Home > News > Headlines

Print   Subscribe

Yellow Bird: Re-examining tribal governments
Monday, July 23, 2007
Filed Under: Opinion

"Hardly a month goes by without some kind of indictment, ousting or indication of wrongdoing by some tribal council. The introduction of casino monies in and on reservations seems to have only added to the stories about corruption.

This is not to say that all tribal officials are corrupt, nor is it to say that the tribes have a monopoly on corruption. Certainly, we know that some federal and state government officials have dipped into that vat, too; and when you compare tribal governments to state and federal governments, you see some of the same kind of shenanigans going on in state offices and on the Hill in Washington.

But just because there is corruption in other governments doesn't mean we can condone poor leadership in our tribal governments.In our discussions about tribal governments Thursday, the Montana representative noted that tribal governments actually are “political” governments. In other words, they are not like the governments that tribes once had before the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934.

At that time in history, most tribal governments were formed and patterned after the federal government. On the Great Plains and High Plains of Montana, most traditional Indian governments before the Indian Reorganization Act governed communities not unlike towns or cities we are familiar with, yet they had more responsibilities and governed with more authority.

Back then, the leaders of most of these governments were chosen by consensus. They weren't elected; instead, they were chosen from people whom the community thought were good leaders, usually by elder groups or leaders of the tribe.

Decisions were made by these governments after long discussions and oration."

Get the Story:
Dorreen Yellow Bird: Tribal governments inspire sadness, hope (The Grand Forks Herald 7/21)
Username: indianz@indianz.com, Password: indianz

More Dorreen Yellow Bird:
Yellow Bird: Chippewa man leaves strong legacy (7/18)
Yellow Bird: Seeing history through modern eyes (7/16)
Yellow Bird: Following the Lewis and Clark trail (7/11)
Yellow Bird: Be careful shopping in the wild (7/9)
Yellow Bird: Indians were foreigners in own land (7/5)
Yellow Bird: Yellowstone River needs protection (7/2)
Yellow Bird: Change comes but we can't forget past (6/25)
Yellow Bird: Festival days and prairie nights (6/20)
Yellow Bird: The case of the $54 million pants (6/18)
Yellow Bird: Monarch butterfly a special creature (6/13)
Yellow Bird: Graduates inspire with their lives (6/6)
Yellow Bird: Meth walks our reservations (6/4)
Yellow Bird: Commercials influence our lives (5/30)
Yellow Bird: Remember heroes on Memorial Day (5/28)
Yellow Bird: Blogger lacks facts about Indian life (5/22)
Yellow Bird: Indian culture changes in subtle ways (5/16)
Yellow Bird: Wolf knew it was ready to cross over (5/14)
Yellow Bird: Woman sees world with understanding (5/9)
Yellow Bird: Indian women and spiritual leadership (5/7)
Yellow Bird: Tighten gun control laws in North Dakota (5/3)
Yellow Bird: Easy ways at becoming more green (4/30)
Yellow Bird: School shootings just don't 'happen' (4/18)
Yellow Bird: The Red River Valley Flood of 1997 (4/9)
Yellow Bird: Women of color share their views (4/5)
Yellow Bird: UND powwow needs your support (4/2)
Yellow Bird: UTTC begs for funding year after year (3/26)
Yellow Bird: Even more about colon cancer screening (3/21)
Yellow Bird: Remembering my aunt/mother, Pearl (3/19)
Yellow Bird: Colon cancer screening essential (3/14)
Yellow Bird: Return land to North Dakota tribe (3/12)
Yellow Bird: Native Media Center at UND prospers (3/7)
Yellow Bird: Woody Keeble a true American hero (3/5)
Yellow Bird: Cell phone addiction affects driving (2/28)
Yellow Bird: UND has many reasons to be proud (2/26)
Yellow Bird: Signs of spring already in the air (2/21)
Yellow Bird: US automakers ignore innovation (2/19)
Yellow Bird: Tribes should snuff out smoking too (2/14)
Yellow Bird: On being Black or Indian 'enough' (2/9)
Yellow Bird: Braving the cold North Dakota winter (2/5)
Yellow Bird: Chokecherry for North Dakota state fruit (1/31)
Yellow Bird: Name-calling and bullying in schools (1/24)
Yellow Bird: Climate change impossible to ignore (1/17)
Yellow Bird: Tribes can help Indian doctors program (1/15)
Yellow Bird: Tribes have much to offer North Dakota (1/11)
Yellow Bird: Catching a ride on the Dakota wind (1/2)

Copyright © Indianz.Com