The shame of anti-Indian lobbying ñ by Indians. It sure is hard to have much respect for tribes that actually lobby to hurt other tribesí financial opportunities. In the Abramoff affair, among the sins of the tribes involved, the most egregious is the greed that sees them go out of their way to monkey wrench other Indian tribal efforts at opening and sustaining their own gaming enterprises.
We know how two of Abramoffís clients ñ the Louisiana Coushattas and the Mississippi Choctaws ñ paid a lot of money to have Abramoff fight Texas gaming, which he did via the services of Christian conservative icon Ralph Reed.
As Dallas-Fort Worthís WFAA-TV reported May 5, ìAbramoff used money from two Indian tribes to mobilize the religious right to oppose gambling from other tribes.î The report indicated that this season, as ìthe legislature convened in Austin this year, lobbying expert [Andrew] Wheat was surprised to see that the Chickasaw tribe of Oklahoma had three lobbyists at the capital. … State records show the Chickasaws are spending $120,000î to oppose Indian gaming in Texas.
Planners and lawyers can justify ìmarket shareî wars among tribal casinos, but it begins to be a deadly disease when considering the nature of American Indian tribal interests in North America. Itís bad enough when hugely successful tribes show no creativity in helping out the more needy reservations. But when successful tribal entities actually try to destroy the opportunities of others, it makes you wonder what kind of values makes them at all distinct from the worst of corporate rapaciousness? Donít tribes have enough enemies without trying to damage other Indians?
<b>Kudos to Joe Shirley Jr.</b>
Navajo president Joe Shirley Jr. is thinking well on behalf of his people by encouraging the formation of nation chapters in urban centers. As staff reporter Brenda Norrell recently reported, such chapters will allow urban Natives a voice on the Navajo Nation Council as well as give them increased access to resources, services and funding to help offset the cuts to urban Indian health clinics called for in President Bushís proposed budget.
ìGeography doesnít come between us,î Shirley told urban Navajos. ìYouíre part of a chapter. Parents live back there. Elderly, your medicine people live back there. Itís your land, too. Thatís what connects us.î
Janeen Comenote, coordinator of the National Urban Indian Family Coalition in Seattle, was thrilled. ìIt sends a strong message to Navajo Nation tribal members and to Indian country as a whole that with some vision and creativity, our tribal governments can positively affect the lives of their urban tribal members.î
Shirley advocated for urban Navajos in Albuquerque, Phoenix, Denver, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City and other cities to create chapters. He pointed to some 27,000 Navajo (with 15,000 registered voters) in Albuquerque. Phoenix has possibly 19,000, while the Chicago Indian Center counts as many as 35,000 Native people, including a large number of Navajos. Los Angeles and Denver each may have as many as 14,000 Navajos.
Shirleyís call is ìa start on the road to bridging the reservation/urban divide,î said Comenote.
Kudos to Joe Shirley. The Indian world is due for a high dose of inclusivity, mutual help and realization of strength in unity. Shirleyís is a call in the direction of wisdom.
<b>Smithsonian, Nez Perce get remains home</b>
Itís not hard to forget how important it is that human remains find a proper resting place. Kudos to the staff at the Smithsonian and the Nez Perce tribal elders who have finally guided home the remains of three of their tribesmen, killed in wars of the 19th century. The three warriors were killed during the Nez Perce War of 1877. Their remains were sent to Washington and ended up at the Smithsonian.
It took 10 years of difficult discussion for the tribe, now divided in three different reservations, to come to one mind about how to handle the repatriation. Nez Perce people today live on the Colville and Umatilla Confederated reservations and on the Nez Perce Reservation in Idaho. The Smithsonian required a unified decision and finally, all sides were able to come to agreement.
Kudos to Tribal Executive Committee Chairman Rebecca Miles, Charley Moses of the Colville reservation and Armand Minthorn of the Umatilla reservation for reaching an agreement so the remains of one warrior could be returned in time for the annual Bears Paw Memorial and, later, to bury the other two at Lapwai. As reported by Jack McNeel for Indian Country Today, all involved gave an excellent example of selfless deliberation upon a spiritual matter and evidenced the deepest of indigenous values.
ìIn my mind and in my heart, that was the right thing to do, to put ourselves aside and put those remains in the ground. Thatís the goal when remains are discovered and what we fight for all the time,î Miles commented.
The shame of anti-Indian lobbying ñ by Indians. It sure is hard to have much respect for tribes that actually lobby to hurt other tribesí financial opportunities. In the Abramoff affair, among the sins of the tribes involved, the most egregious is the greed that sees them go out of their way to monkey wrench other Indian tribal efforts at opening and sustaining their own gaming enterprises.We know how two of Abramoffís clients ñ the Louisiana Coushattas and the Mississippi Choctaws ñ paid a lot of money to have Abramoff fight Texas gaming, which he did via the services of Christian conservative icon Ralph Reed.As Dallas-Fort Worthís WFAA-TV reported May 5, ìAbramoff used money from two Indian tribes to mobilize the religious right to oppose gambling from other tribes.î The report indicated that this season, as ìthe legislature convened in Austin this year, lobbying expert [Andrew] Wheat was surprised to see that the Chickasaw tribe of Oklahoma had three lobbyists at the capital. … State records show the Chickasaws are spending $120,000î to oppose Indian gaming in Texas.Planners and lawyers can justify ìmarket shareî wars among tribal casinos, but it begins to be a deadly disease when considering the nature of American Indian tribal interests in North America. Itís bad enough when hugely successful tribes show no creativity in helping out the more needy reservations. But when successful tribal entities actually try to destroy the opportunities of others, it makes you wonder what kind of values makes them at all distinct from the worst of corporate rapaciousness? Donít tribes have enough enemies without trying to damage other Indians?<b>Kudos to Joe Shirley Jr.</b>Navajo president Joe Shirley Jr. is thinking well on behalf of his people by encouraging the formation of nation chapters in urban centers. As staff reporter Brenda Norrell recently reported, such chapters will allow urban Natives a voice on the Navajo Nation Council as well as give them increased access to resources, services and funding to help offset the cuts to urban Indian health clinics called for in President Bushís proposed budget.ìGeography doesnít come between us,î Shirley told urban Navajos. ìYouíre part of a chapter. Parents live back there. Elderly, your medicine people live back there. Itís your land, too. Thatís what connects us.î Janeen Comenote, coordinator of the National Urban Indian Family Coalition in Seattle, was thrilled. ìIt sends a strong message to Navajo Nation tribal members and to Indian country as a whole that with some vision and creativity, our tribal governments can positively affect the lives of their urban tribal members.îShirley advocated for urban Navajos in Albuquerque, Phoenix, Denver, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City and other cities to create chapters. He pointed to some 27,000 Navajo (with 15,000 registered voters) in Albuquerque. Phoenix has possibly 19,000, while the Chicago Indian Center counts as many as 35,000 Native people, including a large number of Navajos. Los Angeles and Denver each may have as many as 14,000 Navajos.Shirleyís call is ìa start on the road to bridging the reservation/urban divide,î said Comenote.Kudos to Joe Shirley. The Indian world is due for a high dose of inclusivity, mutual help and realization of strength in unity. Shirleyís is a call in the direction of wisdom.<b>Smithsonian, Nez Perce get remains home</b>Itís not hard to forget how important it is that human remains find a proper resting place. Kudos to the staff at the Smithsonian and the Nez Perce tribal elders who have finally guided home the remains of three of their tribesmen, killed in wars of the 19th century. The three warriors were killed during the Nez Perce War of 1877. Their remains were sent to Washington and ended up at the Smithsonian.It took 10 years of difficult discussion for the tribe, now divided in three different reservations, to come to one mind about how to handle the repatriation. Nez Perce people today live on the Colville and Umatilla Confederated reservations and on the Nez Perce Reservation in Idaho. The Smithsonian required a unified decision and finally, all sides were able to come to agreement.Kudos to Tribal Executive Committee Chairman Rebecca Miles, Charley Moses of the Colville reservation and Armand Minthorn of the Umatilla reservation for reaching an agreement so the remains of one warrior could be returned in time for the annual Bears Paw Memorial and, later, to bury the other two at Lapwai. As reported by Jack McNeel for Indian Country Today, all involved gave an excellent example of selfless deliberation upon a spiritual matter and evidenced the deepest of indigenous values.ìIn my mind and in my heart, that was the right thing to do, to put ourselves aside and put those remains in the ground. Thatís the goal when remains are discovered and what we fight for all the time,î Miles commented.
