Legal
We abhor violence and mass murder. Much as we dislike the decision of Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California to undermine tribal interests, she does not belong in anyone’s crosshairs.
With the convening of the 112th Congress, I became the Ranking Member on the House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure. Although I have left the Natural Resources Committee after having served there for more than 30 years, I intend to remain an active supporter of Native issues.
Someone commented to me recently that she thought the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was fundamentally a document that allowed “nation-states” to identify and control indigenous peoples.
Here’s how I responded:
What does the year 2011 hold for the Indian tribes? There are some signals—portents, if you will, that should be considered in assessing the immediate future in federal policy and programs.
We abhor violence and mass murder. Much as we dislike the decision of Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California to undermine tribal interests, she does not belong in anyone’s crosshairs.
As Congress winds down its session, we should acknowledge the historic accomplishments it has helped us achieve over the past two years.
In Navajo culture, there is a teaching that “your words are like a prayer.” Words have the power to manifest our reality, to literally bring things into being.
On Nov. 30, 2010, the United States Congress passed the Claims Settlement Act of 2010, a package of bills settling claims against the United States related to the hard-fought Cobell Indian trust lawsuit, the Pigford lawsuit by African-American farmers against the U.S.
The final part of this series provides a model for how tribes can and should wield the federal Indian consultation right to defend tribal sovereignty, and discusses the very real negative effect of any federal failure to consult with tribal governments.
Two years ago, President Barack Obama and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar vowed that this administration would work hand-in-hand with Native Americans to empower tribal governments, fulfill our trust responsibilities to tribal members and help tribal leaders build safer, stronger, healthier, and m
As discussed in part one of this three-part series, the Obama administration has mandated that all federal agencies implement a written government-to-government consultation policy with Indian tribes.
On Dec. 16, President Barack Obama will host the second White House Tribal Nations Conference.
As currently written, the Cobell settlement endorsed by the four named plaintiffs is backwards with the Department of Interior only engaging in remedial measures after everyone signs on for a pittance of what is owed from a true accounting of the land use, leases and depletions of Indian