Fort Sill Apaches get new reservation NM, plan return 125 years after Geronimo scattered tribe
More than 125 years after the surrender of renowned Apache leader Geronimo scattered tribal members across the Southwest, the Fort Sill Apache have won the right to establish a reservation on homelands in southern New Mexico.
Big Brothers Big Sisters Draft Basketball Star Tahnee Robinson as Spokesperson
Many recognize Tahnee Robinson for playing guard for the University of Nevada and for being the first American Indian to be drafted by the WNBA. However, these accomplishments may not have happened if it wasn’t for her coaches and parents serving as her mentors. Now, Robinson has a chance to serve as a mentor by being the official spokesperson for Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS). Wright-Bryan said that mentoring is not new to Native communities, with extended family serving in this traditional role. For her, the importance of BBBS Native American Mentoring is that it relies upon an area’s tribal members to serve as the first point of contact between the program and local Native communities.
NPR: 'Unconquered' Explores An Isolated Amazon Tribe
The 7 billion people on this planet have never been so connected. People in Shanghai can communicate instantaneously with people in Sioux City — which makes it all the more remarkable that there still exists a few thousand people in the Amazon rain forest who have never had contact with modern civilization. In 2002, National Geographic asked journalist Scott Wallace to chronicle the trip of a 34-man team to search for the perimeters of a people known as the flecheiros — or the Arrow People. The Unconquered is the story of the team's paradoxical quest: to study the Arrow People without coming into contact with them, for the safety of the explorers and the tribe.
Native American tribes demand equal footing, sovereignty if Internet gambling allowed in US
Native American tribes said Thursday they want their share of the jobs and revenue if online gambling is allowed in the U.S, but they don’t want to lose their sovereignty to get it. Internet gambling has been prohibited in the U.S. since 2006, which has sent fans and their money to sites based offshore. With Congress searching for money to cut the deficit and create new jobs, supporters see an opening for legalizing at least some online gambling.
Leaders of NY's Seneca Indians settle dispute
Leaders of the Seneca Indian Nation in New York say they've settled an internal power struggle. The western New York tribe announced the development in a statement late Thursday that capped a tumultuous week. Last Saturday, the Tribal Council voted 10-6 to remove Seneca President Robert Odawi (oh-DAH'-wee) Porter as chief executive officer. The no-confidence vote was a first for the tribe, which runs three western New York casinos as well as reservation cigarette businesses.
Tribal members look to put UND nickname on ballot in effort to keep Fighting Sioux moniker
A group of American Indians who want the University of North Dakota to keep its Fighting Sioux nickname hope to put the issue to voters, their lawyer said Thursday. Members of the Spirit Lake Sioux tribe who back the nickname say they plan to gather signatures to try to amend the state’s constitution to require that the school use the moniker. Their lawyer, Reed Soderstrom, said he hoped such a move would end arguments about the nickname “once and for all.” The school wants to shed its 81-year-old nickname after a drawn-out dispute with the NCAA, which says the name and the school’s American Indian logo are offensive to Native Americans. North Dakota lawmakers voted earlier this month to allow UND to get rid of the moniker, overturning a last-ditch attempt in March by the Legislature. That maneuvering had caused scheduling headaches for UND teams and threatened its bid to join the Big Sky Conference as it transitions from Division II to Division I sports.
BBC: Brazil indigenous Guarani leader Nisio Gomes killed
An indigenous leader in southern Brazil has been shot dead in front of his community, campaigners say. Nisio Gomes, 59, was part of a Guarani Kaiowa group that returned to their ancestral land at the start of this month after being evicted by ranchers. He was killed by a group of up to 40 masked gunmen who burst into the camp, witnesses said. Land disputes between indigenous groups and ranchers are common in Mato Grosso do Sul State.
SF Chronicle: Where American Indian legends and lore abound
With the fall harvest under way and Thanksgiving dinner looming just around the bend, there's no better time to bone up on Indian legends and lore. Along with a large helping of culture, here are some places where you can indulge in a feast for all your senses.
BBC: Colombia's indigenous peoples face uncertain future
A group of men, women and children walk up a muddy hill carrying heavy bags filled with sand. They all belong to the Awa tribe: indigenous people displaced by the Colombian conflict who are trying to build a new life. Violence forced them out of their homeland in the mountains. Now they are trying to settle on 127 hectares (313 acres) of land provided by the government on the outskirts of Ricaurte, a small town in the south-western province of Narino.
ICT: There’s an (Inuktitut) App for That
Canada’s first Inuktitut app has been launched. The Canada Council for the Arts is giving out information on how to apply for grants with an app for iPads, iPhones, the iPod touch and Androids in the language of the Inuit. The goal is to attract musicians, artists and writers of the far north to the programs. With 3,000 to 6,500 artists living in Nunavut, there is a lot of talent to plumb. The council received 23 grant applications from Nunavut and awarded $281,000 in arts funding in 2010–11, the Nunatsiaq News
Mother Of Baby Killed In Edmond Foster Home Speaks Out
Kala Whitecrow is breaking her silence two years after her daughter Naomi Whitecrow died in the care of her foster mother, Amy Holder. Holder was convicted of child abuse in the death, but will not serve any prison time. Holder was sentenced to pay a $5,000 fine, register as a violent offender for ten years, pay $10,000 to the victims' compensation fund and $150 to an OSBI fund.
Native leader seeks stronger ties between tribes, corps
The room on the fourth floor of Sealaska Plaza was packed with more than 30 people. They’d gathered as part of Native Alaskan Heritage Month to hear Edward Thomas, president, Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indians of Alaska and a director on Sealaska Corp.’s board speak about tribes and Native corporations. Thomas was in what looked like a hand-crafted blue vest with large brown buttons. He was soft spoken, but in the quiet room his voice was clear.
SF Chronicle: American Indians get permanent exhibit at Alcatraz
One of the demands during the American Indian occupation of Alcatraz was to create a cultural center. Forty years later, the former band practice room in the cellblock basement has been transformed into a multimedia exhibit of that 19-month occupation that many consider the birth of American Indian activism. The photos, videos and sound recordings were compiled by faculty and students at San Francisco State University and California State University East Bay and will become part of Alcatraz's permanent exhibit. One wall of photos, taken by former San Francisco State graduate student Salvador Sanchez Strawbridge, depicts sacred fires and Aztec dancers at this year's 40-year celebration of the Alcatraz takeover. Curators spent a year interviewing descendants of the late occupation leader Richard Oakes as well as those who followed him on a boat to occupy Alcatraz.
L.A. Times: Indian 'Shadow Wolves' stalk smugglers on Arizona reservation
Kevin Carlos hates how the drug runners tramp through the ancient cemeteries and holy places he holds dear. That peak up there, he says, speeding toward the reservation's border with Mexico. That's where the creator lives. His name is I'itoi, the elder brother. He created the tribe out of wet clay after a summer rain. Tribe members still bring him offerings — shell bracelets, beargrass baskets and family photos — and leave them in his cave scooped out of the peak. But the drug smugglers don't know that. On their way to supply America's drug markets, they use these sacred hilltops as lookouts, water holes as toilets and the desert as a trash can.
Depleted Texas lakes expose ghost towns, graves
Across the state of Texas, receding lakes have revealed a prehistoric skull, ancient tools, fossils and a small cemetery that appears to contain the graves of freed slaves. Some of the discoveries have attracted interest from local historians, and looters also have scavenged for pieces of history. More than two dozen looters have been arrested at one site. More than two dozen looters have been arrested at Lake Whitney, about 50 miles south of Fort Worth, for removing Native American tools and fossils that experts believe could be thousands of years old. At Lake Georgetown near Austin, fishermen discovered what experts determined was the skull of an American Indian buried for hundreds or thousands of years. It's not clear what will become of the skull, said Kate Spradley, a Texas State University assistant anthropology professor who is keeping it temporarily in a lab. Strict federal laws governing American Indian burial sites bar excavations to search for other remains.
White House Highlights Native American Youth as ‘Champions of Change’
On December 1, 11 American Indian youth leaders will be honored at the White House as Champions of Change for their efforts to help improve the lives of those around them while address issues affecting their communities. The ‘Champions of Change’ for Native American youth are here to share their stories and to attend the White House Tribal Nations Conference. The program, created as part of Obama’s Winning the Future initiative highlights a different issue each week and selects groups of Champions across different spectrums working to better their communities.
Painted and ornamented, bodies become canvases for artists at festival in Venezuela
Artists used paint, ornaments and glitter to transform the human body into artwork at a festival in Venezuela, showing off designs that ranged from pure fantasy to indigenous myths. The weekend’s annual World Meeting of Body Art included body painting, tattoo art, performances and workshops. Fifty-two artists from 18 countries shared their creations at the gathering in Caracas, joining about 2,000 Venezuelans, organizers said.
WSJ: Oneida tribe pays out $5M in bonuses to employees
The Oneida Nation that runs Turning Stone casino and other enterprises in Central New York is distributing $5 million worth of bonuses to its 4,500 employees. Oneida Nation Representative Ray Halbritter says Monday that despite the recession, the Oneida's business interest including the massive casino and resort east of Syracuse turned a profit similar to previous years. Halbritter didn't disclose the profit. The Oneida Nation also increased salaries for its government workers and avoided layoffs.
AP: Administration unveils new rules for tribal lands
Ahead of a meeting Friday between President Barack Obama and hundreds of Native American leaders, the administration unveiled new rules for tribal lands that officials say will expedite home building and energy development. The proposed changes _ the first of its kind in 50 years _ would open the door to badly-needed housing development on reservations, and for wind and solar energy projects that tribes have been eager to launch. The plan gives Obama another boasting point for this week's meeting with leaders of the 565 federally-recognized tribes at the White House.
ICT: Harper Appointed to President’s Commission on White House Fellowships
President Obama has appointed Keith M. Harper to serve on the President’s Commission on White House Fellowships. A highly acclaimed attorney who has worked on litigation and Native American issues throughout his career representing tribes and individual Indians, Harper is a member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and partner and Chair of the Native American Practice Group at the law firm of Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP. His appointment to the White House Fellowship Commission was announced in a White House press release November 23.
Nevada Record-Courier: First female tribe leader feels called to role
Wanda Batchelor made history when she was elected to lead the Washoe Tribe, the first woman ever to do so. Batchelor said a year into her position the transition has been a smooth one. “We're a matriarchal society,” she explained. Batchelor was named this year's American Indian Community Leader by the Nevada Indian Commission. Batchelor has a long history in law enforcement and social work in California before moving to Carson City, when she began working for the Washoe Tribe. She served an eight-year term as the chairwoman of the Stewart Indian Community and four years as the chairwoman of the Washoe Tribal Council, among other roles.
Bloomberg: U.S. Targets American Indian Lands for Renewable-Energy Projects
The U.S. Interior Department plans to require the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs to approve leases for renewable-energy projects on land held by American Indians unless the bureau can show why the proposals should be rejected within two months. Under the proposed rules, the bureau would have to approve proposed projects unless it finds a “compelling reason” not to do so, the department said today in a statement. The bureau would have 60 days to evaluate industrial development and renewable-energy plants, and 30 days to consider residential leases. The rules are intended to accelerate the approval of leases for solar projects, wind farms, commercial development and residential use on 56 million acres of American Indian lands, about the size of the state of Utah, the Interior Department said. They don’t cover leases for oil, natural gas, mining or other sub-surface development projects.
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