The Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 1989-04-05

              courts have jurisdiction in Indian adoptions
Washington. D.C. The Supreme
Court held Monday that state courts
do not have power to let non-
American Indian families adopt
Indian children, even when the
natural parents leave the reservation
to give up custody.
The 6-3 ruling overturns the
adoption of Choctaw Indian twins
by a Mississippi couple and sends
the case to the Choctaw tribal court
for further study.
Justice William Brennan, writing
for the court, acknowledged that he
was not "writing on a blank slate" in
reopening the adoption of Samuel
and Megan Holyfield, who were
adopted at birth Orrey and Vivian
Holyfield and are now 3 years old.
But Brennen said that a 1978
federal law passed to prevent the
involutary break-up of Indian
families squarely places custody
decisions in the hands of tribal
courts, had Mississippi followed the
Indian Child Welfare Act when the
adoption was granted in 1986,
"much potential anguish might have
been avoided," Brennan said.
He added, however, "It is not ours
to say whether the trauma that might
result from removing these children
from their adoptive family should
outweigh the interest of the
tribe—and perhaps the children
themselves~in having them raised as
part of the Choctaw community.
Rather, we must defer to the
experience, wisdom and compassion
of the tribal courts" in deciding the
fate of the twins.
Dissenting Justice John Paul
Stevens, joined by Chief Justice
William Rehnquist and Justice
Anthony Kennedy, said the ruling
"distorts the delicate balance
between individual rights and group
rights" contained in the 1978 law.
Jennie Bell and Windell Jefferson,
the twins' natural parents, joined the
Holyfields in arguing the adoption
decree should stand.
The twins were born in December
1985 at a Gulf Coast hospital 200
miles from the Choctaw reservation
in east-central Mississippi. A
Mississippi judge concluded that the
natural parents had escaped tribal
jurisdiction by leaving the
reservation to give birth, and the
state Supreme Court agreed.
The tribe maintained that federal
law gave the tribal court the
authority and warned that
Mississippi would become "a
potential adoption mecca for . . .
black marketeers trading in Indian
children" if the Mississippi court
decision stood.
The 1978 Indian Child Welfare
Act was enacted at a time when
between 25 percent and 35 percent
of all Indian Children were being
placed with adoptive families or in
foster care or institutions.
A study conducted for the Bureau
of Indian Affairs and the
Department of Health and Human
Services shows that many more
Indian children than previously
thought are in adoptive or foster
homes.
The report notes that public
welfare agencies are unable to find
Indian homes for "a significant
number" of Indian children.
In Minnesota, however, the report
states, compliance with the Indian
Child Welfare Act is very high and
about two-thirds of about 400
children in foster homes live with
Indian families.
Scripps Howard News Service
■■:'.•..--.:.
Warroad and Mahnomen want to
keep nicknames — page 2
Jourdain's 30 year of "progress" -
page 6
Inhalant abuse by children on the
rise — page 9
 ——
Z3
Fifty Cents
Founded in 1988.
msam
Volume 1
N/tercirS9, 1989 I
' Copyright, the Ojibwe News, 1989
A Weekly Publication
Bellecourt sues FBI for taking
By Brian K. Anderson
Twin Cities correspondent
Vernon Bellecourt, a long-time
Indian activist, is filing charges
against the Federal Bureau of
Investigation for allegedly infringing
on his constitutional rights.
The suit charges the FBI with
illegally obtaining copies of
Bellecourt's photographs he took
while attending a historical
conference in Panama City, Panama.
According to Bellecourt, the day
after he and his wife, Janice Denny,
arrived in the Twin Cities, they went
to a one-hour photo lab to have the
film developed. After they dropped
off the film, the FBI allegedly
demanded that the two photo-lab
workers turn over copies of
Bellecourt's photos.
The FBI's wrongdoing, said
Bellecourt, solidifies his claim that
he is still being closely watched by
the government for his continuing
efforts to expose U.S. complicity in
crimes against humanity, perpetrated
by various U.S. supported regimes
and their death squads. Bellecourt
also said he feels he is being
harassed for his continued criticism
of U.S. domestic policies against
Indian nations that are eroding the
political and jurisdictional authority
of Indian governments; and for their
ongoing taking of exploitation of
land, water and natural resources.
Bellecourt said he is almost certain
that this latest incident stems from
his refusal to testify to a grand jury
last fall about activities of Libyan
students in the U.S. At the time,
Bellecourt refused to testify because
he wanted to maintain his right to
free association, expression, and the
right to be free of censorship. He
had to serve two months in the
Metropolitan Correction Center in
New York for not testifying.
According to Bellecourt, U.S.
Attorney Joe Walbrin to the
manager of the photo lab that is was
his duty to do what the FBI
demanded. Even though a subpoena
wasn't issued at the time, Walbrin
allegedly told the manger to
cooperate and that they would get a
subpoena later.
Ron Kuby, on of Bellecourt's
attorneys who represents the Office
of William Kunsder in New York,
said that Bellecourt's case is very
strong and that it will definitely hold
up in court. "These types of actions
repeatedly have been ruled illegal by
federal courts all over the country.
They (the FBI) violated Bellecourt's
First Amendment rights and also his
Fourth Amendment rights," Kuby
said. "Actions will be taken against
the agents involved. . . also the
person who directed the actions will
be charged."
The FBI refused to comment about
the allegations brought against them
by Bellecourt.
"Obviously we're going to demand
the return of our property," said
Bellecourt. "We're going to demand
that they certify that if they made
copies, whether or not they
circulated them, because we have
the right to demand our property
back."
What worries Bellecourt the most
is what they are doing with the
pictures while the suit is being
drawn up. Another thing that he
cannot understand is why the FBI
would even want the pictures. After
all, according to Bellecourt, the
photos were just pictures of children,
dancers, Indian leaders and others
Vernon Beffcourt and Libyan Leader Muammar Qadhafl in Tripofi, Ubya In March 1987.
involved in the convention.
The convention was held to
develop the Congress of Indians,
which would represent the Indian
people of Central America. Indian
leaders from Mexico, Guatemala, El
Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua,
Belize, Costa Rica and Panama were
all part of the landmark event.
Many of the people who attended
the conference lost family members,
friends and associates who were
w
victims of what Bellecourt claims
arc U.S. supported military regimes
and death squads.
Asked if there was any reason for
the "watchful" eye the FBI has
apparently imposed on him,
Bellecourt replied, "It must be a
paranoia on their part. First of all, I
consider myself a citizen of the
Anishinabe nation. Secondly, we
had citizenship forced on us in 1924
by an act of Congress called the
Photo by Ron Wilkins c1987
Citizenship Act. Well, we should be
entitled to all the constitutional
protections that anyone else is
entitled to. We should have the right
to travel freely without being
harassed or intimidated. . . if the
next day an FBI agent is following
me, obviously from my home to the
photo shop, and then invades my
privacy by demanding my photos,
then something is wrong."
Study finds reversal in rural land value trend
Minneapolis (AP) A seven-year
trend of continuously declining rural
real estate value in Minnesota was
reversed last year in all but the
northeastern part of the state,
University of Minnesota researchers
say.
The researchers' study found that
the average estimated per-acre value
of Minnesota's rural real estate
increased 9 percent statewide, to
$523, from July 1987 to July 1988.
The southwestern part of the state
showed the greatest gain with an
average estimated value of $784 per
acre, up $113 or 17 percent from a
year earlier, agricultural economist
Philip Raup and assistant Andrew
Schwab said in the March issue of
the "Minnesota Agricultural
Economist."
Southeastern Minnesota, excluding
Hennepin and Ramsey counties, had
a 16 percent increase to $648;
west-central Minnesota showed a 6
percent increase to $499; northwest
Minnesota was up 4 percent to $390,
and east-central Minnesota increased
3 percent to $268.
Northeastern Minnesota values, on
the other hand, declined 11 percent
to $251.
Raup emphasized that the
estimates reflect conditions before
the full effects of the 1988 drought
were known. But he said the pattern
of changes in estimated value has
been similar for the past two years.
"Although other causes may be
involved, this two-year pattern
demonstrates the stabilizing and
positive effects of government
support measures in the 1985
Agricultural Act and the rise in grain
exports, which benefited primarily
those areas most dependent on cash
crops," the researchers said.
The study also found that the
average price paid statewide for
farmland during the first six months
of 1988 increased 24 percent, to
$691 per acre, over the average price
for the January-June 1987 period.
That too was the first increase in
average sales prices since the peak
in 1981. But the average increase
was reduced to 20 percent when
adjustments were made to take into
account the larger volume of sales of
higher-priced land in 1988, Raup
said.
All parts of the state except the
east-central section reported
increases in price. The southeastern
section, excluding Hennepin and
Ramsey counties, had a 28 percent
increase as farmland sold for an
average $797 an acre.
The figures for other areas were;
northwest, 22 percent increase,
$411; southwest, 20 percent
increase, $911; west-central, 16
percent increase, $571; northeast, 10
percent increase, $571, and
east-central, 8 percent decrease,
$395.
"Financial difficulty was given
most often as the reason for selling
farmland last year; it accounted for
42 percent of all sales," the
researchers said.
"If one assumes that 'leaving
farming' and 'reducing size of
operation' were also the result of
financial deterioration, then 56
percent of all sales were caused by
financial difficulty, down from 70
percent in 1987."
Retirement accounted for 23
percent and death for 14 percent of
all sales, the researchers said.
The study said expansion buyers
purchased 75 percent of the rural
real estate sold, while investors
bought 13 percent and single-tract
buyers 11 percent.
Cash financing was used in 41
percent of all transactions. Contracts
for deed continued to decline in use
to 34 percent of sales, the lowest
since 1956. Mortgage financing was
used in 25 percent of all sales.
Data for the study were obtained
from 664 usable responses to about
1,400 questionnaires mailed in July
to real estate brokers, appraisers,
farm managers, county officials,
agricultural credit and bank officials
and others familiar with Minnesota's
rural real estate market.
Bemidji, Minnesota 56601
Police chief
proposes
abolishing
City Council
SL Paul (AP) Police Chief William
McCutcheon wants to do away with
the City Council and turn its duties
over to neighborhood councils, a
proposal that Mayor George Latimer
calls "whimsical."
McCutcheon said he decided the
St. Paul City Council should be
abolished after watching council
meetings on cable television.
"The citywide perspective has
been lost by the narrow view of
council members," McCutcheon, a
former state senator, said in a letter
to nine fellow city department heads
or managers. "The council has
moved away from the policy-making
body envisioned in the charter
toward a council overly involved in
the day-to-day operations of the city
departments."
He also said the council spends
hours "debating minutiae."
Council members Bob Long, Tom
Dimond and Jim Scheibel say
McCutcheon must be joking.
"We have a democratic form of
government," Scheibel said.
"Whether we make mistakes, it's a
system that's worked well in the
city."
Long said McCutcheon *s attitude
reflects "sour grapes" over the
council's more aggressive role in
reviewing the city budget and setting
policy.
I think poor Bill is seeing more
oversight to his department than in
the last nine years, and I don't think
it sits well with him. Long said.
"There is a petition floating around
the city somewhere to make the
council elected half by wards and
half at large and my proposal was
meant to endorse the community
councils as a way to create the city's
legislative body," he said.
Latimer said it's not likely voters
will get rid of the City Council.
"The risks that (McCutcheon's)
talking about are real. (But) that's
what we have elections for," Latimer
said. "People can decide whether
their council person is too mired
down on minutiae or too prone to
regulation or intervention."
State confirms 500th AIDS case since epidemic began seven years ago
Minneapolis (AP) State health
officials have reported the 500th
confirmed case of AIDS in
Minnesota since the epidemic
began seven years ago, but say the
rate at which new cases are being
reported has slowed.
While the Minnesota Department
of Health had predicted there
would be 540 or more cases of
acquired immune deficiency
syndrome by now, a top health
official cautioned that the
encouraging trend, first detected
last year, may be only temporary.
State epidemiologist Michael
Osterholm said Thursday there can
be major swings in the number of
cases from one month to the next.
Having 500 cases is very
discouraging because it illustrates
how large the epidemic has grown,
even though it could have been
worse at this point, he said.
The department isn't ready to
change its projections that the total
will reach 1,300 to 1,900 by the
end of 1990, Osterholm added. But
he said the department does plan to
review those estimates this summer
on the basis of the latest trends and
other information.
Forty new AIDS cases have been
reported so far this year, and a few
more possible cases still are being
investigated. By comparison, 158
cases were reported last year, an
average of 39.5 a quarter. The
number of cases had been
increasing about 50 percent or
more from one year to the next for
several years.
Osterholm and Dr. Keith Henry,
an AIDS expert at the St. Paul
Health Department, said some
people who have the AIDS virus
may be temporarily delaying the
progression to AIDS by taking
AIDS-fighting drugs such as AZT.
AZT has shown an ability to extend
the lives of some AIDS patients.
Some experts believe that it and
another drug that helps prevent a
type of pneumonia associated with
AIDS also may be delaying the
onset of AIDS in some people who
are carrying the virus.
Health officials said 268 of the
AIDS patients have died, including
the large majority of those who
developed AIDS more than two
years ago.
Of the 500 people in Minnesota
who have been diagnosed as having
AIDS, the health department said
88 percent were homosexual or
bisexual men; 3 percent were
needle-sharing drug abusers who
were not homosexual men; 3
percent (10 women and three men)
were people who caught the virus
through heterosexual intercourse; 4
percent were hemophiliacs or
others receiving blood transfusions;
and fewer than 1 percent were
young children who picked up the
virus from an infected mother
before birth.
One percent of the confirmed
AIDS cases are still being
investigated to find out how the
virus spread, the department said.
House panel approves much-discussed ground water protection bill
St. Paul (AP) The much-heralded
ground water protection bill that has
been discussed for weeks at the
Minnesota Legislature cleared its
first hurdle Thursday evening.
The "Comprehensive Water
Resources Act" was approved by the
House Environment and Natural
Resources Committee with no
audible dissent. Rep. Willard
Munger, DFL-Duluth, committee
chairman and known as "Mr.
Environment" in some circles, is the
chief author.
The measure, which was sent to
the House Governmental Operations
Committee, would affect virtually
every Minnesotan, ranging from the
average homeowner who would pay
a $3.20 annual "connection fee" for
water to the business owner who
would pay $20.
It also calls on the state to pick up
to 75 percent of the cost for sealing
abandoned wells, up to $2,000, and
provides for further research and
monitoring of ground water.
In addition, the bill would
provide:<
• Grants to counties to develop
comprehensive water plans.
• Grants to expand the monitoring
of public water supplies.
• Money for the preparation of a
state pesticide management plan.
• More money to improve edu
cation about ground water
• The licensing of the estimated
8,300 pesticides in use in Minnesota
at $200 apiece.
The bill originally had a price tag
of $24.1 million over the next two
years, but the many alterations since
then have changed that figure.
Rep. Elton Redalen, IR-Fountain,
said the exact cost of the measure
won't be known until it is tabulated
in the Appropriations Committee.
"By and large, I can pretty well
live with the bill," said Redalen, a
co-author.
He said the measure, if passed,
could lead to the curtailment of the
use of some pesticides by farmers.
The Department of Agriculture,
which will be the primary enforcer
of ground water purity under the
bill, could order farmers to stop
using certain chemicals if limits are
above allowable levels set by the
Department of Health. Those levels
have not yet been set, said Redalen.
He said the Minnesota Pollution
Control Agency could only step in
when surface runoff, such as that
from a feedlot, contaminated ground
water.
Many farmers have been leery of
the Pollution Control Agency being
involved in the process, citing a
greater trust level in the Department
of Agriculture.
One provision offered by Rep.
Dave Bishop, IR-Rochester, would
allow for the cost of sealing
abandoned wells, which are found to
be contaminating ground water, to
be shifted to the landowner's
property tax bill and paid over 10
years.
Bishop said he also hopes to
convince House leaders to provide
some money in a bonding bill to
help pay for the cost of sealing
abandoned wells that are causing
ground water problems.
There are an estimated 800,000
abandoned wells in the state,
according to Bishop.
Currently, there is only enough
money in the bill to provide for the
sealing of 0.5 percent, or about
2,000, of those wells. Not all of the
800,000 wells are causing problems,
however.
An amendment by Rep. Phyllis
Kahn, DFL-Minneapolis, was
approved which would require
certain toilets sold after 1992 to have
a maximum of 1.6 gallons of "flush
water."
The current level is generally
between five gallons and seven
gallons, said Rep. Virgil Johnson,
IR-Caledonia.