Monthly Archives: July 2022

Moving forward

The Tribal Council has asked the Tribal Court for an advisory opinion on holding a special election to fill the potential Treasurer vacancy.  Marie Stone requested documents from the Council hearing where she was removed three weeks ago. She has yet to file suit. The Council is not waiting for her to make up her mind.

Creative, cost saving, energy efficient, environmentally sound solar canopies part of the Trbes’ move forward. CDC gets the credit.

The Tribal Community Development Corporation presented a solar energy project that it has been working on for a while.  It was well received and quite innovative in concept and design.  The first to benefit are the residents in tribal housing. and tree based solar canopies would become part of the parking lots generating energy for the government center.  There’s a little more to fine tune before the project is back next week.

INDIANS IN THE NEWS

Ojibwe Minnesota Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan was the

Flanagan’s Republican opponent says she
“savaged” him by denouncing his position against abortion when a woman is raped.

target of a racial slur when her Republican opponent called her a “savage.”  Matt Birk is the culprit.  He was addressing a Right to Life group and commented that “two wrongs don’t make a right,” when justifying abortion in cases of rape. Flanagan said Birk’s position “denies survivors the choice to end their pregnancy and force them to live the lives their rapists chose for them rather than ones they wanted for themselves.” On Twitter Birk said Flanagan tried to ” “savage” him for his remarks.  He reluctantly apologized later. Flanagan is a citizen of White Earth Band of Ojibwe.

Native nations are supporting legislation to legalize and decriminalize cannabis in the United States. The bill was introduced in the US Senate Finance Commitee by Majority Leader Chuck Shumer and other leaders.  It is designed to bring uniformity to cannabis regulation nationwide. “The ultimate goal of this historic plant medicine legislation is the ability of our native people to choose their own path and thus their own future without interference by the states,” William Snell, executive director of the Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council, said. The legislation provides extensive grants, and funding for enforcement, healthcare education and a long list of guidelines designed to regulate a huge new industry.

The 6 tribes of the Chippawa Nation will decide whether to stick with blood quantum enrollment.

Minnesota Chippawa removes blood quantum enrollment requirement.  Since 1961, children had to have 1/4 Chippawa blood to be enrolled. The approval of the nonbinding referendum that allows the 6 tribes of that nation to decide if they want to lift that blood qualifier. Blood quantum tribal rolls are declining as is the Chippawa.  They will now decide whether stick with blood quantum, go back to direct lineage to the original rolls were calculated after the passing of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934.The federal government required the quantum measurement for tribes to receive services.

So What’s new?

The Tribe is putting out a weekly newsletter which is good. So how do we get it to Elders? They don’t fool with the internet.  They have their own news service. Second question. What is the Mittark good for? Slick and full of department reports compiled by department heads pretty much. They get paid nearly $100k a year to talk about  those grants and a lot of stuff that doesn’t help anyone. No comments from tribal members who have concerns about our problems with a multitude of issues…, overdoses, housing, employment.  Ignoring problems doesn’t make them go away.

ABOUT MARIE STONE

Marie Stone has requested documentation from the hearing resulting in her removal.  It signals that she may file suit in Tribal Court.  There is a short time frame for that. Meanwhile the Tribe must prepare for a special election which is up to the Elections Committee Chair Robin Tobey Stamps.  She is out for a few more weeks and should be back to work soon.

Stay tuned.

 

Council removes Marie Stone as tribal treasurer

The young chairman handled an extremely difficult decision by confronting a problem involving a close friend. He won respect by putting the Tribe first.

Council members were determined but not very happy about what they had to do.  The detail of Marie’s misbehavior was sad and tedious.  But it left no doubt about the charges she faced and the overwhelming support for her removal as tribal treasurer. The charges were malfeasance and non-feasance, which is abuse of authority and wrongdoing by an elected official. There were 5 counts for malfeasance starting with the curse laden email, 2 being unauthorized use of the American Express Card with 11 charges, count 3, the loss of financial consultants who were unable to work with her and the abusive behavior toward financial staff and finally abandonment of duties.  For non-feasance there were many issues including no tax return, failure to pay TERO vendors, never filed the ARBA (which was payments to tribal members among others) and abandonment of her duties.

The motion to expel Marie Stone received the seven votes necessary but not before Councilwoman Winnie Johnson left the meeting prior to that vote.  At this point the Council vote to expel Marie Stone is subject to tribal court review if Marie Stone choses to appeal.

Some good news the Council adopted the Code of Conduct put together by Councilwoman Rita Pocknett and moved forward with the purchase of Del Sol. Both are significant to good government and address a serious problem that is killing our people.

 

Pow Wow Princess Royalty

Dasia Peters hands the crown to her cousin Amiyah Peters who will reign until next year’s Pow Wow.

The Pow Wow Princess legacy lives on in the Peters (Costa) family lead by brothers Jermaine (AKA “Quahog”)( & Christine) and Randy III.  Jermaine’s beautiful Dasia gave up the crown to her cousin Amiyah (2022-2023) the daughter of Randy, whose sisters Chenoa and Ketura wore the crown previously. Amiya performed a lovely traditional blanket dance for her exhibition.

The ladies maternal great-grandmother Natalie Costa is a much loved Elder of one of the Mashpee Wampanoag’s oldest families, the Cowets.  They are smart, talented and beautiful representatives of our people. Good luck Amiyah!

SHOWS ABOUT NDN’S YOU GOTTA WATCH

People are fascinated with Native Americans and for the first time in decades a slew of TV series and movies produced with Native actors by Natives and are digging into what that Native Life is for real.

Dark WindsIs an excellent mystery suspense with an all-Native cast on a Navajo

Walking in two worlds is tough as depicted in Dark Winds a well-produced mystery revealing the difficult life on a desolate Navajo reservation in the 70’s.

reservation centered around a small tribal police force trying to resolve murder robbery that heaps tribal revenge on the “colonizing demons,” spells, the FBI and all the social problems Native people experience in the workplace and at home.

AMC Sunday 9pm

 

Dreaming of ways to get off the reservation while trying to deal with the crazies surrounding you.

Reservation Dogs- Oklahoma reservation this comedy is full of characters found in every tribe. It centers on a crew of diverse hustling young Natives with big dreams that are hard to fulfill. Watch for the ghost …the funniest guy in the show. Catch up on Season 1 on Hulu or FX.

             HULU Season 2 — August 3

RUTHERFORD FALLS--A comedy that closely resembles us in that the tribe is in northern New York,

Rutherford Falls has everything! even PretendYins

still lives on their land surrounded by Whites. Their reservation and government are functioning ” the Indian way.” Unlike us they have a casino and they’re branching out with a marijuana business, lots of land to give away and a cultural center etc. It also has a transgender Native character. Maybe we can learn something.  It is funny. Got a new word for those nuts we run into all the time...”PRETENDYINS”

   Catch up on the 2 seasons on Peacock

 

 

We could make millions on a Mashpee show.  We wouldn’t have to make anything up.