Image provided by: Oregon Historical Society; Portland, OR
About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (April 7, 2010)
Paçje 8 Spily^y Tym oo A pril 7, 2010 Splintered Montana tribe struggles against history By MATTHEW BROWN Associated Press Writer BILLINGS, M ont.— In their centurylong battle against history, M ontana’s Little Shell Indians have been denied a homeland, deported to Canada and forced to live in rural shanty towns be cause whites and other Native Americans rejected them. N ow the scattered Little Shell Tribe o f Chippewa faces possi bly the biggest test o f its resilience: After the government denied fed eral recognition last fall, political infighting has split the tribe’s 4,300 members and left them at risk o f cultural disintegration if they can not setde on a common destiny. “I f all this continues, I don’t know what the future will be,” said tribal member Patricia Maki, 69, w ho runs an Indian education program in Great Falls. She said the tribe needs to, do some heal ing, but isn’t hopeful it will come anytime soon. Maki is part o f the faction that blames the upheaval on tribal president John Sinclair, a 54-year- old plow operator for the state Transportation Department. Those detractors say Sinclair’s leadership style ——which they called autocratic — undercut the recognition petition just as that 31- year effort came to a head. As an example, they cite his decision to unenroll members o f the oppo sition in the run-up to his re-elec tion last year. O pponents held an election earlier this m onth, choosing as their chairman Great Falls busi nessman John Gilbert. Sinclair meanwhile says some o f his chief critics lack the blood quantum to qualify as tribal mem bers. H e issued warnings that vot ers in the rogue election could become victims o f identity theft. Arid he charged the opposition, the Little Shell Chippewa Alliance, with stealing tribal enrollm ent documents. H is o p p o n e n ts also h o ld Sinclair responsible for the recent suspension o f almost $900,000 in grants and stimulus money for the tribe. State audits determ ined Sinclair and his staff had failed to properly account for past spend ing. The loss o f funds forced the tribe to cut back from five em ployees to just one. Sinclait ac knowledges mistakes, but says his opponents are risking any chance at sovereignty fo r th e trib e through their appeals for outside intervention. I f any government entity stepped in, he said, it would be a “death knell” for the tribe. Ariinda Locklear, a Washing ton, D.C. attorney assisting the tribe with its federal recognition effort, said it’s no surprise the Little Shell looked inward for blame af ter losing their recognition bid. But she said the real culprit was the Department o f Interior, which issued the October denial. T hat sentim ent was shared by Jack Campisi, a retired Wellesley Col lege professor and expert on the federal recognition process. “I t ’s th e g o v e rn m e n t th a t screwed up this one,” he said. Campisi worked with the Little Shell on the early stages o f their petition. H e said bureaucrats within Interior did not know what to make o f the Little Shell’s no madic history, which lacked the paper trail the government relies on for recognition decisions. “T he Little Shell is a tragedy. They continued to operate as a people who are not locked to one piece o f land and that’s been held against them,” Campisi said. Interior officials said recogni tion parameters set by Congress compelled the agency to reject the Little Shell — even though the trib e m e t m o st o f th e government’s criteria. T he tribe’s ancestors, led by Chief Little Shell, were followers o f the great bison herds that once roamed much o f N orth America. Police, FBI investigating woman’s death W arm Springs tribal p o lice and the FBI are investi gating the death o f Veronica Wesley, 56, an enrolled m em ber o f the Yakama Reserva tion. T he body o f Wesley was found on Friday, March 26, just n orth o f m ilepost 3 on Tenino Road on the W arm Springs Reservation. “A t this time, we’re stress ing th a t th e re is no sign o f tra u m a ,” J im S o u les said. “There are rum ors out there, but the cause o f death is unknown and the investigation will con tinue.” Soules said th at the tribal police are working with the FBI in w hat is now considered to be an investigation into a death that is suspicious in nature until the facts can be determined. “ W e’re in te r e s te d in speaking to anyone w ho may have seen Veronica Wesley on either T hursday o r Fri day,” Soules said. I f you have inform ation th a t can h e lp d e te c tiv e s, please call the W arm Springs Police D epartm ent and ask to speak to Detective Starla G reen o r Captain Sam Will iams. IRA’S SALES & SERVICE, INC. Scrap Metal, Used A uto & Truck Parts, Wrecking Service, Diesel Trucks, Pick ups & Cars News from Indian Country Artifacts source blamed self for suicides ByPAU LFO Y and MIKE STARK Associated Press Writers SALT L A K E C IT Y — Two days before he killed him self, the undercover informant in a federal sting targeting looted Southwestern artifacts told a friend he felt responsible for the suicides o f two defen dants, according to police re ports released last week. T ed G a rd in e r to ld th e friend he was upset over his in volvement in the case and felt like he’d been “thrown to the curb,” according to records re leased by the Unified Police Department. The sting eventually led to charges against 26 people for allegedly stealing and traffick ing in American Indian relics taken illegally from public and tribal lands. Two people, including a prominent southern Utah doc tor, committed suicide last June shortly after the indictments were announced. P olice w ere called to Gardiner’s home in Holladay on Feb. 27 after reports that he was threatening to take his own life. A friend who came to his aid told investigators that Gardiner was suicidal, saying over and again that he was “done.” The friend, a woman Gardiner m et at Alcoholics Anonym ous years earlier, told police that the 52-year-old informant said he was rattled by the suicides in the case, believing he had “ killed two people.” A woman who called 911 that night from his house told a dis patcher Gardiner had a gun and was threatening suicide. ‘Y ou’re really going to hurt me bad if you do this,” she told him. A short time later, she was over heard saying, “Put your gun away.” Gardiner was taken to a hos pital for a mental health evalua tion and released the next m orn ing. Police were called to Gardiner’s house the next day by a roommate who said Gardiner was again sui cidal and brandishing a gun. A n officer rep o rted seeing Gardiner kneeling with his head on a bed and a gun in his hand. A t one point, Gardiner pointed the gun at his own head, accord ing to the reports. T he officer, w ho had his gun drawn, told Gardiner to drop his weapon. ‘Y ou’re gonna have to do what you have to do,” Gardiner replied. T he officer said that w hen Gardiner swung the gun in his direction, he fired a shot that m issed as he backed o u t o f Gardiner’s bedroom. Gardiner shot himself in the head a short time later. Gardiner, a form er antiquities dealer and grocery chain CEO, worked undercover for the FBI and the U.S. Bureau o f Land Man agement for more than two years. H e wore a wire and transmit ted live video and audio signals to federal agents who monitored his transactions with a cast o f deal ers and collectors in W estern states. H e eventually struck deals for m ore than 250 artifacts w orth more than $335,000. H e was typi cally paid around $7,500 a month. O f the 26 defendants, four have pleaded guilty. Trials for the others are scheduled for later this year. Judge grants gag order in Ariz. sweat lodge case C A M P V E R D E , A riz. (AP) — A n A rizona judge has granted the prosecution’s request for a gag order in the case o f a m o tiv a tio n a l speaker charged w ith m an slaughter. Prosecutors made the re q u e st Feb. 12, claim ing i t ’s needed to limit pretrial public ity that could taint the jury pool. Yavapai County Superior C ourt Judge W arren D arrow granted it last week and ordered attor neys on b oth sides to comply w ith the rules o f conduct. f/Conve G^uwÀûA/inq& & S e lf-h e lp a u th o r Jam es; A rthur Ray pleaded not guilty to three counts o f m anslaughter stem m ing from the deaths o f three people following a sweat lodge cerem ony he led in O cto b e r near Sedona. H is trial is scheduled to begin in August. Qesn&vt, WINDOW COVERINGS UP TO 7 5 %0FF MSRP LAMINATE FLOORING FROM .9 9 SO. FT. QUEEN EURO MATTRESS SET »2991 ALL TOP OF BED 4 0 % OFF S-PIECE DINING SET »3791 MICROFIBER SOFA * JUST »3991 We/Rave/F^FF Laycuvcty and^FKFF Delivery/ 5 4 1 - 4 7 5 - 1 I 12 4 8 0 SW 5 th S t. M a d ra s ---------------------------------------------------------------- Need help with a legal problem? Legal Aid Services of Oregon provides free assistance to low- income Oregonians in many civil cases. Speak with an attorney during drop-in hours 1 to 4 p.m. <___________________ on the first Monday of the month at the Family Resources Center in Warm Springs. Or call us at 385- 6944 Monday through Wednesday between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
