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A 155-year-old treaty is central to defining what law enforcement services the United States is obligated to provide to the Oglala Sioux Tribe. But questions still remain about what that entails and what it means for the rest of Indian Country.
The “Bad Men Clause” within the 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty with the Oceti Sakowin (Lakota, Dakota and Nakota) states the United States is responsible for the protection of tribal citizens. This clause is now central to the 2022 lawsuit launched by the Oglala Sioux Tribe.
In July 2022, the tribe launched a lawsuit against the United States arguing that the United States has failed to uphold its treaty obligation of protecting the signatories of the 1868 treaty from “bad men.” The police department only has 30 employees and has struggled to keep up with an influx in emergency calls.
Currently, both parties, the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the United States, are in discussion and looking to negotiate a settlement per the judge’s order in the coming weeks. READ MORE — Amelia Schafer, ICT and Rapid City Journal
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The U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska granted the Alaska Federation of Natives’ motion on Friday to intervene in U.S. v. Alaska, the latest case challenging Katie John,
“This is a welcomed ruling,” said AFN President Julie Kitka in a press release. “AFN has a special place in this litigation—dating all the way back to ANCSA and ANILCA—and culminating most recently in Sturgeon. We’ll defend the legal rights of Alaska Natives to engage in subsistence hunting and fishing anytime our ways of life are threatened.”
U.S. v. Alaska began in 2021 when the State of Alaska refused to honor U.S. Fish and Wildlife subsistence management decisions on the Kuskokwim River. It escalated again in 2022 when the state did the same.
Specifically, the state refused to abide by federal closures regarding salmon fishing along certain parts of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta based on low escapement numbers. USFWS had simultaneously permitted qualified federal subsistence users (rural Alaska residents) to participate in limited openings.
AFN expects that U.S. v. Alaska will eventually make its way to the Supreme Court.
“The Alaska Native community is very diverse, but we are of one mind when it comes to protecting our way of life,” AFN Co-Chair Joe Nelson said. “Prioritizing local access to local foods is common sense.” — ICT
Opposing campaigners made their final pitches on Friday over changing Australia’s constitution to acknowledge a place for Indigenous Australians on the eve of the nation’s first referendum in a generation.
The referendum has the potential to amend Australia’s founding legal document for the first time since 1977. But opinion polls suggest that the amendment will be rejected as more than four-in-five referendums have been in the past.
Australians are being asked to alter the constitution to recognize the “First Peoples of Australia” by establishing an Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
The committee composed of and chosen by Indigenous Australians would advise the Parliament and government on issues that affect the nation’s most disadvantaged ethnic minority. READ MORE. — Associated Press
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from ICT with the latest news from the arts and entertainment world. READ MORE — Sandra Hale Schulman, ICT
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PHOENIX — For a few hours, Krystal Curley and her Indigenous women’s work group took over a college auditorium to share traditional Navajo practices regarding this weekend’s highly anticipated solar eclipse. More than 50 people — young and old — showed up for the chance to either connect with or remember cultural protocol going back hundreds of years.
They laid out books on Navajo astronomy and corn pollen used for blessings. A medicine man fielded questions from the majority Navajo, or Diné, audience on what to do when the moon partially shrouds the sun.
Don’t: Look at the eclipse, eat, drink, sleep or engage in physical activity.
Do: Sit at home and reflect or pray during what’s considered an intimate, celestial moment.
“There’s so many things we’re not supposed to do as Diné people compared to other tribes, where it’s OK for them to look at the eclipse or be out or do things,” said Curley, executive director of nonprofit Indigenous Life Ways.
The belief is pronounced on the Navajo Nation but not shared among all Indigenous cultures in North, Central and South America that will be in the primary viewing path for the “ring of fire” eclipse Saturday. Navajo, which has the largest reservation in the U.S., is closing well-known tourist destinations like Monument Valley and the Four Corners Monument to allow residents to be at home with curtains drawn in silence. READ MORE— Associated Press
- Health and wellness in community: On the Thursday edition of the ICT Newscast, Indigenous Peoples Day celebrations continue this week, we’re highlighting the stories and people from across Turtle Island in this special edition of the ICT Newscast
- Couple settles lawsuit after daughters’ hair was cut: The settlement requires the school to get consent from parents before cutting students’ hair and to implement cultural competency training for staff
- The man behind the Native Hall of Fame: James Parker Shield has gone from rough and tumble street survivor to founder of the National Native American Hall of Fame
- Northwest Native fashion show a hit: The second annual Northwest Native Fashion Show was a festival of cultural celebration. Organizers see it as a way to merge traditional and Western culture
- For CLUSI, a time to recognize resiliency among the tribe and landscape
- “For the People”, a comedy set in Minneapolis’ Native community, to debut at Guthrie Theater
- ‘In the North’ – Minnesota’s first independent Indigenous museum opens in an ‘ironic’ location
We want your tips, but we also want your feedback. What should we be covering that we’re not? What are we getting wrong? Please let us know. dalton@ictnews.org.
