September 13, 2022Brian Lightfoot BrownEnrolled citizen of the Narragansett TribeAs the United States of America is in the midst of cleaning up a mess that the now-former President instigated, everyone is trying to regain their balance over the terrible insurrection at the Capitol building on January 6th.Often lost in the shuffle of change are the needs, concerns and interests of this nation's Indigenous people. Native Americans are hoping that this time is finally our time. Tribes are currently battling this pandemic at the same time as we try to reclaim and hold onto our homelands and...…September 13, 2022Brian Lightfoot BrownEnrolled citizen of the Narragansett TribeAs the United States of America is in the midst of cleaning up a mess that the now-former President instigated, everyone is trying to regain their balance over the terrible insurrection at the Capitol building on January 6th.Often lost in the shuffle of change are the needs, concerns and interests of this nation's Indigenous people. Native Americans are hoping that this time is finally our time. Tribes are currently battling this pandemic at the same time as we try to reclaim and hold onto our homelands and...WW…

September 13, 2022Colleen Echohawk launched a campaign Monday to lead Seattle as its mayor, running on a platform of transformation; rethinking justice, mental health and the city’s common purpose. Echohawk, Pawnee and Athabascan, is executive director of the Chief Seattle Club, a nonprofit that serves homeless Native Americans. Echohawk led the development of $100 million in affordable housing for Native Americans, non-Natives and veterans; improved access to health care and social services or her constituency; and is creating economic opportunities through a farm-to-table Indigenous foods...…September 13, 2022Colleen Echohawk launched a campaign Monday to lead Seattle as its mayor, running on a platform of transformation; rethinking justice, mental health and the city’s common purpose. Echohawk, Pawnee and Athabascan, is executive director of the Chief Seattle Club, a nonprofit that serves homeless Native Americans. Echohawk led the development of $100 million in affordable housing for Native Americans, non-Natives and veterans; improved access to health care and social services or her constituency; and is creating economic opportunities through a farm-to-table Indigenous foods...WW…

September 13, 2022Heather Dawn Thompson on Monday was named director of the Office of Tribal Relations at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and, in a move that underscores the agency’s stated goal of improving nation-to-nation relations, she will report directly to the secretary.Thompson, Cheyenne River, said she was excited to begin her new assignment.“I’m absolutely humbled and so honored to be selected,” she said from her home in Rapid City, South Dakota. “My passion is in rural tribal economic development and tribal agriculture, so being given the opportunity to serve Indian Country...…September 13, 2022Heather Dawn Thompson on Monday was named director of the Office of Tribal Relations at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and, in a move that underscores the agency’s stated goal of improving nation-to-nation relations, she will report directly to the secretary.Thompson, Cheyenne River, said she was excited to begin her new assignment.“I’m absolutely humbled and so honored to be selected,” she said from her home in Rapid City, South Dakota. “My passion is in rural tribal economic development and tribal agriculture, so being given the opportunity to serve Indian Country...WW…

September 13, 2022Alaska Native Corporations are not eligible to receive any of the $8 billion of the federal coronavirus relief money set aside for tribes, an appeals court ruled Friday. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit determined Alaska Native Corporations are not tribal governments.In March, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, commonly known as the CARES Act. The U.S. Treasury Department concluded in April that Alaska Native Corporations were eligible to receive portions of the CARES Act funds set aside for...…September 13, 2022Alaska Native Corporations are not eligible to receive any of the $8 billion of the federal coronavirus relief money set aside for tribes, an appeals court ruled Friday. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit determined Alaska Native Corporations are not tribal governments.In March, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, commonly known as the CARES Act. The U.S. Treasury Department concluded in April that Alaska Native Corporations were eligible to receive portions of the CARES Act funds set aside for...WW…

The Associated Press'Ballot collection efforts are an important way to get out the vote on rural reservations, and with this ruling those efforts can proceed'Amy Beth HansonAssociated Press HELENA, Mont. — A Montana judge on Friday struck down a voter-enacted law that restricted third-party collection of absentee ballots after several Native American groups argued they rely on ballot collection efforts to vote.The Ballot Interference Prevention Act exacerbated the barriers many rural Native Americans face in voting, which include difficulties in traveling to post offices and polling...…The Associated Press'Ballot collection efforts are an important way to get out the vote on rural reservations, and with this ruling those efforts can proceed'Amy Beth HansonAssociated Press HELENA, Mont. — A Montana judge on Friday struck down a voter-enacted law that restricted third-party collection of absentee ballots after several Native American groups argued they rely on ballot collection efforts to vote.The Ballot Interference Prevention Act exacerbated the barriers many rural Native Americans face in voting, which include difficulties in traveling to post offices and polling...WW…

Press PoolHopi Tribe, Acoma Pueblo, Zia Pueblo, and Zuni Pueblo ancestors and associated funerary items repatriated and reinterred at Mesa Verde National ParkNews ReleaseThe Hopi Tribe, Pueblo of Acoma, Pueblo of Zia, Pueblo of ZuniOn Sunday, a coalition of tribes including the Hopi Tribe, the Pueblo of Acoma, the Pueblo of Zia, and the Pueblo of Zuni repatriated and reinterred ancestors and associated funerary items at Mesa Verde National Park. The National Museum of Finland repatriated the human remains of 20 ancestors pursuant to a joint-agreement with the four sovereign...…Press PoolHopi Tribe, Acoma Pueblo, Zia Pueblo, and Zuni Pueblo ancestors and associated funerary items repatriated and reinterred at Mesa Verde National ParkNews ReleaseThe Hopi Tribe, Pueblo of Acoma, Pueblo of Zia, Pueblo of ZuniOn Sunday, a coalition of tribes including the Hopi Tribe, the Pueblo of Acoma, the Pueblo of Zia, and the Pueblo of Zuni repatriated and reinterred ancestors and associated funerary items at Mesa Verde National Park. The National Museum of Finland repatriated the human remains of 20 ancestors pursuant to a joint-agreement with the four sovereign...WW…

September 13, 2022President Joe Biden put a hold on oil and gas drilling in the Arctic just hours after being inaugurated. He signed an  Wednesday placing a temporary moratorium on all federal activities related to oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Just the day before, nine leases had been signed by the Trump administration, well ahead of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act’s 2024 deadline requiring two lease sales in the refuge.Biden’s executive order raises questions about the permitting process for the leases, saying, “in light of the alleged legal...…September 13, 2022President Joe Biden put a hold on oil and gas drilling in the Arctic just hours after being inaugurated. He signed an  Wednesday placing a temporary moratorium on all federal activities related to oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Just the day before, nine leases had been signed by the Trump administration, well ahead of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act’s 2024 deadline requiring two lease sales in the refuge.Biden’s executive order raises questions about the permitting process for the leases, saying, “in light of the alleged legal...WW…

September 13, 2022Indian Country will watch closely next week’s confirmation hearing for Congresswoman Deb Haaland (NM), an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Laguna, to serve as Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior. If confirmed, Congresswoman Haaland will become the first-ever American Indian person to serve in the capacity of Cabinet secretary.After centuries of invisibility, the best and brightest of Indian Country are rising to the highest positions of leadership across the United States government. This moment is long overdue – and I steadfastly support Deb Haaland’s...…September 13, 2022Indian Country will watch closely next week’s confirmation hearing for Congresswoman Deb Haaland (NM), an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Laguna, to serve as Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior. If confirmed, Congresswoman Haaland will become the first-ever American Indian person to serve in the capacity of Cabinet secretary.After centuries of invisibility, the best and brightest of Indian Country are rising to the highest positions of leadership across the United States government. This moment is long overdue – and I steadfastly support Deb Haaland’s...WW…

September 13, 2022Associated PressMASHPEE, Mass. — The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe scored a legal victory Friday when the U.S. Interior Department withdrew a Trump administration appeal that aimed to revoke federal reservation designation for the tribe's land in Massachusetts.A federal judge in 2020 blocked the U.S. Interior Department from revoking the tribe's reservation designation, saying the agency's decision to do so was "arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and contrary to law." The Trump administration appealed the decision, but the Interior Department on Friday moved to...…September 13, 2022Associated PressMASHPEE, Mass. — The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe scored a legal victory Friday when the U.S. Interior Department withdrew a Trump administration appeal that aimed to revoke federal reservation designation for the tribe's land in Massachusetts.A federal judge in 2020 blocked the U.S. Interior Department from revoking the tribe's reservation designation, saying the agency's decision to do so was "arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and contrary to law." The Trump administration appealed the decision, but the Interior Department on Friday moved to...WW…

September 14, 2022Emboldened by President Joe Biden’s action to rescind former President Donald Trump’s presidential permit to the Keystone XL pipeline project, leaders of four Sioux tribes are requesting Biden take action on the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline. Leaders of the Yankton Sioux Tribe, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Standing Rock Tribe sent a letter to Biden on Tuesday requesting he take quick and decisive action on the Dakota Access Pipeline within the first 10 days of his administration.A copy of the four-page letter is posted on the Standing Rock...…September 14, 2022Emboldened by President Joe Biden’s action to rescind former President Donald Trump’s presidential permit to the Keystone XL pipeline project, leaders of four Sioux tribes are requesting Biden take action on the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline. Leaders of the Yankton Sioux Tribe, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Standing Rock Tribe sent a letter to Biden on Tuesday requesting he take quick and decisive action on the Dakota Access Pipeline within the first 10 days of his administration.A copy of the four-page letter is posted on the Standing Rock...WW…