Winnebago Chair: Keep dialogue with state open

FROM THE ARCHIVE

Facebook Twitter Email
MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2003

"Dialogue between the federal, state and tribal governments in this country is nothing new. As students of American history in Nebraska's high schools could surely recount, it was the political framework built by the Iriquois Tribes that America's Founding Fathers first used to build our Constitution.

Those visionary thinkers hit on an idea that can be seen in working proof today: The more we dialogue, the better we craft solutions that benefit all of Nebraska's communities.

That was exactly the thinking when, several years ago, my tribe sat down with state officials to try to figure out a way to enhance law enforcement in and around the borders of the Winnebago reservation. After a thoughtful discourse, we decided to cross-deputize our police officers, in essence allowing them to work together. The resulting drop in crime rates speaks to the success of the initiative.

Those enhancements, those benefits, can happen in all sorts of ways, and the possibilities are only limited by imagination. When the state had funds available from the Gates Millennium Scholarship, tribes set up workshops for aspiring Native scholars. From that program, 16 students have now taken the first steps toward achieving graduate degrees.

In fact, Nebraska is doing such a good job at government-to-government relations, it has become a gathering point for states and tribes around the country seeking to replicate our success."

Get the Story:
John Blackhawk: Native affairs' commission's work terrific (The Lincoln Journal Star 3/17)

Relevant Links:
Winnebago Tribe - http://www.winnebagotribe.com