News from Native American Netroots

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1. I think people will appreciate this more and more as we proceed every week. We all know from reading the ndn newspapers that there are hundreds of stories out there every week. I hope that in the future we can gather some of the more political stories for the series. Hell there’s an entire industry of lawyers, lobbyists and tribal advocates in Washington D.C. in addition to the fact that every excutive branch Dept now has an “Indian Desk”, including the WH.

   Soon we’ll be in the political season and native people will be courted for our votes around the nation, I’d like to show the folks at dkos just how much our votes mean to democrats around the nation. Here in SD any democrat like Senator Johnson and Congresswoman Herseth/Sandlin must carry the ndn vote big time to get elected. When Dashele was defeated by Thune no pundits understood that it was because he had lost the native vote by helping the state take a bunch of land from the tribes along the Missouri river.

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2. over at dk, and saw a bunch of new commenters I hadn’t seen in the South Dakota rez diaries, and a lot of interest. Lots of expressions of shock. I truly had no idea, either, that the situation on the reservations was so desperate until I read navajo’s first storm emergency diary and began getting involved in the Native Netroots group. Being an expat, I’ve had more than enough occasion to be embarrassed for and ashamed of my birth country, but nothing is as horrifying as our own treatment of the First Americans. This series will do a lot to help raise awareness in general, by educating a receptive audience. Thank you so much to all of you for making this possible. I can begin to be proud again…

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3. Source:

   Story:

   JOURNALISTS and First Nations elders won’t be barred from a hearing into whether Canada must hand over hundreds of secret documents that could prove Ottawa culpable for hydro-dam flooding that devastated three northern reserves.
   On Monday, a federal court judge rejected a Crown request to ban journalists, aboriginal elders and the public from court while lawyers haggle over whether 259 briefing notes, legal opinions and letters are covered by lawyer-client privilege and must be kept secret forever.

   But it was a somewhat hollow victory.
   Federal Court Prothonotary Roger Lafrenière, a special judge who handles many pretrial and administrative matters, said the court must always err on the side of openness.

   But if the lawyers find they need to discuss the content of any disputed document, the courtroom will need to be cleared to protect Ottawa’s possible claim of confidentiality.

   That means the 50 or so elders and First Nations leaders who jammed the courtroom Monday morning may only get a hint at what the documents say, who authored them and how much liability Canada believed it had, if any.
   It’s the latest snafu in a case that’s dragged on for nearly 20 years and will likely last years more.

   At issue is whether Ottawa failed in its duty to protect three bands — Grand Rapids, Chemawawin and Opaskwayak — in the early 1960s when Manitoba Hydro and the province built the Grand Rapids dam and flooded thousands of aces of prime hunting and trapping land.

   The case could be worth tens of millions in compensation to the bands.

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4. Source:

   Story:

   Eleven police officers serving the Blackfeet tribe have been furloughed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Great Falls Tribune reported on March 6.

   At issue is the tribal department not conducting complete background checks, as required by the federal agency, on the officers, all who have been with the department since last January. The officers have been trained and certified but only passed preliminary background checks.

   The tribal department is pointing the finger at the BIA. Henry Devereaux, the department’s interim director, said the agency never adjudicated the officers with the more in-depth background checks.

   Yet the BIA tosses the blame back. Elizabeth Hall, deputy special agent for the BIA in Billings, said: “That’s not our responsibility. … The tribe is supposed to do the background checks.”

   Also, before January, the BIA had not conducted a review of the two-year-old program, which is under a three-year contract.

   The furloughed officers have been replaced with nine BIA officers, who will remain in place until the background checks are done.

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5. Dozens of First Nations elders were punted out of court this morning as lawyers haggled over flood documents Canada wants to keep secret…Elders, band members, the public and the media are barred from the courtroom once lawyers start dicussing the substance of the documents. Chiefs and band councillors can stay, but none did, to show solidarity with the elders.

   This is what they are up against:

   The federal government gave 96 of the 259 documents to the First Nations on at least three occasions over the years as the case plodded along. It’s absurd to argue they should now be kept confidential, Schachter said.

   Canada is asking the bands to return the documents and may even ask that Schachter resign from the case because he has seen too much. The lawyer said the Canadian government is also arguing its officials hadn’t actually read the documents before handing them over to him years ago.

   and potential judicial bias and as always time:  

   In an unusual moment during Monday’s hearing, about 50 elders from three northern bands held an impromptu meeting in the courtroom to debate whether to ask for a new judge. Perched on the corner of a lawyer’s table, slipping in and out of Cree and English, Grand Rapids Chief Ovide Mercredi quietly described the situation to the elders. At issue was whether the judge might be seen as biased because he once worked for the Department of Justice Canada. “It’s Justice that’s destroying this case for us,” Mercredi told the solemnly hushed room. “That’s what I am nervous about. I don’t feel good about it.” But Mercredi said the judge alerted the court to his old job, an honest move. As discussion began, one gentleman noted a delay to find a new judge might mean some of the elders with stories of the flood could die before ever sharing their knowledge with the court or seeing the case concluded.

   will keep you updated…

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6. Story:

   WASHINGTON – Indian leaders are increasingly weighing in on President Barack Obama’s proposed budget for 2011. A general sense of satisfaction is in the air – especially given an overall federal focus to clamp down on spending – although desired areas for improvement are becoming clear

   .

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7. Additional contributions are great.

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8. Thanks, translatorpro.

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9. I don’t know if that is good or bad; there was one final day scheduled and then I assume the judge is preparing to make a ruling.

   But this is the information from a 1985 report which was released; it makes you wonder what is in the reports they don’t want released

   The Cree were on their own, with no provincial organization to aid them, no lawyers or consultants of their own and limited English. Field officers from the province and Indian Affairs wrote to their supervisors, worried the Cree didn’t grasp the incredible magnitude of the flooding.

   After one 1962 meeting where no band members asked any questions, one Indian Affairs field representative said he “left with the distinct feeling that no one could care less as to whether the people sink or swim.”

   Ottawa knew how serious the damage might be and how vague the offers of provincial compensation were but was unwilling to rock the boat by demanding a better deal for the Cree, according to the report.

   Thanks for your interest – if there is a ruling, I will post it here when it happens.

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