Grinch 'Alive And Well' For Some Navajo Families - SMSC Celebrates 40 Years Of Federal Recognition

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE FROM NATIVE UNITY!

Churchrock Estates Residents Evicted
The Grinch not only stole Christmas for nearly a dozen Churchrock families, he kicked them out in the street and sent Navajo Police to make sure they left.

By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent
CHURCHROCK – About as many police units as the 10 families forced out rolled into Churchrock Estates subdivision shortly before 5 p.m. Monday, when housing officials showed up with a court-ordered eviction notice and plenty of muscle to carry it out. The eviction came on the heels of a Dec. 16 ruling by the Navajo Nation Supreme Court.

The housing units formerly were managed by Fort Defiance Housing Corp., a non-profit corporation, which declared bankruptcy in 2005 and was reorganized under new management known as Sandstone Housing. The former head of Navajo Housing Authority, Chester Carl, and Nevada businessman William Aubrey were indicted in May for allegedly using the non-profit Fort Defiance as a “pass-through” to receive the federal Housing and Urban Development grant funds.

Dana Denny of Sandstone told the Independent Monday afternoon that the residents had to vacate for non-payment of rent. “We're sticking to the court order. We spent $100,000 to get them off the property.”

But the residents who huddled together on the sidewalk, tears streaming down their faces, disputed those claims.

“We moved in, in 2002. We signed a rent-to-own contract,” said Shirlene Rogers, who was evicted from House 41. “The corporation came down from Farmington and told these people, 'We're going to give you brand new homes.' That happened and then two years later they came back and said, 'I'm sorry, we made a mistake. You have to sign this new contract,' which is rental only.”

Rogers, who lives with her mother, is a single parent with four children ranging in age from 4 to 12. At one point, she said, her rent was less than $25 a month.

“When I lost my job it went to negative-$47, which meant I didn't have to pay. Once that happened, the corporation started coming, saying, 'You need to pay.' I was like, 'How can I when it's negative-$47?' And so all the sudden it jumped from negative-$47 to $762 a month.” Now, she said, “We're homeless.”

Delores Martin said her daughter and her daughter's boyfriend were placed in a patrol car and allegedly arrested “for taking pictures of the landlord and the police – what they are doing.” A photographer for the Gallup Independent said he also was threatened with arrest for taking pictures.

Martin, who made her home in House 68, was one of the original residents from the old Indian Village, before the houses were torn down and the subdivision built, she said. “'We promise you we'll give you a new home, so give up your home,' that's what the deal was.”

She said her contract stated that her home would be paid off in 30 years. “I put $17,000 in this house right here. My payoff should have been $12,000. I have all my receipts, I have my documents. I made my payments – a little bit late once in awhile, but I always made my payments. But they changed the contract of what they said. That was the main issue of this whole thing.” The court says she owes $26,502.

Despite being low-income housing, Martin said her rent soared to $631. “If they were going to do this – if we saw this in the future – I would never have gave up my home. I would have stayed in that village; I don't care if it was run-down. Now look at this mess.”

Residents said they were notified Dec. 22 that they had until Monday to vacate the premises. Some people, like Collette Brown's grandfather, Calvin Brown, 70, have nowhere to go. “I don't know what's going to happen to them,” Martin said.

Lenny Baca, 32, his wife and their five children also are homeless. “My youngest son is 2-1/2 and he was just diagnosed with autism or Down Syndrome, we're not sure yet. We did the blood test on Christmas Eve and we'll find out in 14 days what for sure it is.”

Baca said though they have relatives nearby, their houses are too small to accommodate an additional family of seven. “This is our house. We settled here. You accumulate a lot of stuff in six years,” he said, looking at their belongings scattered in piles across the front yard.

The family moved into their home in 2003 and have been fighting the case for years, Baca said, adding that their attorney has money orders they sent, trying to make payments, but the company wouldn't accept them.

“We won our last case when it was just us by ourselves. We turned around to do a counter-suit against them for breach of contract – we were going to sue for just our house, that's all we wanted – but they (Fort Defiance) claimed bankruptcy and the bankruptcy came in before we were able to counter-sue for our house.

“When they declared bankruptcy they said we couldn't do any lawsuits against them, but that allowed them to make lawsuits against us. So what happened was all these people that were on SSI, that were paying like $20 to $30 a month, they skyrocketed their rent up to like $700 a month where it was impossible to pay.”

When the court consolidated all of the cases, he said, that cost them their home.

“They were saying we refused to pay. That's not true,” said Rogers. “The court gave the company, I guess, some time to try to work with us, and nothing happened. All the sudden we get these eviction notices on the door.” The U.S. government appropriates funds for Native American housing. “They get so much money to build these houses – and now this is what they're doing!” she said.

John Henry Jr., Churchrock Chapter president, and Brian Chee, chapter coordinator, came to the scene and when they learned what the situation was, opened up the chapter house as a temporary shelter.

“There are resources in the Gallup area that could possibly help people in this situation, and I'm pretty sure that will be our main job for the next few days,” Chee said. “For the night we're going to go ahead and give them the chapter house to stay and see if we can possibly help these people.”

Leon Curley Sr. came to take five of his relatives to his home in Jamestown. “I have never seen anything like this in America. It's not beneath the Navajo Nation to do something like this to their own people; it just isn't fair to a lot of these people. I could understand in the summer evicting them, but in the cold with these people having nowhere to go, I don't think so.”

Rather than the Navajo Nation's leaders “squabbling all over the place with each other and fighting over the 88 or 24,” he said, “they need to all get off their behinds and get out here and help their people instead of just talking and hiring $100,000 lawyers to fight something that the people wanted. They need to come out here and help their own people with that $100,000 instead of putting it in their pockets for the luxury life that they live,” he said.

Independent Reporter Gaye Brown-Alvarez contributed to this story.

Shakopee Mdewakanton Celebrate 40 Years As A Federally Recognized Tribe
by Tessa Lehto
Communications Specialist
tessa.lehto@shakopeedakota.org
December 28, 2009

Prior Lake, MN – On November 28, 1969, Community members of the Shakopee Mdewakanton were granted federal recognition by the United States government. Over the last 40 years the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community has been transformed from an economically distressed reservation to one of the most economically successful Indian tribes in the United States.

“We have been most fortunate in recent years as our Community has grown and changed into what it is today. Our children have health care, nice homes, and educational opportunities that we could only dream of when my generation was growing up. We have a level of self-sufficiency that didn’t seem possible 40 years ago,” said SMSC Chairman Stanley R. Crooks.

Before Federal Recognition
The members of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community descend from the Mdewakanton band of the Dakota (or Sioux) Nation; the Mdewakanton are one of the seven original bands of the Dakota Nation. The Eastern Dakota bands – the Mdewakanton, Wahpekute, Sisseton, and Wahpeton – are often referred to as the Mississippi Sioux.

In English the name “Mdewakanton” means “Dwellers of Spirit Lake.” For many generations the Mdewakanton Dakota lived on a vast territory of lands throughout present-day Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and South Dakota. The Mdewakanton are particularly associated with the Minnesota River Valley, and today the Tribe's reservation and trust lands are located near the site of the village known as “Thintathunwan,” which is associated with the

Mdewakanton leader Sakpe [shock-pay], which means the number “six” and is the origin of the town named Shakopee. By virtue of its government-to-government dealings with the federal government in numerous treaties dating back to 1805, the Mdewakanton band was eventually dispossessed of at least 30 million acres of land.

Located in what was then a completely rural area some 35 miles southwest of Minneapolis and St. Paul, the Prior Lake Indian Reservation lands consisted of a mere 258 acres. Four tracts of land containing this acreage was purchased and set aside for the use of the Mdewakanton by the United States Congress in Appropriation Acts from the late 1880s and early 1890s. Over time, the Mdewakanton Dakota families who received assignments for use of these lands struggled with poor living conditions and economic hardship.

Federal Recognition
After receiving federal recognition in 1969, the Charter Members of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community began the difficult process of creating a government and economic system that would provide for its members and the future of this small tribe on its small land base. The struggle for economic security was difficult, and there were many obstacles. At that time, life for the members of the SMSC was like that found on many other reservations.

Deficient government policies had resulted in inadequate housing, limited infrastructure, lack of employment opportunity, and few prospects for a better future. During the early 1970s, tribal members depended on commodities, and low paying jobs away from the reservation were the norm.

Through a number of tribal initiatives, members managed to get a small community building built and create a health care program, a childcare facility, and a home improvement program, all bringing about some positive changes to life on the 258-acre reservation. A number of tribal enterprises opportunities came and went.

Gaming Comes To Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community
Then in the 1980s life changed dramatically forever. Shakopee Mdewakanton Tribal Chairman Norman Crooks , the SMSC first Chairman, and other tribal members learned about the success of the Seminole Tribe’s high-stakes bingo operation in Florida. They saw the opportunity and, with the determination and perseverance of tribal members, the dream was realized.

Little Six Bingo Palace opened on the SMSC’s reservation on October 16, 1982. The only way onto the reservation and to the new Bingo Hall was on a gravel road. Busloads of people traveled the rough, dusty road to the Bingo Hall, and instantly, gaming was a success like no other. The tribal sovereignty that allowed high stakes bingo to operate, along with a fortunate location near a major metropolitan area, suddenly pushed this small tribe into the spotlight as a primary entertainment destination in the Twin Cities and throughout the region.

In 1984, video slots were added at Little Six Casino. In 1992, the tribe’s new enterprise Mystic Lake Casino, a much larger state of the art gaming facility opened with video slot machines and blackjack. During the 1990s through the present under Chairman Stanley R. Crooks, son of Chairman Norman Crooks, the SMSC continued its transformation from an economically distressed reservation to one of the more economically successful Indian tribes in the United States.

In this new era of tribal self-sufficiency, the Tribe was able to use its inherent sovereign rights and growing economy to purchase additional lands and to radically improve its economic base.

Diversification of the tribal economy was made a priority with the opening of Dakotah! Sport and Fitness, the Shakopee Dakota Convenience Store, Dakota Mall, Playworks, Dakotah Meadows RV Park, and adding the hotel to the casino complex.

All through the 1990s the infrastructure of the Community went through major improvements, with new sewer, water, and roads. New subdivisions offered major changes in housing for Community members. The natural surroundings were improved with tree plantings and wetland restorations.

In A New Century SMSC Continues Its Growth
Since the year 2000, the SMSC has built Tiowakan Spiritual Center, Dakotah Meadows Mini Storage, Playworks LINK Event Center, The Meadows at Mystic Lake, opened a second Shakopee Dakota Convenience Store, and the Mystic Lake Store at Mall of America.

At the Gaming Enterprise, two hotel towers, parking decks, new restaurants, a new Entertainment Center, and a Bingo Hall have opened. On December 13, 2007, a new Little Six Casino opened at the site of the original Bingo Hall.

The SMSC developed Mdewakanton Emergency Services, a full-time, professional fire and ambulance department staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The department responds to approximately 200 emergency calls and transports an average of 60 patients each month. It also provides mutual aid to area departments upon request.

A Water Reclamation Facility (WRF) utilizing European technology to treat wastewater for reuse as irrigation opened in 2006. Biosolids are used as fertilizer. The WRF also has one of the largest green roofs in the Midwest, which reduces energy costs and consumption, prolongs the life of the roof, and treats storm water. A 1,000,000-gallon water tower was built to better serve the Community. A second water treatment facility and another water tower were constructed on the northern portion of the Community.

As a positive expression of tribal sovereignty, in July 2008 the SMSC opened a bottling facility on the reservation to bottle water for use in tribal enterprises and special events. The plant also produces plastic bottles in various sizes from preformed plastic. In early 2009, a reverse osmosis facility was added to provide enhanced water treatment by eliminating the need for water softeners in Community enterprises and homes.

In October 2008 a second sheet of ice opened at Dakotah! Sport and Fitness. Dakotah! Ice Center is home ice for the Prior Lake High School Girls’ and Boys’ Hockey Teams as well as the Prior Lake/Savage Hockey Association. Dakotah! also offers hockey and figure skating lessons and open skate sessions.

Taking Care Of The Earth
As a steward of the earth, the SMSC conducts a number of activities to preserve and protect the land for future generations. Existing buildings are being “greened” up while new construction projects are “green” from the ground up. Energy initiatives are underway to reduce some of the environmental impacts associated with conventional energy sources and to increase tribal sovereignty.

The SMSC is a partner in Koda Energy, a joint venture with Rahr Malting of Shakopee, which produces heat and electricity by burning agricultural by-products and other biomass such as wood, prairie grasses, and oat hulls from General Mills cereals like Cheerios. A 386-foot, 1.5-megawatt wind turbine at the SMSC Pow Wow Grounds became operational in 2009. Combined, the wind turbine and Koda Energy have the potential to generate more than enough electricity to power the entire reservation.

Another innovative project now converts the Community’s waste motor oil to heat buildings. Previously, waste oil was hauled away; but now some Community spaces are partially heated by waste oil which reduces the use of natural gas. Another project converts 18,000 gallons of waste vegetable oil from deep fat fryers each year from Community restaurants into bio-diesel for use in vehicles and equipment.

Solar energy is also utilized. A total of twelve skylights and 22 solar panels reduce energy consumption at the SMSC’s Fire Station and the second ice arena at Dakotah! Sport and Fitness. This new ice arena contains a 32,648 square foot green roof to treat storm water. The facility also has a compressor system and heat exchanger to take the waste heat from the ice-making equipment and redirect it through the bleachers to heat the seating area. These initiatives all result in energy savings over the long-term.

Environmental specialists are active in restoring and managing wetlands, forests, and prairies. Inventories of existing natural communities, both floral and faunal, are in production. More than 500 acres of former farmland has been restored to native prairie and wetlands. Hydrologists assess water quality and plan and implement projects to improve water bodies on the reservation.

Additional Services OfferedThe success of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s enterprises has allowed the Community to create and provide numerous education, health, and social service programs for Community members, staff, and Native Americans in Scott County. The SMSC provides health and dental clinics, a pharmacy, a Wellness Center containing a Physical Therapy and Chiropractic Care Clinic, and a Vision Clinic. The Mystic Clinic provides urgent care services to team members of the SMSC Gaming Enterprise.

The SMSC has a Mobile Unit which not only houses facilities for mammography and cancer screening but also amenities so that it can function as an Incident Command Center in the event of a major emergency or disaster.

During its first year of service, hundreds of patients received health screenings and services from the Mobile Unit across the state. Additional services include dental, diabetes, and lead screening clinics. Each month mammograms are provided at no charge for tribal members and employees using the Mobile Unit. In 2009 the SMSC and Scott County began working together to provide free walk-in health clinics using the Mobile Unit at locations throughout the county for uninsured and underinsured residents.

Eonomic Impact On Community
Substantial Evidence of the huge economic impact of the Community’s enterprises can also be seen in other areas. The SMSC is proud to be a leader in sharing its success with other Tribes and organizations by making charitable donations. From 1997 through 2009 the SMSC donated more than $162 million to schools, youth programs, charitable organizations, and Indian Tribes.

The Mdewakanton LIFE Program has donated more than 500 Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) to organizations including the Minnesota State Patrol, other rescue and law enforcement programs, charitable groups, and schools.

From 2007 through 2009 the SMSC donated $14.5 million to the University of Minnesota for scholarships and the new TCF Bank Stadium. The gift funded the Minnesota Tribal Nations Plaza at the stadium to exhibit and celebrate the history, presence, and cultural contributions of all eleven Indian tribes in Minnesota. The remainder of the donation went into a matching endowment fund, creating a $5 million endowment to provide scholarships for students.

As the largest employer in Scott County, the SMSC provides much needed jobs for more than 4,100 people. Millions of dollars are pumped into the area’s economy each year as a result of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s successful economic enterprises.

Today, Mystic Lake Casino Hotel is known as one of the largest and most successful Indian-owned casinos in the United States and is one of the largest tourist attractions in the Upper Midwest. It is in the forefront of gaming technology and is a leader in the hospitality industry.

The SMSC engages in a variety of cultural activities which help educate the general public about Indian people. The Tribe not only honors its ancestors by continuing Dakota traditions, but also by demonstrating that Dakota people are thriving in the modern world. In addition to their annual Wacipi (Pow Wow) and dance exhibition at the Mall of America, the Tribe works to preserve cultural sites.

Children and adults are learning the Dakota language, song, and dance. Each year tribal youth celebrate Dakota heritage with Young Native Pride, a free event open to the public, which celebrates American Indian culture, traditions, and spirituality through song and dance. A cultural center is planned to display many of the thousands of items in the tribal archival collection.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Dakota are proud of our accomplishments, and we honor our ancestors, for it is because of their strong sense of survival and pride in being Dakota, that we have the ability to prosper today.

Looking Toward The Future
“Through the actions and hard work of our members in the early days and continuing over the last 40 years, our children and grandchildren and even great grandchildren will have a home here on the reservation where they can live out their lives surrounded by their loved ones. We are now able to provide for the needs of our members like never before,” Chairman Crooks said. “This land, our tribal land, is actively being preserved as a homeland for future generations.”

He continued, “Our hope is that future generations will be proud to be Shakopee Mdewakanton, that they will no longer have to fight to have their land put into trust, and that other governments will finally accept that we are a sovereign nation, a government that takes care of its people and its own land.

"We provide our own health care, educational services, and emergency services. We pave and plow our streets and put in subdivisions. We generate our own energy and treat and bottle our own water. We are self-sufficient as a sovereign nation, like we were before the Europeans came to this area hundreds of years ago.”

A private event was held November 14, 2009, to commemorate the 40- year anniversary of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community at Mystic Lake Casino Hotel. All eight former and the current Chairman were honored and received star quilts.

TO SUBMIT an ARTICLE, OPINION PIECE, COMMENTS to the Native Unity Digest, e-mail bobbieo@digitaldune.net.

NATIVE UNITY - A place for Native American Peoples to solidify their tribes to make a positive impact on the cultural, social, economic and political fabric of American society and a place for non-Natives to better understand the ways of the American Indian.

ATT: NEW - News Blog - American Indian Report - AIR BLOG
http://falmouth-air.blogspot.com

THE BUFFALO POST - Missoulian Montana's Native News Blog about Native People And The World We Live In.
http://buffalopost.net

Check Out NATIVE PRIDE- It's a great site!
http://letstalknativepride.blogspot.com

PATHOLOGY.ORG - Up-to-date informmational database on general health and disease information, medical schools and medical resources.
http://www.Pathology.org

FOR ANNIE'S NATIVE CELEBRITY NEWS - go to www.nativecelebs.com

CATCH COLORADAN PETER JONES AT:
http://indigenousissuestoday.blogspot.com

SUPPORTING NATIVE AMERICAN/FIRST PEOPLE - ARTISTS, FILM MAKERS, ENTERTAINERS, ETC. http://www.krystynmedia.blogspot.com.

Tribes Buy Back Land Where Ancestors Lived - Tim Giago: 'Bury My Heart' Turns 40

Indian Tribes Buy Back Thousands Of Acres Of Land
By Timberly Ross, Associated Press Writer – Sun Dec 27, ‘09
OMAHA, Neb. – Native American tribes tired of waiting for the U.S. government to honor centuries-old treaties are buying back land where their ancestors lived and putting it in federal trust.

Native Americans say the purchases will help protect their culture and way of life by preserving burial grounds and areas where sacred rituals are held. They also provide land for farming, timber and other efforts to make the tribes self-sustaining.

Tribes put more than 840,000 acres — or roughly the equivalent of the state of Rhode Island — into trust from 1998 to 2007, according to information The Associated Press obtained from the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs under the Freedom of Information Act.

Those buying back land include the Winnebago, who have put more than 700 acres in eastern Nebraska in federal trust in the past five years, and the Pawnee, who have 1,600 acres of trust land in Oklahoma. Land held in federal trust is exempt from local and state laws and taxes, but subject to most federal laws.

Three tribes have bought land around Bear Butte in South Dakota's Black Hills to keep it from developers eager to cater to the bikers who roar into Sturgis every year for a raucous road rally. About 17 tribes from the Dakotas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Montana and Oklahoma still use the mountain for religious ceremonies.

(Tribes Need To Buy Bear Butte Land - Native Unity: 08-15-06
This suggestion has been made in past articles and editorials. So, it is time for the Bear Butte Indigenous Tribes to join together in “native unity”, launch a public relations campaign, solicit financial aid from the casino tribes throughout the country and buy the surrounding land. Because if you don’t, someone else will! - Bobbie)

Emily White Hat, a member of South Dakota's Rosebud Sioux, said the struggle to protect the land is about "preservation of our culture, our way of life and our traditions."

"All of it is connected," White Hat said. "With your land, you have that relationship to the culture."

Other members of the Rosebud Sioux, such as president Rodney Bordeaux, believe the tribes shouldn't have to buy the land back because it was illegally taken. But they also recognize that without such purchases, the land won't be protected.

No one knows how much land the federal government promised Native American tribes in treaties dating to the late 1700s, said Gary Garrison, a spokesman for the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The government changed the terms of the treaties over the centuries to make property available to settlers and give rights-of-way to railroads and telegraph companies.
President Barack Obama's administration has proposed spending $2 billion to buy back and consolidate tribal land broken up in previous generations.

The program would pay individual members for land interests divided among their relatives and return the land to tribal control. But it would not buy land from people outside the tribes.

Today, 562 federally recognized tribes have more than 55 million acres held in trust, according to the bureau. Several states and local governments are fighting efforts to add to that number, saying the federal government doesn't have the authority to take land — and tax revenue — from states.

In New York, for example, the state and two counties filed a federal lawsuit in 2008 to block the U.S. Department of Interior from putting about 13,000 acres into trust for the Oneida Tribe. In September, a judge threw out their claims.

Putting land in trust creates a burden for local governments because they must still provide services such as sewer and water even though they can't collect taxes on the property, said Elaine Willman, a member of the Citizens Equal Rights Alliance and administrator for Hobart, a suburb of Green Bay, Wis. Hobart relies mostly on property taxes to pay for police, water and other services, but the village of about 5,900 lost about a third of its land to a trust set up for the state's Oneida Tribe, Willman said.

So far, Hobart has been able to control spending and avoid cuts in services or raising taxes, Willman said. Village leaders hope taxes on a planned 603-acre commercial development will eventually help make up for the lost money.

The nonprofit White Earth Land Recovery Project has bought back or been gifted hundreds of acres in northwestern Minnesota since it was created in the late 1980s. The White Earth tribe uses the land to harvest rice, farm and produce maple syrup. Members have hope of one day being self-sustaining again.

Winona LaDuke, who started the White Earth project, said buying property is expensive, but it's the quickest and easiest way for tribes to regain control of their land.

Tribal membership has been growing thanks to higher birth rates, longer life spans and more relaxed qualifications for membership, and that has created a greater need for land for housing, community services and economic development.

"If the tribes were to pursue return of the land in the courts it would be years before any action could result in more tribal land ... and the people simply cannot wait," said Cris Stainbrook, of the Little Canada, Minn.-based Indian Land Tenure Foundation.

Thirty to 40 tribes are making enough money from casinos to buy back land, but they also have to put money into social programs, education and health care for their members, said Robert J. Miller, a professor at the Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, Ore., who specializes in tribal issues. "Tribes just have so many things on their plate," he said.

Some tribes, such as the Pawnee, have benefited from gifts of land. Gaylord and Judy Mickelsen donated a storefront in Dannebrog, Neb., that had been in Judy Mickelsen's family for a century. The couple was retiring to Mesquite, Nev., in 2007, and Judy Mickelsen wanted to see the building preserved even though the town had seen better days.

The tribe has since set up a shop selling members' artwork in the building on Main Street.
"We were hoping the Pawnee could get a toehold here and get a new venture for the village of Dannebrog," Gaylord Mickelsen said.

Brown's Classic 'Bury My Heart' Turns 40
By Tim Giago
When Dee Brown wrote his book “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee,” he could not have known that it would become a classic.

This year, an illustrated 40th anniversary edition was published in hardback. It is a beautiful book and the photos add so much to the stories that made the book great. There are photos of a young Black Elk, Sitting Bull, Hollow Horn Bear, Short Bull and Kicking Bear.

The 543 page book is truly a collector’s treasure.The history of Wounded Knee is not such an ancient one to the Lakota people of 2009. Many Lakota living today had grandparents at Wounded Knee and some of them died there. My grandmother and grandfather lived at Kyle, just skip and a hop from the massacre site at Wounded Knee. My grandmother was just a teenager then, but she vividly remembered that day of Dec. 29, 1890.

Just six days after the massacre, L. Frank Baum, an editor at the Aberdeen Saturday Pioneer, wrote an editorial calling for the genocide of the Sioux people. He later wrote the children’s book “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.”

An excerpt from Brown’s book describes the aftermath of the massacre. “When the madness ended, Big Foot and more than half of his people were dead or seriously wounded; 153 were known dead, but many of the wounded crawled away to die afterward. One estimate placed the final total of dead at very nearly three hundred of the original 350 men, women and children. The soldiers lost 25 dead and 39 wounded, most of them struck by their own bullets or shrapnel.

“After the wounded cavalrymen started for the agency at Pine Ridge, a detail of soldiers went over the Wounded Knee battlefield (I resent the use of the word ‘battlefield’ here and would prefer ‘massacre site’ instead) gathering up Indians who were still alive and loading them on wagons. As it was apparent by the end of the day that a blizzard was approaching, the dead Indians were left lying where they had fallen.

“The wagonloads of wounded Sioux (four men and 47 women and children) reached Pine Ridge after dark. Because all available barracks were filled with soldiers, they were left lying in the open wagons in the bitter cold while an inept Army officer searched for shelter. Finally the Episcopal mission was opened, the benches taken out, and hay scattered over the rough flooring.

“It was the fourth day of Christmas in the Year of Our Lord 1890. When the torn and bleeding bodies were carried into the candlelit church, those who were conscious could see Christmas greenery hanging from the open rafters. Across the chancel front above the pulpit was strung a crudely lettered banner: Peace on Earth, Good Will to Men.”

Perhaps prematurely, Black Elk said, “I did not know then how much was ended. When I look back now from this high hill of my age, I can still see the butchered women and children lying heaped and scattered all along the crooked gulch as plain as when I saw them with eyes still young. And I can see that something else died there in the bloody mud, and was buried in the blizzard. A people’s dream died there. It was a beautiful dream ... the nation’s hoop is broken and scattered. There is no center any longer and the sacred tree is dead.”

This year, as in years past, Lakota men, women and children will mount their horses, and in the bitter cold of the South Dakota winter, they will begin a ride that starts at the site of Sitanka’s (Big Foot) trail that led to Wounded Knee.

When they reach the mass gravesite they will dismount and hold a religious ceremony to commemorate and honor those men, women and children that lie buried there. Their prayers will ceremoniously “Wipe away the tears” and they will pray that they can find it in their hearts to forgive.

The Lakota have never forgotten that tragic day because it very nearly ended their way of life. But just like the Phoenix that rose again from the ashes to begin a new life, so have the Lakota.

Dee Brown never knew that his book would, in a small way, contribute to that cultural and spiritual revival.

Tim Giago, an Oglala Lakota, is the founder and first president of the Native American Journalists Association and is now the publisher of the Native Sun News. He can be reached at editor@nsweekly.com.

TO SUBMIT an ARTICLE, OPINION PIECE, COMMENTS to the Native Unity Digest, e-mail bobbieo@digitaldune.net.

NATIVE UNITY - A place for Native American Peoples to solidify their tribes to make a positive impact on the cultural, social, economic and political fabric of American society and a place for non-Natives to better understand the ways of the American Indian.

ATT: NEW - News Blog - American Indian Report - AIR BLOG
http://falmouth-air.blogspot.com

THE BUFFALO POST - Missoulian Montana's Native News Blog about Native People And The World We Live In.
http://buffalopost.net/

Check Out NATIVE PRIDE- It's a great site!
http://letstalknativepride.blogspot.com

PATHOLOGY.ORG - Up-to-date informmational database on general health and disease information, medical schools and medical resources.
http://www.Pathology.org

FOR ANNIE'S NATIVE CELEBRITY NEWS - go to www.nativecelebs.com

CATCH COLORADAN PETER JONES AT:
http://indigenousissuestoday.blogspot.com

SUPPORTING NATIVE AMERICAN/FIRST PEOPLE - ARTISTS, FILM MAKERS, ENTERTAINERS, ETC. http://www.krystynmedia.blogspot.com.

Steady Stream Of Navajo Voters Express Dissatisfaction With Their Government

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE FROM NATIVE UNITY

Many Navajo Voters Say It's Time For A Change
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent
WINDOW ROCK – There were no long lines, no pushing to get to the voting booths at the four chapters the Independent visited at random Tuesday – just a steady stream of voters, many of whom expressed dissatisfaction with their government.

Angie Davidson of Fort Defiance said she cast her vote in the initiatives to reduce the Navajo Nation Council from 88 to 24 delegates and to give the president line-item veto authority, “but I think it's a waste of my time. I don't think it's going to make a big difference. They're going to continue wasting the people's money, they're going to continue to abuse the discretionary funds.”

Davidson said she believes the Nation needs to look at revamping the eligibility requirements for delegates. “A lot of them don't speak English. How are they going to communicate with the outside world if they don't speak English? They should at least have a high school education, maybe some sort of financial background. How else are they going to understand financial statements that are presented to them when they are on the oversight committee?”

Latasha Tom of Fort Defiance voted against the reduction. “There's 110 chapters and if they cut it, it will be like four chapters to one Council delegate. There's not going to be much focus on the chapter like there is now,” she said.

A.L. of Fort Defiance, who didn't want to give his full name, said he voted in favor of the reduction. “The majority don't want to work anyway. It's not going to be the Navajo people that are going to be missing out – it's going to be people from the PBR in Las Vegas that are going to be missing out on ticket sales.”

Annie Boyd of Fort Defiance, who turned 92 on Dec. 3, supported the Council reduction. “Reduce is better,” she said. “She's happy about it,” said her daughter Marie Halona of Blue Canyon. “It's to have some extra money for our kids, our grandkids and down the line – have some money for them instead of using it all up over here (Window Rock).”

Halona said the community has a lot of needs. “The council delegates, there's three from here. They get paid and off they go. They're not thinking about us. You come over here to the chapter: 'Where's the delegate?' They say, 'Not come in yet.' They're never around when you need them. They buy motorcycles, Hummers – those are $50,000 rides! And here we are.”

Calvin Ben, 23 of St. Michaels said he believes that by reducing Council it will be easier to keep track of the funds. “The funds will be more secure and they'll know where the funds are being distributed and where they're being misused.” As far as which delegates get into office, he said, “I think they should elect the ones that have shown progress and discard the rest.”

Sara David, 78, of St. Michaels said she voted against reducing Council. “There are a lot of Navajos. One (delegate) is not enough.” The delegates are doing a pretty good job, she said, “but they don't even come and see us. They don't check on us. They have meetings a lot. Then when we ask for something, they say they don't have it; they don't do that no more.”

Tom Yazzie Jr., 37, of St. Michaels said the Navajo Nation needs a new system of government because what's happening now isn't working. “Our states, they have so many representatives and they take care of so many people in one state, so I'm pretty sure these council delegates will be able to figure out something. They should learn how to delegate.

Regarding the line-item veto, Yazzie said, “The way I think of it, the president is like a nice set of rims on a vehicle – no power. If he could have some sort of power to move the vehicle, then great.” Yazzie is a member of the National Guard in New Mexico. When he goes to his unit in Albuquerque, they ask him questions about what's going on with the Navajo Nation government. “It's embarrassing,” he said.

Shawn Bahe, 38, of Window Rock voted for the line-item veto and against the Council reduction, “basically because the portion of representation is not going to be as large. How are you going to work all the standing committees? There's really no way to do it if you only have 24 people there,” he said. There are 11 standing committees, each with about eight delegates.

The Independent also encountered Council Speaker Lawrence T. Morgan at Pinedale Chapter Tuesday afternoon. “I voted no simply because if it's done appropriately and in a timely manner, it will work. But not hastily. I think this is a hasty move. If we want to vote in changing the government, I think we need to educate the people first. Then it will work out.

“Government has to change sometime, but not hastily or there's going to be perhaps consequences coming along with anything that you move on quickly,” he said.

Raphael Martin, a former president of Pinedale Chapter, said he has been pushing to keep the 88 delegates. He also questioned the line-item veto initiative.

“My view of this whole line-item veto is it goes with the Constitution. The Navajo Nation is not a constitutional government; it's a resolution form of government. It's a movement toward constitutionalizing the Navajo Nation in the future – that's the perspective of the elder people. I voted no. It's not time yet,” he said.

Andy Mariano of Pinedale said he believes Council has been acting “like a bunch of kids misbehaving.” He thinks a reduction is in order. “There's too many chiefs and not enough Indians,” he said. And all those millions of dollars that come to Window Rock from Washington, “What about they just bring the money to the Indians?

“I think those Washington people are thinking we're using those monies good, carefully,” he said, but Washington should bypass Window Rock and “give the money to whoever has a Census number, instead of just those Council delegates having fun out there fooling around with another person's wife. That's what they do.”

T. Charley of Churchrock voted for the Council reduction. “I asked them for help and they never did help me. I see them using money on their own personal stuff,” he said. He also voted in favor of the line-item veto.

Venus Etsitty, 21, said she, too, voted for the reduction and for the president to have line-item veto authority. “I think a Council reduction would be good for our people because I believe a lot of our delegates waste our money. I think the money could be used toward scholarships and toward better things for my people.”

Irvin Harrison of Gallup also voted in favor of the initiatives. “I was trying to do business in Window Rock last week and all the Council delegates and the staff were in Las Vegas, Nevada,” he said. He went by again Tuesday to the legislative offices. “The councilmen were sitting outside and they were saying, 'Well, I'm just waiting for my check.'”

TO SUBMIT an ARTICLE, OPINION PIECE, COMMENTS to the Native Unity Digest, e-mail bobbieo@digitaldune.net.

NATIVE UNITY - A place for Native American Peoples to solidify their tribes to make a positive impact on the cultural, social, economic and political fabric of American society and a place for non-Natives to better understand the ways of the American Indian.

News Blog - American Indian Report - AIR BLOG
http://falmouth-air.blogspot.com

THE BUFFALO POST - Missoulian Montana's Native News Blog about Native People And The World We Live In.
http://buffalopost.net/

Check Out NATIVE PRIDE- It's a great site!
http://letstalknativepride.blogspot.com

PATHOLOGY.ORG - Up-to-date informmational database on general health and disease information, medical schools and medical resources.
http://www.Pathology.org

FOR ANNIE'S NATIVE CELEBRITY NEWS - go to www.nativecelebs.com

CATCH COLORADAN PETER JONES AT:
http://indigenousissuestoday.blogspot.com

SUPPORTING NATIVE AMERICAN/FIRST PEOPLE - ARTISTS, FILM MAKERS, ENTERTAINERS, ETC. http://www.krystynmedia.blogspot.com.

Hiring Special Prosecutor Is Out For Navajos - Tim Giago: Indian Time In This Busy World

Shirley Ruling Also Voids Moving Forward With Special Prosecutor
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent

WINDOW ROCK – The Navajo Nation Council emergency resolution that placed President Joe Shirley Jr. on administrative leave also referred investigative reports on OnSat and BCDS to the Navajo Attorney General so that a special prosecutor could be hired to look into the matters further.

When District Court Judge Geraldine Benally ruled Monday that the resolution is unenforceable because Council did not follow statutory requirements, that meant that the language on hiring a special prosecutor is null and void as well.

Albuquerque Attorney James W. Zion sent a letter Thursday to Attorney General Louis Denetsosie saying he will block the appointment of a special prosecutor on behalf of his client, Duane “Chili” Yazzie, should Denetsosie proceed.

Yazzie is president of the Navajo Nation Human Rights Commission. His name appears along with several others in a section of the resolution that requests investigation and possible prosecution of ethical, civil and criminal charges.

“The District Court decision invalidated the resolution because the Council did not follow its own procedures. There was no emergency, and as far as I'm concerned, the special prosecutor is off the table,” Zion said Friday. “How can the attorney general act on a resolution when the resolution has been invalidated by a court?”

In a letter to Denetsosie, Zion said, “I call upon you to formally declare that you will not move forward with an application to appoint a special investigator unless you are prepared to tell my client and the public the basis for going forward ...”

During Monday's hearing, Shirley's attorneys argued that the resolution was illegal because it was a bill of attainder and was intended to punish the president for his political initiatives. A bill of attainder, according to Webster's New World College Dictionary, is a legislative enactment by which a person is pronounced guilty, without trial, of an alleged crime. It is prohibited by the U.S. Constitution.

“It is the president's belief and legal counsel's belief that Council was hasty in placing him (Shirley) on leave without so much as hearing from him,” said George Hardeen, communications director for the Office of the President/Vice President.

“It was a violation of due process, there was a presumption of guilt instead of a presumption of innocence, and a penalty was applied before process had been implemented.”

Zion stated in his letter to Denetsosie that “it is time for public officials in the legal arena to declare that the law must not be, and shall not be, used for political purposes.” Benally did not make any findings or conclusions on the arguments about bill of attainder.

“The trial court very carefully ruled on the narrowest ground possible. The judge did precisely what the judge was supposed to do on that. You don't decide big cosmic questions if you can resolve it basically on a question like the Council didn't follow its own procedure,” Zion said.

“My letter points out that I'm using exactly the same grounds of objection that were presented to the court, and I'm sitting and waiting, and I want notice because I'm going to intervene and I'm going to block the special prosecutor if he proceeds – assuming of course that the court goes along. But, we'll see.”

On Dec. 15, the day after the court's ruling, the Navajo Nation people voted overwhelmingly to support the president's initiatives – reducing Council from 88 to 24 delegates and giving the president line-item veto authority.

Leonard Chee, who represents Leupp/Bird Springs/Tolani Lake, said Friday that members of the Western Agency Council will hold a press conference at 10 a.m. Monday at the Council chamber on how they intend to proceed.

“Several chapters from Western Agency didn't support this, including my three chapters that I represent. They're saying, 'Why don't we take a position to just let the other four go with this, since we didn't support it, and have our own representative. How can we challenge that vote using Dine Fundamental Laws?' ”

Chee said that as of Thursday three members of the executive staff – Isabelle Walker and Angie Cody, both of Western Agency, and Barbara O'Keefe – were fired. He questioned whether that was a retaliatory move because Western Agency didn't support the president's initiatives.

Hardeen affirmed Friday that the three women had been terminated. “In the seven weeks President Shirley was out of office, mistakes in judgment were being made. It's a matter of trust.”

In the absence of Chief of Staff Patrick Sandoval, who was fired Dec. 1 by Vice President Ben Shelly, Walker was named acting chief. “Isabelle's job was to hold the staff together and ease the growing tensions and insecurities and help do what was necessary to ensure the president's return. Apparently that didn't happen,” Hardeen said. Cody, an executive staff assistant who handled the office finances, also was terminated as a matter of errors in judgment and trust, he said.

During the president's absence, O'Keefe, who had been working in the First Lady's office, was moved to be an assistant to Sharon Clauchischilliage, who the vice president brought in to replace Sandoval as chief of staff, Hardeen said. When Shirley was reinstated, one of the first things he did was bring back Sandoval. Along with Sandoval came his assistant, Christopher Morris.

Clauchischilliage was returned to the Washington office, and because of the rearrangement of positions, O'Keefe was left without a position, Hardeen said.

When asked Friday about what Council's next move might be, Legislative Counsel Frank Seanez told the Independent, “I really can't discuss this matter with you at this time.” Calls to the Office of Attorney General were not returned and there had been no comment at press time from the Office of the Speaker.

Delegate LoRenzo Bates, chairman of the Budget and Finance Committee, said Council needs to be careful with what it does next. “We can't act with emotion. I certainly understand the feeling, but we must not act with emotion because it can be looked upon as political payback, and that's not something the people would accept.”

“Nonetheless, this whole situation has to be looked at. I don't want these smart attorneys to play this card they have in their back pocket to say it's (special prosecutor) null and void. I'm talking on behalf of the 40 to 50 people that got put out of a job at BCDS. I'm talking on behalf of the millions of dollars that the Nation had to give up.

“You have an individual that's running out there scot-free – Hak Ghun – enjoying our money. The longer we delay, the further away he gets from any possible prosecution.”

Where is Hak Ghun?
I rec'd e-mails last summer from two people who were doing business with Hak Ghun in California. Passed the info on through the proper channels to the Navajo Nation, too.
Bobbie

Is There Still A Place For Indian Time In This Busy World?
By Tim Giago (Nanwica Kciji)
When we are young it seems that time is either too short or too long. Summer vacations are much too fast and it seems like the school year is forever. But something happens to time as we age. The older we get the faster it flies. Remember the old saying; "Time is like a roll of toilet paper: the closer you get to the end, the faster it goes.

Out here on the Northern Plains we have another form of telling time: It is called Indian time. It means that a meeting will start when everybody gets there and the meeting will last as long as all of the people have had the chance to voice their opinions. Indians didn't spend their lives with one eye on the clock because they had to deal with that thing called time long before they ever saw or heard of a clock.

Time was measured by the movements of the sun, stars and the moon. You've all heard about using the moon to gauge time. "It will be many moons before I see you again." There is a town in Wyoming called Ten Sleeps. It was named because from one point on the map it took 10 nights of travel (10 sleeps) to get to that location. Where the journey originated we don't exactly know, but it must have been a well traveled destination from that locale to make it important enough to name a town after the journey.

When Lakota children started school, maybe at the day schools that were common in the early years, or later at the Indian boarding schools, time became an important factor in their lives. Classes started at a certain time. Recess was at a certain time. And if you attended a mission boarding school, the morning church service was at a certain time. The way their grandparents measured time became inconsequential. But isn't it a thing of beauty to measure time by following nature. For example, when the nights became so cold that the branches in the trees made snapping noises, to the Lakota it was known as "The moon of the popping trees" (December).

And then the children started to follow a routine based on time. The dining rooms were opened for meals at a certain time and the closed at a certain time. The Sunday night movies were held at a certain time. And so the children from the far reaches of the Indian reservations were now oriented to living their lives on a time schedule.

Of course time had a way of weaving itself into many facets of Indian life then and now. The children know what time Sesame Street is on the air. They know what time a basketball game is going to start and if they were told they had to see the principal at 9:00 a.m. sharp, they kept their eye on the clock to make sure they were there on time. And so time was not only a friend, it could be an enemy.

For those who left the reservation to enlist in the military, they ran into a whole new system of keeping time. The first night in basic training, or boot camp as it was best known, they heard the bugle play reveille as the sun rose and taps when the sun set. The clock no longer read 3:00 p.m., it now was known as 1500 hours. In the Navy time was measured in bells.

A joke in the Navy was about a radio station on the San Francisco Naval Shipyard that one day announced the time like this: "For all of you Army personnel, the time is now 1500 hours. For you Navy guys, the time is now 3 bells, and for you Marines, the big hand is on the 12 and the little hand is on the 3." Needless to say the Marines mutinied after that little announcement.

While in the armed forces Native Americans were thoroughly acclimated to time. Many even learned to synchronize their watches with their squad leaders before heading into a potential firefight. The word would be, "We will kick off at 1600 hours. Synchronize your watches." Of course, the men about to go into battle changed it to, "Time to simonize your watches."

And so time has become a part of our lives. We get up to go to work by an alarm clock and leave work when the clock strikes a certain hour. Children rush out to the street to catch a school bus at a certain time and they are dropped off at the front door by the bus at a certain time.

Does that mean that Indian time is no longer relevant? If you have ever had to attend a Tribal Council meeting or a board meeting on an Indian reservation you would not think so. A news reporter from a Rapid City television station showed up for a meeting of Lakota that was supposed to start at 9:00 a.m. Well, he sat and checked his watch every five minutes until it was nearly 10:00 a.m. before the key people scheduled for the meeting began to wander into the meeting place with little or no urgency. It drove the reporter right up the wall because to the media time is money and this guy felt like he was about to break the television station's bank.

In a way it is sad to see the concept of Indian time vanish, but like so many things that are dependent upon the clock, it will probably happen. What do you think?

(Tim Giago is the editor and publisher of the weekly Native Sun News. He was a Nieman Fellow at Harvard with the Class of 1991. He founded the Native American Journalists Association, The Lakota Times, Indian Country Today and the Lakota Journal. He can be reached at editor@nsweekly.com or you can call him at 605-721-1266)

TO SUBMIT an ARTICLE, OPINION PIECE, COMMENTS to the Native Unity Digest, e-mail bobbieo@digitaldune.net.

NATIVE UNITY - A place for Native American Peoples to solidify their tribes to make a positive impact on the cultural, social, economic and political fabric of American society and a place for non-Natives to better understand the ways of the American Indian.

News Blog - American Indian Report - AIR BLOG
http://falmouth-air.blogspot.com

THE BUFFALO POST - Missoulian Montana's Native News Blog about Native People And The World We Live In.
http://buffalopost.net/

Check Out NATIVE PRIDE- It's a great site!
http://letstalknativepride.blogspot.com

PATHOLOGY.ORG - Up-to-date informmational database on general health and disease information, medical schools and medical resources.
http://www.Pathology.org

FOR ANNIE'S NATIVE CELEBRITY NEWS - go to www.nativecelebs.com

CATCH COLORADAN PETER JONES AT:
http://indigenousissuestoday.blogspot.com

SUPPORTING NATIVE AMERICAN/FIRST PEOPLE - ARTISTS, FILM MAKERS, ENTERTAINERS, ETC. http://www.krystynmedia.blogspot.com.

Joe Shirley Jr. Back In Office - SMSC Changes Date For Annual Wacipi

Judge: Council Exceeded Authority, Shirley Returned To Office
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent

WINDOW ROCK – The Navajo Nation Council acted outside the scope of its authority when it placed President Joe Shirley Jr. on administrative leave in October, District Court Judge Geraldine Benally ruled Monday.

As a result, Council and Speaker Lawrence T. Morgan violated the Nation's Sovereign Immunity Act and were not entitled to the 20-day notice of service specified in the act.

At the request of Shirley's attorneys, the court granted a directed verdict and declared the resolution which placed the president on leave null and void and issued a permanent injunction against any further attempts to exclude him from office.

The judge's ruling came shortly before 6:30 p.m. after approximately five hours of oral arguments. A written order will be filed today.

Less than two hours later, Shirley returned to his office – which was missing a few pieces of furniture – where he met with members of his staff, supporters, and the media. He said the judge's ruling “makes the heart glad.”

“It's really good to see all of you. I want you to know that it comes from the heart when I say it's good to see you and thank you for having been there for me, for my wife and my children, and for certainly the office of the people.”

They have gone through some very trying and challenging times, but “sometimes you have to go through these things to get at that which is good. I really believe that we will be getting that which is good tomorrow,” the president said, referring to today's referendum to reduce the Council from 88 to 24 members and to give the president line-item veto authority.

“Tomorrow is going to be a big day for us ... Prayerfully, I have confidence we are going to put two legislations on the books. What's unique about the two legislations is they are coming from the people – something that's never been done before. It's history in the making,” he said.

Michelle Dotson, legal counsel with the Office of the President and Vice President; Benjamin Runkle and Kirsten Murphy of Gallagher and Kennedy law firm in Phoenix represented Shirley at the hearing. Paul K Charlton, who represented the president last week, was called to a criminal proceeding in New York and was unable to attend.

Tamsen Holm, an attorney with the Office of Legislative Counsel, represented Council and Morgan. Chief Legislative Counsel Frank Seanez submitted a letter to the court last week stating that he could not represent the parties because he was a potential witness.

“Since then, certain things have transpired,” Seanez said. He asked to be allowed to represent the respondents at Monday's hearing only, however, Runkle objected, saying the Office of Legislative Counsel made it clear Dec. 9 that they had a conflict of interest. “Nothing has changed,” he said.

Holm, who works for the same office, did not have the conflict Seanez has and was allowed to act on behalf of the respondents. Seanez drafted the legislation that placed the president on leave and also advised Ethics and Rules Committee and Council on the matter and expected to be called as a witness.

Though Seanez was in the courtroom for the Dec. 9 hearing, he said he was out of the office from Thursday through Friday evening and wasn't served notice of the day's hearing until Monday morning. Morgan was not served until 11:30 a.m., he said.

He requested a continuance, saying he understood that a hearing on the president's request for a temporary restraining order would not be held for 20 days and that they were in the process of preparing for a hearing on Dec. 28. Benally denied the request.

“We are going to proceed on whether the respondents complied with the Sovereign Immunity Act,” she said. In a six-page order issued Friday, the court found that it could not proceed with the hearing on the president's request for a temporary restraining order because the 20-day notice period had not elapsed. However, the notice only applies if the Sovereign Immunity at is complied with.

Benally set Monday's hearing to determine whether Council exceeded its scope of authority and noted that depending on the outcome, the court could proceed immediately to a hearing on either the temporary restraining order or an injunction.

Shirley's former Chief of Staff Patrick Sandoval, Gerri Harrison of Legislative Services, and Seanez were called as witnesses during the proceeding. Attorneys for the president made the case that Shirley's being placed on leave was in retaliation for his initiative to reduce Council.

“Second-guessing the motives does not negate the fact that the Navajo Nation Council acted within its scope of authority,” Holm argued.

Runkle said that Council's actions were similar to a police officer who used excessive force during an arrest. Though he might be acting in his official capacity, his actions constituted a violation.

“I think that Council did act within their authority,” Joshua Lavar Butler, communications director for the Office of the Speaker, said after the hearing. “I do disagree with the court's ruling.

“We were not given sufficient notice. A lot of the notices we received were at the 11th hour. I don't know if that was planned or what, but we weren't given sufficient notice even to hire an outside counsel.

“I think for now, though the president may be back in office, it does not dismiss the evidence and the investigation that lies with the Navajo attorney general. So we'll just wait and see what happens with that. I would think the Council would want a status report from the Navajo attorney general.”

Sandoval was elated at the outcome. “Thank goodness for our court systems and the opportunity to have them interpret the differences that we had. Let's just hope that everybody pays respect to that and we continue to move forward,” he said.

Sandoval was fired Dec. 1 by Vice President Ben Shelly, however, Shirley said, “To me he's never left. He's always been our chief.”

Though Shirley is officially authorized to go back into office, “he's got to hire me back,” Sandoval said. “The president was never removed from being the president, but I've got personnel procedures that I've got to go through.”

Former Navajo President Albert Hale, who attended the hearing, was happy with Benally's ruling. “This is a three-branch government at work and checks and balances at work. That's what Title II amendments were to do,” he said.

SMSC Date Change For Annual Wacipi - Now August 20, 21 and 22, 2010
by Tessa Lehto
Communications Specialist
tessa.lehto@shakopeedakota.org

Shakopee, MN – The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community today announced a date change for the 2010 Wacipi (Pow Wow). This coming year the event will be held Friday through Sunday, August 20, 21, and 22, 2010. The Wacipi will be held at the Pow Wow Grounds on the SMSC reservation.

The public is invited to experience the beauty and dignity of Native American culture at this event.

Grand Entries will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, 1:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, and 1:00 p.m. on Sunday. Fireworks will be held at 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, August 21, 2010, at the Pow Wow Grounds and a church service will be held on Sunday, August 22, 2010, at 10:00 a.m. at nearby Tiowakan Spiritual Center.

For more information on the Wacipi call 952-445-8900 or go to http://www.shakopeedakota.org/. For information about booths, call 952-496-6176.

This is a change in dates from those in the press release sent out November 4, 2009.

About the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux CommunityThe SMSC utilizes its financial resources from gaming and non-gaming enterprises to pay for all of the internal infrastructure of the Tribe, including but not limited to roads, water and sewer systems, emergency services, and essential services to its Tribal members in education, health, and welfare.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community has a charitable giving program which comes from a cultural and social tradition to assist those in need. Over the past 12 years the SMSC has donated more than $162 million to charitable organizations and Indian Tribes, including more than $20.9 million in fiscal year 2009.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, a federally recognized Indian Tribe in Minnesota, is the owner and operator of Mystic Lake Casino Hotel, Little Six Casino, Playworks, Dakotah! Sport and Fitness, The Meadows at Mystic Lake, and other enterprises on a reservation south of the Twin Cities.

TO SUBMIT an ARTICLE, OPINION PIECE, COMMENTS to the Native Unity Digest, e-mail bobbieo@digitaldune.net.

NATIVE UNITY - A place for Native American Peoples to solidify their tribes to make a positive impact on the cultural, social, economic and political fabric of American society and a place for non-Natives to better understand the ways of the American Indian.

News Blog - American Indian Report - AIR BLOG
http://falmouth-air.blogspot.com
'
THE BUFFALO POST - Missoulian Montana's Native News Blog about Native People And The World We Live In.
http://buffalopost.net/

Check Out NATIVE PRIDE- It's a great site!
http://letstalknativepride.blogspot.com

PATHOLOGY.ORG - Up-to-date informmational database on general health and disease information, medical schools and medical resources.
http://www.Pathology.org

FOR ANNIE'S NATIVE CELEBRITY NEWS - go to www.nativecelebs.com

CATCH COLORADAN PETER JONES AT:
http://indigenousissuestoday.blogspot.com

SUPPORTING NATIVE AMERICAN/FIRST PEOPLE - ARTISTS, FILM MAKERS, ENTERTAINERS, ETC. http://www.krystynmedia.blogspot.com.

Feds Offer $3.4 Billion Settlement To 13 Year Old Lawsuit - SMSC Donations Brighten Holidays

Proposed Cobell Lawsuit Settlement Announced
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent

WINDOW ROCK – The federal government offered a $3.4 billion settlement Tuesday in the 13-year-old Cobell class-action lawsuit regarding its mismanagement of more than 300,000 individual Indian trust accounts.

Of that amount, $1.4 billion – minus attorney fees – will be distributed to class members to compensate them for their historical accounting claims, and to resolve potential claims that prior U.S. officials mismanaged the administration of trust assets.

A $2 billion fund for the voluntary buy-back and consolidation of fractionated land interests will provide individuals an opportunity to obtain cash payments for divided land interests.

The settlement money will be distributed to members of two classes: “Accounting Class” members will receive $1,000 each while “Trust Administration Class” members will receive $500. Class members will have 60 days to decide whether to opt out of the settlement.

The Navajo Nation has approximately 42,000 holders of trust lands primarily located in the Eastern Navajo Agency. As of Sept. 30, there were 143,663 individual Indian allotments and more than 4 million fractionated interests.

“Resolving this issue has been a top priority of President Obama, and this administration has worked in good faith to reach a settlement that is both honorable and responsible,” said U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, who made the announcement at a press conference along with Attorney General Eric Holder.

Holder said that over the last 13 years, the parties have tried to settle the case many times, each time unsuccessfully. “But today we turn the page. This settlement is fair to the plaintiffs, responsible for the United States, and provides a path forward for the future.”

Navajo Nation Vice President Ben Shelly, who is in Washington to testify today on the Utah Navajo Trust Fund, said, “This has been a long journey for the Cobell team and the DOI attorneys to negotiate this agreement. I just hope it’s a fair amount for the individual Navajos affected by settlement and [will] help resolve the tribe’s own lawsuit regarding mismanagement of trust funds.”

Navajo Nation Council Delegate Leonard Tsosie, who represents several affected chapters in the Eastern Agency, was of a different opinion.

“It's a slap in the face. It's real interesting how the U.S. District Court, when it comes to a non-Indian, increases the value so much that these settlements are in the millions of dollars; but when it comes to a Native American, the settlement is at $1,000. That's pure injustice.

“That doesn't even cover one year of interest for all of the monies that they've lost or stolen – not even the base amount. This $1,000 is probably not going to come out to even like $1 for those allottees that have very small interests, and it probably won't be even worth the check it's written on.”

The settlement will not become final until it is formally endorsed by U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia – where Elouise Cobell brought the suit in 1966 – and is approved by Congress. Salazar hopes the bill will be introduced by the end of this year.

The case has negatively impacted the government’s relations with Indian Country for more than a decade. The litigation has included hundreds of motions, dozens of rulings and appeals, and several trials.

Suits brought by individual tribes will not be affected by the settlement. The Navajo Nation currently has a separate case working its way through the court system, seeking compensation resulting from past Interior trust-land fund mismanagement.

Information: http://www.cobellsettlement.com/ or http://www.doi.gov/ or http://www.ost.doi.gov/

Shakopee Mdewakanton Donate $233,834 To Brighten Holidays
by Tessa Lehto,
Communications Specialist
tessa.lehto@shakopeedakota.org

Prior Lake, MN – To share in the holiday spirit and make the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays a little brighter for those who are less fortunate, the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community awarded $233,834 in charitable donations for the 2009 holiday season. The donations, which went to 42 social service organizations mostly in the Twin Cities, are providing toys, clothing, food, activities, and other gifts for families this holiday season.

“The holiday season can be hard for those who are less fortunate so we like to help out where we can. We've been blessed, and we're grateful for the opportunity to help others,” said SMSC Chairman Stanley Crooks.

The largest amount given to one organization was $20,000 to the CAP Agency serving Scott, Dakota, and Carver counties in Minnesota for their annual Thanksgiving and Christmas programs for families needing assistance. The CAP Agency is a non-profit organization serving children, families, and senior citizens.

The Salvation Army in Minneapolis received $12,000 for their Thanksgiving and Christmas meals and gifts. The Little Earth Residents Association in Minneapolis received $12,120 for their holiday program.

A $10,000 donation was also made to Union Gospel Mission, the Minneapolis American Indian Center, and the American Indian Family Center for the holidays.

The Upper Midwest American Indian Center, the Department of Indian Works (St. Paul), and the Dorothy Day Center each received a donation of $9,000 for their holiday programs. The Division of Indian Work in Minneapolis received $8,000 for their program.

The Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate in South Dakota received $6,494 for transportation of toys to the reservation and to Fort Berthold from the Twin Cities. St. Joseph’s Indian School in Chamberlain, South Dakota, received $8,900.

Other organizations in the Twin Cities receiving SMSC holiday donations are: Ain Dah Yung, Ain Day Ing, All Nations Indian Church, American Indian Services, the Carver Scott Educational Coop, CAC Dakota/Scott Armful of Love, Elders Lodge, First Nations Recovery Center, Indian Fellowship, Intertribal Elders Services, Kateri, Minnesota Indian Women's Resource Center, Minnesota Compassion, MOFAS Native American Caregiver Circle, People Serving People, St. Joseph's Home for Children, the Prior Lake Lion's Club, and Women of Nations.

In other areas the SMSC made holiday donations to: Bad River Head Start, Boys & Girls Club of the Three Districts, Browns Valley Family Service Center, the Cass Lake Family Center, the Cheyenne Children Services, the Cheyenne River Youth Services, Fond du Lac College Human Services Club, the Haskell Off-Campus Club, He Sapa New Life Ministries, Indian Youth of America, and Tiwahe Wakan.

The SMSC will also donate grocery gift cards to low-income Native American families living in Scott County. In addition to the financial contributions, SMSC members and staff participate in a Giving Tree Program, which gives presents anonymously to children in Native American families in need that live in the county.

TO SUBMIT an ARTICLE, OPINION PIECE, COMMENTS to the Native Unity Digest, e-mail bobbieo@digitaldune.net.

NATIVE UNITY - A place for Native American Peoples to solidify their tribes to make a positive impact on the cultural, social, economic and political fabric of American society and a place for non-Natives to better understand the ways of the American Indian.

ATT: NEW - News Blog - American Indian Report - AIR BLOG
'Indian Country Gets $32 Million For Public Transportation'
http://falmouth-air.blogspot.com

THE BUFFALO POST - Missoulian Montana's Native News Blog about Native People And The World We Live In.
http://buffalopost.net/

Check Out NATIVE PRIDE- It's a great site!
http://letstalknativepride.blogspot.com

PATHOLOGY.ORG - Up-to-date informmational database on general health and disease information, medical schools and medical resources.
http://www.Pathology.org

FOR ANNIE'S NATIVE CELEBRITY NEWS - go to www.nativecelebs.com

CATCH COLORADAN PETER JONES AT:
http://indigenousissuestoday.blogspot.com

SUPPORTING NATIVE AMERICAN/FIRST PEOPLE - ARTISTS, FILM MAKERS, ENTERTAINERS, ETC. http://www.krystynmedia.blogspot.com.

Obama Rescinds 'Bennett Freeze': 40 Years of Restrictions For Navajos - SMSC Education Grants

Families Struggle To Survive in 'No Man's Land'
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent

Preface:
On May 8, 09
President Obama signed Senate Bill 39 into law, permanently rescinding the “Bennett Freeze” and ending more than 40 years of restrictions for Navajo Nation residents living on 1.6 million acres in the western portion of the Navajo Nation.

The freeze, which was imposed July 8, 1966, by then-Department of the Interior Secretary Robert Bennett, resulted from a decades-long land dispute between the Navajo Nation and the Hopi Tribe and prevented residents from making improvements or repairs to their homes and related property.

Only 3 percent of families affected by the Bennett Freeze have electricity and only 10 percent have running water.

Update:
Tuba City, December 5th, 09
Imagine not being allowed to improve your home, make repairs or build a new one -- that is the plight of those who live in the Bennett Freeze.

Just south of Tuba City, where the pavement ends and the dirt roads begin, is an area known as “No Man's Land.” Residents say it's part of the former Bennett Freeze, but nobody really knows for sure. It's on the fringe and the Bennett Freeze happened a long time ago.

All they know is life is a struggle and help is basically non-existent.

Denise Almeida, 35, lives with her boyfriend and seven children in a 7-by-19-foot travel trailer on the family compound. Her mother and father reside in a two-room house in the middle. Denise's sister, Stevena, and her family live in a thin plywood hogan on the other side.

“We had a trailer here, a single-wide, and it burnt down. We don't have any way of like, getting a hogan done for us, so we've been in this trailer for almost three years,” Denise said.

An orange extension cord runs from her parents' home to the trailer, providing electricity for a dorm-room-size refrigerator, a small heater, and occasional television for the kids. The roof of the trailer is covered in multiple tarps to try to keep out the rain. The windows were broken out by a tornado that touched down in 2007 and are draped in blankets or other material.

“The last wood stove I had burned down my trailer, so I'm scared of wood stoves and I'm scared of propane,” Denise said. The electric heater doesn't produce much heat, so the trailer stays cold in winter.

“Sometimes when it rains really hard, it leaks from the ceiling. The walls are really bad. You can hear the mouses running around in there. My kids got sick from the mouse droppings. They all have asthma,” she said.

At night, Denise's boyfriend, Edward Zepeda, sleeps on the floor, she sleeps in a twin bed with the babies – Leon and Leticia. The boys sleep on the bunk beds and on the floor. “Actually, when it's warm enough out here, my daughter sleeps outside in 'the Blazer' because it's too crowed inside, or sometimes she stays over at my mom's house,” Denise said.

When Stevena and Brian moved to the family compound, their sons, Brandon, 2, and, Jayden, who turned a year old Nov. 28, hadn't been born yet.

“Before I got pregnant we used to live in my mom's Blazer. We stayed there for maybe like two months. It was getting to the winter. It was really cold.”

They moved into a rat-infested trailer on the family compound. “It was really bad. The ceiling was dripping all the time, there was mouses in there. We had to use the outhouse. I started getting sick and getting infections,” Stevena said. One morning she went to the outhouse and when she came back “she was feeling really weird,” Brian said. “We took her to the hospital and the doctor said it was a black widow bite.

“When we lived in that little trailer we used to have mice all the time. We'd get that sticky paper and we'd get like two or three a night,” he said.

“Even where we laid, there were mouses going on top of us and around us. It was kind of gross,” Stevena added.

The “Blazer,” which really isn't a Blazer but a similar-style vehicle, might not have been much, but at least it was mouse-free. After Brandon was born, they slept there. “We'd just throw our blankets down and put him in the middle,” Brian said.

That was in the winter, while Stevena's dad was repairing a hogan that had been damaged by fire so they would have a home. “It was burned from the stove all the way down to the door. The walls were kind of apart and it looked bad,” she said.

Though there is a Navajo taboo against living in burned-out structures, “We had no choice because we had nowhere else to live. My dad wanted some sort of shelter for my son. I was happy that he was building this. We don't have no mice, but we do have a lot of bugs in here,” she said. They fixed that by taping all the seams where the walls and ceiling come together with red plastic tape.

Like Denise's trailer, the hogan is powered by an extension cord running from Stevena's parents' house.

“It's hard to live like this because sometimes we have to use electricity and then sometimes extension cords burn out and it's hard for us to get extension cords to have lights.”

Neither Denise nor Stevena have running water, so cooking and bathing takes place at their parents' house. The water heater tore up a couple years ago, Stevena said, so there is no hot water.

“We have to take turns at the stove and sometimes my mom runs out of propane and we end up using a small electric stove to cook on. Only one burner works so we all have to take turns cooking at different hours,” Denise said.

Her boyfriend has only been able to find work one day a week. The family basically subsists on just over $300 a month from TANF and Food Stamps.

Despite the hardships, Denise said her children are doing well in school, except for Misael, who contracted Helicobacter Pyhri, a bacterlogical disease better known as H. pylori. He spent two months in the hospital last winter, which put him behind in his school work, and now will have to take medication every day for the rest of his life.

“My doctor wrote out a paper saying that we needed better housing than this, so we've been waiting all this time. We went to the chapter and to the housing authority,” she said. After the trailer burned, she even put up fliers at the grocery store, “trying to find a trailer for cheap,” but no one responded.

“I wouldn't really call this a home,” Denise said. “I guess I got used to it, the way we live and everything, but it's not a good situation for my kids.

“As soon as they get back from school they have to do their homework. I don't allow them to do their homework late because we don't really want to use up the lights,” she said. Her daughter, Elisa, 19, is trying to get into college, and Denise herself is getting together her high school records so she can enroll in adult education classes. Stevena and Brian already are taking classes.

Living in such tight quarters takes its toll. She suffers from migraines and asthma. “I feel so choked sometimes. It feels like I can't breathe. I can't move around. We try to do our best, but it seems like it's just getting worse and worse.”

After the trailer burned, she went to the chapter for help. The woman who waited on her “turned around and told me the reason why the trailer burnt down is because there was illegal stuff in there. I said, 'The only thing you guys found supposedly illegal in there is the syringes I use to give myself a shot for migraines.'

“It made me so mad, because they don't know nothing about us. They just figure, 'Well, that's what they were doing. We're not going to help them.' The only time people came around here to check on us was when that twister came. But we didn't get help from any of those people. They just took pictures and then they left.”

When Misael was sick and in the hospital a lady from school came by to check on him. After seeing the living conditions, she said she was going to report them to Social Services. “This living condition is no good for your kids. They need a better life,” Denise said she was told.

“I went up to that lady and I said, 'You know what, just because maybe you have a better living situation than us, that's no reason. At least I'm here for my kids. They're in school every day, they're not being abused. That doesn't make me a bad parent.'

“I hate it when people come around and they think they're better than other people. That's what I told her. She said, 'Well, you need to get help. You need a better living situation.' I said, 'Well, help me then. If you guys are concerned about it, help me.' That's what I told her.”

Shakopee Mdewakanton Announce $180,000 In Education Grants
by Tessa Lehto
Communications Specialist
tessa.lehto@shakopeedakota.org
Monday, December 07, 2009

Prior Lake, MN – The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community has awarded grants for a total of $180,000 to five schools or educational organizations.

The Flandreau Indian School of South Dakota received a $50,000 donation to support a behavior incentive program and extracurricular activities including rodeo club and culture club.

The Flandreau Indian School is the oldest continually operated federal Indian boarding school maintained by the Bureau of Indian Affairs of the U. S. Department of the Interior and is the only non-reservation high school in the region. The Flandreau Indian School has had over 10,000 graduates since 1873. Total SMSC donations to the school over recent years are $676,340.

Leech Lake Tribal College of Cass Lake, Minnesota, received $45,000 as the final installment of a three year grant as a match for a federal Title III grant. The federal grant funds are awarded to help Tribal Colleges build their endowments, providing for long-term growth and added financial stability. Earnings on Leech Lake Tribal College endowment funds are used for scholarships, technology upgrades, and student support services.

The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe established Leech Lake Tribal College by Tribal Resolution in July 1990. Today, Leech Lake Tribal College includes approximately 70 faculty, staff, administrators, and 250 full-time students. Most of the students come from the Leech Lake Reservation and the surrounding reservations in Northern Minnesota. In addition, approximately 8% of the students enrolled at the College are non-Native American. Leech Lake

Tribal College Is Accredited By Higher Learning Commission
The Friends of Wolf Ridge of Prior Lake, Minnesota, received $35,000 as the final installment of a two year grant to support educational activities for fifth grade students at Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center facility in northern Minnesota. For more than 30 years, the fifth grade classes at all the Prior Lake-Savage School District’s elementary schools have traveled north for a week of classes at this facility.

Wolf Ridge offers 57 units of curricula focused on environmental and natural sciences, cultural history, personal growth, team-building, and outdoor recreation skills. Funding for the program at Wolf Ridge was cut from the district budget a few years ago and since then the Friends of Wolf Ridge and the Prior Lake-Savage Area Educational Foundation have raised funds for the trip.

Wells Academy of Bemidji, Minnesota, received a $25,000 matching grant for an apprenticeship program for American Indians. The training school graduates six to seven apprentices a year in the 12-month, 40 hour per week program which trains machinists. Industrial training begins with safety and includes machining operations, tooling, project bidding, computer programming, quality control, and supervision.

Learning is by interactive computer lessons, hands-on machine operation, real-world customer projects, and field trips. Wells Technology, which provides the facility plus in-kind and financial support for Wells Academy, provides precisioned machine products to aerospace, medical, electronic, and computer industries.

Red Cloud Indian School of Pine Ridge, South Dakota, received $25,000 for a Lakota Language curriculum. The school has the goal of graduating fluent Lakota Language speakers by incorporating the language in all aspects of the curriculum. Red Cloud Indian School (Grades K-12) was founded as Holy Rosary Mission in 1888 by the Jesuits at the request Chief Red Cloud, a leader of the Oglala Sioux Indians on the Pine Ridge Reservation.

Red Cloud Indian School is part of the almost 100 universities and over 400 high schools now sponsored by the Jesuits around the world. More graduates from Red Cloud High are successful in pursuing further education than from any other Indian school in the country; 100% of the 2008 graduating class enrolled in institutions of higher education or entered the US military. In 2009, seven Red Cloud students received the prestigious Gates Millennium Scholarship.

TO SUBMIT an ARTICLE, OPINION PIECE, COMMENTS to the Native Unity Digest, e-mail bobbieo@digitaldune.net.

NATIVE UNITY - A place for Native American Peoples to solidify their tribes to make a positive impact on the cultural, social, economic and political fabric of American society and a place for non-Natives to better understand the ways of the American Indian.

ATT: NEW - News Blog - American Indian Report - AIR BLOG
http://falmouth-air.blogspot.com

THE BUFFALO POST - Missoulian Montana's Native News Blog about Native People And The World We Live In.
http://buffalopost.net/

Check Out NATIVE PRIDE- It's a great site!
http://letstalknativepride.blogspot.com

PATHOLOGY.ORG - Up-to-date informmational database on general health and disease information, medical schools and medical resources.
http://www.Pathology.org

FOR ANNIE'S NATIVE CELEBRITY NEWS - go to www.nativecelebs.com

CATCH COLORADAN PETER JONES AT:
http://indigenousissuestoday.blogspot.com

SUPPORTING NATIVE AMERICAN/FIRST PEOPLE - ARTISTS, FILM MAKERS, ENTERTAINERS, ETC. http://www.krystynmedia.blogspot.com.

Canadian Mohawk Iron Workers Need Help From AFL-CIO International Union In Washington, D.C.

Quebec Bridge Disaster At Kahnawake? Urgent Action Needed!
Mohawk Nation News.

The Mercier Bridge is 1.4 kilometers long, spans the St. Lawrence River .between Montreal and Kahnawake on the south shore. It was built in 1932 beside the CPR Bridge which was built in 1885. http://www.pjcci.ca/

Mohawk Nation, Quebec and Canada contracted the Mohawks to strengthen the steel structure and replace the reinforced concrete bridge deck of three access ramps. It is the largest bridge repair project in Canadian history. Canada is paying $57 million and Quebec $9 million. Hundreds of direct and indirect jobs are being created.

The Montreal Iron Workers Union Local 711 is trying to kick the Mohawks out because they don’t have the CCQ cards [Commission de la construction du Quebec] which are issued by the government which controls the union. In Quebec a union card is worthless.

Local 711 gives Mohawks union books but tells them to work in the US or other provinces.
Wayne Rice, is head of the local Mohawk Bridge Consortium. He had a meeting in August 2009 with Pierre Desroche, the 711 business agent.

711 is trying to invade our sovereignty by disqualifying the Mohawks that don’t have CCQ cards. Desroche urged Rice to send his workers without cards home and hire non-natives. This would put almost 100 Mohawks out of work.

Jacques Dubois, President of the union’s District Council of Eastern Canada, sent letters to certain men threatening loss of their union books. 9 men quit. None have been provided jobs or a card.

Rice is trying to protect the people from illegal jurisdictional encroachment by foreigners. Rice sees other trades being forced under Quebec’s control. Jobs will go to non-natives and illegal taxes can be extorted from us.

Quebec is getting caught in a web of lawlessness. Joseph Hunt, General President, of the AFL-CIO Iron Workers International Union in Washington DC needs to be made aware of these racist practices. A local could be set up in Kahnawake.

MBC continues to put Mohawk workers on the bridge. Union members elsewhere say it is highly unusual to improperly deny jobs. This should be investigated at the highest level.
The Mohawk Nation is inherently sovereign. We have never legally or voluntarily become part of Canada. Kahnawake is on unsurrendered Haudenosaunee land.

Quebec and Canada are violating international law for respecting political, economic and human rights [as set out in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, UN Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and other international legal instruments]. UN General Assembly Resolution 1541 [XV] requires the informed consent of the people before they are included in another state.

\The Mohawks’ position, supported by international law, is that when anyone comes into our sovereign territory, they must abide by our laws. They can’t force their authority on us.

711 recently filed an injunction in Montreal Superior Court to enforce their laws in Kahnawake. This issue belongs in the International Court.

Supporting this position is the recent Federal Court of Canada ruling in 2008 . A Mohawk woman was beaten by Canada Border Services Agents at Akwesasne. She requested an investigation. FCC ruled that the victim must pay for the Crown’s costs because she lives in Kahnwake and is not a resident of Canada. FCC agrees that Kahnawake is sovereign and not in Canada.

Dubois tried to prejudiced the Mohawk Bridge Consortium and the workers on the Mercier Bridge Project by falsely claiming they are not qualified and it is a catastrophe.

On August 29, 1907, we lost most of our ironworkers when the Quebec [City] Bridge collapsed into the St. Lawrence River. We later learned this was due to deficiencies in material and construction by the contractors. We don’t want another bridge disaster. We cross it every day. We must be legally dealt with as a nation.

Contact: Wayne Rice, Mohawk Bridge Consortium tel. 450-635-6063 pwrind52@yahoo.ca http://www.mohawkmbc.com/

Kahentinetha MNN Mohawk Nation News, http://www.mohawknationnews.com/ kahentinetha2@yahoo.com

FCC Federal Court of Canada Prothonotary Mireille Tabib order, October 23, 2008, Mohawks residing in Akwesasne and Kahnawake are not residents of Canada. Two supporting FCC orders: Judge Francois Lemieux, January 29, 2009; and Claude Morissette, March 16, 2009. [FCA t-1309 and T-288-09].

CONTACT: Iron Workers International Union, % Joseph Hunt, General President, AFL-CIO,400 – 1750 NY Ave. NW, Washington DC 202-383-4810 jhowell@iwintl.org.

PRESSURE SHOULD BE PUT ON LOCAL 711 AND QUEBEC TO STAY OUT OF KAHNAWAKE AND LET THE MEN WORK UNMOLESTED ON OUR TERRITORY.

Local 711 Montreal, Ville d’Anjou, QC. H1J 2Y7 514-328-2808 Tollfree 1-800-461-0711 montreal@local711.ca; District Council of Eastern Canada, President Jacques Dubois 514-328-1482.

Mercier Bridge Deck Replacement Project, 1111 St. Charles St. W, West Tower, Suite 600, Longueuil, Quebec J4K 5G4 450-651-8771, managed by Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridge Inc., Andre Girard, Federal Bridge Corporation Ltd. 450-468-5775 andre.girard@pontsfederaux.ca; Serge Valliers Cell 514-892-7205, Communications 514-849-7000 [230] jvl@agccom.com.

John Baird, Minister, Transport Canada http://www.tc.gc.ca/ 613-990-2309 bairdj@parl.gc.ca: Media 613-993-0055; Karine White 613-643-3804, Daniel Desharnois 613-418-643-6980, Natalie Sarafin 613-991-0700 & Danny Kingberry 613-993-0055.

Michael M. Fortier, Public Works, Federick Baril 613-868-1128; Jean Marc Fournier, Quebec Minister of Monteregie Region; Harold Fortin, Revenue Canada 418-643-3804.

TO SUBMIT an ARTICLE, OPINION PIECE, COMMENTS to the Native Unity Digest, e-mail bobbieo@digitaldune.net.

NATIVE UNITY - A place for Native American Peoples to solidify their tribes to make a positive impact on the cultural, social, economic and political fabric of American society and a place for non-Natives to better understand the ways of the American Indian.

ATT: NEW - News Blog - American Indian Report - AIR BLOG
http://falmouth-air.blogspot.com

THE BUFFALO POST - Missoulian Montana's Native News Blog about Native People And The World We Live In.
http://buffalopost.net/

Check Out NATIVE PRIDE- It's a great site!
http://letstalknativepride.blogspot.com

PATHOLOGY.ORG - Up-to-date informmational database on general health and disease information, medical schools and medical resources.
http://www.Pathology.org

FOR ANNIE'S NATIVE CELEBRITY NEWS - go to www.nativecelebs.com

CATCH COLORADAN PETER JONES AT:
http://indigenousissuestoday.blogspot.com

SUPPORTING NATIVE AMERICAN/FIRST PEOPLE - ARTISTS, FILM MAKERS, ENTERTAINERS, ETC. http://www.krystynmedia.blogspot.com.