 1800s to write an Atakapan language dictionary before the last known native speakers died, McNeese State University history professor Ray Miles said. Gatschet found a native speaker in Lake Charles, La., but gave up after he couldn't trace the language's origin. The project stalled until anthropologist John Reed Swanton came along in the 1930s. "By the time he (Swanton) came here, he claimed there was only one person left that could speak the Atakapan language," Miles said. Swanton finished the dictionary that today is in the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. "He basically said they were an extinct people," Miles said. "That was the perception in Washington, D.C., and that perception is going to be very difficult to break down." Revival The Atakapa-Ishak Nation has about 400 active participants across Texas and Louisiana, said Chief Michael Amos, who lives in Port Arthur. That's the tip of the iceberg, as many more can possibly claim strong genetic links, Amos said. The group's Web site boasts a showing of 80 people at a June gathering in Lafayette, La., that included talks on ways to preserve tribal artifacts. Prayers at gatherings are done in the Atakapan tongue and there's talk of building museums in Texas and Louisiana, he said. In February, the group filed a letter of intent to become federally recognized by the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs. Now the hard work begins - collecting family histories that date back as far as records go. A positive result will be worth the work, Amos said. "It will give us our identity back and we can do things for our people and bring back our culture and heritage," Amos said. Other recognition benefits include the possibility of purchasing tax- -exempt reservation territory with allocations to run a government. But Amos said the group would focus on uplifting Atakapan descendants. "It can help assist some kids as far as attending college, with grants and stuff like that," Amos said. "As things go, maybe we can get grants to help older people." Long road ahead If the Gulf Coast group is successful, change could be a while away. The letter begins a seven-step process such requests undergo, U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs spokesman Gary Garrison said. A group must show that the tribe in question existed at the time Europeans arrived. The group also must show that Atakapas have existed since 1900 and been recognized by the regional community as a distinct group. "And that's where they may stumble," Miles said. The Atakapas never signed any treaties with the federal government or foreign countries. They didn't leave any written histories behind and were diluted by surrounding cultures as time marched on, he said. "Many people genetically are Atakapa, but culturally, it'll be hard to prove that," Miles said. And there's a line of people ahead of the Atakapas. The bureau only has a nine-member staff to handle such claims, and its plate already is filled with 10 requests, and 10 more behind those, Garrison said. Figure up to 25 years just for a decision and Atakapan hopefuls have some waiting to do. A silver lining: overall requests have dropped. The bureau got one last year compared to 43 in 1978 - the year its Office of Federal Acknowledgement opened, Garrison said. Amos said the group is in it for the long haul. In the end, the Atakapas will get the recognition they deserve, he said. "They may say we're extinct, but that's not true," Amos said. "How could people just vanish from the face of the Earth? Think about it. It doesn't make sense." Copyright c. 2007 Ft. Worth Star-Telegram. --------- "RE: Feds react to Tribal Duck-Hunting Request" --------- Date: Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:13:59 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="TRIBAL DUCK-HUNTING REQUEST" http://www.michiganoutdoornews.com/ articles/2007/09/13/news/news3.txt Feds react to tribal duck-hunting request By Tim Spielman Associate Editor* Odanah, Wis. - Last year about this time, state waterfowl managers in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota were reacting to a proposal by tribes under the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission umbrella to allow tribal waterfowlers to bait ducks and geese. That aspect of the GLIFWC plan was rejected by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2006 and hasn't been proposed by member tribes this year. This year, tribes in the three states recently submitted proposed regulation changes to the USFWS for approval - changes that among other things included a proposed earlier season opener in some areas. On Aug. 31, the proposal and the USFWS' reaction were posted on the Federal Register for comment; the comment period closed Sept. 10. The hunting proposal from GLIFWC comes on behalf of the the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Chippewa and Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (Michigan); Bad River Band of Chippewa, the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Chippewa, the Lac du Flambeau Band of Chippewa, the St. Croix Band of Chippewa, and the Mole Lake Band (all of Wisconsin); and the Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa (Minnesota). GLIFWC had called for a Sept. 1 duck-hunting opener off-reservation for the 1836, 1837, and 1842 ceded territories in those three Midwestern states. Other proposed changes for off-reservation waterfowling included new bag limits, no species restrictions, and a later daily close to the season, said Peter David, a GLIFWC biologist in Odanah, Wis. The earlier opener (recent openers have occurred in mid-September), David said, would be an effort to provide greater subsistence-hunting opportunities. The GLIFWC-proposed season dates would have been lengthened from Sept. 15 to Dec. 1, to Sept. 1 to Dec. 31, under the current proposal. Other proposed changes, according to GLIFWC, included: * The bag limit for ducks, geese, and mergansers would be increased. * Hunting hours would be extended until 15 minutes after sunset. * The daily bag for ducks would be 40 in the 1837 and 1842 treaty areas, and 20 in the 1836 Treaty area. In the Federal Register, the USFWS expressed support for some changes, but rejected others. Regarding removal of species restrictions, the USFWS states: 'We have several concerns with GLIFWC's proposal for removal of all species restrictions within the overall duck daily bag limits in the 1836, 1837, and 1842 Treaty areas. We have a number of duck species that are showing long-term downward population trends and others for which an increased daily bag limit of 30 birds per day could potentially have conservation impacts. 'Removal of species restrictions on these species would be inconsistent with with our current conservation concerns.' The USFWS also rejected a Sept. 1 duck-hunting opener in its proposal, stating that an opener that early could potentially negatively impact locally breeding ducks, especially mallards and wood ducks. 'Thus, we believe that expanding early September duck hunting in the 1836, 1837, and 1842 Treaty areas would not be in the best interest of the resource.' The USFWS-proposed opener is Sept. 15. The Service did, however, agree to support a hunt that runs through the end of December. The USFWS said it would support extended hunting hours 'with the understanding that we will need to closely monitor tribal harvest through either GLIFWC's own increased harvest surveys or GLIFWC's assisting the Service to survey tribal hunters.' Shooting hours proposed are one-half hour before sunrise until 15 minutes after sunset. Regarding the tribal-proposed bag increases, the USFWS said it would propose the approval of an increased bag limit for ducks in the 1836 Treaty area (to 30 ducks; 20 in the 1837 and 1842 Treaty areas). When federal officials were made aware of the tribes' wishes for the waterfowl seasons, so too were state agencies in the treaty areas. While the Wisconsin DNR has no major concerns about this year's proposal - unlike the opposition voiced last year regarding proposed duck baiting - Kent Van Horn, that state's migratory game bird ecologist, said the department sent a letter to the USFWS to 'point out' elements of the 2007 tribal waterfowling proposal and past USFWS statements on such matters. For example, Van Horn said, the USFWS in the past has expressed opposition to earlier duck hunting in September by state-licensed hunters. 'I pointed out that (the USFWS) had already made a decision on this,' Van Horn said. Similarly, the USFWS has been a proponent of management by duck species, depending on the population status of specific types of ducks. 'Of course, the argument can be made that the volume of ducks harvested by tribal duck hunters is so small that none of this really matters,' Van Horn said. He said tribal estimates in the past have indicated a kill of fewer than 5,000 birds by tribal hunters in off-reservation ceded territories in the 1836, 1837, and 1842 treaty areas of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Van Horn added that the '15 minutes after sunset' provision goes 'hand in hand' with no species restrictions, because of difficulty identifying ducks after sunset. In a letter to the USFWS, state natural resources agencies, and others, James Zorn, executive director of GLIFWC, said the changes to the tribal waterfowl-hunting season likely would 'increase tribal total ceded territory harvest by no more than 500 ducks and 150 geese.' That's because, he said, ice-up would limit December hunting and large bag limits are realized only rarely. Further, 'The removal of species restrictions may lead to a modest increase in harvest,' Zorn wrote. 'Nevertheless, removal of these restrictions will help stem what some view as the loss of the tradition of waterfowl hunting among individuals who fear inadvertently violating species restrictions.' The proposal states: 'Changes are proposed for the 2007 season in an effort to more greatly fulfill tribal subsistence harvest needs, but the harvest is expected to remain below 5,000 ducks and 1,000 geese, a level with no significant biological impact.' In the Federal Register proposal, the USFWS also recommends approval of waterfowling regulations put forth by the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians in Michigan. That bands request came with species restrictions and a duck-hunting season that runs Sept. 22 through Jan. 21, 2008, along with a daily bag of 12 ducks. Copyright c. 2007 Michigan Outdoor News. --------- "RE: Nice save: Maneuver by Boren buys Tribe time" --------- Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 07:28:16 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="CNO/FREEDMEN" http://www.indianz.com/News http://newsok.com/article/3123078/1189468003 Nice save: Maneuver by Boren buys tribe time The Oklahoman Editorial September 11, 2007 REP. Mel Watt, a Democrat from North Carolina, is the latest to wade into the affairs of the Cherokee Nation, following the lead of California Democrat Diane Watson. Thank goodness for a little moderation from our own Rep. Dan Boren, who often finds himself at odds with the more progressive members of his party. Watson's been raising a ruckus about a March vote in which Cherokees voted to change the tribe's constitution to limit membership to those who have Cherokee blood. Doing so would exclude about 2,800 descendants of "freedmen," or slaves once owned by Cherokees. Watson sought to have all the tribe's federal funding - about $300 million - cut off until this wrong was righted. Last week Watt, who like Watson and the freedmen is black, gained approval of an amendment that would deny federal housing assistance to the tribe. Watt and Watson each contend the tribe is violating an 1866 treaty with the United States, which is only a tad ironic considering how many times the U.S. government has broken treaties with tribes through the years. Boren brought a little common sense to the discussion with an amendment to let the tribe continue to receive the federal housing funds until the matter is settled in court. (After the March vote, a tribal court said the freedmen descendants may remain on the tribal rolls pending adjudication of the case, something the grandstanders in Congress apparently fail to realize or recognize.) Boren pointed out that "in this country, we have a judicial process in place that should be honored before Congress steps in to act." His concern about Congress' meddling is on target, as is that of a Cherokee official who worries about Congress punishing tribes "on a whim" whenever it disagrees with something they do. Copyright c. 2007 News 9/The Oklahoman, Produced by NewsOK.com. --------- "RE: Approved: Native American Housing Act" --------- Date: Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:13:59 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="HOUSE PASSES NAIHC" http://www.siskiyoudaily.com/articles/2007/09/12/ news/doc46e8146f1f61c939949082.txt Approved: Native American Housing act September 12, 2007 WASHINGTON, D.C. - The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination (NAHASDA) Reauthorization Act of 2007, a recent press release announced. "The House has shown its unequivocal commitment to address the dire housing needs of Indian Country," Marty Shuravloff, chairman of the National American Indian Housing Council (NAIHC), said in the release. Originally enacted in 1996, NAHASDA consolidated several federal housing programs into a single, formula-based block grant program. Built on the foundation of Indian self-determination law and policy, NAHASDA recognized tribal authority to provide housing and related infrastructure to their members in a way that maximizes tribal decision-making and flexibility in meeting their housing goals, the release stated. "This vote today means that Indian housing has passed a major milestone on the road to reauthorization. Passage of this bill in the House helps ensure that tribes and their housing authorities are provided the urgently needed tools to continue the efforts to improve the housing conditions that our people face every day," Shuravloff said in the release. "The amendment to expand housing and community development loan programs to include tribes is a welcome addition to NAHASDA," Shuravloff concluded. The NAIHC is composed of 265 members representing 428 tribes, and is the only national Indian organization representing Native American housing interests. For more information on this hearing or other housing news, visit www.naihc.net. Copyright c. 2006 Siskiyou Daily News, Yreka CA GateHouse Media, Inc. Some Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: Former Interior Official to Lead Indian Museum" --------- Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 07:28:16 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="GOVER TO HEAD NMAI" http://www.pechanga.net/ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/ article/2007/09/11/AR2007091102111.html Former Interior Official To Lead Indian Museum By Jacqueline Trescott and James V. Grimaldi Washington Post Staff Writers September 12, 2007 The Smithsonian Institution yesterday named Kevin Gover, a lawyer and former Interior Department official with no museum experience, to succeed W. Richard West as director of the National Museum of the American Indian. Gover, an Oklahoma Pawnee and former assistant secretary for Indian affairs at the Interior Department, is a former law partner of West, the museum's founding director. His office at Interior oversaw the Bureau of Indian Affairs, historically one of the most contentious agencies in the federal government. For the past four years, Gover has been a professor at the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State University in Tempe. "I came to this decision rather slowly. I knew the museum was looking for a director and I was one of the people who wondered who could replace Rick. But I got more and more interested. A key factor is that it is a glorious building with wonderful exhibits and collections. The basic things you need for a good museum are already there," Gover said. Sheila Burke, the outgoing Smithsonian deputy secretary and chief operating officer, was chairman of the search committee that recommended Gover. Smithsonian Acting Secretary Cristi?n Samper made the final decision. Burke said Gover's lack of museum experience wasn't a factor because West, a lawyer, had provided "the world's best example of how that could work." Tim Johnson, the museum's associate director, was among the finalists, according to someone close to the process. Burke said Gover was chosen over 10 candidates because "he has a strong presence, is committed to Indian country and the value and role of the museum in that community." West said Gover's lifelong work with Indian nations qualified him for the job. "He is a dedicated, competent public servant," West said. "He has good standing with the native community itself. He is a public figure who is well known and whose service to the native community is clear." Suzan Shown Harjo, a writer and prominent voice for Indian rights, endorsed the selection. "I think he is perfect. He is very analytical about systems, management, how to run things. There is so much going on at the museum and he knows how to sort out priorities," she said. During his tenure in Washington, Gover was at the center of the storm over tribal rights, tribal recognition, the role of the BIA and the billions of dollars held in trust by the government for the tribes. In 1999, Gover, along with then-Treasury Secretary Robert E. Rubin and Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, was held in contempt by U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth, who said the officials hadn't turned over the records from the trust fund to lawyers representing Native Americans in a lawsuit. Lamberth was later removed from the case. "It is still being resolved. The department is still producing the information it promised," Gover said. Harjo opposed the government in that dispute but says she was pleased that Gover was urging the government to settle the case. "I certainly encouraged the department to seek a settlement," Gover said. He also apologized in a widely covered speech about the role of the BIA in Indian matters, saying the agency had a "legacy of racism and inhumanity." In the 2000 speech, he also said, "this agency participated in the ethnic cleansing that befell the western tribes." Within days of his resignation, he joined Steptoe & Johnson, a law firm that had an Indian practice group and was representing tribes dealing with the BIA. Five days before joining the firm, Gover ruled in favor of the Wisconsin Menominee in their bid for a casino in Kenosha, Wis. The tribe had been represented by Steptoe & Johnson, the Star Tribune of Minneapolis reported at the time. However, tribes are considered governmental agencies and therefore exempt from the kind of revolving-door lobbying regulations that would apply to federal officials who go to work for corporations. Efforts to change the law have been introduced in Congress, but have not passed. After Gover left Interior, news stories reported on activities that could have created the appearance of a conflict of interest, said Meredith McGehee, policy director of the Campaign Legal Center. "In a situation like this, it makes you wonder if this individual is tone-deaf to questions of appearance," McGehee said yesterday. Within days of leaving the government, Gover wrote letters to tribes seeking lobbying work, according to stories by the Associated Press. "I practiced Indian law before the government and went back to the law practice after government. The law says you can't go to work for a state or local government on an issue you worked on at Interior. I avoided those," Gover said yesterday. Burke said he was questioned about those reports. "He was in full compliance with the rules," she said. The Indian museum, the Smithsonian's newest, opened in September 2004. The director's responsibilities also include managing the George Gustav Heye Center in New York and a Cultural Resources Center in Suitland. The museum on the Mall attracted 2.2 million visitors in 2005, its first full year, but traffic fell to 1.6 million last year. Since January it has had 1.3 million visitors. The museum's founders vowed to present Indian history differently, starting with the involvement of tribal curators in the development of the exhibits and telling stories from a Native American point of view. Its presentations left visitors confused. Gover said one of his tasks is to make sure people understand what stories the museum is telling. "It is very easy for me to walk in and understand what the museum is saying to me. I want to think about how to give the visitors enough context," he said. He said he would like to see more scholarship at the museum. "I would like to see the museum more active in publications. I want to see more high-profile activity in bringing in smart guys to give lectures." Gover studied at the St. Paul's prep school, then Princeton University, and earned his law degree at the University of New Mexico. Gover twice worked at the same firms as West, first in Washington briefly at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Kampelman and then at a firm Gover co-founded in Albuquerque. West was a partner at Gover, Stetson & Williams before leaving to be director of the Indian museum. West said there was no question of a conflict because that association was 20 years ago. West was a resource, Gover said. "I had a friend I could call and ask how are things shaping up," he said. In 1992, he organized Native Americans for Clinton/Gore. He did the same in 1996. West announced last October that he would be leaving his post this year, having shepherded the museum from the drawing board to a prominent spot on the Mall. He spent 17 years developing the museum. Copyright c. 1996-2007 The Washington Post Company. --------- "RE: Cobell blasts Gover's appointment to NMAI" --------- Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 07:28:16 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="COBELL EXPRESSES OUTRAGE AT GOVER HIRING" http://www.indianz.com/News/ http://www.indiantrust.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases. ViewDetail&PressRelease_id=181&Month=9&Year=2007 AMERICAN INDIAN MUSEUM TRUSTEE EXPRESSES OUTRAGE AT GOVER HIRING September 12, 2007 BROWNING, Mont., Sept. 12 - Elousie Cobell, a trustee of the National Museum of the American Indian, expressed outrage today that the Smithsonian Institution had hired Kevin Gover to be the museum's director without consulting with the board of trustees. "Kevin Gover was held in contempt of court in the class action lawsuit over the federal government's admitted mishandling of Indian Trust accounts," Ms. Cobell said. A member of the Blackfeet Nation, she is the lead plaintiff in the case, which was filed in 1996, shortly before Gover became assistant secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs. "Our case represents one of the most important instances in which the federal government has continued to abuse Native People and Mr. Gover played a key role in grossly managing the Individual Indian Trust and failing to produce records in the lawsuit over what Congress has called "the broken Indian Trust.'" "What this means is that the Smithsonian has hired someone to head this important museum who has literally thumbed his nose at Indian people -- some of the poorest people in the nation," she said. "His guilt in this case, along with that of his boss, Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, was never challenged by the government." "They fully admitted they had seriously wronged thousands of Indian families who depend on trust payments for their livelihood," she said. "This is truly a sad day for Native Americans." Kevin Gover was one of the named defendants in the class action lawsuit which demands that the government finally give Indians an accounting for monies it raised through the government sale and lease of Indian lands and their natural resources including oil, gas, timber, coal and minerals. He was found in civil contempt along with Babbitt and Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin by U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth on Feb. 22, 1999. The three were fined $300,000, a penalty which the government paid. Lamberth held them directly accountable for their failure to produce critical documents, and for the cover-up of their failure, after they had been ordered to produce them. "The federal government here did not just stub its toe," Judge Lamberth wrote. "It abused the rights of the plaintiffs to obtain these trust documents, and it engaged in a shocking pattern of deception of the court. I have never seen more egregious misconduct by the federal government." "Gover was held in contempt both for violating a court order that obligated him to produce critical trust documents and for covering up his disobedience," Ms. Cobell said. "Therefore there is not only serious concern about his hostility to Indian people but there is equal concern about his integrity, given the trial testimony and the undisputed findings of the United States District Court." Ms. Cobell said: "It is especially troubling that the Smithsonian would not discuss the new director with the trustees. I find it even more troubling that they would select an individual who showed such disrespect for Native People to head the museum." The Indian Trust was created in 1887 by Congress in the belief Native Americans could not manage their own lands and funds. Numerous government studies have shown that it was the government that was unable to manage the trust from the outset. Despite repeated complaints, the government has yet to complete a full accounting of what happened to the individual trust accounts that were established for an estimated 500,000 Native Americans. Ms. Cobell's lawsuit is still pending in U.S. District Court in Washington. Copyright c. 2007 Blackfeet Reservation Development Fund, Inc. All rights reserved. --------- "RE: Rocky Boy getting money to fight Alcoholism" --------- Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 07:28:16 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="FUNDING TO HELP ROCKY BOY FIGHT ALCOHOLISM" http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/Global/story.asp?S=7056501 Rocky Boy Indian Reservation getting money to fight alcoholism Cindy Cieluch Reporting from KRTV in Great Falls September 11, 2007 Some $250,000 is one the way to the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation to help with the battle against alcoholism as the Chippewa-Cree Tribe is being given a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The money will be used to set up a tribal family court service delivery system which will provide assessment, intervention, treatment, monitoring and case management services to a minimum of 40 families per year. Some $250,000 is one the way to the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation to help with the battle against alcoholism as the Chippewa-Cree Tribe is being given a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The money will be used to set up a tribal family court service delivery system which will provide assessment, intervention, treatment, monitoring and case management services to a minimum of 40 families per year. Copyright c. 2004 - 2007, WorldNow, Montana's News Station. --------- "RE: Tough Season for Columbia River Tribal Fishermen" --------- Date: Sat, 15 Sep 2007 14:29:01 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="LOW FISH HARVESTS" http://www.katu.com/news/local/9815426.html Tough season for Columbia river tribal fishermen By Thom Jensen and KATU Web Staff September 15, 2007 FORT RAINS, Wash. - It has been one of the toughest seasons on record for Columbia River tribal fishermen. Early forecasts said the Columbia River waters would hold as many as 250, 000 fall Chinook this year. That estimate has now been cut in half. In a good year tribal members say they'll get as many as a dozen fish in a net every night. This year they say they're lucky if they get two. "It's been not as good as we expected," said Tom Rodriguez, a Umatilla tribal member. "This week was supposed to be a big week for the fish to come over, but it just didn't happen." The tribes will soon start looking toward the spring. Biologists say the Columbia's spring run could be one of the best in the past 20 years. You can still buy fresh fall run salmon and steelhead from tribal fishermen at roadside markets on the Columbia. One of the largest is next to the Bridge of the Gods at Cascade Locks. Copyright c. 2007 KATU-TV, Portland, OR. --------- "RE: Gigantic Mine proposal tests values of Alaskans" --------- Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 07:28:16 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="SALMON FOR GOLD" http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003880315_almine12.html Gigantic mine proposal tests values of Alaskans By Margot Roosevelt Los Angeles Times September 12, 2007 NONDALTON, Alaska - Fly overhead in a bush plane - there are no roads between native villages - and see eight giant rivers braiding across hundreds of miles of wetlands, carving ribbons through snow-coned mountains before emptying into Bristol Bay. For more than 100 years, the wealth of this southwest Alaska watershed has sprung from the salmon nurtured by those wild rivers. Bank-to-bank, gill-to-gill, tens of millions of the silvery fish thrash upstream to spawn each year, unrestrained by dams, untainted by pollution. It is the largest sockeye run in the world, accounting for more than one-quarter of wild salmon harvested in the United States, feeding millions at a time fisheries are dwindling around the world. But if fish have made the region's past and present fortune, the future sparkles with the promise of precious metal. Beneath the rolling tundra, straddling the headwaters of two of the watershed's most productive rivers, a Canadian company has discovered North America's biggest deposits of gold and copper, worth about $300 billion in today's soaring commodities markets. The question is whether Alaskans will have to choose between the two - and whether the watershed, its fish and a variety of other wildlife will be casualties of what could be one of the world's biggest mines. The project would entail five earthen dams, of which two would be bigger than China's Three Gorges Dam. Fueled by daily pro and con advertising on Alaska television, the debate is engaging state and federal politicians, commercial fishermen, Eskimo and Indian villages, the international sportfishing community, environmental groups, major foundations and multinational conglomerates in a state that rarely turns down a major mine permit. Northern Dynasty Minerals, of Vancouver, B.C., and partly owned by London-based Rio Tinto, already has drilled hundreds of exploratory holes, some more than a mile deep, on state-owned land in what's known as the Pebble claim. London-based Anglo-American, one of the world's largest mining companies, said this summer that it would spend $1.4 billion for a 50 percent partnership to mine the metal. Opponents say a proposed Pebble mine would destroy one of the planet's last sustainable fisheries, dry up spawning streams and poison lakes and groundwater with acid runoff. Biologists have found that microscopic particles of copper dust can ruin salmon's genetic radar, which enables the fish to return from the bay to the streams where they were spawned. Bristol Bay's other wildlife - including one of the world's largest brown bear populations, a 45,000-head Mulchatna caribou herd, moose, wolverines, beavers and eagles - also depends on clean water. Northern Dynasty officials scoff at what they call an alarmist campaign. "We know Bristol Bay is a sensitive area," said Sean Magee, vice president for public affairs. "But there've been tremendous changes in the mining industry in the past 25 years. These projects can be done safely now: Mining and fishing can coexist." Huge project What is clear is that the mine - wedged between Lake Clark and Katmai national parks - would entail a staggering scale of industrialization. If the full resource were developed, up to 12 billion tons of earth would be excavated and milled to extract the tiny flecks of metal: about 82 million ounces of gold, 67 billion pounds of copper and 4 billion pounds of molybdenum. Ten square miles of impoundments would fill two valleys, to store in perpetuity more than 2.5 billion tons of waste rock and toxic residue. To transport equipment and ore, a 104-mile road would be cut through undeveloped forest and wetlands, skirting Lake Iliamna, Alaska's largest body of fresh water. The lake is host to rare freshwater seals and is a primary spawning bed for sockeye, the red-fleshed salmon that are among the world's most prized edible fish. Mining would mean high-paying, steady jobs at a time fish prices remain volatile and the North Slope oil that buoyed the economy is dwindling. Pebble would be run for 50 to 80 years, said Bruce Jenkins, Northern Dynasty's chief operating officer, and "go a long way toward eradicating poverty in southwest Alaska forever." More to come? And Pebble may be only the beginning. Northern Dynasty's exploration has sparked a surge of claim-staking, with eight other companies asserting rights over more than 700 square miles nearby. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management this month will decide whether to allow hard-rock drilling on 3,300 square miles of federal land in the area. "A massive mining district would carve the heart out of the watershed," said Richard Jameson, president of the Renewable Resources Coalition, a statewide anti-Pebble group that backs legislation and ballot measures to halt the mine. Northern Dynasty's environmental studies won't be ready until 2009, and obtaining the 67 required state and federal permits could take three more years. But already, Northern Dynasty's Magee said, "Debate is at fever pitch." Opponents are waging an uphill struggle. Because Pebble is on state land, the key decisions will come from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, whose commissioner, Tom Irwin, is a former mining executive and whose mission is to promote development. "It's the fox guarding the chicken coop," said Norman Van Vactor, Bristol Bay manager for Peter Pan Seafoods, which operates the area's oldest cannery. The outcome may hinge less on environmental values than on which economic resource Alaskans value most. "You can't eat gold," said Robin Samuelsen, a commercial fisherman and chief of the Curyung Tribal Council in Dillingham, the region's principal town. Bristol Bay's fishery, with $450 million in annual economic benefits, employs 10,000 people in seasonal jobs, including 6,800 fishermen. It could grow in value: Contaminants have come to light in farmed seafood, and consumers increasingly are turning to wild salmon for health benefits and superior taste. This time of year, the rivers that feed Bristol Bay are bedecked with racks of drying salmon, ready to be stored for winter. In an area where imported food is prohibitively expensive, several thousand Athabaskan Indians and Yupik Eskimos depend on fish, moose, caribou, wild greens and berries. "I'd rather eat porcupine than hamburger," said Jack Hobson, tribal- council president of Nondalton, the village closest to the proposed mine. An Athabaskan outpost of about 220 residents, with its homes of clapboard and corrugated steel, it's plastered with anti-Pebble signs. Hobson has been a vocal opponent of the mine since the Renewable Resources Coalition flew him and other native leaders to see mines in Nevada. There, he said, they saw landscape that looked as if it had been "bombed": huge pits, contaminated water and depleted aquifers that forced a local Indian tribe to truck in drinking water. Northern Dynasty's helicopters, he said, have scared away caribou for the past two years, depriving villagers of a diet staple. Once the mine is built, he added, "dust will blow all over the plants and the animals will eat this stuff, and - oh boy!" The region's 50 commercial lodges also are threatened. The international sportfishing mecca attracts anglers who pay up to $8,000 a week. Fighting for approval In the past two years, Northern Dynasty has mounted a public-relations campaign, helicoptering in nearly 1,000 politicians, business leaders, teachers and other influential Alaskans to the site. The company has made 800 presentations, in remote villages and in Anchorage, offering residents expense-paid trips. Tribal leaders have been hired as "community-outreach people," and more than 120 local residents are on Northern Dynasty's payroll as $17-an-hour drill assistants, bear guards and in other mine-related jobs. Opponents accuse the company of buying influence, but Magee replies: "We don't apologize for hiring local people." Opponents also have deep-pocket patrons, including Anchorage investor Robert Gillam, head of McKinley Capital Management, who has a private lodge 24 miles from the Pebble claim. The foundation of another wealthy angler, Intel pioneer Gordon Moore, has awarded $5 million to local conservationists, including Earthworks, a Washington, D.C.-based group organizing jewelers to boycott Pebble gold. "Most Americans will never get to Bristol Bay," said Brian Kraft, who owns a local fishing lodge and works for the conservation group Trout Unlimited. "But they see our bears playing in waterfalls on the Discovery Channel. They can experience the taste of wild salmon. "They know that we can destroy places like this, but we can't create them." Copyright c. 2007 The Seattle Times Company. --------- "RE: Ancient healing methods used to treat NA Soldiers" --------- Date: Thu, 13 Sep 2007 07:35:26 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="TRADITIONAL HEALING FOR WARRIORS" http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0913/p20s01-usmi.html Federal government taps ancient healing methods to treat Native American soldiers The veterans administration teams up with medicine men to use sweat lodges and talking circles to deal with post-traumatic stress disorder. By Jennifer Miller | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor September 13, 2007 Rock Spring, N.M. - In a dusty lot on the Navajo reservation, a cleansing ceremony is about to take place. Women sit on rickety chairs outside a hogan, (a circular, squat Navajo home with a dirt floor). A line of parked cars sizzle in the Southwestern sun. Suddenly, a pack of horses rushes into view. They stop just short of the hogan, their hooves beating up a cloud of dust. A man appears in the doorway - an unassuming figure, dressed in a work shirt, jeans, and cowboy boots. He is a medicine man who has spent decades learning ancient Navajo healing techniques. He waits for the lead rider - the patient - to dismount and then ushers him inside. For the next hour, the spiritual leader, Alfred Gibson, conducts an "enemy way" ceremony, a form of Navajo therapy that cleanses physically and mentally ill individuals by forcing them to confront their pain. The technique is increasingly being used across the American West to help native American soldiers deal with the traumas of war. While healers on Indian reservations have always employed such methods, the government offers most returning native American soldiers standard Western psychological counseling and medical help. Now, however, native American leaders and the Department of Veterans Affairs are teaming up to use both approaches in hopes of better serving the needs of Indian soldiers. Mr. Gibson, for one, works during the week as a counselor at the Na'nizhoozhi Rehabilitation Center, a treatment facility in Gallup, N.M., run by tribal entities and the local county government. To help patients battle addiction and psychological trauma, Na'nizhoozhi often pairs psychotherapy and medication with sweat lodge ceremonies and drumming sessions. But the goal, Gibson says, is always to "do away with the medication - to help patients learn the traditional ways of healing." Similarly, Veterans Affairs hospitals throughout New Mexico now run special programs for native American vets that include talking circles, sweat lodge ceremonies, and gourd dances. "We have to allow native Americans the opportunity to explore the culture that has been damaged, if not taken away," says Dr. James Gillies, a psychologist in the post- traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) clinic at the VA Medical Center in Albuquerque, N.M. "To be a soul doctor is to embrace the souls of the people you work with." --- Native American vets have a real need for this kind of attention. Tribal members join the military at higher per capita rates than almost any other minority group. They also tend to suffer disproportionately from the effects of war - as evidenced in high drug-abuse and suicide rates among returning soldiers. Studies have shown that native Americans who served in Vietnam were far more likely to struggle with PTSD than white soldiers. Counselors and tribal leaders believe a more "holistic" approach to treating the problem - combining traditional and modern methods - should help a new generation of soldiers now returning from Iraq. "The 'enemy way' ceremony rejuvenates them," says Gibson. "The songs, prayers, drumming, and herbs we use cleanse the body from the effects of war." The morning after the ceremony, Gibson and I sit on a sagging couch in the empty hogan. I ask if he believes one healing ceremony can provide a long-term release from the psychological imprint of combat. Gibson says that a series of ceremonies are often required, each addressing a different aspect of the patient's illness. "And it depends on the individual," he says. "It's just like a person who's addicted to alcohol. If he wants to get help, he will get better. But if he's two ways about it, it won't help him." Dr. Gillies sees the benefits of marrying both approaches. He says modern Western therapy teaches vets "how to think about trauma" in a systematic and linear fashion. The basic treatment asks combat veterans to talk about their painful experiences in war. "We ask them to slow [the experience] down," Gillies says. "To approach it again and again." Each time, the memory is supposed to be a little less painful. The concept is similar to that behind the "enemy way" ceremony, but it lacks the cultural and spiritual foundation that forms the basis of Gibson's work. After working on the Acoma Pueblo reservation outside Albuquerque, Gillies began to see that the Indian veteran population responded to this added cultural component. They are dealing with what he calls "intergenerational trauma": The struggles they've faced as native Americans often compound the effects of their PTSD. With its lamps and bookshelves, Gillies's office feels like a small study. The young-looking doctor has the kind of relaxed demeanor that puts his patients at ease. While traditional psychotherapy and medication have their place, he says, you also have to work "within the mythology, the ritual" of the people you're dealing with. Twice a month, Gillies moderates a talking circle made up of mostly Vietnam-era native American vets. The meeting has no formal structure, and participants say there is less interruption than during normal group therapy sessions. Gregory Gomez, an Apache Indian who served with the Marine Corps in Vietnam, participates in the talking group. He says it helps him be "a little more rested, a little stronger to deal with the outside society." Mr. Gomez, a large, expressive man with a gray ponytail and a single red feather earring, has a degree in social work and is well versed in Western forms of therapy. He also participates in the VA's standard PTSD program and meets with Gillies for individual counseling. But the talking circle addresses what he calls his "Indian world-view." "We're dealing with our spiritual needs," he says. "In other groups, there's a void." Gomez doesn't have an easy definition for what spirituality is. As he puts it: "It's 24/7, a way of life. It's not a religion, but [the notion that] we don't own anything in this world. Our job is to help Mother Earth." --- The sweat lodge is another cleansing tool centered around the connection to Mother Earth. Gillies and his native American patients convinced the VA medical center in Albuquerque to build one on a sandy plot behind the PTSD clinic. "It's a place for cleansing our soul," says Ambrose Willie, a reed-thin man who served with the Army in Vietnam. Mr. Willie surveys the construction site, scrutinizing a series of prairie dog holes. In his barely audible voice, he wonders how to remove the rodents. Ultimately, he decides that prairie dogs and humans can cohabitate. The sweat lodge "teaches us to live in harmony with our surroundings," he says. Willie explains that the main elements of the sweat lodge - fire, water, and stone - represent the basic elements of nature. He and Gomez have long anticipated the lodge's completion. They believe it can bring them one step closer to mental stability. "When we leave the doorway," Willie says, "our mind, body, and spirit are one." Up in Window Rock, Ariz., 170 miles north, Gibson holds a similar view. "When soldiers go overseas, we give them warrior ceremonies to armor and protect them against the battle," says the medicine man. "When the soldier comes back, we have to remove that armor, to help him reconnect with his home." Copyright c. 2007 The Christian Science Monitor. All rights reserved. --------- "RE: Tradition intersects with Soldier's Life at Powwow" --------- Date: Mon, 10 Sep 2007 07:39:11 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="HONORING VETERANS" http://www.kansas.com/news/local/story/170845.html American Indian tradition intersects with a soldier's life at annual powwow BY ICESS FERNANDEZ The Wichita Eagle September 10, 2007 Apache Jaynesahkluah, offered a dance Sunday afternoon for those who fight, have fought and continue to fight. He offered them his highest respect and honor. He offered them a continuation of his centuries-old cultural customs at the annual powwow at the Mid-America All-Indian Center. "Being Indian is a way of life, not a blood degree," he said. "It's like being a soldier. You're a soldier 24 hours a day and you're an Indian 24 hours a day." Jaynesahkluah is a warrior, a member of the Kansas Army National Guard who returned in November from a stint in Iraq. "The reason I went to Iraq is to defend the right to have this," he said of the event. "In our culture, veterans are placed on a pedestal. I was very proud to answer the call. What we have is worth fighting for, worth defending." A powwow is, first, a social gathering, and that is what happened on Sunday. Moms tickled their infant children, brothers convened in lively conversations, old friends exchanged gossip and welcoming embraces, and children with bright happy faces pursued each other in a voluntary, or sometimes involuntary, game of tag. At the gathering, which started Saturday, tribes from across the nation were represented. They sang the songs of their ancestors, said David Burditt, vice chairman of the Wichita-Kansas Intertribal Warrior Society. Most of the dancers were veterans but some danced in honor of others. "We are the only people I know that really honor a veteran," Burditt said. "We not only honor our veterans, but we have songs for the veterans of our enemies. Their courage and sacrifice is not forgotten." At the powwow, Jaynesahkluah joined the drum circle to support his brother, Chris Leading Fox, who was the lead singer. Half a dozen men and two boys joined the drumming, starting steady and growing louder. The men's voices were in unison, but each had its own character and sound, making the song resonate against the walls. The gourd dancers, all male, started in a large circle that moved and shifted several times, their steps delicate, but deliberate. A little more than a half-dozen women joined in. Their shoulders wrapped in brightly colored shawls, they bounced in place as they kept time with the drums, shaking hands and saying hello as they recognized people dancing in their circle. This tradition that Jaynesahkluah has fought to keep alive and practice is the reason he's a soldier. "As long as there is breath in me, there will be our words and our songs," he said. "It will not die in my hands." Reach Icess Fernandez at 316-268-6544 or ifernandez@wichitaeagle.com. Copyright c. 2007 Wichita Eagle. --------- "RE: MCT holds strong against the use Blood Quantum" --------- Date: Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:13:59 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="MINNESOTA CHIPPEWA TRIBES REJECT QUANTUM REQUIREMENT" http://www.whiteearth.com/pdfs/news/2007/Aug222007.pdf MCT holds strong against the use blood quantum By Jill Doerfler August 22, 2007 Despite pressure from the BIA and the rejection of several resolutions requiring lineal descent for tribal citizenship the MCT seemed to have no intention of limiting tribal citizenship based on a racial requirement. In June 1948 they stood up to the Consolidated Chippewa Agency's use of blood quantum, passing a resolution insisting that all "Chippewa Indians" be treated as such by the Consolidated Chippewa Agency. The resolution stated: NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that we insist that all Chippewa Indians entitled to enrollment under the provisions of the Act of 1889 and their issue, regardless of marital status, degree of blood or place of birth been entitled to and be given all the rights, benefits and privileges incident to and given to all regular enrolled Indians now on such rolls of the Consolidated Chippewa Agency at Cass Lake, Minnesota and that in particular this policy be applied and followed with respect to medical and hospital care under the jurisdiction of this Agency, and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that all such persons referred to herein be considered Chippewa Indians and entitled to all benefits as such. The MCT was careful to clearly include clauses that would ensure wide inclusion. Neither blood status, residency, nor marital status were to be used to exclude Anishinaabeg from tribal citizenship and the services provided by the Consolidated Chippewa Agency. While the resolution makes it clear that the individuals are "entitled to all benefits" it makes specific reference to medical care implying that health and medical care were of prominent concern. The MCT took a bold stand against the use of blood quantum to define who was and who was not Indian when they passed this resolution. They were also asserting their right to determine tribal citizenship over that of the Consolidated Chippewa Agency and the Secretary of the Interior. The TEC continued to find an answer to the question of tribal citizenship. On Dec. 9, 1948, TEC minutes note a "lengthy discussion of enrollment" that seems to have went on for at least a couple of hours but unfortunately, in this case, no details were recorded. The meeting continued and two days later the Tribal Executive Committee unanimously passed a new resolution relating to tribal citizenship. The resolution stated, "Indians not now enrolled as members of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, if able to so prove shall be enrolled if he or she is a descendant of a member of the Tribe" provided both Tribal Delegates and the Secretary of the Interior approved the resolution. The tribal delegates unanimously passed the resolution on May 21, 1949. The Secretary of the Interior, William Warne, rejected the resolution on Dec. 9, 1949 because it allowed all Anishinaabeg to enroll with no blood quantum or residency restrictions. It was the job of U.S. government officials to see that the MCT created a citizenship requirement that allowed as few Anishinaabeg as possible to enroll. Getting the MCT to pass a resolution on tribal citizenship that would be approved by the Secretary of the Interior became of increasing concern to federal officials. On Sept. 19, 1951, the Commission of Indian Affairs wrote to Don Foster, Area Director of Minneapolis, about the problem. The Commissioner noted that the resolutions passed by the MCT were "in conflict with the policy expressed by Congress and followed by the Department of the Interior to the effect that the application of Indian benefits should be limited to those person who are Indians by virtue of actual tribal affiliation or by virtue of possessing one-half or more Indian blood." The Commissioner said that the MCT should be urged to pass a more restrictive resolution offering ideas such as requiring that "both parents are recognized members of the tribe, or that the residence of the parents is within the reservation, or that the child is of a certain degree of Indian blood." It appears that the Commissioner was trying to get Foster to place pressure on the MCT to pass a resolution that would be approved. The MCT continued to resist the adoption of a blood quantum requirement for tribal citizenship. In 1959 elected leaders of the MCT were again working together to fight the use of blood quantum, even going so far as to attempt to get the BIA to stop using it. At a meeting on March 23, 1959, the TEC unanimously passed a resolution that noted the one-quarter degree policy had "created much confusion, hardship, and conflict" and requested the "__degree policy set forth by the Bureau of Indian Affairs be eliminated." In this case the TEC went beyond their own regulations to encourage change in BIA practices. They went so far as to request that U.S. elected officials and other agencies join with them in their effort. In requesting the elimination of the onequarter degree policy the MCT reinforced their commitment to lineal descent and showed no signs of willingness to accept blood quantum as a requirement for tribal citizenship. Yet in two short years the MCT would pass an ordinance that required onequarter blood quantum for tribal citizenship. The next article will discuss this dramatic change. Copyright c. 2007 Anishinaabeg Today, White Earth, MN. --------- "RE: Tlingits welcome non-Natives into Family" --------- Date: Thu, 13 Sep 2007 07:35:26 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="TLINGIT MAKING FAMILY" http://www.indianz.com/News/ http://www.adn.com/life/story/9298841p-9213434c.html 'Gunalcheesh' - Tlingit for 'thank you' - says volumes HEATHER LENDE September 13, 2007 HAINES - By the time I was handed the thermal blanket, I was out of room on the table, my lap and the floor for any more gifts. I already had a bag of fruit and cans of Vienna sausages, pork and beans, fruit cocktail and corn. There were also socks, jars of jam, soap, coffee, microwave popcorn, pens, oven mitts, smoked salmon and lots of Top Ramen. "It wouldn't be a potlatch without Top Ramen," my friend Tony said as we rose, waving a few packages in the air to Tlingit chanting. I was glad for the activity. I was sleepy and very full. It was after midnight, more than 12 hours since the party began. I had eaten pilot bread, salmon spread, berries, moose stew, salmon and rice, prime rib with potatoes, gravy and carrots and, most recently, lox and cream cheese on a bagel. A Tlingit friend told me the only rule at a potlatch is never, ever say "No, thank you." Like the other guests, I had left my seat only during the handful of designated five-minute breaks. In the daylight, I'd used them to walk around the village. But after dark, when the bears were out, I stayed closer to the back porch of the Klukwan Alaska Native Sisterhood Hall. The memorial party for a Tlingit leader from Juneau with Klukwan connections was like Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter all in one, with food, gifts and the promise of heaven. I was at the party because my husband was being adopted by his hunting partner, who was also the host. This tradition of inviting non-Natives into the family at these parties is an old one that honors connections in the community, confirms friendships and helps perpetuate the culture. It is generous and practical: Whenever they lose someone, they add a few more. My husband will be an Eagle. In Tlingit culture, there are two equal and reciprocal halves, Ravens and Eagles, called moieties. They take care of each other. Every Tlingit is a Raven or an Eagle, and you marry into the opposite moiety. When an Eagle dies, the Ravens support them. So now the Eagles were paying back the Ravens, and thanking them, with what is usually called a potlatch, or payoff party, but the proper term is Khoo.e'ex', which means to call or invite. The party also ends the mourning period. This one was a continuation of a party that began in Juneau. The person it memorialized, Austin Brown, had lived there but had deep tribal roots here. Since this was the happy half of the memorial (all the sad parts had been done), the Eagle hosts, who weren't allowed to sit at the tables but cooked, served, gave gifts and entertained us, had a lot of fun making their Raven guests smile. They told jokes, some in Tlingit, most in English, and sang jazz standards and Tlingit songs. Florence Sheakley, a woman I had pegged as a stern keeper-of-tradition type - she has steel-gray hair and teaches Tlingit-language classes at the university in Juneau - proved me wrong when she and her family did a "Mrs. Don Ho" musical revue that included singing "Tiny Bubbles" in Tlingit with Hawaiian costumes and hula dancing. There was so much more - some slapstick, some solemn, some I understood, much I didn't - and all the while, more gifts were given and more food was served. A novel could be written about what happened to a Chilkat blanket by master weaver Anna Brown Ehlers. After formally presenting it as a gift, she said she would cut it up. There was a long silence as the blanket was taken down and she carefully sliced it into small pieces that she gave to special people. The beautiful, rare blanket, worth thousands of dollars, was apparently destroyed to repair a tear in the fabric of the tribe that happened so long ago most of the folks didn't know the details. Anna's father had, though, and it was his dying wish that she do this to make whatever was wrong right again. It was a huge display of faith in tradition, and a powerful statement about the cultural significance of a Chilkat blanket versus its value as an art object. But it was way more than that. It may sound crazy now that she cut up her beautiful blanket, but in witnessing it, I felt holier than during anything I've seen in church. When we finally poured out of the hall into the pre-dawn darkness and walked toward trucks and cars to the rhythm of the wind in the cottonwoods and the hum of the river - the same backbeat that has mixed with the songs of Klukwan villagers for thousands of years - I wondered how I could properly thank them for a seat at their table and an invitation to their party. A note seemed too small. Then I remembered what an elder had said hours earlier: "If you just say 'Thank you,' that is a great speech. Sometimes, 'thank you' is the greatest speech you can give." --- Heather Lende lives and writes in Haines and is the author of "If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name." She can be reached at hlende@adnmail.com. Copyright c. 2007, The Anchorage Daily News, a subsidiary of The McClatchy Company --------- "RE: ED: Candidates can't afford to ignore Indian vote" --------- Date: Sat, 8 Sep 2007 09:32:53 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="EDITORIAL: INDIAN VOTE CRUCIAL" http://www.indianz.com/News http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070907/OPED01/709070424 Editorial Candidates can't afford to ignore Indian vote RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL September 7, 2007 Noting that only three of the eight major Democratic presidential contenders showed at the first effort to bring them to "Indian country," voters and organizers are justified in wondering if they are as good as their words. The tribes are eager to increase their activity in the electoral process. Meanwhile, the Democratic Party and the candidates articulated a need to include them. That's part of what Nevada's early caucuses are all about. Except for Gov. Bill Richardson, U.S. Sen. Mike Gravel and Congressman Dennis Kucinich, candidates' failure to show at a forum held in Southern California by the Morongo Band of Mission Indians is what has folks wondering. The organizer of a forum set on a Choctaw reservation in Oklahoma said as much. U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton displayed a level of commitment in Nevada with an advisory committee of tribal leaders, including Arlan Melendez, chairman of the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony. For some, passing on the Morongo event could cast a shadow on her commitment. Candidates must spend campaign time, of course, where they can realize the greatest voter value. The closer they come to caucus and primary season, they'll be pressured to visit every group that requests it. Meanwhile, American Indians constitute only about 2 percent of the population. As a group, Indians are maturing economically, which means donations, and politically, meaning votes. In addition to gathering voting power, they contributed $7.6 million to federal candidates and spent $16.7 million on Washington lobbies last year. That is not something any candidate can afford to ignore. Copyright c. 2007 Reno Gazette-Journal, a Gannett Co. Inc. Newspaper. --------- "RE: YELLOW BIRD: Sharing breaks down Culture Barriers" --------- Date: Sat, 8 Sep 2007 09:32:53 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="YELLOW BIRD: SHARING" http://www.grandforksherald.com/articles/index.cfm? id=49563§ion=columnists&columnist=Dorreen%20Yellow%20Bird Sharing breaks down culture barriers Dorreen Yellow Bird September 8, 2007 This is one of those excellent adventures this time into Indian country, the Red Lake Reservation and the community of Ponemah, Minn. It's about looking at the Ojibway culture through the eyes of Yangkyoung Lee, a friend and colleague from Seoul, South Korea. It was a good trip with the turbulent and fitful weather of August mellowing into a wonderful, fall-like day. The wetlands and forest areas of north-central Minnesota last weekend were absolutely perfect. As we moved farther and farther into the deep forest areas of the reservation by the back roads, our path was lined with bright yellow black-eyed Susans, sunflowers and tall, grainy sedge and wetland grasses. In the thick of the wetlands, lazy, slow creeks from Upper Red Lake crawled alongside the highway. Ducks, pelicans, great blue herons and other water birds were paddling around the edges of the water, sometimes dipping into the water and hoisting their tails high. It was that kind of day. When we arrived in Red Lake, the community was bustling with construction and activities. The old high school, where the tragic shooting took place in 2005, was full of earth-moving equipment and piles of dirt. The tribe tore down the part of the school where the deaths occurred, and the new areas are beginning to take on a new air and shape perhaps like the tribe. One of my reasons for visiting Red Lake was to bring some books I had collected for the tribal college library. They always are grateful and happy for them. This time, one of the women told me the elementary school also needed books. The school didn't even have "Tom Sawyer," she said. I would put the word out, I told her, so anyone who has books they no longer needed can contact me or the Red Lake Elementary School with their book donations. The long shadows of the tall pines meant that it was time to head for Ponemah and the powwow. Ponemah is one of Red Lake's most traditional communities. A large percentage of the residents speak the language, and the culture is intact, a council member told me. This small community is some distance from Red Lake proper and lies in a nook between Upper and Lower Red lakes. When we arrived, the powwow people were setting up. The arena is settled a short distance from the lake. Many campers set up near the lake and took advantage of the beautiful lake view, and I'm sure they were grateful there were just a few gnats and no mosquitoes. When the crowds arrived and after we'd had our share of Indian tacos, Darrell Seki, tribal councilman, and Tom Stillday, spiritual leader, welcomed and prayed for the community in Ojibway. As each dancer entered the arena, dropping tobacco (asemaa), they circled the arena until it was filled with the sounds of the drums, the singers and the jingling bells from the dancers' outfits. Next to the drums, the major sound was the jingle-dress dancers they outnumbered almost everyone and ranged in age from barely walking to white-haired women in their 80s. This shouldn't have surprised me. Red Lake is culturally Ojibway, and according to the stories told to me by my friends there, the jingle dress came from the Ojibway culture. Here is the jingle-dress story as I heard it: The traditional dresses are made of prints or cotton broadcloth. Sometimes, it's asked that no eagle feathers or plumes be worn with the dress. On the dresses are 2- to 3-inch cone-shaped cylinders that are sewed in circles around the dress. The cones usually are made from Copenhagen snuff tins. Some say there are 365 cones or jingles, to represent the days in a year. There are different stories about why the dress came to be. One story says that the dress came about when a man's daughter was very sick. In a dream, he was told to make four jingle dresses and have four women dance and pray for his daughter. After four days, she got well. To be able to wear the dress, I was told, a woman has to acquire the rights through spiritual healing and medicine. Most important, the dress always is worn with pride and grace. After about three hours, I could see a strange darkness creeping over the trees. I thought it was fog, but it wasn't. In fact, I'm not sure what it was, but the easy journey to Ponemah turned out to be more frustrating on my return because I got lost driving on unmarked roads that night. We ended up in Bemidji before we turned toward home. On our way home, we talked about Ojibway culture, and I learned some things about Korean culture. Sharing is a good way to bring understanding among people of different cultures. --- Dorreen Yellow Bird is a reporter and columnist. Her columns appear Wednesdays and Saturdays on the opinion pages of the Herald. Reach her at (701) 780-1228 or dyellowbird@gfherald.com Copyright c. 2007 Grand Forks Herald, Forum Communications Co., Fargo ND. --------- "RE: JODI RAVE: Workshop focuses on respect for Culture" --------- Date: Sun, 9 Sep 2007 11:01:46 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="JODI RAVE: RESPECT FOR CULTURE ON THE JOB" http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2007/09/09/jodirave/rave39.txt Native News Workshop focuses on respect for culture on the job By JODI RAVE of the Missoulian September 9, 2007 PABLO - It's not always easy to see the world from someone else's perspective when they come from different cultural or ethnic backgrounds. The situation can intensify when one of these people is supposed to be helping the other. The problems can become especially evident in the workplace, and they can be further compounded in the mental health arena, according to presenters at a cultural competency workshop last week at Salish Kootenai College on the Flathead Reservation. More than 80 people participated in the workshop to discuss an issue that affects everyone, from mental health workers to Burger King employees. Here's the bottom line: "How do we treat each other equitably and with respect?" said Joyce Silverthorne, education director for the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. "This is not just about ethnic differences." Respect in the workplace extends into myriad areas, which is why conference sponsors - Meloney Ridley, director of the Lifelong Learning Center at Salish Kootenai College, and Bill Tuss, president of Vantage West - are already responding to demand for an additional conference in the spring. Next year's event will specifically reach out to K-12 school employees. Paul Meyer, executive director of the Western Montana Mental Health Center, described the two-day "Cultural Competency for Mental Health Professionals Workshop" as "superb." The event, which ended Friday, was organized at the request of people who saw mental health clients slipping through the cracks after their health-care providers failed to effectively communicate with them. Meyer said he was approached by Tom Camel, a board member of the center: "He said, `You really need a wake-up call for some of your employees. They need to understand cultural competence issues.' I said, `We do Tom. You need to help us.' " Camel agreed. "One of my passions is getting appropriate services to people of color, something that works for them," said the Vietnam veteran. "I got my own counseling from people who were not culturally competent at all. They couldn't relate to me. They couldn't understand me. It is hard to open up and understand a different culture, especially majority culture people who think they know what they're doing. ? They're in control." He said people in control often don't think about listening. "There's a power difference," said Camel. "Whites have power that we don't have, that Indians don't have," said the citizen of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, who is also African American. Workshop organizers raised issues that are often ignored in a state where nearly one in 10 adults suffer from depression. Montana also has one of the nation's highest suicide rates, according to a report of the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration. In response to the state's critical need, the Montana Legislature in 2007 increased spending for mental health services by 30 percent. "No family escapes mental illness on some level," said Meyer, noting common effects of the diseases, which include suicide and depression. Suicide rates among Native people are typically two to three times higher than the national average. Meyer said it's been 10 years since any of the Western Montana Mental Health Center employees last attended a workshop to help them see past the world in which they live. The center has clinics in 15 counties and 640 employees who work daily with people of all ethnic, racial, economic, religious and social backgrounds. "Hopefully, they will leave with a better understanding of the white power structure and what that means for minority individuals in it," said Meyer. "A lot of people we serve have sort of a double whammy of a major disability and a racial identity of being a minority person. That makes it twice as hard for that person to feel competent and confident as they move forward. Our employees, in particular, need to understand that." Kellie LaFave, a Fort Harrison Veterans Administration Medical Center suicide prevention coordinator in Helena, said the workshop made her realize she could approach her job differently. "With the best of intentions, one could still be causing harm to others, " said LaFave. "The goal in the mental health profession is not to do harm, but to do the best that you can." It's often workers from white, middle-class upbringings who have a difficult time seeing past their own personal bias or preconceived stereotypes of different ethnic groups, said conference presenter Aida Hutz. These people often don't understand the automatic advantages that come with light skin and a middle-class lifestyle. They have only experienced a life in which they were born into a world of "white privilege," where skin color and economic factors automatically give them an edge in everything from buying a home to finding a job. "I always thought I'm not racist," said Shirley Tiernan, a recruiter for Walla Walla University's master's degree in social work program. "It's always good for me to think about white privilege. I thought I worked hard. But I had a lot going for me. The culture accepted me." Reach Missoulian columnist Jodi Rave at 800-366-7186 or jodi.rave@lee.net Copyright c. 2007 Missoulian, a division of Lee Enterprises. --------- "RE: AMBROSE: Over-regulation killing Indian Country" --------- Date: Mon, 10 Sep 2007 07:39:11 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="AMBROSE: KILLING INDIAN ENTERPRISE" http://www.indianz.com/News http://www.courierpress.com/news/2007/sep/08/too-muchregulation/ Too much regulation Self-determinationis key to aiding American Indians Jay Ambrose, Scripps Howard News Service September 8, 2007 American Indians are poorer than any other racial or ethnic group in the United States, so let's try yet more depend