Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 25, 2007)
News from Indian Country______^ o^^oo? Ancient remains returned to Tlingit tribes A N C H O R A G E , Alaska (AP)— H um an remains esti mated to be more than 10,000 years old will be returned to southeast Alaska Tlingit tribes 11 years after they were found in a cave in the Tongass N a tional Forest. .It’s the first time a federal agency has conveyed custody o f such ancient remains to in digenous groups under the 1990 Native American Graves P rotection and Repatriation Act, tJ.S. Forest Service offi cials said Friday. “It’s a pretty substantial find,” said Tongass spokesman Phil Sammon. Vertebrae, ribs, teeth, a man dible and a pelvic bone were among the remains discovered in 1996 during a Forest Service archaeological survey for a pro posed timber sale on northern Prince o f Wales Island. The area is the aboriginal homeland for Tlingit tribes. Stone tools also were found inside O n Your Knees Cave, an extensive lim estone n et work. " The Forest Service imme diately consulted w ith área tribes as required by the repa triation law, which mandates that federal agencies, and in stitutions receiving federal money, return American. In dian rem ains an d cu ltu ral items to tribes* There was never any dis pute that the remains should go to Tlingit tribes in C-raig and Klawock, communities on the island. T he trib es and Sealaska Corp. .(the southeast-Alaska Smoking ban unclear for city-owned bar on White Earth reservation ST. PAUL (AP)— T he force o f Minnesota’s state? wide smoking ban is un clear in the only bar in Callaway, a city o f 200 on the White Earth Indian Res ervation. City officials say they’re getting conflicting informa tion from tribal and state authorities about the status o f th eir on-and-off-sale m u n icipal liq u o r sto re, w hiclfr^iyes as tne:,t bwtf^' bar and offers tribally regu lated gaming. For now, lighting up is still allowed in the establish ment frequented by smok ers. “We ju st d o n ’t know what we should do,”. City Clerk Shelly Dillon said on Friday. The situation is appar ently unique. , /“It is almost a law school examination question, that the competing jurisdiction o f the tribe and the state is highly unusual in this par ticular situation,” said Mark Jarboe, who heads Indian law at the Minneapolis law firm o f Dorsey & Whitney. The city is a subdivision o f the state, which allows small cities to operate mu nicipal liquor stores. But the presence o f bingo ma chines and other gambling gives the tribe some pull.. Days before the state wide smoking ban took ef fect in Minnesota bars, res taurants and other indoor w ork place? o,n O ct. 1^ Callaway officials got a let ter from a tribal attorney saying that the liquor store shouldn’t have to follow the smoking ban. The store-—- indeed, the whole t o w n - sits within the reservation. But now state’ health of ficials say the ban should apply. T hat’s .because the store belongs to the city* not to th e trib e o r a tribal, member, said Tom Hogan, .a manager in the Minne sota Health Departm ent’s environm ental division. Hogan said he’s waiting for Affoirtiai bpMlon frortitbe attorney general’s office before taking, steps to en force the ban. White Earth: tribal attor ney Joseph Plummer didn’t immediately return a phone message; State civil laws such as the smoking ban generally don’t apply*,to Indians on Indian reservatiofis, where . the federal government rec ognizes tribal rights - over tribal lands., ' Since th e M innesota smoking ban started, In dian casinoS have become the last indoor refuges for smokers. O f M in n e so ta ’s 255 m unicipal liquor stores, Callaway’s may be the only to both sit on a reservation and still allow smoking. Two o th e r m unicipal sto res in W hite E a rth - Mahnomen and Qgema— don’t allow smotog,* Dillon said. Just outside the Leech Lake reservation, a city- ow ned sp irits .store in W alker;is, follow ing the smoking b^n. A review of the state’s municipal liquor stores turned up no others on reservations. Coeur d'Alene Tribe signs fuel tax agreement BQISE, Idaho (AP) L Idaho and Coeur d'Alene tribal officials have signed a pact requiring that gasoline sold on reservations be taxed at the same rate as else where in the state and limiting use o f the money to transpor tation-related needs. The agreement, signed by Gov. C.L. “Butch” O tter and tribal Chairman Chief Allen, re solves a long dispute over who should get tax money from gaso line spld at reservation stores. The Nez Perce tribe in north- central Idaho and the Shoshone- Bannock tribes near Pocatello are still negotiating with the state over separate but similar agree m ents. Lawyers fo r the Shoshone-Bannock tribes said an agreement was imminent. Idaho has spent hundreds of thousands o f dollars in legal costs in its bid to collect the tax, including a previous law that was overturned by the 9th U.S. Cir cuit Court pf Appeals. , Native regional corporation) in February petitioned the agency for custody o f the remains. This came after a lengthy process including scientific analysis that determined the re mains were 10,300 years old. Through DNA and other test ing, researchers identified the remains as belonging to an in digenous man in his early 20s who subsisted primarily on sea food. Some tribal members initially balked at allowing the studies to be" done, instead o f immediate interment. But in the end they backed a study after determin ing the remains were scattered in the cave _ possibly by scav engers _ and not taken from a burial site. In the remains, the tribes saw an ancestor offering himself for knowledge and learning, said anthropologist Rosita Worl, president of Sealaska Heritage Institute, the nonprofit cultural and educational arm o f the Native Corporation.. “The elders also saw it as a way, o f validating our ancient presence here in southeast Alaska,” said Worl, a Tlingit “A number o f elders have said it proves we’ve .been here since time immemorial.” The tribes will file a sepa rate claim for the stone tools, w hich arc from a different period, Wori said.' The artifacts, are made o f obsidian, or volanic glass, not naturally found in the area, sug gesting early residents used boats to get around the coastal, region. . The find also Could support a theory that people migrated fro m A sia as w ell as o ral Tlingit histories about coastal migrations, according to Worl. “We’re very, very excited and very proud o f our people,” she said. ; Finding remains that old is uncom mon but n o t unheard of, said Sherry Hutt, repatria tion program manager for the National Park Service. W hat stood out about the Tlingit case, she said, is the level of cooperation involved. “The Forest Service w ent through the process carefully and methodically. I t consulted with the locals and came to a decision based on analysis of the facts,” she said. “The process of consultation enhances the body .of knçwledge. This is a good example o f i t ” Worl said she was happy the outcome was sharply different from the Kennewick Man, a 9,000-year-old skeleton found near the Columbia River in Washington state the same year as the Tlingit remains. Disputes over the, Kennewick Man have pitted archeologists against In dian tribes in the Northwest. “I think ours is a really good example o f w hat can be ac complished when scientists and federal agencies recognize the legal rights o f Native people,” Worl said. “They’re p ro fe s sional with them, they’re sen sitive with. them. They’re equal with them.” I-, The remains arè being held by the Forest Service while the tribes plan a ceremonial burial at the discovery site. Bill to give Navajo Council delegates immunity from arrest fails W INDOW / ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — Navajp Nation Council delegates have rejected a mea sure that would have given them immunity from arrests for cer tain civil infractions. The lawmakers, meeting in, their fall session, voted 48-29 Wednesday against the measure. The bill would have barred the arrests of delegates during council sessions for ciyU o f fenses such as jaywalking, run ning a stop sign or hauling live- stock without a permit. Immunity from arrest would protect delegates from spending time in jail or attending court hearings while the council is in session, said Council Speaker Lawrence Morgan of Iyanbito, who sponsored the bill. The measure might increase participation in council sessions by removing some-legal ob stacles, he said. - Delegates could still face le gal action after the end of a ses sion, Morgan said. “I'm not trying to put anyone above the law. You still have to deal with it,” said Morgan, who was arrested on an outstanding warrant following the close b f the council's January session, j 5 He-was accused of running a stop sign and then was arrested by Navajo Nation police on a warrant for failure .to appear in court after hauling livestock without a permit. Officers later discovered the w arrant had been dismissed eight years earlier. O p p o n en ts o f M organ's measure contended it would give special treatment to del egates, which might open the way to abusing the privilege. “The sponsor said that he's not trying to put the council above the law,” said Delegate Amos Johnson of, Forest Lake. “My two communities opposed this legislation. I oppose this. It's appropriate that we all vote red.'” Tribes, police share date on crime I M IN N E A PO L IS (AP)— The Minneapolis Police Depart ment and nine tribal police d e partments across Minnesota and Wisconsin are creating a com mon computer network that will give officers access to usually private crime data. All state, federal and tribal law enforcement agencies will share information and statistics to help develop a targeted response to specific crim inal activity. A $600,000 federal grant will fund the initiative. “Communication between tribes and partnering law en forcement agencies is key in curbing crime not only in Indian country, but in all o f Minne sota,” said Red Lake Tribal Chairman Floyd Jourdain. Jr. Michigan man gets probation for selling eagle feathers M ILW AUKEE (AP) _ A Michigan man has been sen tenced to two years o f proba tion for pleading guilty to sell ing an antique lance with 30 eagle feathers attached. Thomas J. Hampton, 56, of Tekonsha, Mich., violated the federal Eagle Protection Act, authorities said, when he sold the lance for $25,000 and a pre- Revolutionary War Mohican buckskin shirt for $150,000 in April 2002! , Hampton pleaded guilty in July and was sentenced on Thursday by U.S. District Judge J.P. Stadtmueller; He also was ordered to pay a $2,500 fine. & fuff Service Spa more than ju st a gym ... Redken Hair Care Sothys Skin Care 0PI Nail Treatments Massage Therapy Day Spa Packages Aerobics, Yoga, Kick Boxing Free Weights • Personal Training Next Generation Nautilus Nautilus • Universal • Cardiovascular Steam Sauna « Lounge and Snack Bar Pro Shop • Martial Arts Equipment Orientation • Racquet Ball Children’s Play Room « Tanning Beds Family & Corporate Rates • Espresso Warm up from H ead to Toe ly ■ with our NOON TIME AEROBICS CLASSES Mon - Wed: F all Skin d r F oot C are Pack agi*f$jg Pumpkin Spice Facial Milk and Honey Pedicure $105 with 2 Free Gifts valued at $20 Offer expires Nov. 21,2007. cËonside&a'day/abtAe' Spa/a&^ ■ KARATE: SANCHEZ KENPO CLUB H Mondays & Wednesdays 7:30 p.m. Sensei Joel Sanchez •. 3rd Degree Black Belt • 22 Years Exp. • IKK A Lineage Club Dues: Gym Members $45/month -individual $80/month - couple Non-Gym Members $65/Month - individual $110/Month - couple ¿ 4 L 123 SW J Street, Madras 475-9369 www-newener9yf'tnesssPa-com 475-5721 GYM HOURS Open M-F 9 a.m. - 8 p.m. S a t 10 a.m .? 4 p.m. SPÂ HOURS ■ Open T-F 9 a m . - 6:00 p.m. Sat. 10 a m . - 4 p.m. \ .. ■H k ÉÜ ÉA A A A
