President Jimmy Carter signed H.R.7919, the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act, into law on October 10, 1980. Photo from U.S. National Library of Medicine
Citing years of battles and unresolved disputes, newspaper suggests reopening the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act in order to improve relations with the Penobscot Nation and the Passamaquoddy Tribe (Pleasant Point and Indian Township):
Tribal-state relations suffered a major setback last year when representatives of the Penobscot Nation and Passamaquoddy Tribe walked out of the state Legislature. The soured relations essentially were severed by one tribe last week, when the Penobscot Nation officially vacated its seat in the state Legislature. Penobscot Nation Chief Kirk Francis said his tribe was breaking off relations with the state because Maine does not respect the Penobscots’ sovereignty. The tribe instead plans to select an ambassador to work with the federal and state governments. The central point of contention is that the tribes and state have different views of where tribal sovereignty ends and state authority begins. Without resolving this fundamental issue, the cycle of disagreements and disengagement will continue, hurting the tribes and the state. This cycle needs to be broken. Maine’s tribes need a relationship with the state just as the state can’t ignore the 8,000 tribal members who live here.Get the Story:
Editorial: It’s time for tribes, Maine to renegotiate terms of tribal sovereignty, state authority (The Bangor Daily News 6/22)
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