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News from Indian Country
Tribe marches against decision
P R O V ID E N C E , R .I.
(AP) — More than 150 sup
porters o f the Narragansett
In d ia n T rib e c h an te d ,
drum m ed and m arched to
the Statehouse on Saturday,
protesting a recent U.S. Su
prem e C ourt decision that
limits the tribe's ability to gov
e rn its land free from state
and local laws.
The march and rally at a
nearby park targeted a Feb
ruary court decision that pre
vented the federal govern
m ent from placing tribal land
in trust for tribes such as the
Narragansetts that were fed
erally recognized after Con
gress passed the 1934 Indian
Reorganization Act.
“The decision cannot be
allowed to remain standing,”
said Randy Noka, a member
o f the N arragansett Tribal
Council. “We're prepared to
go where we have to go to
correct the injustice.”
The case began in 1991,
when the tribe purchased a
31-acre lot in Charlestown
for econom ic developm ent
and to build elderly housing
and applied to place it under
federal trust, w hich w ould
largely free the parcel from
state and local laws.
Gov. D on Carcieri and other
sta te o fficials w o rrie d th e
N arragansetts w ould create a
tax-free zone undercutting local
businesses o r build a casino,
banned under state law. Lawyers
for the state argued the tribe
cannot rem ove its land from
state control using the Indian
Reorganization Act because the
Narragansett tribe was n ot rec
ognized by the U.S. government
w hen the act passed 75 years
ago.
Saturday's march began with
a ceremony at Roger Williams
Park, where the crowd gathered
in a circle and some smoked a
peace pipe. The marchers then
traveled to the Statehouse be
fore moving to an area park to
hear several speeches.
M any carried signs, som e
read in g “R etu rn o u r N ativ e
Rights” or “Recognize and Re
spect Your Neighbors.”
N arragansett C hief Sachem
Matthew Thomas said the tribe
would push Congress to change
laws governing tribal lands and
would work to elect sympathetic
leaders.
T rib al eld er P au lla D ove
Jennings said the Narragansetts
have w elcom ed all people to
Rhode Island, beginning with
the earliest setders, but have
n o t received th e same re
spect.
‘W e have been damaged
by the people in this state,”
she said. “Many o f you have
felt the same thing, but this
is our land, and we welcomed
all o f you here.”
The rally was organized by
United for Justice, an advo
cacy g ro u p th a t in clu d es
other American Indian tribes
and community organizations
in Rhode Island. It hopes to
expand into work with other
minority groups.
‘W e didn't just want to fo
cus, on our oppression,” said
Bella N oka, Randy N oka's
wife and co-chairwoman o f
U nited for Justice. “T here
are many people feeling our
same pain.”
I t rem ains unclear how .
far-reaching th e Suprem e
Court ruling will prove. Law
yers for the Native Ameri
can Rights Fund, which pro
vides legal representation to
tribes, have said that dozens
o f tribes could be affected,
while lawyers for Rhode Is
land argued the num ber was
potentially in the hundreds.
Conference on Media-American Indian
BRO O KIN GS, S.D. (AP) _
The relationship between Ameri
can Indians and the media is the
su b je c t o f th e 17th an n u al
American Conference on Indian
Histories and Culture at South
Dakota State University.
The event is scheduled for
March 30-April 1.
Charles Trimble, an Oglala
Sioux tribal mem ber and princi
pal founder o f the American
In d ian P ress A sso ciatio n , is
scheduled to deliver the keynote
ad d ress M arch 31. Jo s e p h
Brewer, one o f the conference
co-coordinators, says the confer
ence includes indigenous schol
ars who have each used or en
gaged the media in their own way
and on their own terms.
State-tribal collaboration bill passes
SANTA FE (AP) £ Law
makers have sent Gov. Bill
Richardson a m easure de
signed to prom ote coopera
tion between state govern
m ent and Indian tribes.
It requires every cabinet-
level state agency to designate
a tribal liaison w ho w ould
report directly to the head o f
the agency.
It also orders state agencies
to develop policies prom oting
better communication and cul
turally appropriate delivery o f
services.
A nd it mandates an annual
state-tribal summit between the
New Mexico governor and In
dian leaders.
Tribal officials urged the
Legislature to endorse the bill
when they came to the Capi
tol last m onth for a joint ses
sion o f the House and Sen
ate. T h e H o u se p assed it
u n an im o u sly o n Sunday,
sending it to the governor.
T h e Senate had passed it
unanimously earlier.
Senate agrees to lift ban on Indian development
W A SH IN G TO N (AP) _
The Senate has voted to lift
a 43-year-old ban on devel
o p m en t on about 700,000
acres in Arizona's Black Mesa
region that was disputed by
Navajo and H opi tribes for
decades.
T he Senate unanimously
approved a bill by Arizona sena
tors John McCain and Jo n Kyi
Thursday night to lift a ban on
developm ent in the “B ennett
freeze zone.” The ban had pre
vented about 8,000 people who
live th e re fro m m aking im
provements to their homes.
Action by the House is still
required, but no opposition
is expected.
The ban was imposed in
1966. by form er Bureau o f
Indian Affairs administrator
Robert Bennett as the two'
tribes argued over rights to
the land. The dispute was
resolved in 2005.
Page 9 Spilyay Tytnoo
Mgi-cb 26, 2009
Gov. supports recognition of tribes
R ICHM ON D, Va. (AP) —
Gov. Tim othy K aine said last
week that the federal govern
m ent should give six Virginia
Indian tribes the recognition
th ey have b een seeking fo r
years.
K aine testified b efo re the
H ouse Comm ittee on N atural
R esources in W ashington on
behalf o f legislation sponsored
by Rep. Jim M oran, a D em o
crat from northern Virginia, and
supported by other members o f
the state's congressional delega
tion.
The bill would grant recog
n itio n
of
th e
E a s te rn
Chickahominy, Chickahominy,
U pper M attaponi (M AT'-ah-
puh-N Y 1), Rappahannock, Mo
nacan and N ansem ond tribes.
They have been seeking the rec
ognition s,ince the 1990s.
I t w ould allow the tribes'
3,000 members to receive fed
eral money for housing, educa
tion and senior care. More than
560 other tribes nationwide áre
federally recognized.
Kaine and Moran also noted
that the legislation would ban the
tribes from operating gambling
casin o s, a c o n cern th a t has
blocked previous attem pts at
federal recognition.
K aine said the tribes were
integral in the success o f the
British settlement o f Jamestown
in 1607, and hence the found
ing o f the United States. Virginia
tribes entered into peace trea
ties with the English well before
the nation's existence, and since
the Civil War their m em bers
have served in the U.S. military,
often earning high honors, Kaine
said. Kaine also noted that rec
ognition has been difficult to
obtain because tribe members'
identities were stripped away by
Virginia's Racial Integrity Act, a
state law in effect from 1924 to
1967.
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