Gaming clouds already lengthy land-into-trust process (September 15, 2005)

The Bush administration has made 15 favorable land-into-trust for gaming decisions since 2001 but opposition is delaying the process by years, a senior Bureau of Indian Affairs official said this week. George Skibine, the acting deputy secretary for economic development...

Red Lake families file notice of lawsuit against school (September 15, 2005)

The families of some of the victims of the March 21, 2005, shootings on the Red Lake Reservation in Minnesota have filed notice of a lawsuit against the high school. An attorney representing nine families wouldn't say what the lawsuit...

First Nations due for more money in latest budget (September 15, 2005)

First Nations in British Columbia are due for an extra $100 million over the next three years under the province's new budget. The money will go to the First Nations New Relationships Fund to help First Nations in their treaty...

Mille Lacs Band pays to send clothes to Mississippi (September 15, 2005)

The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe donated $9,000 to ship 75 tons of to Hurricane Katrina victims in Mississippi. The tribe gave the money after learning that the Crow Wing County United Way need $12,000 to ship the clothes...

Investigation into Menominee death, fire concluded (September 15, 2005)

Tribal police have concluded an investigation into a suspicious death and fire on the Menominee Reservation in Wisconsin. Craig T. Sechrist, 23, a tribal member, was found dead in a car in a wooded area on the reservation. The autopsy...

University of Louisiana-Monroe wants to keep 'Indians' (September 15, 2005)

The University of Louisiana-Monroe says it should be allowed to keep its "Indians" nickname and imagery. The school got rid of its "Chief Brave Spirit" character and no longer calls the campus "The Reservation." But an Indian in face...

Trial concludes in Freedmen membership case (September 15, 2005)

A federal court in Oklahoma wrapped up four-week trial in the case of two Creek Freedmen who want their membership in the tribe reinstated. Ron Graham and Fred Johnson are descendants of Africans who were made members of the Creek...

Korean news service travels the Trail of Tears (September 15, 2005)

"Driving from Arkansas through Oklahoma on Interstate 40, I encountered the signboard of the "Trail of Tears," a scar cut into the heart of the continent. I suddenly became aware that I had been following the Trail unawares. A signboard...

Voice of America: Tribes go to war to defend lands (September 15, 2005)

"During the eighteen hundreds, the federal government forced native American Indians to live in special areas. These were called reservations. The Indians no longer could move freely over the Great Plains to hunt buffalo. White men were settling there. The...

Column: Tribes have right to oppose 'Chief Illiniwek' (September 15, 2005)

"The Peoria Tribe and other American Indians have the right to decide whether they are hurt by the Chief, not the pro-Chief supporters. And they have every right to be hurt. Their culture and history is being belittled by...

County official supports tribe's claim to university (September 15, 2005)

A supervisor in Butte County, California, said the Mechoopda Chico Rancheria has been treated unfairly and has a right to reclaim Chico State University campus, The Chico Enterprise reported. Chico Supervisor Jane Dolan said Chico State is located on ancestral...

Oglala Sioux president says extradition pact needed (September 15, 2005)

Cecelia Fire Thunder, the president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, says an extradition pact with South Dakota is needed before she considers turning over two tribal members to the state. Fire Thunder responded to Gov. Mike Rounds (R), who asked...

Lamberth has many fans but Interior not one of them (September 15, 2005)

U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth has many fans in the legal and political world: Republicans, lawyers, tribal members. He was a good friend of the late chief justice William H. Rehnquist. But he hasn't won praise from the Interior Department,...

White Earth Band seeks control of child custody case (September 15, 2005)

The White Earth Band of Ojibwe in Minnesota is seeking jurisdiction in a child welfare case involving a tribal member whose blood alcohol concentration was nearly five times the legal limit at the time of birth. Rita Kay Taylor,...

Virginia's top court hears treaty rights case (September 15, 2005)

The Mattaponi Tribe asked the Virginia Supreme Court to block a proposed reservoir that could destroy sacred sites and fishing grounds. The tribe cited a 1677 treaty it signed with England. The tribe says the treaty bars development within a...

BIA employee calls Katrina relief a 'massive effort' (September 15, 2005)

John Oliveira, a special agent for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, says helping out the victims of Hurricane Katrina requires a "massive effort," The Billings Gazette reported. Oliveira, a member of the Choctaw Nation, is one of hundreds of...

Mankiller tells students to keep positive outlook (September 15, 2005)

Wilma Mankiller, the first woman to be elected principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, spoke to students at Western Kentucky University on Wednesday night. Mankiller told students it was important to maintain a positive outlook. "I learned a lot from...

Businesses linked to tribe gave $43K, mostly to GOP (September 15, 2005)

Three businesses linked to the Catawba Nation of South Carolina made $42,750 in campaign contributions since 2000, with 82 percent going to Republican candidates, The State reports. The paper said the donations went to GOP politicians like President Bush, and...