Tulalip News

The Dream of Martin Luther King Jr. & Jobs in Indian Country

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

Fifty years ago this week, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I have a dream” speech during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a dream that many American Indians, along with other ethnic groups, continue to hope for.

It would be interesting to track American Indian unemployment since the March on Washington August 28, 1963, and compare it to the rates for African Americans and the country as a whole (national unemployment for 1963 was 5.7 percent). Unfortunately, it is not possible, as the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics seems not to have reported this stat on Native populations until 2003.

As King said in 1963, “It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned,” still holds true today.

Since 2003 (also the first year that Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders weren’t lumped into the “Asian” category) American Indians have consistently tracked slightly behind African Americans for the dubious honor of the racial group with the most unemployment. (A BLS study reports white and African American unemployment back to 1972, Hispanics back to 1973, and Asians to 2000.)

For 2011, the latest year in the BLS study “Labor Force Characteristics by Race and Ethnicity,” one in seven American Indians (14.6 percent) were unemployed, according to BLS. African Americans showed 15.8 percent unemployment, while Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (who include native populations on Guam and American Samoa) came in at 10.4 percent, higher than the national average of 8.9 percent.

The BLS measures national rates. Unemployment rates on individual Indian reservations can be much higher. In 2010, 47 percent of people on the Navajo reservation were unemployed, according to the tribe. At the Pine Ridge reservation of the Oglala Lakota Nation in South Dakota, 80 percent are unemployed, according to the tribe.

The Indian employment situation since the recession ended in 2009 has been mixed. Indian unemployment for 2011 was down from 15.1 percent in 2010 but actually up from 2009, which was at 13.3 percent.

The BLS said American Indians and Alaska Natives made up about one percent of the labor force in 2011, and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders less than one percent. In terms of participation in the labor force, an interesting mix was recorded. Indians had the lowest participation in the work force in 2011, 59.2 percent, while Native Hawaiians had the highest, 69.4 percent—higher even than the white population, which registered 64.5 percent.

Indian participation in the workforce has decreased from 64.4 percent in 2003, while it has increased for Native Hawaiians during that same time period. It was 68.9 percent in 2003.

Indians also brought up the rear in the category of the percentage of the population employed, at 50.5 percent. Native Hawaiians were first in this category as well, at 62.2 percent (that’s also higher than the one for whites, which is 59.9 percent).

Breaking out unemployment by numbers, 1.2 million of a 2 million “civilian noninstitutional population” of Indians were in the labor force in 2011. Of that number, one million were employed (564,000 men and 464,000 women) and 172,000 were unemployed. BLS found 816,000 Indians were not in the labor force. Unemployment for Indian men in 2011 was 15.4 percent and 13.7 percent for Indian women.

For Native Hawaiians, 393,000 of a labor force of 439,000 (total population was 633,000) were employed in 2011, according to BLS. Men had a higher unemployment rate, at 11.4 percent. Native Hawaiian women had an unemployment rate of 9.3 percent.

The BLS report includes many other categories of analysis, but in many categories, Indians and Native Hawaiians are just skipped. These include earnings, education, occupation and industry, and families and mothers. One analysis which ignores Natives starts by saying “Among the major race and ethnicity groups,” indicating they are considered not a major group. Sometimes Natives get lumped into “other groups.”

Like Census Bureau counts of Indian populations, some dispute the accuracy of the BLS unemployment figures. According to the National Congress of American Indians, “The BIA [Bureau of Indian Affairs] concept of unemployment is different than that used by BLS and Census. Persons are considered “unemployed” by BIA if they are available for work, but not employed. This approach is a more realistic one in view of the economic circumstances in reservation areas than is the definition of unemployment in the BLS and Census Bureau data which requires that a person be “actively seeking work” to be designated unemployed.”

NCAI says unemployment in Indian areas “often stands at above 50 percent.” The advocacy group says “tribal nations continue to experience unemployment rates well above the national average, and rates of unemployment are exacerbated by economic conditions, endemic poverty, inadequate infrastructure, and marginal education opportunities.”

NCAI points to two particular pieces of pending legislation—the American Jobs Act and the reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act—as potentially being helpful to combat Indian unemployment if they are signed into law. And both could be a decent honor to the 50th anniversary of the job march on Washington D.C.

Warm Springs Tribes cancel off-reservation casino

Source: Indianz.com

The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs voted during a recent Tribal Council meeting to officially end its pursuit of the Bridge of the Gods Resort and Casino in Cascade Locks. For all intents and purposes, the casino was a dead deal in 2010, when Gov. John Kitzhaber took office for a third term.

The proposed 600,000-square-foot facility on 60 acres of Port of Cascade Locks land was a lightning rod of controversy during its decade of life — which never matured from its planning stage to its implementation stage. The casino would have been located on a subtly beautiful tract of land between Interstate 84 and the Columbia River, near the Forest Lane exit.

A couple of years ago the casino’s environmental impact assessment was approved by the federal government and sent to the Department of the Interior for review. That’s where it sat for a year. Then, in January 2012, the Cascade Locks Port Commission allowed the deadline to expire for an option agreement on port land the tribes had wanted to purchase for the casino and resort. In the meantime, the tribal council built Indian Head Casino on Highway 26 in Warm Springs.

Tribal Journeys: Canoe Trips to Our Native Past, and Future

Gyasi Ross, Indian Country Today Media Network

Television, Edward Curtis photographs and romance novel covers have collectively painted the accepted images of Native people.

As a result of these images, a lot of peoples’ image of a Native person is that of a person who rides horses, comes from one of the Dakotas or Montana, and dances with wolves at pow-wows. Heck, even many Native people have the Dances With Wolves image embedded in our own heads (thus why the Hollywood Indian-complex consists of guys walking around LA and Santa Fe with their hair flying about, John Redcorn-style, because presumably that’s what casting agents/hippie chicks are looking for. NOTE: Skins on the Plains do not wear their hair like that!! It’s too damn windy!), and so the default “Native” image is that of a pow-wow dancer, Plains Indian-style.

I grew up at pow-wows; they are beautiful, important and fun (oh the stories I could tell!).

Yet, if you don’t have that look or participate in those pow-wows, folks question your credibility as a Native person. And pow-wow dancing/Plains-style phenotype is definitely a very valid expression of pan-Native culture (I submit that almost every Skin who was raised in a Native family has been to a pow-wow at some point!), yet it is not the only expression of pan-Native culture.

Random White Guy At Pow-wow to His Wife: “Gee honey, that doesn’t look like any Indian I’ve ever seen.”

Random White Guy’s Wife: *thinking* Yes, you’re right. Because if he looked like any of the ones that I’ve seen on my romance novels, he would be big and brown and muscular and on a big ol’ horse…and he’d pull me away and hold me captive! “No, he doesn’t honey.”

One such pan-Native event that has been growing in popularity and is redefining what it means to be, look, and celebrate being Native is something called “Tribal Journeys” on the Pacific Northwest Coast. Like pow-wows, Tribal Journeys blends many Northwest coastal, New Zealand, Canadian and Alaska Native tribes, tribal practices, songs, dances and foods into a pretty amazing stew and makes something beautiful out of it. The Journey began in 1989 as equal parts political protest, but also an attempt to recapture parts of the Coastal Native way of life that have been overlooked and/or forgotten for a long time. Also, like pow-wows, Tribal Journeys had very modest beginnings, and has steadily gotten bigger and more structured every single year; the host Tribe incurs a lot of expense putting this huge event together that attracts over 15,000 people a day to the host community. Whereas the original “Paddle to Seattle” had 18 canoes, now there are over 100 canoes that make the trek.

It’s grown. And is growing.

Like most truly unique events, words don’t do Tribal Journeys justice. Yet, here’s the basic idea behind it: Tribal Journeys retraces the paths, practices, and protocols of those that went before us, seeing through the eyes of our ancestors. As Chief Si’ahl (commonly referred to as “Seattle”) said, “Our religion is the traditions of our ancestors.” This happens by individual families canoeing from one Native homeland to the next, asking permission to enter those homelands. Historically, it was very important to ask permission and to state whether you were friend or foe—if not, there could be very serious consequences. There are many canoe families on Tribal Journeys—this is historically correct since one tribe could have many different canoe families, since many Native communities were not simply one community. Instead, most “tribes” had many villages and smaller sub-groups that usually spoke a common language.

There are many stops during this Journey. The travelling time of the journey is anywhere from a week to two-and-a-half weeks. Every single tribal homeland you pass, you ask permission and come ashore. Once ashore, that particular Native community takes care of you, feeds you and gives you someplace to sleep (camping style!!). That night, there’s an exchange of songs, dances and stories in a time called “protocol.” Of course, this isn’t the traditional name for this time or practice, yet this English name is appropriate because it implies a time of order, to pay attention and give thanks. While the Tribal Journeys itself was created in 1989, the protocol portion of the event is a variation of the ancient coastal tradition of potlatching.

There is a goal, a final destination. Ultimately, all the canoe families will gather at a place (the host Tribe) where a whole bunch of Natives gather together and party (in a safe, respectful and drug and alcohol free way) for a week or so…exchange songs, dances, speeches, and generally have a good time. During the immediately past Tribal Journey, the host Tribe—the Quinault—took the Journey back to its potlatch roots and let the protocol go around the clock. Also, like the ancient potlatches, the Quinault gifted individuals with some pretty spectacular gifts—tons of stuff, but they also gave away ten hand-carved canoes, which took about 9 months to carve.

Pretty powerful stuff.

Speaking for myself, honestly after two weeks of camping, I’m pretty darn happy to get back to the conveniences of home and watch some River Monsters or Ancient Aliens. Our ancestors lived a life with a lot less distractions. Still, it’s a beautiful event…and not only because of the songs and the dances and the opportunity to see through the eyes of our ancestors. While those reasons are certainly important and are surely enough to attend Tribal Journeys all by themselves, there is more to it than that. That is, I think it’s also important for folks—non-Natives AND Natives alike—to understand that not all Natives look alike, or have the same stories or practices.

That’s only in Hollywood.

Please check out this link for information on the next Tribal Journey, the Paddle to Bella Bella (Canada): thecnsc.org/CNSC_Site/Bella_Bella.html

Photo by Miranda Belarde-Lewis

‘Early fall’ is Walmart date for Marysville store opening

Christina Harper / Special to The HeraldGwyn Porras (left) and Roderick Brogan stock shelves at the new Walmart store on Highway 9 at Highway 528 in Marysville. — Christina Harper / Special to The Herald
Gwyn Porras (left) and Roderick Brogan stock shelves at the new Walmart store on Highway 9 at Highway 528 in Marysville.

Christina Harper, Herald Business Journal

MARYSVILLE — Walmart staff members insist that there is no fixed date for the grand opening of the new 147,000-square-foot Marysville store. Judging by the huge Halloween section overflowing with scary monsters and black-and-orange garb, shoppers can safely bet that the one-stop shopping experience on the corner of Highways 9 and 528 will be ready to roll back prices in the next few weeks.

“Early fall,” said Sonia Smith, manager at the new store.

With 270 full- and part-time workers on board, the store now is being set up. Staff are stocking baby formula is on the shelves, setting up electronics and emptying dozens of cardboard boxes.

Kayla Corley of Marysville will switch to part-time work from full-time once the store opens.

“This is my second day,” Corley said.

Corley previously worked at the Tulalip Quil Ceda Village Walmart then took time off to have her children. After an eight-year break, she is back and happy to be employed in sporting goods.

“It’s a good company to work for,” Corley said. “Good benefits.”

Rumors abound that the Tulalip Quil Ceda Village Walmart will close once the Marysville store is up and running. The Quil Ceda store is not closing, Smith said.

The Marysville store took eight months to build and includes a garden center, food, pharmacy and firearms. The store also has a sewing and craft section with bolts of fabric that can be measured and cut.

“Customers are asking for it,” Smith said.

Freezers light up as shoppers approach pizza and other frozen food displays adding to Walmart’s commitment to energy saving and sustainability, Smith said.

There is no tire and lube section, but inside the store, shoppers can stop for a sandwich at Subway or a trim at the Smart Style hair salon.

Walmart has long been criticized for stocking shelves with goods from China. This long-term relationship could mean that company’s recent commitment to “Made In America” goods, which Walmart hopes will bring more manufacturing jobs to the United States, might be met with skepticism.

But Smith is one of many Walmart employees involved with a local vendor program where people who have ideas for locally made goods they want to see on shelves can contact her at the Marysville store. Local goods including “Big Foot” mugs and caps are likely to prove popular with shoppers, Smith said.

For Roderick Brogan, of Everett, and Gwyn Porras, of Marysville, Walmart is a new venture. The two will be working in the store on Walmart.com, checking for website orders and getting them ready for customer pick-up.

As the men sorted socks from boxes and hung them on wire hangers, they each said they were excited about opening day. Whenever that is.

“It might be crazy,” Porras said. “But I am looking forward to it.”

Southeastern Michigan Indians Receive Gifts Chrysler’s Mopar Group

Pietro Gorlier, CEO and President Mopar, delivered hundreds of baby supplies and a cash donation to Sue Franklin of Southeastern Michigan Indians Inc. that were collected and then unloaded by employees from Chrysler's Mopar. — Pietro Gorlier, CEO and President Mopar, delivered hundreds of baby supplies and a cash donation to Sue Franklin of Southeastern Michigan Indians Inc. that were collected and then unloaded by employees from Chrysler’s Mopar.

Source: Native News Network

CENTERLINE, MICHIGAN – It was like Christmas in the summer as hundreds of baby supplies were delivered to Southeastern Michigan Indians Inc. (SEMII).

The items, donated by Chrysler Group LLC employees, were collected and delivered by employees from Mopar, Chrysler Group’s service parts and customer care brand. Donated supplies included baby clothes, books, toys, strollers, diapers, and bottles. The Chrysler Foundation, the charitable arm of Chrysler Group, also provided a $7,500 grant to assist SEMII with the purchase of additional items for infants.

“All of these items will be put to good use by families in our community,”

said Sue Franklin, Executive Director of SEMII.

“We are grateful to all of the people at Chrysler and Mopar for their time, effort and donations.”

As part of a company wide effort with United Way, Mopar continues its work with SEMII, which is located two blocks from Mopar’s main parts distribution facility in Center Line, Michigan. The organization provides social services to Native Americans and Macomb County, Michigan residents.

Last year, Mopar volunteers repainted the organization’s cultural center and sponsored a “Dress for Success” clothing drive to provide professional attire to those in need.

“At Mopar, our mission is to fully support our customers and our brands,”

said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO, Mopar.

“With that same passion, we want to support people in our community and make a difference.”

“It’s always very heartwarming to lend a hand to our neighbors, especially when they’re young children with a world of possibilities ahead of them,”

said Jody Trapasso, President, The Chrysler Foundation.

Former Inter-Tribal Council execs indicted on theft charges

August 26, 2013 Anchorage Daily News

By ZAZ HOLLANDER — zhollander@adn.com

A federal grand jury has indicted two former top staffers at the Alaska Inter-Tribal Council on charges they stole nearly $236,000 from the nonprofit that advocates for tribal governments across the state.

Former executive director Steven D. Osborne is accused of taking the lion’s share of that sum — $213,380 between January 2008 and February 2009 when he resigned, according to the indictment, filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Anchorage. It says Osborne spent some of the money on a motorcycle, three boats and other personal items.

Thomas R. Purcell, the council’s former finance director, is accused of taking about $22,720, according to the indictment. He’s also accused of funneling nearly $70,000 to Osborne to pay off a council-issued credit card without ensuring the director spent the money in accordance with council policy and procedures.

Purcell served as acting executive director after Osborne resigned but was terminated only a month later, in March 2009, by the group’s Executive Council.

Given the amount of money involved, a federal prosecutor on Monday called the case “certainly significant” and in line with several other federal cases filed against top officials of groups working on behalf of Alaska Native people. In the most recent, two former officials of the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission stand accused of stealing more than $575,000 from the organization.

Osborne and Purcell could not be reached for comment Monday. Prosecutors say Osborne lives in Fairbanks and Purcell lives in Anchorage. As of Monday afternoon, an arraignment had yet to be scheduled.

Founded in 1992, the council has weighed in on behalf of Alaska’s tribes on high-profile issues ranging from salmon bycatch and climate change to affordable energy and land rights. During the time the alleged theft took place, the group’s annual budget swelled as it distributed fuel vouchers from the Venezuelan government’s CITGO Petroleum Corp. to heat thousands of rural homes around Alaska.

Then the council’s work stumbled, a staffer said.

The stolen money and resulting investigation “really hurt us,” said Delice Calcote, the council’s current executive director. Calcote, originally hired as an office manager in 2007, has worked without pay for the last two years, she said. The office is largely run by volunteers these days.

She said she couldn’t comment on the indictment until it plays out in court.

“It’s been a long road, nerve-wracking,” Calcote said. “Now the path begins.”

Getting to an indictment took years. Suspected problems with the council’s books first came to light internally in 2009 when a federal grant administrator raised red flags, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Bottini. Once the suspicion of wrongdoing got the attention of law enforcement, investigators began the painstaking process of forensic accounting.

“It literally involved gathering a large volume of material in the form of bank accounts and information from AITC itself and crunching the numbers,” Bottini said. “It was a long, drawn-out process to get all that done. We had to recreate thousands of documents.”

The indictment specifically references two pools of council funding. An EPA grant paid for the executive director position. Between January 2008 and December 2010, the council got nearly $1.1 million from the agency. The council also received more than $8 million from the Venezuelan government for the home heating program, according to previous reports.

Osborne started work with the council in December 2007. According to the indictment, he stole money five different ways: by issuing himself $99,221 in checks without approval; by double-billing the council for Web and database development for $5,843; by making cash withdrawals totalling $31,500 for personal use; by issuing and cashing checks to himself in the amount of $24,595; and by misusing AITC credit and debit cards to buy personal items worth $52,703.

Purcell started as the council’s finance director in January 2008. According to the indictment, he made 16 separate payment transactions for about $69,475 from AITC accounts to pay off the balance of Osborne’s AITC credit card. He also submitted false time sheets for $19,200 charged to the CITGO account and upped his bi-weekly compensation by $3,520 without Executive Council permission, the indictment states.

Iditarod musher Mike Williams served as AITC chairman until the end of 2008 when he lost a re-election bid. Williams, an Akiak tribal council member, said he had no idea that much money was being stolen during the time he served as chair. He called the whole situation unfortunate.

“What needs to happen is to move forward from here,” Williams said. “Really the tribal leadership in Alaska must move forward and get this behind us.”

Reach Zaz Hollander at zhollander@adn.com or 257-4317.

Historic pact: Feds to notify Yakamas of warrant activity

AUGUST 27, 2013

By Phil Ferolito / Yakima Herald-Republic

pferolito@yakimaherald.com

In a historic move, the U.S. Department of Justice has agreed to notify Yakama tribal police before executing search and arrest warrants against tribal members on tribal land.

The move could help widen the path for the Yakama Nation, a sovereign nation, to have its full civil and criminal authority over its people returned.

“It’s historical from the standpoint that there is not another agreement like this with any other tribe and the U.S. Department of Justice,” Tribal Council Chairman Harry Smiskin said Monday during a telephone interview.

For decades, the lack of procedures involving search and arrest warrants between tribal and nontribal authorities on the 1.2-million-acre reservation have sparked disputes, including the Feb. 16, 2011, federal raid on King Mountain Tobacco, which is owned and operated by Yakama tribal member Delbert Wheeler in White Swan.

Federal authorities took computers, records and other documents from Wheeler’s business without informing tribal leaders and even blocked tribal police from entering the property during the raid.

In response, the tribe sued the U.S. Department of Justice in March 2011 for allowing the FBI to execute the raid without notifying tribal authorities. Also named in the lawsuit were Yakima and Benton county sheriff’s offices and government agencies in Virginia and Mississippi for their involvement in the raid. Wheeler is accused of avoiding state cigarette taxes in those states.

Similar agreements have been reached with Yakima and Benton counties and Virginia and Mississippi authorities, and the case subsequently has been dismissed.

Smiskin said the agreements reaffirm the tribe’s ability to govern itself and clearly establish procedures for outside agencies seeking to arrest tribal members on tribal land.

Benton and Yakima counties have agreed to not only allow a tribal police officer to be present when executing such warrants, but also to book tribal suspects into the tribe’s jail and go through an extradition process.

However, those arresting procedures may not apply to federal authorities who often have jurisdiction over serious cases on the reservation, Smiskin said.

Those cases usually are forwarded to the FBI from tribal police.

Smiskin said he’s seen improved communication between federal and tribal authorities since discussions about the agreement began not long after the lawsuit was filed.

“They have been very cooperative in that regard, in alerting us before coming on to the reservation to issue any warrants,” he said.

FBI spokeswoman Ayn Sandalo in Seattle said she couldn’t comment on the agreement because it was part of litigation, but said the FBI has always worked well with tribes.

“The FBI has always valued its partnerships with tribal authorities,” she said. “So for decades now, we’re continuing to build on that foundation and looking for ways to improve our working relations.”

For more than half a century, civil and criminal authority over tribal members on tribal lands has been confusing at best.

In 1855, the Yakamas signed a treaty with the federal government that allowed the now-10,000-member tribe to govern itself. It has its own police department and jail.

But in 1953, Congress enacted Public Law 280, which allowed several states to take over criminal and much civil authority over tribal members on their own reservations.

Yakama tribal authorities have retained much criminal authority over its members, but are now petitioning the state in a process called “retrocession” to have the rest, including civil authority, over its people returned.

Smiskin said the agreement could strengthen the tribe’s petition.

“I assume it would add to the petition for retrocession,” he said.

Oneida Indian Nation Student Enjoys Exploring All that Stanford Has to Offer

Source: ICTMN

Stanford University freshman Mark Berger isn’t exactly sure what he wants to major in just yet, but that’s ok. The university doesn’t require that he make that decision until the end of his sophomore year.

“I don’t know what I want my career to be but I’m interested in science, technology, engineering, and math [STEM] education for Native and other minority students,” he told Indian Country Today Media Network.

Right now, Mark is enjoying exploring his many options, both in the classroom and out, at the university in Stanford, California.

The 19-year-old Oneida Indian Nation member is looking into joining Stanford’s chapter of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society as well as the Model United Nations program. He’s also interested in a program where university students travel to San Jose to tutor Native grade school students.

“There is a tremendous amount of opportunities at Stanford and I am going to explore as much as possible until I find what interests me the most,” Mark said.

He’s not new to Model United Nations programs either. While a sophomore at Manlius Pebble Hill School in Dewitt, New York he won an international award for delegate excellence while in Montreal, Canada for a Model U.N. event. He traveled all over North America with the program as well and served as undersecretary general for his school’s Model U.N. conference during his senior year.

“I helped coordinate and plan a conference attended by over 300 delegates from upstate New York,” he said.

And upstate New York is where his heart is and where he plans on coming back to, regardless of what career he ends up pursuing.

He has always been involved with his tribe and doesn’t plan on stopping just because he decided to move across the country to attend college.

Mark has been involved with the Oneida Nation’s Youth Work Learn Program since he was 13 and has spent the last three summers working at Four Directions Productions as an intern.

“Working at Four Directions has been an amazing opportunity that has allowed me to work with many talented people on a variety of projects,” Mark said. “As an intern I worked closely with the cinematography department where I helped film footage of the PGA Tour, the Notah Begay III Foundation Challenge, and a variety of documentary pieces for the Oneida Indian Nation. I was also able to learn a little bit about computer animation from the animation department at Four Directions Productions, which works on turning Oneida legends into short animated films. It ultimately sparked my interest in how technology can be used in education and cultural preservation.”

His advice to other Native American students is to “take school seriously and give one hundred percent in everything you pursue,” he said. “Also go to the library and read a lot of books about whatever you’re interested in. The ability to teach yourself, no matter what the subject, is an incredibly valuable skill and being a strong reader is the keystone to that skill.”

Former Oakland Raiders CEO says Redskins’ name must go

Source: ICTMN

Amy Trask, CBS analyst and former CEO of the Oakland Raiders, told Sportsillustrated.com she thinks it is time to say goodbye to the Washington Redskins’ offensive logo.

“It is unacceptable to use a derogatory term when referring to any person or any group of people,” Trask said in a follow up interview with Peter King on Si.com.

Trask’s remarks were also featured on Ten Things I Think I Think with Greg A. Bedard.

“If we wish to inspire people to consider one another without regard to skin color, then it is antithetical to refer to any person or any group of people by skin color,” she told Bedard. “The Washington Redskins have an opportunity to do something meaningful.”

Trask said that she understands the costs associated with changing a business name, but elaborated: “sometimes there are costs associated with doing something important.”

In a separate interview on Si.com with Peter King, Trask said that she does not speak for the Native American community, but for herself.

“My belief is premised on the following: we should not consider skin color when interacting with any person or group of people,” she said.

Trask added that the Redskins have an opportunity to make a powerful statement and changing the team name is the way to go.

Freezing Your Asterisk Off: Farmers’ Almanac Predicts Cold, Cold Winter

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

With yet another heat wave set to descend before summer releases its grip, the last things we may want to think about are puffy coats and long johns.

But that is what’s in store for winter 2013–14, according to predictions from the Farmers’ Almanac released officially on Monday August 26.

“The ‘Days of Shivery’ are back!” proclaimed a statement from the Farmers’ Almanac (not to be confused with The Old Farmer’s Almanac). “For 2013–2014, we are forecasting a winter that will experience below average temperatures for about two-thirds of the nation. A large area of below-normal temperatures will predominate from roughly east of the Continental Divide to the Appalachians, north and east through New England. Coldest temperatures will be over the Northern Plains on east into the Great Lakes. Only for the Far West and the Southeast will there be a semblance of winter temperatures averaging close to normal, but only a few areas will enjoy many days where temperatures will average above normal.”

Further, the Southern Plains, Midwest and Southeast will have more precipitation than normal, the Almanac’s prognosticators said. This means a plethora of snow for the Midwest, Great Lakes and parts of New England. There will be mixes of rain and/or snow just south of that, in southern New England, southeastern New York, New Jersey and the Mid-Atlantic region, the statement said. Uncharacteristically, the Pacific Northwest may be drier than usual.

“Significant snowfalls are forecast for parts of every zone,” the Almanac said, predicting especially heavy winter weather during the first 10 days of February 2014—meaning that the Superbowl, scheduled to be played outdoors at the MetLife Stadium in the Meadowlands in New Jersey, may be more of a “Storm Bowl,” as Almanac managing editor Sandi Duncan told the Associated Press.

“This particular part of the winter season will be particularly volatile and especially turbulent,” the statement said.

As it has since 1818, the Almanac makes predictions by triangulating the positions of the planets, sunspot activity and cycles of the moon.