little traverse bay bands of odawa indians

Detroit News on U-M Decision to Repatriate Culturally Unidentifiable Remains

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From the Detroit News:

The University of Michigan will work with tribes on the disposition of unidentified Native American human remains held by the university to comply with newly released federal rules.

The National Park Service on Monday announced the rule to establish a process to repatriate remains in museums or on exhibit which have not been culturally affiliated with a tribe.

The rules, which go into effect May 14, require universities and federal agencies with unidentified remains in their collections to work with tribes that lived in the areas where the remains were exhumed.

There are more than 124,000 unidentified Native American human remains in the United States, including some held by U-M’s Museum of Anthropology.

Continue reading →

LTBB News on Open Meetings and Bell’s Fishery

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From Indianz:

The Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians of Michigan is reportedly considering a new open meetings policy.

The tribal council at one point barred non-members from council meetings. The policy changed and The Petoskey News-Review has been able to cover most of the meetings but the paper was recently barred from an election board meeting.

According to the the tribal code, the tribal council, by motion, can bar non-members from its meetings. However, the tribal constitution says the tribal cannot make any laws abridging the freedom of the press.

A draft statute of a new open meetings policy was discussed at a tribal council meeting on Sunday but the paper wasn’t present for that portion of the meeting.

Get the Story:

Tribe comes to aid of Bell’s; discusses open meetings statute (The Petoskey News-Review 3/9)

Little Traverse Recall Election to Proceed

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From Indianz:
Recall petitions against the top two leaders of the the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians of Michigan have been approved.

Chairman Ken Harrington and vice chairman Dexter McNamara will face a recall election within the next 90 days. But Harrington is apparently going to file a challenge in tribal court.

Harrington and McNamara are newcomers to the tribal council and have been in office for just six months. But in that short time, critics say Harrington has overstepped his authority numerous times.

Get the Story:

Tribal recall petitions approved (The Petoskey News-Review 3/3)

Op/Ed re: Carcieri Fix

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From the Traverse City Record-Eagle:

The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians celebrates its 30th anniversary of federal recognition this year, but nothing, apparently, is sacred in ever-changing federal American Indian policy.

A controversial Supreme Court ruling last year blocks many American Indian tribes recognized by the U.S. Interior Secretary after 1934 from making more land-to-trust applications.

The high court’s Carcieri vs. Salazar ruling on Feb. 24, 2009, and politics surrounding a proposed legislative fix, show just how frustrating, confounding and shameful federal American Indian policy has been over more than two centuries of American history — and apparently still is.

The ruling appears to have no effect on the Grand Traverse Band, which was recognized in 1980. In fact, the Interior Department approved trust status for 78 acres in Antrim County on Dec. 10.

The ruling also does not appear to affect two other area tribes — the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians in Emmet County and the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians in Manistee County, both recognized in 1994 by federal statute. Continue reading →

News Coverage of LTBB Casino General Manager Hiring

Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

From the Petoskey News-Review:

The Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Tribal Council did not take action Sunday, during its regular meeting, to suspend the hiring process for a new general manager at the casino.

According to John Bott, tribal council member, the action request item was presented by tribal chairman Ken Harrington, but was not fully explained.

“We never got an explanation as to what it was about,” Bott said. “As a result, no action was taken, and no motion was made.”

The tribe began its search for a new general manager for the casino after Sean Barnard, who had been in the position since May of 2008, tendered his resignation on Nov. 23, making his last official day Dec. 4.

Harrington said he couldn’t fully explain the reason he brought this potential hiring suspension to the tribal council, but said it was directly linked to tribe’s current renegotiation process for the casino’s financing.

“(The reason) is tied to a confidential report, and I can’t go into great detail,” he said. “I wanted to slow the (hiring) process down until we were complete with the forbearance agreement … there might still be some unknowns.” Continue reading →

Univ. of Michigan Finally to Review Repatriation Policy

Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

From CBS via Pechanga:

Facing criticism for still holding the remains of about 1,400 Native Americans in its archaeological collection, the University of Michigan will be reviewing its policies on how to properly deal with Indian bones and artifacts.

A committee charged with looking at the legal, ethical and scientific concerns involved will meet for the first time next week and “will hear all sides of the story,” said Stephen Forrest, vice president for research at the Ann Arbor school.

“We want to have a very balanced approach,” he said Friday. “We are actively seeking to understand all the aspects of the problem.”

At issue is the conflicting interests of researchers and museums in studying and teaching about earlier human cultures and that of native peoples to have their religions and ancestral remains respected.

Under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act passed by Congress in 1990, federally supported institutions must catalog the remains and burial items they hold and return them, when requested, to groups that have a “cultural affiliation” to them. Continue reading →

Politics at LTBB

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

from the Petoskey News-Review (H/t Pechanga and Indianz) and a second article is here:

During its regular meeting Sunday, Sept. 27, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Tribal Council made a declaration against comments made by its tribal chairman to the press.

Tribal Chairman Ken Harrington’s comments were made in response to the Tribal Council’s meeting on Sept. 13, during which tribal elders spoke out about their concerns regarding Harrington’s hiring practices, as well as his morals and ethics while in office.

While tribal elders were making comments, a reporter from the News-Review was excused from the meeting without motion.

The following day — Sept. 14 — Harrington agreed to meet with the reporter to provide updates regarding the elders comments.

In the Sept. 15 edition of the News-Review, it was reported that Harrington told the reporter that the council discussed the tribal elders comments and came out on his side.

Careers in Indian Law Panel — MSU Law College — April 16

Matthew L.M. Fletcher3 Comments

Please join us for our annual Indian law career panel. Graduates of the MSU Indigenous Law and Policy Center are now working in many disparate jobs in Indian Country. This year’s panel is Thursday, April 16, 2009 at 11AM in the Castle Board Room. Lunch is provided, so get there early!

Careers in Indian Law

Matt Lesky, ‘05, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians

Bryan Newland, ‘07, Dykema Gossett

Nova Wilson, ‘08, National Congress of American Indians

Moderator: Kate Fort, ‘05, MSU College of Law Indigenous Law and Policy Center

The Chronicle on Indian Law Centers at Law Schools

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is an excerpt from “American Indian Law: A Surge of Interest on Campus,” from the Sept. 26, 2008 issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education (article):

Growing up on a Navajo reservation near Gallup, N.M., Jordan Hale never dreamed he would one day be standing in front of a courtroom recommending whether a defendant should be released on bond, or working with a prosecutor to draft a criminal complaint.

Becoming a lawyer was the farthest thing from the mind of the high-school runner whose home, at the end of a dirt road, had no running water or telephone.

***

Tribes have sovereignty rights that are spelled out in treaties with the United States, so their laws don’t always align with the government’s. That is why, for instance, Indian tribes can open casinos that would not be permitted on nontribal land.

“More and more law schools are recognizing the importance of including Indian law in the curriculum because their graduates are encountering questions that require some knowledge of Indian law and sovereignty,” says Wenona T. Singel, an assistant professor of law at Michigan State University. Like many Indian law professors, Ms. Singel brings practical experience to the classroom. In addition to helping lead her law school’s Indian-law program, she serves as chief justice of her tribe, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians.

She says about 20 law schools nationwide report having Indian-law programs, while other experts say the number of full-fledged programs is about 12. Among the other law schools active in Indian law are those at Harvard University, Lewis and Clark College, and the Universities of Colorado, New Mexico, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Learning the basics of tribal law is more than an academic exercise for many law students.

A few states, including New Mexico, South Dakota, and Washington, have Indian-law topics on their bar exam that students must pass to practice law. Others, including Arizona, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, and Oklahoma, are considering adding such a requirement.