Northern Arapaho Tribe: Newspaper got it wrong on joint council

The Northern Arapaho Business Council (NABC) carefully considered the decision to withdraw from the JBC. We took into account hundreds of factors, including complex intertribal politics and familial relationships that both bind the tribes together and set them apart. We ultimately determined that leaving the JBC was in the best interest of the Arapaho people.

After reaching consensus on the matter, the NABC spent six months planning for the departure from JBC, and preparing detailed explanations of why JBC withdrawal was essential to Arapaho people. We did this in part so the public would understand that this decision was not made on a whim but the result of careful deliberations by a mature government.

We understand this decision may be confusing to outsiders. We anticipated that many would thoughtlessly embrace the worn cliche, perpetuated mainly by the federal government, that the Wind River Tribes are “stronger when they work together.”

We had higher hopes for the Casper Star-Tribune, which has accurately reported the JBC withdrawal, and until now seemed to “get” the paramount importance and merit of our decision to leave the JBC.

We certainly did not expect the paper to adopt the cynical position of the Wyoming political elites and the federal government that the Arapaho tribe should remain party to the JBC simply because the JBC benefits the Shoshones, the state, and the federal government.