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Anchor: Antonia Gonzales

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland is reiterating the Justice Department’s commitment to civil rights cases for Native Americans.

He spoke at the White House Tribal Nations Summit last week in Washington, D.C (WATCH | READ).

Garland pointed to the case announced earlier this year involving the Grand Gateway Hotel in Rapid City.

As South Dakota Public Broadcasting’s Lee Strubinger reports, one group wants the DOJ to do more.

The Justice Department announced its lawsuit against the hotel in October.

That came several months after the owner posted on social media that Native Americans were no longer allowed at their hotel and bar.

Days after, some Native people were allegedly denied service.

Garland says protecting the civil rights of all individuals was a founding purpose of the department.

“It remains an urgent priority. For example, earlier this fall the Department filed a lawsuit against the owners and operators of a hotel and bar in South Dakota for violating the civil rights act of 1964 by discriminating against Native American customers. The justice Department is working to make good on our commitment to improve the well-being of tribal communities.”

The president of group that initially brought the lawsuit says he appreciates the DOJ looking into racist activity in Rapid City.

However, NDN Collective’s Nick Tilsen says the department is not willing to look deeper into systemic racism.

“We asked them to expand the scope of their investigation because we understand the behaviors of the Grand Gateway Hotel are a byproduct of a culture of systematic racism here in the community. Taking down Grand Gateway—or holding them accountable—is not going to be the end all for us.”

Tilsen also says NDN Collective and others are asking the DOJ to pardon country’s longest serving Indigenous political prisoner Leonard Peltier.

The public comment period ends Monday, December 5 on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s draft of its Alaska Native Relations policy.

Crystal Ciisquq Leonetti is the agency’s Alaska Native Affairs Specialist.

“So while the Native American policy applies everywhere, including Alaska, we needed to have these unique considerations.”

The draft policy recognizes the impacts of climate change on Alaska’s landscape.

It also mentions the inclusion of Indigenous traditional knowledge in co-management efforts.

The policy will also require Alaska Native Relations training and education for Fish and Wildlife Service employees.

“That is designed to illuminate the beautiful, diverse cultures of Alaska Native people, the current status of the nutritional and spiritual and cultural connection to living a subsistence way of life… that it is also really important for Alaska Native people to continue that way of life for reasons beyond nutrition.”

The relationship between the agency and Alaska Native people has not always been amicable. Leonetti says improving those relationships is central to developing the policy.

Since 2016, she’s worked alongside a 12 member team of representatives from every region of Alaska.

“We wanted to make sure every word and every sentence was agreed upon by the entire group. And if it wasn’t, we talked about it until we could agree on the language that made sense for everybody.”

Leonetti expects it will be signed and included in the agency’s national manual sometime in 2023.

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Anchor: Antonia Gonzales

Vice President Kamala Harris vowed to fight to protect the Indian Child Welfare Act. By Jill Fratis, KNBA News.

V.P. Harris discussed ICWA in remarks at the White House Tribal Nations Summit, which was held this week in Washington, D.C.

She says she has a longstanding history of fighting for the principles of ICWA, pointing to her work as an attorney and now as vice president.

V.P. Harris says she’s fully aware of the essential protection ICWA provides.

“And back to the time doing that work as an attorney representing children and families in San Francisco, and working on ICWA cases to my time as Attorney General of California, and partnering with tribal leaders and child agencies and law enforcement to enforce ICWA. I will tell you as I stand here as vice president that President Biden and I remain determined to work with you, with Native leaders to safeguard the protections of ICWA.”

Summit attendee Monique Baker, Governance Administrator for the Tribal Government of St. Paul, AK. says she feels comforted the White House is acknowledging the challenges tribal families face.

“Native children being torn away from their families, the trauma they endured, and knowing that something is being done to make sure this will never happen again. It’s truly amazing to hear all this during the summit this year, and look forward to hearing more next year.”

Harris made the comments about IWCA, as challenges to the decades old law intended to keep Native children with Native families, was recently heard in the U.S. Supreme Court.

On Thursday, tribal leaders and top federal officials hosted a number of panels at the summit – including on health care.

Baker says she’s interested in information and discussions about extending health care after childbirth.

Baker says providing postpartum care including depression screenings is a huge step in the right direction for Native families.

“That means so much for all Native women, as mother myself, I wish I had that coverage. I wish I knew more things like that.”

The two-day White House Tribal Nations Summit concluded Thursday with topics ranging from veterans issues to a special message from astronaut Nicole Mann (Wailacki), who’s currently in space on a mission – the first Native American woman to go to space.

Click here to watch Commander Mann’s Summit Remarks from the International Space Station

The Interior Department is putting $75 million toward community relocation efforts for three tribes in Alaska and Washington state, that are struggling with the consequences of a changing climate.

Bryan Newland (Ojibwe) is the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs.

“We’ve never really done anything like this before in this country, particularly for tribes.”

He says the Interior Department hopes to capitalize on some of the progress Newtok, AK. has already made and develop a blueprint for the federal government’s future response to climate change.

“We wanna make sure that we are gaining experience on the federal side of things, working with tribes to do climate relocation work.”

Newland says the department weighed a lot of factors in deciding how to allocate the money.

“We evaluated a number of communities that have gone through some of our climate funding programs before and we weighted a number of different factors, like readiness, need, existing plans as well as our ability to glean lessons learned.”

The tribes will also receive funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Eight other tribes across the U.S. will share $40 million to assist in planning for climate change mitigation.

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Anchor: Antonia Gonzales

President Joe Biden on Wednesday told tribal leaders he made a commitment to tribal nations as a U.S. Senator in his 30s, then again when he ran for president, and now as leader of the United States. By Jill Fratis, KNBA News.

President Biden says he’s prioritizing and respecting nation-to-nation relationships.

He made the remarks at the White House Tribal Nations Summit taking place in person in Washington, D.C.

The President says his administration has worked on strengthening relationships with tribes and has made financial investments in Indian Country.

He says tribes not only have a seat at the table, but also have Native American representation in key positions, including Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland.

“On my watch, we are ushering in a new era and advancing the way the federal government works with tribal nations and it starts by appointing Native Americans to lead the front lines of my administration. You know, starting with Sec. Haaland. We’ve followed dozens of Senate-confirmed Native American officials, over 60 Native American appointees all across my administration including in the federal courts.”

President Biden says he also restored the White House Council on Native American Affairs to improve coordination with federal agencies and tribes.

The administration is making a number of announcements this week relating to its work in Indian Country, from sacred site protection to measures to boost economic development to Native language revitalization efforts.

Tribal leaders from across the country attending the summit are interacting with key White House staff members and federal officials.

A group of about ten tribal leaders, including from Alaska, met privately with President Biden Wednesday.

Richard (Chalyee Éesh) Peterson, president of the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, says he was one the leaders to attend the meeting.

“It was pretty great. I actually was one of a few tribal leaders selected to meet the president. So, that was pretty special.”

Peterson says tribal leaders were able to have a brief moment with the president to share top priorities. He mentioned the taking of land into trust by the Bureau of Indian Affairs for his tribes.

According to the Interior Department, that recent action is the second fee-to-trust acquisition in Alaska since the passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act in the 1970s. And it’s the first in five years.

The land is located in Juneau.

Among things, it will help with federal services and programs, and fosters economic development.

“It was pretty historical and we were appreciative of that. And we talked about some of the other issues…talked about broadband, ARPA (American Rescue Plan), infrastructure. You know, it was very fast.”

Petersons says he’s grateful to have had a moment with the president. He says under the Biden administration, tribes are seeing more Native American and Alaska Native representation in Washington, which is helping tribes gain traction.

He says having staff that are Native is helping, so that it’s not just left to tribal leaders alone to educate officials on tribal issues.

Vice President Kamala Harris also addressed tribal leaders Wednesday.

She reiterated the nation-to-nation relationship building and the administration’s commitment to tribes.

“President Joe Biden and I believe the bonds between our nations are sacred. And we believe we have a duty to safeguard and strengthen those bonds, a duty to honor Tribal sovereignty, to ensure Tribal self-determination, to uphold our trust and treaty obligations, and to fight to make sure all Native communities have the support and the resources they need to succeed and to thrive.”

The White House Tribal Nations Summit continues Thursday.

U.S. Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) Wednesday announced the introduction of a bill that aims to provide more support for homeless Native veterans.

Aaron Bolton has more.

The bill would carve out a portion of housing vouchers for use by Indigenous vets enrolled in the VA and tribal housing authorities.

The housing vouchers are offered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and given to vets enrolled in VA case management services.

Native Americans serve in the military at higher rates compared to other racial groups and studies indicate that Native veterans experience the highest rate of homelessness, according to the VA.

The bill would also require that both the VA and HUD consult with tribes to better offer resources to homeless vets and report to Congress on the issue every five years.

The current term of Congress is scheduled to end in the coming weeks.

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Anchor: Antonia Gonzales

Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland says in the last two years, the Biden administration has committed to working with tribes and has made many investments in Indian Country.

Sec. Haaland delivered opening remarks at the White House Tribal Nations Summit Wednesday morning, which is being held in person in Washington, D.C. and streamed live here:

She told tribal leaders, the Interior Department alone, has invested more than $45 billion in Indian Country through the American Rescue Plan, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and the Inflation Reduction Act.

Sec. Haaland talked about a land transfer for Montana tribes, and announced a new oral history project slated for 2023 for Indian boarding school survivors.

“This has never been undertaken by the United States government and is a resource many of you have requested as part of your own work to document your own history. This project demonstrates the new era I spoke of. Over the next two days, you’ll hear even more of the work that is happening and the opportunities with your partnerships that lie ahead.”

Sec. Haaland announced the creation of a new office of strategic partnerships, which is working to build nine new Bureau of Indian Education school yards across the country. She touched on tribal co-stewardship to address climate change, and co-management of lands and waters.

She says there is work being done to expand broadband through an agreement to help bring electromagnetic spectrum access to tribal lands.

Sec. Haaland says she’ll be meeting with tribal leaders throughout the next two days to discuss issues impacting Indian Country.

Wednesday morning also included tribal leaders and administration officials taking part in a panel on education and Native languages.

Tribal leaders from the 574 federally recognized tribes were invited to take part in the two-day summit.

During the White House Tribal Nations Summit, President Joe Biden proclaimed a Nevada sacred site off limits to development with the formal designation of Avi Kwa Ame as a national monument.

Native groups have been advocating for its protection.

The area is sacred to 12 tribes and is the center of creation stories says Taylor Patterson with the Native Voters Alliance Nevada.

“It’s the place where all of their traditional stories and knowledge comes from. And then for our Southern Paiute Tribes in the area, it’s also a part of the Salt Song trail. And so that tells, really, the life cycle of Paiute people and how they moved through the land and all the important places, plants and animals in the area.”

It is located between the Lake Mead National Recreation Area and the Nevada/California border, covering nearly 450,000 acres in southwestern Nevada.

Photo: Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Tribe

A federal judge has ordered Enbridge and the Bad River Tribe in Wisconsin to come up with a joint plan to avoid a catastrophic spill from an oil and gas pipeline should erosion worsen on the tribe’s reservation.

Danielle Kaeding reports.

The ruling stems from the tribe’s lawsuit that seeks to shut down the Canadian energy firm’s pipeline on its reservation.

Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline will continue to operate, but U.S. District Judge William Conley said risk of a significant rupture exists where it crosses the Bad River.

Conley said the negative effects in the Bad River watershed and Lake Superior could be catastrophic.

The line carries up to 23 million gallons of oil per day from Superior across northern Wisconsin to Sarnia, Ontario.

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