Bush administration's education plans questioned (May 30, 2006)

The Bush administration is defending its reorganization of education programs at the Bureau of Indian Affairs amid a tribal lawsuit and sagging test scores. At a hearing last Thursday, associate Interior deputy secretary Jim Cason said the restructuring will improve...

Winnebago Tribe to celebrate 140th annual powwow (May 30, 2006)

The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska is holding its 140th annual powwow on July 27-30. The powwow is billed as the oldest in North America. It commemorates Chief Little Priest, a Winnebago chief who was born in Wisconsin but was forced...

Man crashes small plane on Tesuque Pueblo land (May 30, 2006)

A 57-year-old man is in the hospital after crashing his single-engine plane on Tesuque Pueblo land in northern New Mexico. Tony McClung was in the air when his plane ran out of fuel Monday afternoon. He ended up flying into...

Navajo teen headed to Naval Academy Prep School (May 30, 2006)

Joshua Benally, a Navajo teen from New Mexico, is headed go the Naval Academy Preparatory School in Rhode Island this fall to continue his military career. Benally just graduated from the New Mexico Military Institute. He decided to go to...

Editorial: Indian voting rights report 'over the top' (May 30, 2006)

"A civil rights report released last week blasts South Dakota for a climate of discrimination, racial hostility and unfair treatment of Native Americans. It calls the state a "hotbed of voting rights litigation." We have problems, but that's just over...

Appeals court rules in Indian probate dispute (May 30, 2006)

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling last week in the case of an Indian probate that has been in dispute for nearly six years. Matilda Covington, a deceased member of the Confederated Colville Tribes of Washington, left...

Utah challenges court decision on jurisdiction (May 30, 2006)

Officials in Utah are appealing a decision that held that the state lacks jurisdiction over all Indian lands. Last November, the Utah Court of Appeals said the Ute Tribe has jurisdiction over hunting and fishing violations that occur on the...

Funding sought to study Saponi village in Virginia (May 30, 2006)

The Archaeological Society of Virginia is seeking at least $75,000 to complete the study of a Saponi village. An archaeologist began excavating the site in 1963 and 1964, when the Smith Mountain Dam was being constructed. The entire village is...

Jodi Rave: Express tribal identity at graduation (May 30, 2006)

"[A]cross the country, Native students are battling school officials over the right to wear sacred eagle feathers, a revered cultural item for tribes all over the United States. In some cases, school officials have humiliated Native graduates. Last year, a...

Team Abramoff member to testify at official's trial (May 30, 2006)

Neil G. Volz, a member of Team Abramoff, will testify at the trial of a former Bush administration official this week. Volz will testify about the infamous August 2002 trip to Scotland that was partly funded with tribal money. David...

Sen. Reid met with two of Abramoff's tribal clients (May 30, 2006)

Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nevada) met with two of Jack Abramoff's tribal clients who were represented by one of his former staffers. In June 2003, Reid met with the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe of Michigan and the Meskwaki Tribe of Iowa....

Column: Business as usual on lobbying reform (May 30, 2006)

"The Gulfstream II had everything a congressman getting a free golf trip to Scotland could want. "State of the art entertainment center," boasted a description of the jet's elegant appointments. "Complete bar service. . . . Rich mahogany woodwork ....

Tribe in Brazil seeks gain from traditional knowledge (May 30, 2006)

The chief of the Katukina Tribe in Brazil has initiated an economic development project built on his people's traditional knowledge of a poisonous tree frog. The tribe has long used the slime of the kambô to treat illness, pain...

New Mexico tribes promote cultural tourism (May 30, 2006)

Tribes in New Mexico are tapping into the state's $5 billion tourist economy in hopes of bringing more visitors to their lands. Acoma Pueblo just opened a $15 million, 40,000-square-foot cultural center and museum. Jemez Pueblo has a cultural center...

Two Washington tribes collect own gasoline tax (May 30, 2006)

Two Washington tribes are collecting their own gasoline tax to support projects on their reservations. The Squaxin Island Tribe and the Swinomish Tribe each collect a tax of 31 cents per gallon. That's the same amount as the state tax....

Tim Giago: Too much uncertainty in gaming (May 30, 2006)

"Tribes that put all of their eggs in one basket are facing an uncertain future at best. In my mind a profitable casino is still a business built on shifting sands. Every tribe should be looking at alternative business ventures...

Yakama Nation's power utility faces challenge (May 30, 2006)

Non-Indians say they will file a legal challenge to the Yakama Nation's new utility company. Yakama Power began supplying electricity to some tribal agencies, tribal businesses and homes. The tribe wants to expand an offer a cheaper alternative. But Citizens...