News – Page 73 – Turtle Talk

Justice McCormack acknowledged how moving the annual Adoption Day celebrations are and that “in a way, this is even more moving.

“As I look around and talk with people today, I believe it’s a privilege to be a part of this celebration. What a tremendous accomplishment. In reading thousands of petitions, you come to understand the struggles that families are facing in this process and of what’s required of them. I know from personal experience and as a mother that parenting is incredibly hard work. Raising a family is hard even when things are going well let alone the curve balls thrown at families in the court process.”

McCormack noted that parents “are only as happy as your unhappiest child.”

“As an appellate judge, it isn’t often that I can look a parent in the face and say, ‘Well Done.’ So it’s nice to say that today. In spite of setbacks, you didn’t stop working to show your kids what it means to be a family. And as important as that accomplishment, you have shown your kids how to get through it when life throws you a curve ball.”

Chairman Mandoka noted that during his involvement in the development of a tribal court system in Michigan, tribal leaders needed to address difficult family situations.

“We wanted to make sure people could see more clearly when in a fog. In the fog, you feel lost, you make wrong decisions. We’ve all been a part of that. We have now developed a court system and a probation system to help struggling individuals see past that fog.

“In the end, it’s always about a relationship. You can talk about models, plans and forecasts but it’s still all about the relationship; eye-to-eye contact and a handshake.

“We all should make sure that we leave this earth a better place than how it was when we came into it, for our children. That’s what should drive us, should be our passion.”

Judge Connors noted that those involved in child welfare work have defined the responsibility to three core accomplishments: safe children, strong families and supportive communities.

“We are always looking at doing whatever furthers those key goals. One thing we have learned from Native American culture and tribal courts is the importance to come to your work with an internal balance. Only then can we bring the best that we have to a situation.

Oneida Tribe approves same-sex marriage

July 6, 2015Ann Tweedy

Here.

Amici Press Release in Support of Sac & Fox Nation Cert Petition

July 2, 2015Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Key Groups File Amicus Briefs in Support of Supreme Court Petition

To Bring Jim Thorpe Home

Members of Congress, Religious Organizations, NCAI Weigh In to Support Petition by Sac and Fox Nation and Thorpe’s Sons to Return His Remains to Oklahoma

WASHINGTON – A number of groups – including current and former Members of Congress – are expected to file amicus briefs today urging the Supreme Court to hear a case that could significantly impact the civil and human rights of the more than five million Native Americans across the country.

The case centers on the decades-long struggle by Sac and Fox Nation and the sons of American sport legend Jim Thorpe to bring his remains home to Oklahoma for proper burial on his native lands.

The sons and Sac and Fox petitioned the Supreme Court last month to hear the case. They are seeking to uphold a District Court’s ruling that a 1990 law designed to protect Native American remains and artifacts applied in their bid to return the remains of Jim Thorpe to his tribal lands in Oklahoma.

The briefs filed today were submitted by current and former Members of Congress; the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI); a group of leading religious organizations; and a group of preeminent law school professors.

The current and former Members of Congress include an original sponsor of the law cited in this case – the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). This law, sponsored by Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell and passed by Congress in 1990, states that institutions receiving federal funds must return the remains and sacred objects of Native Americans to their descendants and tribes. The brief makes clear that the Third Circuit’s ruling violates both the text of the law and Congress’ intent in passing it and would have significant negative legal implications for Native Americans across the country.

“NAGPRA is one of the most critical pieces of Native American human rights legislation ever passed by Congress; it protects that which is most sacred to all of humanity: the right to be buried in accordance with your own religion and under the same soil as your relatives. The Third Circuit’s refusal to enforce the plain language of the statute is very concerning,” said Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell, one of the signers of the amicus briefs filed today by Members of Congress.

The family’s efforts to bring Jim Thorpe home began shortly after his third wife interrupted his burial ceremony on the Sac and Fox Nation in 1953 and took his body. She toured the nation for a year seeking the highest bidder for his remains until two small former coal-mining towns in Pennsylvania offered $500 and a promise to establish the Borough of Jim Thorpe. Despite having no connection to the Pennsylvania towns during his lifetime, Mr. Thorpe continues to be buried there and exploited for tourism – a blatant example of historical and ongoing disregard for Native American traditions and culture in modern American society.

“Since when does a court get to decide that someone’s religious beliefs are absurd?” said Stephanie Barclay, Counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. “No American’s faith should be mocked by our courts. Jim Thorpe said he wanted to be buried with his family and his tribe, and that should have been the end of it. Especially given the history of mistreatment of Native Americans by government officials, there should be particular care taken to protect their religious practices.”

“By ruling that NAGPRA’s protections for religious beliefs in the case were absurd, the Third Circuit opened the door for judges across the country to decide, like Goldilocks, what religious beliefs are ‘just right,’” added Barclay. “Judges have no business making those determinations in our diverse American society.”

In 2013, three years after the Sac and Fox Nation and the Thorpe sons first filed their case, a federal District Court agreed that the Pennsylvania borough is an entity covered by NAGPRA because the town’s operations were subsidized by the federal government. NAGPRA routinely applies to other state and local governments, and so the ruling was not remarkable. However, in 2014, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals invoked a seldom-applied legal theory called the “absurdity doctrine” to overturn the District Court’s decision – a ruling that even the Circuit Court acknowledged contradicted a plain reading of the law. The case raises significant legal concerns about the power of federal courts to disregard the plainly stated intent of laws enacted by Congress.

“In substituting its own views and judicially creating exceptions and requirements, the Third Circuit threatens Native American culture by limiting the process Native Americans utilized to regain sacred cultural items. This Court should grant certiorari to review and reverse that decision,” wrote the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) in their amicus brief filed today.

In their brief, NCAI also underscored this case’s exceptional importance to the 566 federally-recognized Indian tribes, the 5.2 million individual Native Americans and Alaska Natives, and the 1.2 million Native Hawaiians across America, saying “the Third Circuit establishes dangerous precedent that could have substantial impacts on tribal cultures throughout the nation.”

“This is a critically important case,” said Joshua Segal, Partner at Jenner and Block. “In dismissing the NAGPRA suit brought by Jim Thorpe’s sons, the Third Circuit misused the ‘absurdity doctrine’ and ignored other tools of statutory construction. The Court of Appeals’ decision is dangerous for this vital civil rights statute and warrants the Supreme Court’s review.”

Jim Thorpe, given his Indian name Wa-tha-huk (Light after the Lightning or Bright Path) by the Thunder Clan of Black Hawk, was voted Greatest Athlete of the 20th Century in ABC’s Wide World of Sports poll held in 2000, beating out 14 other athletes including Muhammad Ali, Babe Ruth, Jack Nicklaus and Michael Jordan. His remarkable performance at the 1912 Olympic Summer Games, winning gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon, was matched by his skills in professional baseball (1913-19) and professional football (1917-29). In 1920, Jim Thorpe was selected as the first president of the American Professional Football Association (APFA), which became the National Football League (NFL) in 1922. Thorpe is a member of ten halls of fame, including the College Football Hall of Fame and the Professional Football Hall of Fame, of which he was an inaugural inductee. In his lifetime, Jim Thorpe also worked to obtain recognition for the rights of Indians and tribes.

The Sac and Fox Nation, Jim Thorpe’s sons and other supporters also launched the “Bring Jim Thorpe Home” campaign last month, which calls for his remains to be returned from the Borough of Jim Thorpe in eastern Pennsylvania to his tribal homelands in Oklahoma, where he wished to be buried. The campaign launched with an event in Oklahoma City in June, and will also include events in St. Paul, Minn., and Washington, D.C., over the coming weeks. More information about the campaign can be found at http://www.narf.org/cases/bring-jim-thorpe-home/; on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/BringThorpeHome and #BringJimThorpeHome; and on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/BringJimThorpeHome.

New Federal Acknowledgment Process Regs

June 29, 2015June 29, 2015Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Department of the Interior Announces Final Federal Recognition Process to Acknowledge Indian Tribes
Initiative Reforms a Process Long Criticized as “Broken,” Increases Transparency in Important Review of Tribal Recognition Status

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn today released a final rule to reform the regulatory process by which the Department of the Interior officially recognizes Indian tribes. The updated rule promotes a more transparent, timely and consistent process that is flexible enough to account for the unique histories of tribal communities, while maintaining the rigor and integrity of the criteria that have been in place for nearly 40 years.

“Since the beginning of President Obama’s Administration, the Department has worked with tribal and government leaders on improving the federal acknowledgment process, which has been criticized as inconsistent, slow and expensive,” Secretary Jewell said. “This Administration takes very seriously its important trust and treaty responsibilities to Native Americans and Alaska Natives. This updated process for important tribal recognition makes good on a promise to clarify, expedite and honor a meaningful process for federal acknowledgement to our First Americans.”

“This updated rule is the product of extraordinary input from tribal leaders, states, local governments and the public,” said Assistant Secretary Washburn. “We have a responsibility to recognize those tribes that have maintained their identity and self-governance despite previous federal policies expressly aimed at destroying tribes. This new process remains rigorous, but it promotes timely decision-making through expedited processes and increases transparency by posting all publically available petition materials online so that stakeholders are well-informed at each stage of the process. Many of these improvements came from public comments by stakeholders and we are grateful for their guidance.”

To maintain the substantive rigor and integrity of the current regulatory process (described in Part 83, Title 25 – Code of Federal Regulations), the final rule carries forward the current standard of proof and seven mandatory criteria that petitioners must meet to substantiate their claim to tribal identification, community and political authority. To promote fairness and consistent implementation, the new process provides that prior decisions, which found evidence or methodology sufficient to satisfy a particular criterion for a previous petitioner, are sufficient to satisfy that criterion for a present petitioner. The final rule further promotes consistent application by establishing a uniform evaluation period of more than a century, from 1900 to the present, to satisfy the seven mandatory criteria.

Key features of the final rule promote transparency by:

Increasing public access to petition documents for Federal Acknowledgment;
Expanding distribution of notices of petitions to include local governments; and
Increasing due process by providing for an administrative judge to conduct a comprehensive hearing and issue a recommended decision for proposed negative findings.

In a separate action, Assistant Secretary Washburn issued a policy statement explaining that the Department intends to rely on the newly reformed Part 83 process as the sole administrative avenue for acknowledgment as a tribe as long as the new rule is in effect and being implemented.

To build public trust in the Federal Acknowledgement process, the Department has been working to reform the Part 83 process since the beginning of the Obama Administration. At that time in 2009, Interior initiated its own review. In 2012, the Department identified guiding principles of the reform effort. In recognition of the high level of interest, the Department used a transparent rulemaking approach and significant outreach effort. Before beginning the formal rulemaking initiative, Interior issued a discussion draft in 2013 to facilitate public input on how to improve the process.

Through the discussion draft and ensuing tribal consultations and public meetings, the Department obtained substantial feedback. In total, more than 2,800 commenters provided input on the discussion draft. The Department issued a proposed rule in May of 2014 and extended the public comment period on that proposal in response to requests from tribes, state and local governments, members of Congress and the public. In total, more than 330 unique comments were submitted on the proposed rule. The final rule reflects substantial changes to the discussion draft and the proposed rule in response to public comments.

Federal acknowledgment establishes the U.S. Government as the trustee for Tribal lands and resources and makes Tribal members and governments eligible for federal budget assistance and program services. Since 1978, of the 566 federally recognized tribes, 17 have been recognized through the Part 83 process under Title 25 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Procedures for Establishing that an American Indian Group Exists as an Indian Tribe. The Department has denied acknowledgment to 34 other petitioning groups.

Though far more tribes have been recognized through Executive or Congressional action, the Part 83 process is an important mechanism because it allows deliberative consideration of petitions by a staff of federal experts in anthropology, genealogy and history and ultimately allows for a decision by the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs. When petitioning groups that meet the criteria are officially “acknowledged” as Indian tribes, the U.S. Government accepts trusteeship of Tribal lands and natural resources. Tribal governments and members then become eligible to receive federal health, education, housing and other program and technical assistance.

The final rule and other information is online here.