Fighting LNG in the Pacific Northwest, hunting down a meth-fueled killer, and chatting with some of the Native talent in Wind River. All this and more in Indian country during the Week That Was, August 13, 2017.
LNG BATTLE: The Puyallup Tribe and local allies are fighting the construction of a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) project at the Port of Tacoma over concerns about water quality, consultation and safety given a recent rash of gas explosions throughout Washington State.
METH-FUELED: A triple murder sparked a curfew on the Crow Nation as two people injured in the shooting continued to recover. Roderick Plentyhawk, 32, was being sought for questioning in the shooting deaths of Leslie Frank Nomee Jr., 27, Denise Stewart Nomee, 25, and Nehemiah Brokenrope, 30.
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NAVAJO BAN TRAFFICKING: A new Navajo law criminalizes human trafficking on the country’s largest American Indian reservation, amending the tribe’s criminal code and calling for cooperation among government and civil institutions to define, prevent and combat the illegal “transporting, trading or dealing” of people.
FOOD, APPROPRIATION AND SOVEREIGNTY: Decolonizing foodways and waking up indigenous consciousness is the goal of chef Karlos Baca, who forages in prayer and cooks as meditation. In British Columbia, a number of restaurants offer indigenous fare—complete with bannock. But it’s important to differentiate between traditional cooking and cultural appropriation, as other Indian country chefs pointed out.
INDIGENOUS EDUCATION MAKES THE GRADE: The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) gave mixed marks for the education of indigenous students in four Canadian provinces and two territories—Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, the Northwest Territories and Yukon. On the one hand, said the study released in Paris, some practices are working extremely well. On the other, issues stemming from colonization still are not being adequately addressed, and that interferes with gauging students’ needs and understanding how best to educate them.
INDIANS ROCK THE WORLD: The indigenous influence has always been missing from the historical narrative of rock and roll. The new documentary Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World by Rezolution Pictures fills in the gaps, writes Peter d’Errico. The film won the World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Masterful Storytelling at the Sundance Festival earlier this year. It debuts in the U.S. next month.
STORMING HOLLYWOOD: Wind River stars several Native actors in leading rolls, and ICMN’s indefatigable A&E editor Vincent Schilling has interviewed most of them, including Gil Birmingham and Graham Greene. A Hollywood win for Indian country.
U.N. CELEBRATES INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: In Canada and elsewhere in the world, Indigenous Peoples marked the United Nations internationally recognized day in their honor on August 9, acknowledging that there is much to be done, despite growing trust.
TRIBES GO GLOBAL: Even as the international world is learning more about Indigenous Peoples, tribes in the U.S. are venturing into the world, looking to create destination resorts overseas.
CRUNCHY SNOW: It may be August, but the texture of the tinder-dry grasses in wildfire-plagued central British Columbia reminded one chief of crunchy snow. Dozens of fires continue unabated.
WE LOST A GOOD ONE: Jennifer Easton “wanted the general public to be more aware of the incredible artistic diversity I saw among indigenous people all over this country,” she once said. The national leader in philanthropic support of Native interests and cultures—founder of the First Peoples Fund and the Sumasil Foundation—walked on at age 69 due to complications from surgery.

