Coverage here.
Opinion here.
Author: Kate Fort
Article about Chicago’s Urban Indian Community
In the Trib, which requires a free (but annoying) registration. Here.
There’s an interesting discussion on identity and the census:
Thirty years ago, there were more than 20 American Indian organizations in the city, said Dorene Wiese, president of the American Indian Association of Illinois. Now there are three. Since the recession began, their budgets have been slashed by the city and the federal government, leaving most day-to-day functions to volunteers.
At the same time, community activists said, American Indians have struggled disproportionately with poverty, unemployment and a staggering high school dropout rate. More than 27 percent of American Indians in Chicago have incomes below the poverty level, slightly less than African-Americans but more than other minority groups.
Wiese said the economic condition of American Indians is more dire than the 2010 census indicates, largely because she believes the figures are skewed. The census form allows anyone to identify themselves as American Indian, whether they have official tribal papers or not, she said. Without those who identified themselves as mixed race, the number of American Indians in Chicago would be cut in half, to just over 13,337, the census shows.
Jurist Article on Off-Reservation Gaming by Current ILPC Student
Congrats, Gerald!
Here.
Before the Sault Tribe receives federal approval, the following questions need answers: Does MILCSA mandate that the secretary take into trust lands purchased with interest or other income from the Fund? If the land is purchased with principal from the Fund, will it be held in restricted fee by operation of law? Is the purchase of the Lansing property a consolidation or enhancement of landholdings, or other permissible use of the Fund? Finally, the Sault Tribe will have to demonstrate that they will exercise governmental authority over the Lansing casino site. Given these complex issues, the Sault Tribe’s proposal is poised to set significant precedent in the evolving field of off-reservation gaming.
Gerald Carr is a third-year student in the Indigenous Law Program at Michigan State University College of Law. He holds a Ph.D. in Cultural Anthropology, specializing in the languages and cultures of Native North America.
Prof. Tiya Miles on NPR Discussing Identity and the Warren Controversy
From NPR
MARTIN: Professor Miles, I’m going to give you the final word here. You know, it’s interesting, we live in a time when it seems that we’ve talked a lot more about identity and what it means than many people ever thought we would, in part because we have a president who is biracial, and even now we’re still talking about this. Do you envision that there will be more conversations about this going forward, or do you think that this is just one of those kind of weird happenstances of the fact that this is a person who is participating in a hotly contested political contest?
MILES: I don’t think this is the end. I think that given that we’re having more and more interracial marriages and people who are claiming mixed-race identities who also might want to claim what I’ll call it a fixed-race identity simultaneously, we’ll be approaching this question again and again I think in different circumstances that we can’t even imagine right now.
MARTIN: Is there anything else you wanted to say about this that I didn’t have to wit to ask you?
MILES: Well, I would just like to add, I think part of the crucial issue here is that claiming an identity – at least in my view – has two parts to it. One can claim but I think one also has to be claimed in order for that identity to be fully rounded and I think that’s part of Elizabeth Warren’s trouble, that she claimed this native identity but she has not been claimed nor does she seem to have really reached out to try to be claimed by Cherokee people and by other native academics.
Two Announcements from Interior
WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of President Obama’s commitment to fulfilling this nation’s trust responsibilities to American Indians and Alaska Natives, the Office of the Secretary of the Interior will have the Secretarial Commission on Indian Trust Administration and Reform hold a public Webinar meeting on Monday, August 13, 2012.
Details for registering here. (pdf)
WASHINGTON – The Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services (OJS) will hold the second of six training sessions to improve the trial advocacy skills of tribal court prosecutors, defenders and judges on August 14-16, 2012, in Ignacio, Colo. This training session, which will focus on domestic violence, was originally scheduled to take place in Durango.
The training is being conducted under the Tribal Court Trial Advocacy Training Program, a joint effort by the Department of the Interior and the Department of Justice that furthers the mandate of the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 (TOLA) to strengthen tribal sovereignty over criminal justice matters on federal Indian lands by strengthening the skills of those who practice within the tribal court system.
Details here
Bankruptcy Proceeding Involving Lower Sioux Indian Community and Dakota Finance Corporation
The opinion in Bucher v. Dakota Finance Corp; Dietz v. Lower Sioux Indian Community; Bucher v. Lower Sioux Indian Community (B.A.P. 8th Cir) is here.
The issue here is whether the filing of bankruptcy by Tribe members serves to make the debtors’ ongoing revenues from the Tribe available to the respective trustees for the benefit of their creditors. The Bankruptcy Court1 held that both the Tribe and Dakota Finance Corporation are protected by sovereign immunity and dismissed the adversaries as to those parties. The trustees appeal. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.
Kalispel Tribe Signs Agreement with Federal Agencies On Water and Environmental Management Issues
Here.
The Kalispel Tribe of Indians has signed a 10-year, $39.5 million agreement with federal agencies that focuses on actions to address impacts of Albeni Falls Dam on fish and wildlife in the area of Lake Pend Oreille and the tribe’s reservation along the Pend Oreille River about 55 miles north of Spokane.
The agreement recognizes the tribe’s resource management expertise and its interest in operations at Albeni Falls Dam and includes specific provisions for the tribe to participate in decisions that affect fish, wildlife and water quality.
“The Kalispel Tribe is excited to see this agreement come to fruition as a result of nearly two decades of positive working relationships and on-the-ground successes. We believe this is just the beginning of a strong partnership with the federal agencies and we are hopeful for the future of our important and treasured resources,” said Kalispel Tribal Chairman Glen Nenema.
The agreement makes available approximately $39.5 million over 10 years, including $2.5 million for land acquisitions for wildlife habitat.
The tribe has identified habitat projects to benefit Endangered Species Act listed bull trout as well as west slope cutthroat trout and mountain whitefish.
In addition, the new agreement provides for the tribe, Army Corps of Engineers and Bonneville Power Administration to work together on improving water management actions in late summer and early fall to improve downstream water temperature for bull trout and other aquatic species.
State’s Brief in Wisconsin v. Ho-Chunk Nation (Electronic Gaming Arbitration Case)
Here. (pdf)
The state is asking the federal court enforce an arbitration award.
Indian Land Working Group Annual Conference Announcement
The 22nd Annual Indian Land Consolidation Symposium
Posted By Indian Land Working Group on July 10, 2012
When: October 15-18, 2012
Where: Morongo Casino Resort & Spa, 49500 Seminole Drive, Cabazon, CA 92230
Register for the conference NOW
Sponsored By: Indian Land Working Group
For reservations call: 1-888-MORONGO (1-888-667-6646). Request the “Indian Land Working Group” rate of $98 per night. This rate will only be available until October 1st, 2012. Morongo Casino Resort & Spa is AAA approved, 4-Diamond Award winning hotel owned and operated by the Morongo Band of Mission Indians.
Getting to the Morongo Casino Resort & Spa: Courtesy shuttles will be available from airports at Palm Springs and Ontario, CA. Call Rene Reyes at 951-755-5449 or email him at rene_reyes@morongo.com, as soon as possible to make shuttle arrangements. You may also request group transportation by filling out a request form at http://www.morongocasinoresort.com/grouptransportation.
Who should attend: Allotted landowners, tribal leaders, tribal and federal employees, real estate specialists, appraisers, probate/estate planning specialists, natural resource professionals, attorneys, and students are all encouraged to attend the 22nd Annual Indian Land Consolidation Symposium.
Why you should attend: This year’s symposium promises to offer an exciting and informative series of panels, including updates on Indian land consolidation, the Cobell Settlement, trust reform and the trust responsibility, the Carcieri Fix, tribal trust cases, leasing, land claims, oil and gas negotiated rulemaking, as well as panels on energy development on tribal lands, rights of way, pipelines, planning for indigenous development, Indian agriculture, and more
ILWG Contact- Kristin Ruppel (Interim Director) at 406-600.0369.
Opinion in United States v. Morrison
We posted about the lower court decision here.
Of the many arguments that the parties have raised, only two warrant extended 11 discussion. The first is the government’s contention that the district court erred in vacating Morrison’s conspiracy conviction on the ground of vagueness. The second is Morrison’s claim that the CCTA was inapplicable to him given New York’s “forbearance policy,” under which the State refrained from collecting taxes on cigarette sales transacted on Native American reservations. According to Morrison, this forbearance policy barred his conviction under the CCTA because that statute provides that, in order for a federal prosecution to lie, the state in which the allegedly contraband cigarettes are found must “require” tax stamps to be placed on cigarettes. We reverse the district court’s order vacating Morrison’s RICO conspiracy conviction and reject all of Morrison’s challenges to his convictions.
Appellant/Government’s Brief
Defendant/Appellee Brief
Government’s Response & Reply Brief
Appellee Reply Brief
Turtle Talk 
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