Gorsuch Stays Tribal Jurisdiction Lawsuit
Supreme Court
Gorsuch Stays Tribal Jurisdiction Lawsuit
2023-07-26 20:49:04
by Dan McCue

WASHINGTON — Justice Neil Gorsuch temporarily stayed a ruling by the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that prevented the city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, from enforcing municipal laws against Native Americans. The litigation harkens back to 2018 when Justin Hooper,... Read More

Justices Uphold Law Aimed at Keeping Native American Children With Tribal Families
Supreme Court
Justices Uphold Law Aimed at Keeping Native American Children With Tribal Families

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the Indian Child Welfare Act, a federal law that prioritizes reuniting Native American children in foster care or the adoption system with members of their families and tribes.  In a 7-2 ruling,... Read More

$50M Available to Clean Up Orphaned Oil and Gas Wells on Tribal Lands
Environment
$50M Available to Clean Up Orphaned Oil and Gas Wells on Tribal Lands
2022-11-28 17:16:50
by Dan McCue

WASHINGTON — The Department of the Interior has issued a final guidance for tribes on how to apply for the first $50 million in grant funding available under the bipartisan infrastructure law to clean up orphaned oil and gas wells.... Read More

Supreme Court Justices Question Native American Adoption Law
Supreme Court
Supreme Court Justices Question Native American Adoption Law
2022-11-10 22:04:43
by Dan McCue

WASHINGTON — For the second week in a row, the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court showed that trying to get the law right is a marathon, not a sprint. For roughly four hours on Wednesday, the justices weighed arguments... Read More

Tribal Leaders: Getting Internet to All Needs Greater Coordination
Technology
Tribal Leaders: Getting Internet to All Needs Greater Coordination
2022-09-23 13:21:07
by Madeline Hughes

WASHINGTON — The lack of a national plan for getting internet to every native tribe in the country was on full display Wednesday as the Senate Indian Affairs Committee held a roundtable discussion with federal agencies and tribal leaders working... Read More

Wounded Knee Artifacts Highlight Slow Pace of Repatriations
Human Rights
Wounded Knee Artifacts Highlight Slow Pace of Repatriations

BARRE, Mass. (AP) — One by one, items purportedly taken from Native Americans massacred at Wounded Knee Creek emerged from the dark, cluttered display cases where they’ve sat for more than a century in a museum in rural Massachusetts. Moccasins,... Read More

Struggles of Native American Women Come to the Fore at Seneca Falls Conference
Women's Issues
Struggles of Native American Women Come to the Fore at Seneca Falls Conference
2022-07-22 14:41:11
by Eden Metzger

SENECA FALLS, N.Y. — When it comes to women’s rights in America, one of the often overlooked areas is the struggles of Native American women. At a recent commemoration of the 174th anniversary of the Seneca Falls Convention hosted by... Read More

Gorsuch Scorches Majority Over Ruling in Sovereign Authority Case
Supreme Court
Gorsuch Scorches Majority Over Ruling in Sovereign Authority Case
2022-06-29 20:27:10
by Dan McCue

WASHINGTON — It began with a simple question: Do the federal government and a state have concurrent jurisdiction to prosecute crimes committed by non-Native Americans against Native Americans in what the federal government continues to refer to as “Indian country”?... Read More

$77M in Funding Will Help Bring Broadband to Tribal Lands
Broadband
$77M in Funding Will Help Bring Broadband to Tribal Lands
2022-06-27 18:14:37
by Madeline Hughes

WASHINGTON — Native American tribes across the country are set to receive $77 million in funding to help build new broadband networks and strengthen existing ones, according to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.  This round of funding will go... Read More

Supreme Court Says Alaska Natives Should Get COVID-19 Aid
Supreme Court
Supreme Court Says Alaska Natives Should Get COVID-19 Aid
2021-06-25 21:17:43
by Dan McCue

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court ruled Friday that millions of dollars in COVID-19 relief aid tied up in court for months, rightfully should be given to Alaska Natives rather than tribes in other parts of the country. The case cast... Read More

Navajo Nation Tops Cherokee to Become Largest Tribe in US
Treasury
Navajo Nation Tops Cherokee to Become Largest Tribe in US

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — The Navajo Nation has by far the largest land mass of any Native American tribe in the country. Now, it's boasting the largest enrolled population, too. Navajos clamored to enroll or fix their records as the... Read More

Tribal Communities Have ‘Worst of Both Worlds’ in Pandemic
Health
Tribal Communities Have ‘Worst of Both Worlds’ in Pandemic
2021-03-26 18:40:52
by Alexa Hornbeck

A recent Harvard study found that when it came to the combined economic and health impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, tribal communities “are having the worst of both worlds at the same time.” On Thursday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor... Read More

Haaland OK’d at Interior, 1st Native American Cabinet Head
In The News
Haaland OK'd at Interior, 1st Native American Cabinet Head

 WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate on Monday confirmed New Mexico Rep. Deb Haaland as interior secretary, making her the first Native American to lead a Cabinet department and the first to lead the federal agency that has wielded influence over... Read More

Historical Inequities Have COVID Hitting Indian Country Hard
Health
Historical Inequities Have COVID Hitting Indian Country Hard
2021-02-16 15:57:50
by Kate Michael

WASHINGTON — Since the earliest days of the pandemic, the CDC has said COVID appeared to have a disproportionate impact on those negatively affected by social determinants of health. These conditions in the environments in which people are born, live,... Read More

Schrier Helps Tribes Secure First-Ever Licenses to Expand Internet Access
Congress
Schrier Helps Tribes Secure First-Ever Licenses to Expand Internet Access
2020-11-11 21:23:37
by Sean Trambley

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Kim Schrier, D-Wash., recently helped the Nisqually and the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation in her district fulfill a long time dream. They are two of eight tribes in the state to receive first-of-their-kind licenses... Read More

North Dakota Issues Non-Driver Photo IDs to Native Americans
North Dakota
North Dakota Issues Non-Driver Photo IDs to Native Americans
2020-09-30 17:22:47
by Sara Wilkerson

The North Dakota Department of Transportation is hosting photo identification events at tribal reservations this week in an effort to help Native Americans vote in the 2020 election. Non-driver photo ID cards will be given by NDDOT to those who... Read More

O’Halleran Launches Blue Dogs Virtual Rural Opportunity Roundtable Series
Congress
O'Halleran Launches Blue Dogs Virtual Rural Opportunity Roundtable Series
2020-09-01 17:06:34
by Dan McCue

Rep. Tom O'Halleran, D-Ariz., made a little history on Monday by launching the Blue Dog Democrats' first-ever virtual rural opportunity roundtable series. The discussion with local and tribal leaders focused on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on rural and... Read More

Washington Redskins Will Abandon Controversial Name And Logo
Sports
Washington Redskins Will Abandon Controversial Name And Logo
2020-07-13 19:26:05
by Gaspard Le Dem

WASHINGTON - After mounting pressure from activists, sponsors, and politicians, Washington’s NFL franchise announced on Monday that it would drop its controversial name, “The Redskins”, and start working on redesigning its logo. “Today, we are announcing we will be retiring... Read More

Supreme Court Holds Large Piece of Oklahoma Belongs to Native American Tribe
Supreme Court
Supreme Court Holds Large Piece of Oklahoma Belongs to Native American Tribe
2020-07-09 19:12:57
by Dan McCue

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a large part of eastern Oklahoma belongs to Native American tribes - a significant victory for a reservation that challenged the state's authority to prosecute crimes on its land. Writing for the... Read More

Report Suggests Native Americans Would Be Disenfranchised With All-By-Mail Vote
2020 Elections
Report Suggests Native Americans Would Be Disenfranchised With All-By-Mail Vote
2020-06-05 18:54:28
by Dan McCue

WASHINGTON - A switch to all-by-mail voting ahead of the 2020 general election would disenfranchise Native Americans because it would be impossible for some of them to cast a ballot that way, the Native American Rights Fund says in a... Read More

Elizabeth Warren Again Pressed on Past Claims of Native American Heritage
Political News
Elizabeth Warren Again Pressed on Past Claims of Native American Heritage

More than 200 Cherokees and other Native Americans have signed a letter urging Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren to fully retract her past claims to being Native and help dispel false beliefs held by many white people that they have... Read More

New Mexico Residents Complain About Oil and Gas Drilling
New Mexico
New Mexico Residents Complain About Oil and Gas Drilling
2019-04-16 21:32:34
by Tom Ramstack

Members of a U.S. House committee advocated for stricter oil and natural gas drilling regulations during a hearing Monday in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Democrats on the House Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources said lax regulations are creating too... Read More

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