Bears Ears Decision Is Coming

Obama to decide fate of site by end of term

Bottom Line: A visit to Utah by Interior Secretary Sally Jewell highlighted the uncertain future of 1.9 million sacred acres.

President Barack Obama could decide whether to designate the 1.9 million–acre region in Utah known as Bears Ears as a national monument by the time he leaves office, if not by the end of the year. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell made the disclosure to Indian Country Today Media Network during a three-day tour of the area on July 14-16.

Five tribes—the Hopi, Zuñi, Ute Mountain Ute, Uinta-Ouray Ute and Navajo—have formally asked Obama to designate the area as a national monument under the 1906 Antiquities Act, which gives the president signing power to create such monuments on federal land.

Both critics and supporters of the plan were present at a public hearing in Bluff, Utah, that topped off Jewell’s tour. Along with directors of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the National Park Service and other federal officials, Jewell sought to learn more about the land and its uses. The delegation hiked portions of Bears Ears, observing petroglyphs and the terrain firsthand.

Above all, Jewell and the attending officials were present to gather information from those who would be most directly affected by a national monument. “We have not made up our minds on what way to go,” Jewell said. “We’re here to listen.”

And they did, as more than 50 people representing local tribes, ranchers, politicians, recreationalists and environmentalists held forth. A crowd of about 150 crammed into the hearing room in Bluff, about 60 miles south of Bears Ears. Outside, more than 1,000 who had traveled from around the region listened on a public address system.

Testimony came from descendants of Mormon pioneers who settled in the area, rock climbers who have discovered ancient sites, Native Americans who have seen their wells depleted and water contaminated by area natural resource development, and others. All spoke passionately about this largely pristine desert, a blanket of red-brick earth, waves of mesas, large, jutting rock formations and juniper dotting the land.

A major subject of discussion was desecration. Bears Ears falls under the jurisdiction of the BLM, which has only two law enforcement rangers and a handful of staff to oversee the 1.9 million acres of land containing 100,000 archaeological sites. Some of them, BLM personnel have acknowledged, have been disturbed and looted.

Josh Ewing of Friends of the Cedar Mesa, a nonprofit organization created to help the BLM manage the area, said he has seen bones from some of the gravesites thrown about as looters looked for pottery or other items to sell. Creating a monument, ranchers and other area residents told Jewell, would bring more visitors and not stop vandals.

Many tribal members who support monument status for Bears Ears—which is named after its two landmark 9,000-foot twin buttes—say the land is sacred and important for medicine gathering, wood and ceremonies.

“There is nothing more important about tribal sovereignty than protecting Indian nations’ languages, cultures, beliefs, and indeed our existence as Indian people,” said Navajo Attorney General Ethel B. Branch.

“Our proposal is not about exclusion—it’s about education and partnership,” said Carleton Bowekaty of the Pueblo of Zuñi.

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell (l.) hiked portions of Bears Ears on her fact-finding tour. With her (l. to r.) were Vaughn Hadenfeldt of the Friends of Cedar Mesa; Brian Quigley, assistant field manager of the Bureau of Land Management Field Office; and John Ewing of the Friends of Cedar Mesa. Kim Baca

But several parties, including a group from Blue Mountain Dine and San Juan County Commissioner Rebecca Benally, spoke against the designation. They cited general distrust with the federal government.

“We have suffered from all the treaties that have been broken,” Benally said. “I’m very disheartened by the misinformation and also by the dividing of the sisters and brothers in this community.”

Benally, a Republican, supports a bill filed by Utah’s congressional delegation and introduced in the House as an alternative to the tribal proposal. The bill, called the Public Lands Initiative, would designate 4.6 million acres of land for conservation, and allocate 1.1 million acres for recreation and natural resource development.

The Public Lands Initiative also ensures tribal input, protects archaeological sites, preserves traditional gathering of plants, and gives managing agencies discretion to hire tribal managers to help manage the land, said Casey Snider, a staff member for Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah), who co-sponsored the proposal.

Though Congress is ready to wrap up its current session, Snider said that hearings on the bill are planned for July and August, with Bishop scheduling bill changes and a congressional hearing in September.

Environmentalists oppose the bill because they say it allows too much potential for gas and oil development. Tribal leaders have also criticized the bill, saying that their input has not been sought. Initially, tribes were working with Utah lawmakers on a proposal. But when communications fizzled earlier this year, the tribes broke off and created their own proposal.

By the end of the public hearing in Bluff, a common theme had emerged, perhaps best expressed by area resident Kevin Maryboy: “The one thing that we are all consistent on—those of us supporting and opposing—we all want to preserve the land for the younger generation.” http://bit.ly/2aoGEzp

Restitution Along The Columbia

After decades, a semblance of ecological
and housing justice emerges

Bottom Line: The federal government is making good on promises to Columbia River Native fishers whose villages were inundated in the early 1900s to make way for dams.

When the floodgates of the Bonneville system of dams began opening in 1937, the Columbia River engulfed tribal fishing sites and villages, swamping ancestral lands. The settlements were replaced by 31 encampments; today, they are barely habitable.

Now, multiple congressional actions, including appropriations and federal authorizations, are driving a multi-agency coalition to address tribal housing conditions along the river. Part of the package is legislation—specifically, the Columbia River In-Lieu and Treaty Fishing Access Sites Improvement Act, which would begin to address sanitation and safety issues in the encampments.

“This legislation begins to undo a shameful legacy of shabby treatment for tribal members who have long deserved better,” said Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon). “These glaring public health and safety hazards for children and families must be addressed now as an essential part of repairing a sad history of injustice.”

In 1957 the reservoir behind the Dalles Dam inundated the 15,000-year-old, continuously inhabited settlement and tribal fishing sites at thundering Celilo Falls. It destroyed the major cultural and trading center for tribes from the Plains to the Pacific.

Treaties in the 1850s had guaranteed the treaty fishing tribes the rights to their fisheries in exchange for the peaceful cession of most of their territory. During the dam’s construction between the 1930s and 1950s, the federal government promised the Yakama, Warm Springs, Umatilla and Nez Perce tribes that they would permanently replace their villages and fishing sites.

The Army Corps of Engineers replaced the flooded white settlements with towns, but it took them 20 years after the first dam drowned Native fishing sites and villages to designate an in-lieu-of temporary fishing spot for tribal fishing. The final 31st in-lieu-of fishing site, designated in 2013, did not provide any housing for tribal fishers.

Lone Pine resident Ranetta Spino spends her nights on a couch outside her trailer because her whole family cannot fit inside.AP Images/Gosia Wozniacki

The Corps issued a report acknowledging that the promises to build houses for displaced tribal members remain unfulfilled, The Oregonian reported in March. In addition, the newspaper reported, Native communities at tribal fishing sites continue to be in a state of disrepair. Moreover, most tribal fishing families live without sanitation or running water. (Celilo Village, finally updated beginning in 2006, is the rare exception.)

The bill proposed by Oregon and Washington members of Congress would correct that. The first step, said Jeremy Red Star Wolf, chairman of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC), would be to provide clean water, basic sanitation and fire safety infrastructure for the sites.

The legislation, introduced in both houses of Congress, highlights the importance of laying out a path for the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to remedy many of the current problems. “We appreciate the delegation’s commitment and their multifaceted approach to addressing the problems and continuing to do so into the future,” Red Star Wolf said.

The Columbia River In-Lieu and Treaty Fishing Access Sites Improvement Act calls upon the BIA to assess the current sanitation and safety conditions at the BIA-owned facilities that were constructed to provide treaty tribes access to traditional fishing grounds. It also recommends expenditures as necessary for actions to improve sanitation and other infrastructure such as water and sewer for the sites.

“It is long past time that we honored our commitment to tribal members along the Columbia River, and this legislation is another step in the right direction,” said Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon). “Tribal members shouldn’t have to live in unsafe or unsanitary conditions without running water or electricity.”

CRITFC said it would work with the Corps, the BIA and the Treaty Tribes to improve conditions at the sites and address tribal fishers’ needs. In addition to Merkley and Wyden, legislators who are expected to be involved in the process are Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Oregon), Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) and Sen. Patty Murray (D-Washington).

“Salmon fishing is an integral part of the Native American legacy, and this legislation aims to make long-overdue improvements to tribal fishing access rights while we work on the longer-term need for additional housing,” Murray said. “This is an important step toward honoring tribal rights.” http://bit.ly/2akI5Rr

Native Pride In Philadelphia

Visibility in the proceedings, priorities behind the scenes

Editor’s Note: In contrast to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, where they struggled for recognition, Native Americans were very much a part of its Democratic counterpart in Philadelphia last week. Native delegates and supporters plotted strategy, assessed their political goals and publicly held forth on the public stage.

By all indications, the nation’s federally recognized tribal nations registered a record turnout. According to the Hillary Clinton campaign, among the 4,766 delegates were 147 American Indians. With a meeting of the Native American Council on July 25, the Native American Caucus on July 27, and inclusion in nearly every major speech, tribes were very much a presence. Native women in particular were part of the goings-on; former Tulalip vice chair Deborah Parker spearheaded the writing of the Native American plank.

The Native delegates sought to build on progress dating from the first term of the Obama administration. “This year’s election has been tremendous for Indian people and there’s a momentum that just keeps growing with every convention,” said Kevin Killer (Oglala/Kiowa), a delegate from South Dakota. “Since ’08 it has grown and it’s good to see this many Native delegates in the process.”

These dispatches reflect how that process worked in part during the last full week in July:

* * *

Stephen Roe Lewis, governor of the Gila River Indian Community, greeted legendary civil rights leader Rep. John Lewis (D-Georgia). Suzette Brewer

On the night that Hillary Rodham Clinton became the first female presidential candidate of a major party in U.S. history, White Earth citizen and Minnesota State Representative Peggy Flanagan addressed the Democratic National Convention from the podium.

It was an emotional night across Indian Country as Flanagan spoke about her concerns regarding the negative campaign rhetoric from the Republican nominee toward American Indians. She also expressed her hopes for her own three-year-old daughter, Siobhan, to whom she read a letter from the podium.

“Your name is not Pocahontas,” Flanagan said. “It is Siobhan Ma’iingan, and you should never let anyone make you feel anything less than proud of who you are.

“Because, despite everything that has happened to our people, and no matter what Donald Trump says, we are still here. And I want you to grow up with our people’s values: honoring our elders, showing gratitude to our warriors, cherishing our children as gifts from the creator.”

Immediately after her speech, Flanagan went to the convention floor to find her mentor, Cecilia Fire Thunder, former president of the Oglala Lakota Tribe of South Dakota.

“I had to find Cecilia, because I know how hard she worked and fought so I could stand on this stage,” said Flanagan, wiping a tear. “It means so much that we were invited to be here on the last night of the convention, when Hillary will be accepting the nomination. It took so much work from so many people and I’m truly honored and humbled to be a part of it.”

Back home in Minnesota, Flanagan wants to continue harnessing the energy from the convention to advocate for Natives both rural and urban. “For the first time ever, we have organized an urban Native coalition to move an agenda to move policy in the state house. As we move forward, we want to make sure the Native people of Minnesota are seen and that urban Natives also have a voice because there’s a lot of work to do in ensuring that they have a quality of life.”

Flanagan noted that Susan Allen (Rosebud) is the only other Native in the Minnesota State House, but that two other women, Mary Kunesh-Podein (Standing Rock Lakota) and Jamie Becker Finn (Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe), are running for seats this fall. Not to mention Chilah Brown (Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe), who is running for the state senate.

“For the first time ever, we will have a Native American caucus in Minnesota,” said Flanagan. “And along with our new state Supreme Court Justice Anne McKeig, it is a great push forward for the tribes in Minnesota.”

For Flanagan, in short, the political is very much the personal.

“At the end of my speech, my husband sent me a picture of my three-year-old daughter watching me on television. That’s why I do what I do.” http://bit.ly/2aDnxTm

Panel speakers at the Native American Council on first day of DNC included, from left, Charles Galbraith (Navajo), Rion Ramirez (Saquamish), Jodi Gillette (Standing Rock Sioux) and Kimberly Teehee (Cherokee).Suzette Brewer

Drawing hundreds of members from tribal nations, the Native American Council met on July 25 at the DNC to discuss progress made under the Obama administration and to talk about continuing that work. Attendees met with party officials, former White House policy advisors and members of Congress.

The proceedings featured a panel discussion that included three tribal members who have worked in the Obama administration. They were former Associate Director of Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Engagement Charles Galbraith (Navajo) and White House Domestic Policy Council senior policy advisors for Native American Affairs Kimberly Teehee (Cherokee) and Jodi Gillette (Standing Rock Sioux).

The panel praised Obama’s respect of tribal governments as partners and collaborators on such pressing issues as infrastructure, housing, education, healthcare and child welfare. But they also emphasized maintaining a “high level” of congressional engagement and policymaking.

“The idea is to support life [in Native communities] and to have every tool possible so that Indian people can achieve their part of the American dream and live according to their beliefs in wholeness and respect,” Gillette told the standing room only audience. “But we have to set the expectations now. Because even though we’ve made a lot of progress, we still have a lot of problems in Indian country, including drugs, violence, poor housing and inadequate healthcare. We haven’t gone far enough, so what began with Obama must continue.”

The key issue was a call to action to get out the vote among Native American voters in November. To that end, staff members from the National Congress of American Indians handed out pamphlets to promote its Every Native Vote Counts initiative.

Other speakers included Reps. Xavier Becerra (D-California) and Mike Honda (D-California), as well as the legendary civil rights leader John Lewis (D-Georgia), who encouraged the audience to involve itself in the electoral process.

“This is your land, but we must learn to live together as brothers and sisters,” Lewis said. “We must teach our children, all of our children, the way of peace, the way of love, the way of non-violence. Be hopeful, be optimistic, be happy―and never, ever give up.”
http://bit.ly/2a9iywU

Shawn Bordeaux (Oglala Lakota) introduced the South Dakota delegation that put Hillary Clinton over the top. Suzette Brewer

At the roll call of states on July 26, Oglala Lakota tribal member and South Dakota delegate Shawn Bordeaux introduced his delegation in the Lakota language. His state then cast 15 of its 25 votes to clinch the nomination of Hillary Clinton.

“The fact that the South Dakota state delegation was introduced in the Lakota language is something that I’ll always remember,” said delegate Kevin Killer (Oglala/Kiowa).

Bordeaux, one of four American Indian delegates in the 28-member South Dakota delegation, was asked by the party to introduce his compatriots.

“It was an honor, it was exciting and it was historic,” said Bordeaux, one of only two Native American state representatives in the state legislature. “It showed that our party is one that cares about all the people, including American Indians, who are usually not included in the national dialogue. But it shows that we are gaining momentum and that we have important things to say.”

Now that the convention is over, Bordeaux is turning his attention to the election. One of the hardest issues within Indian country regarding the electoral process, he said, is voter apathy.

“It’s often difficult to get people engaged in the state, local and national elections,” said Bordeaux. “Many times, they’re not even registered. So we have to get people registered to vote, because there’s a lot of work to do and I want to get our community engaged in getting out the vote.” http://bit.ly/2ajKhIQ

How Did I Miss That?

Killer space probes, Will Rogers on dogs and New Jersey’s formidable rubber duck

NJ.com reported that Crime Stoppers of Hunterdon County posted a $250 reward for information concerning the disappearance of Clinton, the Garden State’s rubber ducky. The missing bird looks like every other yellow rubber ducky floating in your child’s bathtub—except that it’s a bit larger than a Volkswagen.

It was last seen floating in the Raritan River near the Hunterdon Art Museum at 10 p.m. July 17. There have been no ransom demands.

No terrorist organization has claimed responsibility for the ducknapping, but authorities pointed out that a Statue of Liberty floating in the same part of the river also disappeared under mysterious circumstances.

“There is no truth to the rumor,” my cousin Ray Sixkiller cautioned, “that the rubber ducky failed to endorse Chris Christie.”

* * *

There appeared to be one less federal job when New Scientist reported that NASA has licensed the Curiosity rover, prowling the surface of Mars since 2012, to open fire with its laser cannon without a command by a human operator. The laser is connected to ChemCam, an instrument tasked to determine the chemical composition of rocks. ChemCam zaps rocks and analyzes the gases released.

“E.T.,” Cousin Ray shouted, “phone 911!”

* * *

China appears to be spoiling for a fight over a ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague that China has no historic claim to the South China Sea—where the Chinese have been building artificial islands and claiming extraterritorial jurisdictions around them.

* * *

The Hacker News reported that a “bug bounty program” announced two months ago by PornHub paid its first bounty to a team of three researchers who uncovered a method to either pirate user data or run malware on the mammoth pornography site. The hackers got a total of $22,000 for disclosing the vulnerability.

Cousin Ray was impressed. “A porn site pays hackers less to avoid hacking than a bank pays for advertising false claims that it can’t be hacked. Seriously?”

* * *

The Defense Department has updated its manual called Law of War to clarify that reporters are noncombatants and entitled to the same protections as other civilians caught in a war zone.

“There is no truth to the rumor,” Cousin Ray reminded me, “that the new rule does not apply to Geraldo Rivera.”

* * *

HuffPost reprinted a photo essay documenting the last day in the life of Duke, a black Lab who was suffering from bone cancer. Duke’s family made that call dreaded by those of us who keep companion animals: They had to identify the point where his quality of life was gone. But Duke’s people went one step further and filled his last hours with all the things that gave him joy. Everybody who has known a Lab recognizes the perpetual puppy in its temperament, and Duke was channeling his inner puppy throughout the process.

The pictures are bittersweet because they bring back memories of the four-legged friends who have enriched my life. I tried to help them walk on with more dignity than we typically allow human beings. Like human beings, each one was a distinct personality.

I agree with my favorite Cherokee, Will Rogers, who said, “If there are no dogs in heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.”

* * *

CNN commentator Scottie Nell Hughes described Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Kaine’s speech at a Florida rally as “divisive” because he delivered it in Spanish. Hughes told Wolf Blitzer, “I didn’t have to get a translator for anything that was going on at the RNC this week.”

Apparently, Hughes missed GOP Sen. Ralph Alvarado’s speech to the Republican National Convention. She did admit that Melania Trump speaks five languages, but Ms. Trump was deemed polite enough to hide her language ability.

“English,” Cousin Ray reminded me, “was good enough for Jesus.”

He went on to speculate that Hughes would have really gone ballistic if a candidate broke into Navajo or Cherokee or any other Indigenous tongue. http://bit.ly/2aapQe4