Here are the materials in Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk Indians v. Pacific Coast Building Products Inc. (E.D. Cal.):
California Federal Court Dismisses Buena Vista Rancheria Nuisance Suit against Neighboring Polluter for Lack of Ripeness
Research
Supreme Court Decides Allen v. Milligan (Voting Rights)
On June 8, 2023, the Supreme Court of the United States in Allen v Milligan upheld the lower court’s determination that the newly adopted Alabama congressional maps likely violate Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. After lower courts found that Alabama’s most recent redistricting likely violated the Voting Rights Act, the state chose to appeal the case rather than draw non-discriminatory electoral districts. The state argued that, contrary to the protections embodied in the Voting Rights Act, race should not be taken into consideration in redistricting efforts. The Supreme Court disagreed.
Last July, the National Congress of American Indians, represented by NARF, filed an amicus brief in the case arguing against the proposal to eliminate race from redistricting considerations. Participating in American democracy provides Native Americans the opportunity to remedy past injustices by electing representatives who understand and honor Native Nations’ political status within American federalism, who will advance treaty rights, advocate for basic resources, and respect and value Native Americans’ contributions to this country.
The brief explained that there is an ongoing and critical need for Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act to address racial discrimination and contemporary voter suppression that dilutes Native American votes and political power. In fact, the only Section 2 enforcement action brought by the Department of Justice during President Trump’s tenure was a challenge to an at-large district that prevented the election of Native American candidates of choice to a school board.
Celebrating MSU’s Indigenous Law and Policy Center Graduates
On May 11, 2023, Michigan State University’s Indigenous Law & Policy Center celebrated its’ 2023 graduates! Below are some photos from this event.
U.S. (EPA) v. Enbridge Energy, Limited Partnership
Our Stories Heal – Ginoojimomin Apii Dibaajimoyang [Recording]
The full recording can be found here.
In 2021, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative. This initiative, which includes gathering records from the boarding school era, and compiling an official list of boarding school sites, makes visible on a national scale the intergenerational impact federal Indian board schools have had on tribal communities. Currently, there are five schools in the state of Michigan that were identified from the federal investigation process (Holy Childhood Boarding School, Baraga Chippewa Boarding and Day School (Holy Name), Mount Pleasant Indian Industrial Boarding School, Mackinac Mission School, and Catholic Otchippewa Boarding School). This is not an extensive list of all the other entities, schools, and programs that operated in Michigan through the Indian Civilization Act of 1819.
The Native Justice Coalition’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was launched in July 2022. It seeks to expand its reach to strengthen relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in an effort to seek the truth behind the Indian boarding school policies and corresponding actions taken by the government and church. Through this work, the NJC provides safe, supportive, and culturally competent spaces that offer opportunities for healing and uniting our Native communities on this journey. Our goals are to create an Indigenous-led process that is grounded in mutual respect, culturally sensitive, and focused on meeting clearly defined, jointly agreed upon metrics. Our key four priorities are truth and reconciliation, healing our people and our communities, strengthening ICWA and ensuring a cultural identity for our children, and building a strong ecosystem through investment in the Native Justice Coalition.
Without support from community partners such as the Indigenous Law & Policy Center, Native American Institute, and American Indian and Indigenous Studies at Michigan State University, this work would not be possible. This one-day symposium honors that work on a local scale, providing Michigan State University, and the greater Lansing community an opportunity to learn about the intergenerational trauma caused by federal Indian boarding school policies. Attendees will hear first-hand accounts from boarding school survivors and others who can provide the legal, social, and historical context of the Indian boarding schools. By joining together in community to share stories and voices, the symposium provides a space for knowledge and healing.
Save the Date – Indigenous Law Conference
Supplemental Briefs on Standing in Hooper v. Tulsa
Motion to Dismiss briefing in Bears Ears Litigation
Lena’ Black v. Broken Arrow Public Schools
High school graduate Lena’ Black, an enrolled member of the Otoe-Missouria Tribe and of Osage descent, filed a lawsuit on May 15, 2023, against the Broken Arrow School District for violating her rights to free exercise of religion and freedom of speech. Black seeks restitution for emotional distress caused when school officials singled her out and attempted to take her sacred eagle plume by force, damaging the plume that she received in ceremony when she was three years old.
“My eagle plume has been part of my cultural and spiritual practices since I was three years old. I wore this plume on graduation day in recognition of my academic achievement and to carry the prayers of my Otoe-Missouria community with me,” said Lena’ Black. “The law protects my right to wear this eagle plume at my graduation, and school officials had no authority to forcibly remove it from my cap.”
Governor J. Kevin Stitt recently vetoed Oklahoma Senate Bill 429, passed by the state legislature with near unanimous bipartisan support to prohibit discriminatory graduation dress codes. The bill would have reaffirmed the rights of Native American students like Black to wear tribal regalia at graduations, a critical protection in the state with the second highest concentration of American Indians. Following his veto, Governor Stitt suggested this issue should instead be resolved at the district level.
Black is represented by the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) and Pipestem Law, P.C. “We will hold the Broken Arrow School District accountable for its discriminatory actions,” said NARF Staff Attorney Morgan Saunders. “The Broken Arrow School District violated Ms. Black’s rights despite existing laws that should have ensured she was able to wear her eagle plume without incident.”
“This lawsuit demonstrates why these decisions cannot be left up to individual school districts,” said Pipestem Law Partner Wilson Pipestem. “Without clarity from the State, Native students will continue to be forced to seek justice in the courts after their rights have been violated and their graduation ceremonies are long since over.”
“I filed this lawsuit to ensure everyone understands the importance of items like my eagle plume, and to prevent schools from targeting Native students like me in the future. No student should face ignorance and discrimination in their school or their community,” said Black.
While traditions vary, members of many tribal nations wear specific clothing or objects, like eagle plumes, at graduation ceremonies to signify their academic achievement and in recognition of their spiritual and religious beliefs. Schools, school district leaders, educators, parents, students, and allies can learn more about creating inclusive graduation ceremonies and positive change at: https://narf.org/cases/graduation/.
Bad River Ojibwe Moves to Shut Down Line 5 after Spring Flooding Exposes Line 5 Pipeline
Here are new materials in Bad River Band of Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians v. Enbridge Energy Co. Inc. (W.D. Wis.):
Turtle Talk 
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