Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Siletz news / (Siletz, OR) 199?-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 1, 2000)
NOTICES Siletz Tribal Members Receive Folklife Program Apprenticeships The Oregon Historical Society Folklife Program has announced the 10 award recipients of its annual Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program (TAAP) for 2000-2001. Celebrating its 11th successful year, the Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program supports the continuation of cultural traditions within Oregon’s diverse communities. The 2000-2001 award recipients (master artist with apprentice) include Alfred “Bud” Lane III with Lori Brown - Siletz Baby Baskets (Siletz/Salem). The program awards stipends to master traditional artists to teach a specific cultural tradition to one or more apprentices who share their cultural background and community. Master artists are awarded a Criminal Code, con’t from page 16 From Salem: Review the abandonment provision to see if it is consistent with ICW and if it is culturally relevant. We are looking at the abandonment provision in the Juvenile Code. How old would sex offenders be if they had to register? Project staff need to study this provision and state and federal laws in order to answer this question. Can the tribe send a case concerning a major crime to the state for prosecution? Under Public Law 280, the state of Oregon can but does not have to prosecute any crimes that occur under Oregon law on the Siletz Reservation. It looks like some other action would be necessary to ensure that the state would enforce any state law on Siletz Tribal lands. Should there be a jury? Who should serve on it? Can felons serve on the jury? Any duly enrolled member of CTSI who is 18 years or older has the right to vote in tribal elections. Should that be the same criteria for jury service? As for the order of the code, some thought that crimes against the family should be first on the list. This would reflect the priority that Indian nations have always put on family. Others did not think the order mattered as long as the offenses were included. The Salem group asked to receive a copy of the Indian Civil Rights Act (see below). Indian Civil Rights Act It’s important to be aware of a few federal laws that apply to Indian criminal law. One of these is the Indian Civil Rights Act (“ICRA,” pronounced “ikrah”). The story goes that North Carolina Sen. Sam Ervin recognized that Indian tribes were not subject to the U.S. Constitution’s Bill of Rights and other constitutional guarantees protecting individual rights. Congress passed ICRA in 1968 to protect Indians and non-lndians from potential abuses by tribal governments, including tribal courts. As Frank Pommersheim, a well-known Indian law scholar, notes, ICRA has been criticized as being alien to the traditions and customs of many tribes, where the group, not the individual, is primary. Also, the act was another example at the end of the termination era of how the federal government imposed federal standards that abridged tribal sovereignty. ICRA is important to drafting the Siletz Criminal Code revisions for at least two reasons. First, the tribal Criminal Code must comply with federal law. Second, ICRA emphasizes the individual’s rights rather than the relationships defined by family, community, and culture that hold individuals and the tribe together. But a tribe’s criminal code reflects the balance it strikes between rights and relationship and how it chooses to address that balance. How the Siletz Tribe strikes that balance is a matter for tribal members to decide. Various community members said they would like a copy of the entire act. So, by popular demand, we bring you the Indian Civil Rights Act (ICRA), 25 United States Code §§ 1301-1303: §1301 Definitions: for purposes of this subchapter, the term (1) “Indian tribe” means any tribe, band, or other group of Indians subject to the (See Criminal Code on page 23) stipend of up to $2,000 and reimbursed for up to $500 in supplies. During the next eight months, the master artists will pass on the traditional skills and knowledge they attained through years of observation, practice, and careful study. Apprentices are not expected to perfect the art form during this time, but to demonstrate a concerted effort to improve their skills as well as a commitment to continuing beyond the apprenticeship period. Both master and apprentice will be featured in an exhibit at the Oregon History Center at the conclusion of the eight-month apprenticeship next summer. This year’s master artists include an 86-year-old “horse whisperer,” a 77-year-old Warm Springs basketweaver and community elder, one of the only active basketweavers in the Siletz community, and an internationally acclaimed Iranian musician and composer. Program participants share a commitment to teaching or learning the cultural traditions of their communities and carrying them forward into the future. “These artists are proof that, even in our modern society, there is a place for traditional knowledge, and that it continues to be a living, vital part of many communities and cultures,” says Program Coordinator Leila Childs. “The knowledge these artists hold is not found in schools or libraries. It is part of a lineage of expression that comes from the past and has its roots in community. This program’s goal is to support the teaching and sharing of this traditional knowledge, and to publicly acknowledge the teachers and learners of these traditions for their role in their communities and in the state.” The 2000-2001 Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program is supported by the Jackson Foundation, Oregon Arts Commission, Oregon Community Foundation, and the Margaret Thiele Petti Foundation. For more information about the Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program, contact Leila Childs, Oregon Folklife Program, 503-306-5292. For more information on OHS museum exhibitions and programs, call 503-222-1741, or visit us at www.ohs.org. 17
