News Archive: September 24, 2007 Archives

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September 24, 2007
Class III gaming efforts in doubt after court decision
The Bush administration is debating whether to appeal a gaming case that could hurt tribes in several states. On August 17, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals blocked a Texas tribe from offering Class III games without the state's approval....

Audit finds Indian trust management problems
A new audit finds problems with the management of Indian trust land in Palm Springs, California. The Bureau of Indian Affairs didn't track lease payments and did not enforce leases for land owned by members of the Agua Caliente Band...

More than 18,000 Natives sent to Iraq, Afghanistan
Native Americans are only 0.8 percent of the U.S. population but they make up 1.6 percent of the military's ranks. According to McClatchy-Tribune News, that means there are nearly 22,000 American Indians and Alaska Natives in uniform. Of those,...

School district combats Indian absenteeism
About 25 percent of Indian students in the Tempe Elementary School District in Arizona have chronic attendance problems, The Arizona Republic reports. In hopes of boosting attendance rates, the district has started the Native American Absentee Prevention Program. Liaisons will...

Onondaga Nation awaits word on land claim
The Onondaga Nation heads to the courtroom on October 11 to defend its land claim against the state of New York. The tribe says the state illegally took possession of 4,000 square miles of land that were guaranteed by five...

Exhibit showcases Yu'pik life, past and present
A traveling exhibit of Yup'ik culture opened in Bethel, Alaska, this month. "Yuungnaqpiallerput -- The Way We Genuinely Live: Masterworks of Yup'ik Science and Survival" features 80 artifacts depicting Yup'ik life, past and present. A number of the items...

Navajo Nation seeks to upgrade airstrips
The Navajo Nation is working on plans to upgrade the airstrips on its vast reservation. The tribe's Department of Transportation will hold the first Navajo Nation Airport in Window Rock, Arizona, on Wednesday to discuss the effort. "The reservation...

Hollow Water First Nation erects blockade
The Hollow Water First Nation in Manitoba is blocking a road to a housing subdivision that was built on traditional land. The blockade began on September 14. Band members are standing guard around the clock to limit access to the...

Editorial: Lumbee recognition long overdue
"Congress appears closer than ever to righting a 50-year-old wrong and at last granting formal recognition of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina. The federal government has let this injustice go on far too long. The U.S. Senate should approve...

Cherokee Nation hurt by Freedmen dispute
The Cherokee Nation's public image has been hurt by the Freedmen citizenship dispute, Chief Chad Smith says. Smith has been meeting with lawmakers in hopes of preventing legislative action against the tribe. Some members of the House are trying to...

Plains tribes skeptical of BIA modernization talks
Tribal leaders in North and South Dakota are skeptical of the Bureau of Indian Affairs' modernization initiative. Ron His Horse Is Thunder, the chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, said tribes want to improve the BIA. But they can't...

Native American $1 Coin Act signed into law
The Native American $1 Coin Act was signed into law by President Bush last Thursday. The bill authorizes a new back for the Sacagawea dollar coin to honor Native Americans and their contributions to the United States. The front will...

Mother questioned for putting fry bread in lunchbox
A Native mother in Alaska is upset after school officials questioned her for feeding frybread to her daughter Amy Lotcher said she was lectured about the "doughnut" in her daughter's lunch box. "Telling me what I can feed my...

Tim Giago: Growing up in Kyle, Pine Ridge Reservation
While researching on the Internet today I ran across the announcement that a 75-year-old man from Kyle, on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, had passed away. His name was Sidney Hunter. I remember Sid as a young boy...

Review: Alexie's 'Diary' of a nerdy Indian
"If you've seen the film "Smoke Signals," if you've read some of Sherman Alexie's short stories, and especially if you've dipped into anything about Alexie's life, you'll recognize Junior a k a Arnold Spirit, the endearing, nerdy Spokane Indian...

Column: Meskwaki Code Talkers deserve honor
"Frank Sanache was 83 years old when a bill was first introduced in the United States Congress honoring him and dozens of other American Indian veterans of World War II. He watched as it was introduced and failed to...

Opinion: Pit River government in shambles
"Nepotism, lack of policy development, lack of internal controls, conflicts of interest, lack of limits on Tribal Council consecutive office terms, strategic disenrollments of entire family voting blocks and mismanagement of government grants are but only a few of the...

Yellow Bird: Exploring the Dahlen esker
"On a recent journey into the Plains area near Dahlen, N.D., I was introduced to the "Dahlen esker." It's a glacial hill that must be at least 100 feet high, a few hundred feet wide and several miles long....

Jodi Rave: Protecting indigenous rights
"Beverly Jacobs arrived at the United Nations to see standards put in place to protect the human rights of the world's indigenous peoples. I met Jacobs Sept. 13 in the United Nations General Assembly hall just before 144 nations...

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