News Archive: February 27, 2007 Archives

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February 27, 2007
Tribal member rose through ranks to head museum
Kimberly Hatcher-White rose through the ranks to become the new executive director of the Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center. Hatcher-White first worked for the tribe's casino in the 1990s. She used tribal tuition money to attend college and...

First Indian nominated to state university board
Wayne Newell, a member of the Passamaquoddy Tribe, has been nominated to the board of trustees for the University of Maine System. Newell serves as director of bilingual education for the Indian Township School. He has worked as a planner...

Editorial: Time for all teams to drop Indian mascots
"Critics of Indian nicknames for athletic teams - whether high school, college or professional - say such nicknames are a racial stereotype, and demeaning and insulting to Native Americans. We agree. And we can’t think of a nickname more demeaning...

Uranium company to fight Indian Country status
A uranium mining company plans to challenge the Indian Country status of 160 acres in northwestern New Mexico. Hydro Resources, Inc. wants to open a uranium mine near Church Rock. The company owns the land but the Environmental Protection Agency...

New rule to affect border crossings by Natives
Canadian Natives who are used to traveling to and from the United States with their Indian status cards will find themselves in trouble at the border starting in 2008. The U.S. government will no longer accept the status card as...

Chief of First Nation plans to erect road blockade
The chief of the Berens River First Nation in Manitoba is threatening to erect several road blockades unless he can resolve a transportation dispute with the province. Chief George Kemp wants the government to lift a weight restriction on roads...

Cherokee Nation to donate $2.7M to area schools
The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma will donate $2.7 million in car tag revenues to school in its 14-county jurisdictional area. The tribe started selling tags in 2001. In the last four years, the tribe has contributed $8 million to 100...

Suquamish Tribe to receive $1.1M for 2003 oil spill
The Suquamish Tribe of Washington received $1.1 million for an oil spill in late 2003 that damaged sacred and important beachfront lands. Foss Maritime agreed to pay for spilling nearly 5,000 gallons of oil in Puget Sound. The oil...

Wisconsin tribes could see tobacco sales increase
Wisconsin tribes could see an extra $20 million in tax revenues if the state increases the cigarette tax. Under compacts with the state, 11 tribes collect an equivalent state tax and submit it to the state. They receive 70 percent...

Montana tribes receive funds to fight meth among youth
The Northern Cheyenne Tribe and the Crow Tribe, both of Montana, are receiving federal grants to fight methamphetamine among youth. The Northern Cheyenne Tribe will use a $15,000 from the Department of Justice. to start a Meth SMART program at...

Editorial: State serious about tribal tobacco taxes
"There's good news on a couple of fronts that means bad news for untaxed cigarette sales in the state. * The Yakama Nation wants to renegotiate an agreement for collection of cigarette taxes on reservation smokeshop sales. In July 2004,...

Man pleads guilty to killing Tewa storyteller
A Mexican national faces up to six years in prison for pleading guilty to killing Esther Martinez, a nationally-recognized Tewa linguist and storyteller. Jamie Martinez Gonzales, 45, was drunk when his vehicle plowed head-on into a pickup carrying Martinez and...

Voice of America: Cherokees to vote on Freedmen
"Next month, members of the Cherokee Nation will vote on whether to amend the tribal constitution to make Indian blood a requirement for citizenship. American Indian tribes are considered sovereign nations within the United States, and their citizens are entitled...

Editorial: Old habits die hard as Congress still for sale
"Changing rules is easy. Changing bad habits is hard, particularly on Capitol Hill, where free winter trips to warm places, big donations to campaign treasuries and fat salaries in post-congressional careers are perennial temptations. Like serial dieters unable to resist...

Interview: Ross Swimmer not ready to close shop
The 1994 American Indian Trust Reform Act created the Office of Special Trustee. The law also provided for the end of the OST once reform efforts are completed. According to the Bush administration, progress has been made. But Special...

Another guilty plea in Jack Abramoff scandal
A former aide to former Rep. Bob Ney (R-Ohio) will be joining his boss in prison for his role in the Jack Abramoff scandal. William Heaton, 28, admitted that he accepted gifts, gambling chips and several trips from Abramoff in...

NCAI 2007: Updates from winter session in Washington
Updates from the 2007 winter session of the National Congress of American Indians! Weather Woes Dozens of tribal leaders found themselves stranded in airports across the country on Sunday, as snow in the Washington, D.C., area led to flight cancellations...

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