Column: An Indian should have been named to panel

"[Gov.] Carcieri should have included a Native American on the [smoke shop raid] panel.

The governor told me that he did not want to name anyone "with a vested interest." He said, "What I wanted was people who have broad judgments about the community, that would represent the whole, broad community."

He hinted that there will be a way to tap into Indian expertise, or people with experience dealing with Indians, through some kind of "advisory" unit.

Still, why would an Indian on the panel necessarily be deemed to have a vested interest, especially if he or she were not a Narragansett? Why isn't a white person thought automatically to have a vested interest?"

Get the Story:
M. Charles Bakst: Panel probing July 14 melee has wide scope (The Providence Journal 7/29)
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