16
S moke S ignals
SEPTEMBER 1, 2016
Letters
Dear Smoke Signals:
If the recent decision made by the appellate court doesn't open our eyes, I
am afraid nothing will. We have Tribal members and Tribal leaders publicly
celebrating a determination that completely disregards our Tribal Consti-
tution and brings in time restrictions that are non-existent in our written
laws. These three judges have been inconsistent with their rulings, allowing
some with actual proven descent to an ancestor on a roll to be terminated
while allowing a certain family without any proof of an ancestor on a roll
to remain.
We have become an embarrassment to the entire United States Tribal
nations because some within the Tribe are giddy with winning at whatever
cost to us and to all other Native Americans. They have become nearsighted,
not even bothering to look at the big picture. Also, they are broadcasting
the division within our Tribe in front of the whole world without the least
bit of concern of the consequences and precedents that their “win” will
inlict on this Tribe and possibly other Tribes for many years to come. Our
Constitution has been made obsolete, yet these short-term “winners” are
performing a victory dance.
To think that three judges who were chosen by our Tribal Council to
protect our Constitution can possibly be allowed to nullify the very thing
that they were chosen to protect and uphold is shocking. These three judges
should be replaced and their decision should be completely ignored because
of this conlict with our Constitution. If our Tribal leaders will not stop
and consider that our very sovereignty is at risk, we have a good chance of
losing everything.
When you vote, think about the repercussions that will be felt for many
generations to come. While you’re at it, we should all try and ind a way to
hold all leaders accountable if they refuse to uphold our Constitution and
represent the majority of the membership. Let’s all get angry and spread
the word from family to family until justice is truly served for our Tribe.
Jesse Knight
Roll #921
Dear Smoke Signals:
Aug. 5, 2016, changed the life of our Tribe. It was the day the decision on
the Alexander disenrollment case came down in favor of the Chief Tumulth
family. The decision was to remand the case back to our Tribal Court judge
and then to remand the case back to our Tribal Enrollment Committee
ordering them both to reverse their decisions in favor of the family.
One would think the appellate court would decide whether the family
was correctly or incorrectly enrolled. They did not rule on that important
question. Instead, we got loopholes called laches and estoppel as reasons
why the appellate court wanted the disenrollment decisions reversed. They
did not consider our Constitution, our Tribal laws or our Tribal sovereignty.
It was correctly argued by our Tribe that laches cannot be used against
the federal government; yet this appellate court used laches against our
sovereign nation. Our irst Tribal Court judge said he would not use laches
in this case. The doctrine of laches stem from “the principle that equality
aids the vigilant, not those who sleep on their rights.” So it ruled that our
Tribe slept on our rights as a Tribe so we lost our rights as a Tribe. Do you
agree with that? Our Tribal rules do not set any timelines to obey.
Laches mean to “neglect doing for an unreasonable length of time to do
what in law should have been done.” We snoozed, we lose. Do you accept
that? Do you accept that our Tribal Constitution and Tribal laws no longer
have power, but have to be interpreted to us by the courts?
The Tribal Constitution was voted in by the membership. The Tribal
Constitution is what this Tribe stands for and gives us our identity as a
people. It is the primary essence of our Tribe. What a shock to our Elders
to know that our Tribal Constitution can be changed by an appellate court
instead of by the people. What an injustice for the appellate court to order
our Tribal judge and our Tribal Enrollment Committee to break our Tribal
laws and reverse their decisions.
“Estoppel is closely related to laches.” It means to stop someone from
their claiming a lawful claim. Yet this family give their side of the claim
publicly on Native Internet sites, the radio, newspapers, before the Tribal
Enrollment Committee, before the Tribal Council and in two courts.
The only way the people will get this mess straightened out is by our vote.
Vote for three candidates who will defend our Tribal Constitution, laws,
sovereignty and who will uphold their oath of ofice. Choose three Tribal
Council candidates who do not support this appellate court decision. Stand
up for your Tribe, speak out for it and help to get it back on track by using
one Tribal Court with one Tribal judge as in 1984. The Court of Appeals
was brought in, to the downfall of our Tribe, and it can be taken back out
if it is the will of the people.
Rosemary Jameson
Roll #883
Dear Smoke Signals:
Recently I received a lier in the mail from three candidates who seem to be
under the impression the appellate judges who recently ruled to reverse the
disenrollment of the Chief Tumulth descendants somehow violated our Con-
stitution. These judges ruled in favor of the Tumulth family by using estoppel
and laches, both of which fall under the doctrine of federal common law.
However, the Tribe’s Constitution clearly states our Tribe must follow
not only our Constitution but federal law as well. Please see the following
excerpt from the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Community of Ore-
gon Constitution:
“ARTICLE I - AUTHORIZATION OF GOVERNMENT
“Section I. Jurisdiction and Territory: The authority of the government
established by this Constitution shall extend over all persons, property, and
activities within the jurisdiction of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde
Community of Oregon except as limited by this Constitution and Federal
Law.”
The judges wrote 20-plus pages explaining their decision. The law is clear
and concise. I personally do not see a problem with their ruling to reverse
the disenrollment of the Chief Tumulth family. I was in the court hearings
and all three judges represented themselves in a professional manner and
were obviously extremely well-versed in both sides of the case. Therefore,
by ruling under the common law of laches and estoppel their decision is in
full compliance of our Constitution and our sovereignty.
When I received the lier, I was sadden these candidates felt this is the
most important thing our Tribe is facing right now. That they would want
to continue spreading division and negativity among our people is unfath-
omable. The court's decision is inal. I would hope we can move on and our
leaders can put their attention toward the major issues we are currently
facing. We are in a place where we need to stand together and move in a
positive direction.
Blessings to you all!
Ann K. Lewis
Roll #3983
Dear Smoke Signals:
We belong. For those of you who have followed Grand Ronde in the news
for the last three years, 66 members of my family and I have spent much
of our lives ighting to stay enrolled in this Tribe. After multiple changes
in Tribal law surrounding our enrollment situation, the Tribe’s appellate
court handed down a decision in our favor, reversing our disenrollment
and ordering that we, the descendants of Chief Tumulth, be reinstated as
Grand Ronde Tribal members.
This has been a happy situation, a weight lifted from our shoulders unlike
anything else. The past three years have included many sleepless nights,
name calling and accusations from fellow Tribal members, including Elders
and elected oficials. Several of our family Elders passed away during this
time, including Chuck Williams, who authored the famous book “Bridge of
the Gods, Mountains of Fire” and who intended that many of his materials
be donated to the Tribe following his passing. To say the last three years
have been hard would be an understatement. But for all the bad, the Aug.
5 appellate court decision was one of the happiest days of our lives.
Looking forward to this Tribal election, it saddens us deeply to see can-
didates negatively using our situation for votes. The same goes for public
comments making the claim that the Tribe somehow lost sovereignty be-
cause of our victory. Sovereignty, as we know it, having become familiar
with Indian law over the last few years, is the ability to make your own
laws and have your own courts. And that is precisely what the Tribe is do-
ing. That we are being used as a political tool only reafirms what we have
always suspected: our disenrollment was political.
We offer the following excerpts from the appellate court's decision:
• “There is no question that the Tribe, Enrollment Committee, and staff
were not diligent and unjustiiably delayed instituting this enrollment
investigation and subsequent action to disenroll.”
• “There is another type of estoppel that might apply and prevent the Tribe
from arguing now that the petitioners are not Grand Ronde citizens: the
Tribe has long argued in other venues that Chief Tumulth, the Watlala
and Cascade Tribes, and Tumulth’s relatives, who were enrolled in the
Tribe, all lived in the Columbia River Gorge and Cascade Locks areas.
The Tribe used these arguments to claim rights in those areas. The Tribe
might be estopped from now making the opposite argument.”
• "We do not decide today whether the Tribe has to engage in afirmative
misconduct. … But it seems clear that enrolling Petitioners’ lateral and
lineal ancestors, allegedly in error, and then repeatedly telling them,
allegedly in error, for 27 years that they were properly enrolled in the
Tribe could be afirmative misconduct.” Afirmative misconduct, according
to Black's Law Dictionary is “deliberately misleading.”
• "Such a long chain of alleged misconduct and misstatements is far more
than a one-time negligent act.”
• Regarding the legal doctrines of laches and estoppel: “It is rare to apply
laches and estoppel to governments, and we do so only in ‘the most egregious
instances’.” Black's Law deines “egregious” as “remarkably bad.”
Several candidates, their supporters and some Tribal leaders have claimed
we don’t meet the constitutional requirements for enrollment. Nowhere in
the court ruling is that statement made. What the judges ultimately said
is this: The Tribe cannot claim people as members for 27 years, use them
to inluence public policy and then suddenly claim they aren’t members
anymore. While people are free to have their own interpretations, ours is
simply this: For 27 years we lived as members of this Tribe, we met the
constitutional requirements for enrollment, we drummed, we sang at events,
some of us mastered Chinuk Wawa and we allowed the Tribe to use our
family to inluence public policy. People within certain positions in our Tribal
governance, those whose behavior is considered “afirmative misconduct”
and “very egregious” by the court, wanted us out, and for a time, we were.
But we're back. Because, as we've been saying for three years now and long
before then: We belong!
Erin Bernando
Roll #3266