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FEBRUARY 28, 2001

Leaders of Idaho's tribes on Tuesday said the vote which killed a proposal to rename all "squaw" place names in the state is indicative of a declining relationship with the state.

Coeur d'Alene Chairman Ernie Stensgar and Nez Perce Tribal Executive Committee Chairman Sam Penney said they have had less access to top officials in state government, including Governor Dirk Kempthorne, than in previous years. Penney was concerned about Attorney General Al Lance's attempts to seek to diminish the tribe's reservation.

The Supreme Court declined to hear a challenge to the reservation but the state says the issue is not settled. The state is also challenging the Coeur d'Alene Tribe's ownership of the southern third of Lake Coeur d'Alene.

Get the Story:
Tribes disappointed, but they won't give up (The Spokesman Review 2/28)