admin, Author at Tulalip News

House Farm Bill Provision would make eating fish more dangerous

As featured on eNews Park Forest.com, Dec 5, 2013

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–December 5, 2013. It’s farm bill debate time—again. And as conferee members saddle up to the negotiation table to attempt yet another meeting of the minds before the winter recess, most of the public watching and waiting for word on a resolution are focused on issues like food stamps and milk.

What most are not waiting for and has not been at the forefront of the media and public discussion concerning the pending farm bill negotiations are the small but dangerous provisions of the House bill concerning the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (expanded and overhauled as the Clean Water Act (CWA) in 1972) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ability to regulate pesticides used near, over, and in water. It should be.

Seeking to nullify the Sixth Circuit’s ruling in National Cotton Council v. EPA and the resulting general permit, sections 12323 and 100013 amend CWA to exclude pesticides from the law’s standards and its permitting requirements. Known as the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), CWA requires all point sources, which are discernible and discreet conveyances, to obtain either individual or general permits. Whether a point source must obtain an individual or general permit depends on the size of the point source and type of activity producing the pollutants. Regardless of whether it is a general permit or individual permit, an entity cannot pollute without a permit and in most cases can only permit in the amounts (called effluent limitations) and ways prescribed in the permit.

Separate, but inextricably linked to the NPDES program, are CWA’s water quality standards, under which states are responsible for designating waterbody uses (such as swimmable or fishable) and setting criteria to protect those uses. If a water body fails to meet the established criteria for its use, then it is deemed impaired and the states, or EPA, if the state fails to act, must establish a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), a kind of pollutant diet. The system comes full circle in that impaired waters with TMDLs can be integrated into the NPDES permits.

Neither CWA nor the NPDES program are perfect, but one need look no further than the fish we eat to understand the important role that this critical environmental framework plays in limiting human exposure to pesticides and other toxins.

CWA, Fish, and the Pesticide Connection

In the recently released Environmental Health Perspectives’ article, Meeting the Needs of the People: Fish Consumption Rates in the Pacific Northwest, the complexities of the CWA, its NPDES progam, and its water quality standards criteria are laid out in a disturbing tale of environmental justice and failing bureaucracies.

In short, Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest eat a lot of fish. It’s part of their culture and a way of life preserved in their legal and tribal rights, but they are facing increasing health risks due to the toxic chemicals in those fish. The solution to this problem seems fairly straight-forward: reduce the toxins in the water so that the levels in the fish are safe to eat. It’s a solution envisioned by CWA and its web of regulatory protections, however, as the article explains, “One of the variables used to calculate ambient water quality criteria is fish consumption rate.”

While the takeaway from the article is somewhat defeating and shows the far-reaching weaknesses of existing risk assessment methodologies, the underpinnings of the article —the connection between a water body’s water quality criteria, an entities NPDES permit, and the safety of the fish we put in our mouths— cannot be dismissed as irrelevant tales of woe. Whether the system is functioning perfectly or not, the point is that a system exists that contemplates the risks inherent to consuming toxin-laced fish and has the potential to protect the general consuming public.

From Fish Back to the Farm Bill

What does not have this ability is the Federal, Insecticide, Rodenticide, and Act (FIFRA). It is this federal framework, however, on which supporters of the House provision hang their hats and point to as the already-in-place protective standard capable of preventing water pollution from pesticides. Beyond Pesticides has debunked this argument in more ways than one. Other environmental advocacy groups have also pointed out that the sky has not fallen since EPA’s implementation of the general pesticide permit under CWA.

The Clean Water Act is intended to ensure that every community, from tribe to urban neighborhood, has the right to enjoy fishable and swimmable bodies of water. There is a lot of work still to be done to improve the nation’s waters and protect the health of people dependent on those waters. Without the Clean Water Act, there are no common sense backstops or enforcement mechanisms for reducing direct applications of pesticides to waterways. It may not be perfect, but it is better than nothing, which would be the effect of the House farm bill. We can’t afford to lose these protections.

Tell your Senators to oppose any efforts to undermine the Clean Water Act.

For more information, read our factsheet, Clearing up the Confusion Surrounding the New NPDES General Permit and visit our Threatened Waters page.

Sources: Environmental Health Perspectives, Natural Resources Defense Council, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, http://www.beyondpesticides.org/

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

State awards more than $42 million in grants for salmon recovery

Organizations in 30 counties receive funding.

Written by Valley View Staff

The Woodinville Weekly December 9, 2013

OLYMPIA – The Washington Salmon Recovery Funding Board and the Puget Sound Partnership has announced the award of more than $42 million in grants to organizations around the state for projects that restore and protect salmon habitat, helping bring salmon back from the brink of extinction.

“Salmon are an important part of both Washington’s culture and economy,” said Gov. Jay Inslee. “Healthy salmon populations support thousands of jobs in fishing, hotels and restaurants, seafood processing, boat sales and repair, charter operations, environmental restoration and more. I am very pleased with the work of the Salmon Recovery Funding Board and its efforts to fund projects that help our economy and assure future generations of Washingtonians can enjoy the return of wild salmon.”

Funding for the grants comes from the federal Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund and the sale of state bonds. In addition, $24.4 million is from the Puget Sound Acquisition and Restoration Fund, which is jointly approved by the Salmon Recovery Funding Board and the Puget Sound Partnership in coordination with local watersheds, for projects that will help restore Puget Sound.

Grant recipients will use the money to remove barriers that prevent salmon from migrating, reshape rivers and streams and replant riverbanks so there are more places for salmon to spawn, feed, rest, hide from predators and transition from freshwater to saltwater and back again.

Organizations in King and Snohomish counties were among those receiving grants. Grant recipients in King County will receive $4,458,129 and recipients in Snohomish County will receive $6,189,644.

Creating Healthy Salmon Habitat

Salmon populations in Washington have been declining for generations. As Washington grew and built its cities and towns, it destroyed many of the places salmon need to live. In 1991, the federal government declared the first salmon as endangered.

By the end of that decade, salmon populations had dwindled so much that salmon and bull trout were listed as threatened or endangered in three-quarters of the state. Those listings set off a series of activities including the formation of the Salmon Recovery Funding Board to oversee the investment of state and federal funds for salmon recovery.

“Without these grants, Washington’s salmon populations would continue to decline until nothing was left,” said David Troutt, chair of the state funding board. “That’s the trajectory we were on before salmon were placed on the federal Endangered Species Act list. In most areas of the state, fish are increasing or staying the same while in some important areas, fish populations are decreasing. Habitat is the key to salmon recovery and continuing to fund these important projects will help to move all populations in a positive direction.”

How Projects are Chosen

Projects are selected by local watershed groups, called lead entities. Lead entities are local consortiums that include tribes, local governments, nonprofits and citizens who work together to recruit and review project proposals and make decisions about which projects to forward to the Salmon Recovery Funding Board for funding.

Lead entities ensure that the projects are based on regional salmon recovery plans that were approved by the federal government. Then regional salmon recovery organizations and the Salmon Recovery Funding Board review each project to ensure they will help recover salmon in the most cost-effective manner.

“This bottom-up process of local groups identifying what needs to be fixed in their communities and then those projects undergoing regional and state scientific review means only the best and most cost-effective projects will be funded,” said Kaleen Cottingham, director of the Recreation and Conservation Office, which administers the grants. “We have been working for more than a decade to repair the damage that has been done to salmon habitat. But we have much more to accomplish before salmon can be removed from the endangered species list. This process of local priorities and state scientific overview has proven to be the most effective way of getting projects done on-the-ground and it assures we are investing the money we have very strategically.”

The Big Picture

“Restoring our lakes, streams, rivers and ecosystem isn’t just about saving salmon. A healthy ecosystem supports human health, our economy, our traditions, and our quality of life,” said Marc Daily, interim executive director of the Puget Sound Partnership, the state agency leading the recovery of Puget Sound. “These projects help to protect and perpetuate valuable resources today and for generations to come.”

Recent Oregon studies showed that every $1 million spent on watershed restoration results in 15-33 new or sustained jobs, $2.2 million to $2.5 million in total economic activity, and that 80 percent of grant money is spent in the county where the project was located.

Using the Oregon study formula, these new grants are estimated to provide more than 630 jobs during the next four years and more than $84 million in economic activity as grant recipients hire contractors, crews and consultants to design and build projects, including field crews to restore rivers and shoreline areas.

Information about the Salmon Recovery Funding Board and the Recreation and Conservation Office is available online at www.rco.wa.gov.

Winter Weather Warning

Freezing temperatures and predicted snowfall around Snohomish and North King Counties. Over the next week highs of 37 degrees, lows from the mid twenties into the teens.

Frozen Waterfalls at Tulalip resort.Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News — Frozen Waterfalls at Tulalip resort.
Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News

Hawks dominate first three opening games of the season

Heritage Senior Shawn Sanchey with the tip-off over Yakima Tribal.Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News — Heritage Senior Shawn Sanchey with the tip-off over Yakima Tribal.
*Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News*

Heritage Boys have a promising start

By Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News

Tulalip − Heritage High School Basketball is off to a great season start, winning 84-59 against Yakima, first time rivals this season. The last of a three home game series which opened this year’s season, the Heritage Hawks played an intense game with tension on the court and in the audience. With the December 7th win, the Hawks season continues with a 3-0 streak.

“It was a good experience to play other natives from across the mountains,” said senior Shawn Sanchey.

Shawn Sanchey cuts in for a lay up.
*Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News*

This was the first year Heritage has played Yakima, adding a new rival to the 1B circuit. In the past the only rival school was Lummi.

Junior Anthony Mclean said, “It was a good game to learn from.”

This game closes out the first week of basketball games for Heritage, who stands undefeated winning against Cedar Park Christian/Mountlake Terrace Lions 64-50, a close game with Mount Vernon Christian Hurricanes at 56-52, and Saturday’s game against Yakima Tribal won 84-59. Key players to watch named from these three games are #21 Robert Miles Jr., #24 Keanu Hamilton, and #20 Payton Comenote.

“We play as a team. Play as a team and win as a team,” said Hamilton. After the win against Yakima.

Keanu Hamilton Stacks Yakima Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News — Keanu Hamilton Stacks Yakima
*Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News*

“The boys played an excellent game, they continue to improve with each one. As we continue on we will practice hard and continue to build the team,” said Cyrus Fryberg, assistant coach for the Heritage Hawks.

Heritage Basketball games have been gaining an audience, with so many at the Yakima game the bleachers were packed. Some of the notable audience members were tribal elder Ray Moses, former school board member Don Hatch Jr., former coach Leon Enick, Hank Williams, Marysville School District Superintendent Dr. Becky Berg, and longtime education advocate Dale Jones.

“It means a lot to see the elders come to watch. Teatmus (Ray Moses) even comes to the practices and will talk to the boys, and give them support,” said head coach Marlin Fryberg.

Tulalip Heritage Hawks have opened the season strong, and will continue to show strength as they strive for the State Championship. The next rival game will be round two against Yakima Tribal on December 21^st.

Hibulb Poetry Series features Paul Rowley

Paul Rowley introducing himself and his collective works
*Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News*

Article and photos by Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News

Tulalip − Paul Rowley, widely known for his contemporary cedar woven hat designs, was the featured indigenous poet for December’s poetry session at Hibulb Cultural Center. An open-mic forum for other poets to share followed Rowley’s reading.

Paul Rowley presented his poetry as a narrative of his Indian Experience. His most recent work is inspired by his reflections on Indian Country over the course of the month of November, Native American Heritage Month. Rowley attempts to highlight the perpetual mistreatment and apathy towards Native peoples, using stereotypes to identify the issues.

Hosted in the museum library, the poetry sessions are quite intimate. The small audience is familiar with each other, and gets to know the poet of the evening. The open-mic forum is used for artist Q&A and for other poets to share; for December, Chad Charlie was another indigenous poet who shared a poem inspired his experience growing up in the generational trauma and disconnect that exists on every reservation.

Rowley, who is of Haida, Tlingit, Blackfoot, and Cree descent, was born and raised in SeattleWashington. Moving to Portland to attend PortlandStateUniversity, Rowley has completed his undergraduate degree in Political Science, finishing with a Masters of Fine Arts from PacificUniversity. He currently lives between Portland and Tulalip.

For more information on this and other programs contact the HibulbCulturalCenter and Natural History Preserve by phone at (360) 716-2600, or online at http://www.hibulbculturalcenter.org/.

Education in Indian Country: Obstacles and Opportunity

On most measures of educational success, Native American students trail every other racial and ethnic subgroup of students. To explore the reasons why, Education Week sent a writer, a photographer, and a videographer to American Indian reservations in South Dakota and California earlier this fall. Their work is featured in this special package of articles, photographs, and multimedia. Commentary essays offer additional perspectives.

Education in Indian Country: Running in Place

December 4, 2013 Education Week

Article by Lesli A. Maxwell

Like many Native American students, Legend Tell Tobacco, a 10-year-old on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge reservation, must outrun the odds against his educational success

Ten hours after leaving in the dark for the 15-mile ride to Loneman School, Legend Tell Tobacco bounds down the steps of the yellow school bus and runs back home.

He takes off in a full sprint, black hair flopping, down Tobacco Road, a half-mile-long stretch of dirt named for his family. He slows to a trudge when the rutted road rises steeply to reach his house on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, a place where the promise of youth is often stifled by the probabilities of failure.

A starkly beautiful place, the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation is home to the Oglala Lakota Nation where education for most remains a yet-to-be fulfilled promise for moving families out of profound poverty.

Legend just turned 10 and is in the 4th grade, and yet, he must constantly confront obstacles that could cause him to stumble into one of the grim statistical categories for which Pine Ridge—like much of the nation’s Indian Country—is well known:
High school dropout.
Unemployed.
Dead before 50.

Legend grins widely when announcing that he reads the same “chapter books” as 7th and 8th graders. He likes math, too, especially multiplication.

“Most of all,” he says, “I love to run.”

After a long day at Isna Wica Owayawa, the Lakota name for Loneman School, the laughing shrieks of his cousins beckon. But his aunt, Mary Tobacco, asks about homework. “I don’t have any,” he says quietly, stubbing his silver sneakers into the dirt. She raises an eyebrow and asks again. “No, really,” he says.

“Be back at six for dinner,” she tells him firmly, as he darts off to play in the horse corral.

Ms. Tobacco, a college graduate, prays this nagging and nurturing will keep her nephew on a course to high school graduation, a college degree, and a decent job. More urgently, she prays she’ll get a call from Red Cloud, the private Jesuit school where she believes Legend would get the best shot at succeeding. He’s on the waiting list.

“The two most important things I want for Legend,” she says, “are for him to get his education and for him not to drink. But I don’t know if I can completely protect him from ending up on a path that so many other youth on this reservation take.”

On the 2.8 million-acre Pine Ridge Indian Reservation—home to nearly 40,000 members of the Oglala Lakota Sioux nation—alcoholism and suicide, especially among young people, occur at alarmingly high rates. Families that have been poor since the U.S. government forced tribes onto reservations more than 120 years ago see few prospects for breaking out of seven or eight generations of profound poverty.

Outrunning those odds for Legend and other American Indian youths living on and off reservations is perpetually challenging. Over the past decade, as the high-stakes school accountability era saw every other racial and ethnic subgroup of students make steady, if small, improvements in education outcomes, Native American youths, on the whole, stalled or lost ground.

“The state of American Indian education is a disaster,” says David Beaulieu, a professor of educational policy and community studies at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a member of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe-White Earth.

Campaign launched to stem panhandling

By Rikki King, Herald Writer 12-9-13

ARLINGTON — Two north Snohomish County cities are trying to curb panhandling by asking people to give to local charities instead.

Arlington and Marysville officials are working with local businesses to post signs and window stickers as part of a new campaign called “Keep The Change.”

“It’s okay to say no, just a simple no,” Arlington Police Chief Nelson Beazley said. “This community is tremendous so far as being a giving, caring community, but give appropriately.”

Beazley sees a link between the rise in panhandling problems and heroin use. Not all panhandlers are addicts, but those who are cause trouble, he said.

Panhandlers are creating traffic and safety concerns in Marysville as well, Mayor Jon Nehring said. Some are using their income — up to $90 a day — to buy drugs and alcohol, he said. They’re often seeking handouts a short walk from the local food bank.

“There are places to give the money where it will truly help the needy,” Nehring said. “What we’re trying to do is essentially stop the subsidization of the drug and alcohol habits for some of these folks who stand out there.”Nehring’s office received complaints from parents who said they were approached in parking lots while loading their cars up with kids and groceries, he said. In Smokey Point, young families reported similar issues outside a dance studio.

“Keep The Change” started in Marysville after local barber Kelly Muma learned of an initiative in southwest Washington. Muma and his wife own HotRod Barber Shop on State Avenue.

“I’ve been cutting the mayor’s hair since way before he became mayor,” Muma said.

They got to talking about the panhandling problem.”The community is so giving, but yet unfortunately we’re giving to the wrong people,” Muma said. “This is truly what this sign is about. Those who truly need the help know of the food bank, know of the centers to go to. It’s educating the general public.”

Marysville posted signs along Fourth Street, 88th Street NE, 116th Street NE and 172nd Street NE. Those roads routinely see people posted with cardboard signs, asking for money.

Marysville expects to have window stickers available soon.

Arlington officials saw Marysville’s signs and liked the idea, city spokeswoman Kristin Banfield said. The police chief and others met with local business groups before moving forward.

Police officers are limited in what they can do about panhandling, Beazley said. In most cases, the activity isn’t illegal unless it’s deemed aggressive or it becomes trespassing. An arrest or citation doesn’t always lead to a prosecution.

One of the downtown Arlington business owners who supported the campaign was Jeanne Watanabe, of The Silver Hanger consignment shop on N. Olympic Avenue. Business owners have been working closely with the police department since seeing an increase in illegal activity downtown, she said.

“We wanted to find out why it was occurring and what we could do about both helping people on the street and making sure the street stayed safe. It’s definitely two-fold,” she said. “Our community is amazingly rich with people who have a heart for helping people who are homeless. We have lots and lots of programs for that.”

Arlington has 10 “Keep The Change” signs posted in the Smokey Point and downtown shopping areas and about 100 window stickers have been distributed, said Paul Ellis, the city’s community and economic development director. More signs are planned.

Earlier this year, the Washington State Patrol also asked folks not to give to panhandlers at freeway ramps, citing concerns about traffic safety and pedestrian deaths. That message is ongoing, trooper Mark Francis said.

“Panhandlers are at even greater risk on I-5 on- and off-ramps due to the higher speeds,” he said. “We are citing panhandlers and arresting re-offenders on limited-access highways.”

Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.

More info

Resources in town: Marysville Community Food Bank, 4150 88th Street NE, 360-658-1054, http://marysvillefoodbank.org/.

Marysville cold-weather shelter: 360-659-7117.

Arlington Community Food Bank, 18810 59th Drive NE, Unit B, 360-435-1631, www.arlingtonfoodbank.org/.

Arlington cold-weather shelter: To learn if the shelter is open and where it will be, call 360-403-4674. Volunteers are needed: Call 360-435-3259.

You can research charities at the Secretary of State’s website, www.sos.wa.gov/charities/search.aspx, and at the state Attorney General’s website, www.atg.wa.gov/SafeguardingConsumers.aspx, under “Consumer Issues A-Z.”

Sonic Sign in Missouri Declares ‘KC Chiefs Will Scalp the Redskins’

Vincent Schilling, Indian Country Today Media Network

12/8/13

This morning a Sonic Drive-In Restaurant in Belton, Missouri displayed a street sign emblazoned with the following phrase: “KC CHIEFS” WILL SCALP THE REDSKINS FEED THEM WHISKEY SEND – 2 – RESERVATION. Within a few minutes of the sign being displayed, social media erupted against it and the restaurant’s phones were overloaded with complaints.

This sign appeared this morning outside a Sonic Drive-In Restaurant in Belton, MissouriCody Blackbird — This sign appeared this morning outside a Sonic Drive-In Restaurant in Belton, Missouri
*Cody Blackbird*

According to Cody Blackbird, who manages theNative Citizen News Networkon Facebook and posted the picture to his page, the sign was ridiculous. “I saw the sign and was like, ‘what the hell?’ how can a fast food chain put something like this outside their doors?”

Blackbird said he called the restaurant and spoke to the owner, Robert Stone.

Blackbird said he was not allowed to speak to the press, but he did say the employees who were responsible for the sign were a minimum wage cook, and an employee that didn’t know any better and was sent home crying.

“I explained the importance of negative stereotypes to the guy,” Blackbird said. “He seems like he cared about the issue and the owner said, ‘We wouldn’t even have this problem if the damn name of the team wasn’t the Washington Redskins.’”

Patrick Lenow, the vice president of public relations for Sonic Corp. issued the following statement in regard to the sign:

An independent franchise owner allowed two sets of remarks to be posted on a message board outside his restaurant. The remarks were wrong, offensive and unacceptable. His passion for his hometown football team and a reputation for creative remarks on his message board resulted in a lapse in judgment and he regrets allowing the remarks to be posted. The owner has reinforced with his employees the boundaries of what is acceptable and unacceptable. On behalf of the franchise owner and our entire brand we apologize for the offensive remarks.

Wesleyan Begins Returning Native American Artifacts

Wesleyan University opened the Orange Judd Hall of Natural Science in 1871 and the museum displayed sacred Native American objects alongside curiosities that included dinosaur tracks, a stuffed bison and an Egyptian mummy.

BY ERIK HESSELBERG, Special to The Courant The Hartford Courant

December 9, 2013

MIDDLETOWN — Graveyards are sacred, but for many Native Americans their journey into the spirit world was interrupted when their ancient burial grounds were dug up in the name of science. For example, in 1948, the University of California Berkeley boasted to Life magazine that the university held in storage “more than 10,000 Indian skeletons, many of them complete.”

Wesleyan University too collected Native American relics, but the university recently announced that it was returning the human remains of some 15 Native Americans held for more than 100 years.

Wesleyan has been discreet about returning the remains, revealing its intentions only on its website. The university also posted a formal apology “to all Native Nations and indigenous peoples” for keeping the relics so long.

Asked to elaborate, Wesleyan spokeswoman Kate Carlisle said, “The information on the website is really all I can offer you at this time.”

For Native Americans, the objects are considered so sacred that tribes insist they neither be photographed nor itemized publicly. Wesleyan is believed to possess associated funerary objects in addition to the human remains.

The return of Wesleyan’s Native American relics is mandated by federal law. In 1990, Congress passed the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, which requires federally funded museums and universities to repatriate human remains to recognized tribes.

“It’s certainly a positive thing,” Kevin McBride, a University of Connecticut archaeologist and the research director of the Mashantucket Pequot Museum, said of Wesleyan’s decision. “Repatriation is not all easy to address – it’s a time-consuming, but it’s necessary.”

Wesleyan University opened the Orange Judd Hall of Natural Science in 1871 and the museum displayed sacred Native American objects alongside curiosities that included dinosaur tracks, a stuffed bison and an Egyptian mummy. In its early years it was managed by Wesleyan graduate George Brown Goode, who had worked in marine science at Harvard under Louis Agassiz. Goode sent teams of fossil hunters out West to dig up dinosaur bones, where they also gathered Indian artifacts for his museum. During the 1930s, the Judd Hall natural history museum welcomed hundreds of Middletown school children on field trips.The museum closed in 1957. (Wesleyan University Library, Special Collections & Archives / November 29, 2013)

Wesleyan’s interest in Native American artifacts began after the Civil War, with the building of the brownstone Orange Judd Hall of Natural Science in 1871. The museum housed Native American artifacts alongside dinosaur tracks, a stuffed bison and an Egyptian mummy.

The museum in its early years was managed by a Wesleyan graduate, George Brown Goode, who had worked in marine science at Harvard. Goode was later employed by the Smithsonian, where he became a pioneer museum administrator overseeing numerous exhibits, including one on the latest sports equipment.

At Wesleyan, Goode sent teams of fossil hunters out West to dig up dinosaur bones, and they also gathered Native American artifacts for the museum.

In 1957, when the museum closed, thousands of artifacts, including Native American relics, were boxed up and put into storage.

Wesleyan was nudged into federal compliance by several of its professors, principally J. Kehaulani Kauanui, associate professor of anthropology and American studies, and Donald Moon, professor of government and environmental studies. In 2010, Kauanui and Moon organized a panel discussion, “Reconsidering Repatriation: Colonial Legacies, Indigenous Politics and Institutional Developments,” in which the federal process was reviewed and strategies for compliance developed.

At the time, Wesleyan had been noncompliant for 15 years, according to a Nov. 16, 2010, article in The Wesleyan Argus, the college newspaper.

Complying with the federal artifacts law requires inventorying museum collections. Then lists have to be sent to the more 500 recognized tribes in the United States.

To assist with the process Wesleyan hired a repatriation coordinator, Honor Keeler, a lawyer who is part Cherokee. The university said it expects repatriation to take several years.

Wesleyan’s Native American relics have been traced to tribes in Connecticut, Illinois and Tennessee, according to Doug Charles, chair of Wesleyan’s anthropology department. Charles told the Argus in 2010 that Wesleyan had provided tribes with summaries of Wesleyan’s holdings, but until then there had been no requests for repatriation.

McBride said he wasn’t sure whether any Wesleyan artifacts had any connection to the Pequots, which once held sway over the lower Connecticut River Valley and Long Island Sound. He said he looks forward to reviewing Wesleyan’s inventory.

“I have attended reinterment ceremonies following repatriation and they are deeply moving,” McBride said. “There are tears of anguish and of joy. You have to understand, these are their ancestors – and they are finally coming home.”

Comprehensive bill introduced to improve lives of Native children

12/9/2013 Cherokeepheonix.org

BY STAFF REPORTS

WASHINGTON – United States Senators Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, introduced a comprehensive plan on Oct. 30 to find solutions to the complex challenges facing Native American children throughout Indian Country.

The bipartisan legislation, Heitkamp’s first bill as a senator, would create a national Commission on Native American Children to conduct an intensive study into issues facing Native children – such as high rates of poverty, unemployment, child abuse, domestic violence, crime, substance abuse, and few economic opportunities – and make recommendations on how to ensure Native children are better taken care of and given the opportunities to thrive.

Heitkamp and Murkowski are both members of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.

“We have all heard stories or seen first-hand the struggles that too many Native children and their families face from extreme poverty to child abuse to suicide. Since I’ve been in public office, I’ve worked to address many of these challenges, and I’m proud my first bill as a U.S. Senator will take a serious look at finding solutions to better protect Native children and give them the opportunities they deserve,” said Heitkamp. “Tragically, for children in our nation’s tribal communities, the barriers to success are high and they are the most at-risk population in the country, facing serious disparities in safety, health and education.”

She said the government needs to strive for a day when Native children no longer live in third-world conditions; when they don’t face the threat of abuse on a daily basis; when they receive the good health care and education to help them grow and succeed.

“The federal government pledged long ago to protect Native families and children. We haven’t lived up to that promise. But we can change that,” Heitkamp said.

Murkowski agreed that the federal government must uphold its trust responsibility to tribes, especially to Native children.

“This commission will examine from the lens of justice, education, and healthcare how to improve the lives of our Nation’s native children,” Murkowski said.

Conditions for young people in Indian Country are tragic: 37 percent of Native children live in poverty; suicide rates are 2.5 times the national average for children 15-24 years old; high school graduation rate for Native students is nearly 50 percent, compared to more than 75 percent for white students; and while the overall rate of child mortality in the U.S. has decreased since 2000, the rate for Native children has increased 15 percent.

Tribal governments face numerous obstacles in responding to the needs of Native children. Existing program rules and the volume of resources required to access grant opportunities stymie efforts of tribes to tackle these issues. At the same time, federal agencies lack clear guidance about the direction that should be taken to best address the needs of Native children in order to fulfill our trust responsibility to tribal nations.

To help reverse these impacts, the Commission on Native Children would conduct a comprehensive study on the programs, grants, and supports available for Native children, both at government agencies and on the ground in Native communities, with the goal of developing a sustainable system that delivers wrap-around services to Native children.

Then, the 11-member commission would issue a report to address a series of challenges currently facing Native children. A Native Children Subcommittee would also provide advice to the commission. The commission’s report would address how to achieve: better use of existing resources, increased coordination, measurable outcomes, stronger data, stronger private sector partnerships, and implementation of best practices.