News Archive: July 30, 2007 Archives

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July 30, 2007
Column: Virginia recognition bill stalled in Senate
"Karenne Wood's words in May seem prophetic. The U.S. House of Representatives, amid the fanfare of the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, had passed a bill that would give federal recognition to six Virginia Indian tribes. But Wood, a former chairwoman...

Tim Giago: Honeymoon is over for California tribes
Has the luster and adventure of the Indian casinos in California started to wear thin? A labor union and racetrack owner filed ballot measures on Friday seeking to overturn expansive new gambling compacts for some of the state’s richest Indian...

Bill cutting Cherokee Nation funds faces vote
A bill that cuts federal housing funds to the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma could be voted on early this week, The Muskogee Phoenix reports. H.R. 3002, Native American Economic Development and Infrastructure for Housing Act of 2007 creates an...

IHS suffers from long waits, inadequate funding
With funding levels meeting just 40 percent of the need, patients of the Indian Health Service can expect lengthy waits for health care, if they get it at all. Ed Simons, a member of the Fort Peck Tribes of Montana,...

Study to focus on Indian children in Montana
The Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders' Council starts a five-year study of Indian children's health this fall. The Rocky Mountain Tribal Epidemiology Center will work with children in kindergarten through high school. The program starts on three reservations -- Crow, Rocky Boy...

Intertribal church finds new home in Nebraska
The Sacred Winds Community Church of Lincoln, Nebraska, has found a new place to hold services. The intertribal congregation started meeting at the Indian Center in Lincoln in March. "We’ve been having a great time ever since," the Rev. Martha...

Tribal canoes make final landing at Lummi Nation
More than 50 canoes representing tribes from the Pacific Northwest reach their final destination today. The Lummi Nation of Washington is hosting the week-long celebration. It's being called the largest Intertribal Canoe Journey since the event started in 1989....

Shoshone-Paiute Tribes pull together after fire
Members of the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes pulled together after wildfires knocked out power for eight days on the Duck Valley Reservation. The tribe set up an incident command center to respond to the crisis. Some people volunteered up to 12...

U.S. Attorney expands cross-deputization program
Troy Eid, the U.S. Attorney for Colorado, has expanded a cross-deputization program to boost law enforcement in Indian Country. The program began in Colorado to address high rates of crime on the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation and the Southern Ute...

Canada to rebuild Kashechewan Reserve
The government of Canada signed an agreement today to rebuild the Kashechewan Reserve in northern Ontario. The agreement calls for the redevelopment of homes and infrastructure on the reserve. Homes have been flooded twice in the last three years and...

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe wins support for casino
Residents in a Massachusetts town overwhelmingly voted in favor of a casino agreement with the Mashpee Wampanaog Tribe on Saturday. The 2,387 to 1,335 vote in Middleboro came just two months after the tribe's federal recognition became final. It took...

Eastern Pequot Tribal Nation elects new vice chair
Members of the Eastern Pequot Tribal Nation of Connecticut elected a new vice chairman on Saturday. James Cunha defeated incumbent Mark Sebastian, who held the post for 19 years. The 168-45 tally overwhelmingly favored Cunha. Sebastian is the second longtime...

Opinion: White man ripping off the Red man again
"Federal recognition of the Wampanoags as a tribe should open vast opportunities for the tribe to gain quality medical care, education assistance, property, housing for tribe members and economic opportunity. There are numerous federal programs available to help the tribe...

Catawba Nation elects first women to council
When the Catawba Nation of South Carolina went to the polls earlier this month, they made history in more ways than one. Tribal voters elected Melissa Funderburk and Leigh Anne Bickett to the council. The pair are the first women...

Opinion: Conservatives oppose lobbying reform bill
"The full-time professional “reform” groups have hatched their latest scheme to wring politics out of politics. This time it is the lobbying “reform” measure they are demanding Congress pass, and now, as always, conservatives must be extremely wary. Here are...

NCAI blames Republicans for blocking Indian bills
A small group of Republican senators has repeatedly blocked Indian bills from passage, the National Congress of American Indians said on Friday. The Senate Republican Steering Committee has put secret holds on everything from Indian health care to methamphetamine funding...

Jodi Rave: Powwows pay tribute to veterans
"Gilbert Towner rested under the shade of a tree while a cool ocean breeze rustled a field of 500 U.S. flags at the Confederated Tribes of the Grande Ronde Veterans Powwow. The 78-year-old Marine, who lives in Lapwai, Idaho,...

Mark Trahant: Real estate crisis really about credit
"I've been on vacation and had a chance to travel around the West. In many of the places I visited, concerns about a real estate crisis are growing. People are starting to fear what this means for them personally. The...

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