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WOTANGING IKCHE- NATIVE AMERICAN NEWS VOLUME 15, ISSUE 029 Distributed by Gary Night Owl EDITORIAL CONTENTS LIST ELDER QUOTE OF THE WEEK

EDITORIAL By: Gary Smith

O'siyo Brothers and Sister! The question of sovereignty is one that keeps popping up, and with good reason. The answers are seldom clear, and there are several very good reasons for this. All of them are interconnected to how tribal nation sovereignty is treated by the federal government, and most especially by the federal courts. One of the people who has helped me in the past is Peter d'Errico, Legal Studies Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He is extremely knowledgeable in areas of Indian Law, especially where the boundaries touch, cross, and blend with state and federal jurisdiction. To understand why this area has been and continues to be so muddy, please go to http://www.umass.edu/legal/derrico/sovereignty.html  and read "SOVEREIGNTY: A Brief History in the Context of U.S. "Indian law"" by Peter d'Errico, and you will understand why at times tribal sovereignty has been almost totally non-existant and at other times a study of true tribal dominion. Right now the limited sovereignty many US Tribes and Canadian First Nations enjoy and exercise, while not the full authority of an independent nation that many tribes yearn for and some are more than ready for, is quite strong. Recent activities by many tribes, however, are bound to push the question of sovereignty and its limits where tribes are concerned back into the courts that are now in the firm grip of conservatives appointed by Reagan and the two Bush presidents, and Tories in Canada. There is little doubt these courts will render decisions that favor commercial interests over those of the Indian community. I cannot see into the future, but I would suggest it may be in the tribes' best interest to enter into sovereignty battles with care. It would only take a few decisions to set tribal sovereignty right back to pre-1934 and the policies prescribed by the Indian Reorganization Act. This would not be a good thing for any tribal nation or its citizens. Dohiyi Ani Oginalii Gary Smith (*,*) wotanging@bellsouth.net P. O. Box 672168 (`-') gars@nanews.org Marietta, GA 30006, U.S.A. ===w=w=== http://www.nanews.org

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CONTENTS LIST OF ARTICLES IN VOLUME 15, ISSUE 029 FOR ARTICLES GOT TO WOTANGING IKCHE-Native American News Editorial Section: . Tribal Sovereignty - Indian Affairs Will Examine Transportation - Farmer Fights To Grow Hemp On Reservation - New Homes Planned In Bennett Freeze - Blackfeet Nation To Dedicate Medicine Wheel - Is Osage County A Reservation? - Osage Chief Challenges Enforcement Of State Law - The Prairie Fight Is On - Judge Opens Electronic Data To Cobell Plaintiffs - National Indian Youth Leadership Project - Siletz Restoration: Return From Termination - American Indian Studies Blossom - Honoring Our Elders: Nellie (Miller) Hunter - Giago: State Of Native Nations Per Harvard - Editorial: Give Reservations Enough Police - Opinion: Klamath Dams Should Be Removed - Yellow Bird: Near Where I Marked My Name... - Opinion: Office Of The Special Trustee - Editorial: Connecting The Dots - Harjo: Bushies And Friends Of Angler - Wasserman: Patriotic Service Of Leonard Peltier - Yellow Bird: Modern Eyes Can Distort History - Another Indian Blockade Possible In B.C. - New Colonial Tactics To Shut Down Dissent - `Manhattan Project' At Sharbot Lake - Funding News Kicks Off Metis Assembly - MP Says Province Bribed Natives To OK Treaty - Sovereignty Case Headed To Supreme Court - Racial Issues Raised In Smokeshop Case - Zuni Is Murder Victim - Native Justice -- Reminder: Richard Lone Dog In Peril -- Budget Cuts Leave Tribes With Inadequate Police -- Mindshift To Combat Violence Against Native Women - Rustywire: Comes With War - Lee Goins Poem: The Sacred Road - Upcoming Events

FOR ARTICLES GO TO WOTANGING IKCHE-Native American News

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"The Indian people are very good at grieving." "We come together in our grief. But we need to come together for something that stops this grief and stops the pattern of alcohol use that is taking the lives of our young people." -- Betty Fenner, Blackfeet

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CONTACT: Please send all submissions, subscription requests, questions or comments for this newsletter to Gary Night Owl at gars@nanews.org . Website: Wotanging Ikche-Native American News ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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