News Archive: February 19, 2007 Archives

ph: 202 630 8439 fax: 202 318 2182

February 19, 2007
Nicotine use rates high among Alaska Native youth
Alaska Native youth in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta use nicotine at rates far higher than the rest of the nation, according to the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium.. Based on information collected in 2001 and 2002, 63 percent of 15-...

Mashpee Wampanoag recognition cost $8M
Backers of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts spent $8 million to finance the tribe's successful federal recognition petition. The tribe used the money to hire genealogists, anthropologists, lobbyists and a public relations consultant. The effort paid off last Thursday,...

Oglala Sioux Tribe welcomes end of 'Chief' mascot
The executive committee of the Oglala Sioux Tribe of South Dakota welcomed the University of Illinois' decision to retire the controversial "Chief Illiniwek" mascot. The committee had written the school last month, complaining that the mascot was derogatory to...

Editorial: Recognize sacrifice made by Navajo soldier
"It was what many would call a supreme sacrifice. Leaving your loved ones and your job behind. Heading toward a war zone, not knowing if you were ever coming home, not knowing if your children would have to grow...

Hundreds honor Ray Patencio, Agua Caliente leader
Hundreds attended the funeral of Ray Leonard Patencio, a longtime leader of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians of California. Patencio died February 8, on the eve of his 61st birthday. He was suffering from cancer. Patencio served...

New president named at First Nations University
Charles Pratt was appointed president of the First Nations University of Canada after serving as interim leader of the troubled institution. Pratt, a member of the Muscowpetung First Nation, has been running the school since June 2005. FNUC has faced...

INDN's List to launch 'Prez on the Rez' at NCAI
INDN's List Education Fund, an arm of the Democratic group INDN's List, will kick off its "Prez on the Rez" forum at the National Congress of American Indians next week. Kalyn Free, the founder of INDN's List, hopes to draw...

Andrew Old Elk, secretary of Crow Tribe, dies at 62
Andrew Old Elk, the secretary of the Crow Tribe of Montana, died on Sunday. He was 62. Old Elk, elected this past November, was working on natural resource issues and frequently traveled to Washington, D.C., to lobby for the tribe....

Tohono O'odham student a star on and off the court
As a star basketball player, powwow princess and traditional dancer, Wynona Peters is proud to represent her family and the Tohono O'odham Nation of Arizona. Peters, 17, is a senior at Salpointe Catholic High School. She is considered one...

Lumbee Tribe questions proposal to tax land
The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina is wondering why one of its own employees submitted a proposal to tax land owned by its members. James Hardin, the deputy tribal administrator, asked the N.C. Commission on Indian Affairs to support the...

Tribe in Panama benefits from daily use of cocoa
Members of the Cuna Tribe of Panama don't have high blood pressure and don't suffer dementia due to their daily use of cocoa, researchers say. The cocoa they drink contains a high level of flavanols, an antioxidant. Researchers say the...

Tim Giago: 'Chief Illiniwek' does his last dance
The news is out that the University of Illinois will drop its Chief Illiniwek mascot. It just goes to show that not all 'traditions' are honorable. It all began in 1926 when an Illinois student named Lester Leutwiler put on...

US Attorney ousted over tribal death penalty cases
The U.S. Attorney in Arizona was ousted after he clashed with political appointees over the use of the death penalty against tribal members, The Washington Post reports. Paul Charlton didn't want to seek the death penalty in at least two...

Column: Maybe Iraq is the next Pine Ridge Reservation
"When President Bush says he’s prepared to stay in Iraq 'until the job is done,' those poor Iraqis have no idea just how long he means. But the Lakotas do. The United States government has been 'stabilizing' the Great Sioux...

Yellow Bird: US automakers ignore innovation
"iii''m leaning over the edge of the cliff when I talk about this subject because I am not an expert. But this layperson wonders about the whining coming from the domestic car manufacturers, who have lost billions of dollars...

Mark Trahant: America headed toward credit meltdown
"These are the best times ever. A new report by the Mortgage Bankers Association brags that we Americans are demonstrating 'the greatest and widest availability of mortgage finance in our nation's history, which in turn has made possible record homeownership...

Jodi Rave: Tribes receive heating assistance
"With more than a month of winter heating bills ahead, a private donation from a Venezuelan oil giant is helping thousands of U.S. citizens pay their heating bills, including 163 tribes. Montana and South Dakota tribes received more than...

Local Links:

Federal Register | Indian Gaming | Jobs & Notices | In The Hoop | Message Board