Native American Press / Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 2008-05-15

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INDEX
NEWS AROUND INDIAN COUNTRY 2
NEWS BRIEFS 3
COMMENTARY/EDITORIALS 4-5
CLASSIFIEDS 7
Tensions rise after
gunbattle on
California reservation
page 3
Former president
campaigns on Pine Ridge
Reservation
page 3
Cold Hard Facts
page 4
Illegal Contracts for
Interstate Transport
of Gaming & Tribal
Government Property
page 4
Minnesota educator
launches effort to
combat FASD
page 4
Excerpts from The Fatal Link by Jody Allen Crowe
VOICE      OF      THE       PEOPLE
Editors Note: These pages
are chosen somewhat at
random because ofthe wealth
of material in the book itself.
The choices are excerpted
here simply to give you a
smattering ofthe information
that it contains as well as peak
your interest in the whole
work.
I needed to isolate the leader.
He came from a violent family
whose mother was a gang
member and a heavy drinker.
He fit the profile of an FASD
juvenile. His reading level
was several grades lower than
his chronological age. He was
accomplished at getting what
he wanted through either his
fighting or his authority in the
gang given to him by his very
violent brothers, one who had
been expelled from our school
for tapping a bullet on a desk
and telling a teacher it was
for her, and two others who
were gang chiefs in the state
penitentiary. I brought him into
my office.
Within minutes, he was crying,
telling me he did not have a
choice. If he left the gang, he
would be sought out by the gang
and either beaten within an inch
of his life or killed. He believed
that with everything in him.
He could not see a way out of
his life. He remembered being
placed in a foster placement
for a time, the best time of his
life. He had his own room, a
TV he could watch, and people
who took care of him. In his
gang life, he constantly worried
who would beat him up, what
his mother would do to him,
or what store would she want
him to rob. He told me the
structure ofthe gang, who were
the leaders in the community,
what his role was and what he
was told he needed to do. His
role was to train the young fifth,
sixth, and seventh graders into
gang members. The detail was
frightening.
As he spoke, I realized he was
telling me the truth. His
brothers had assigned him to
be the "leader in training." He
was not old enough to lead the
reservation gang made up of
older teens and adults, but he
could train new gang members
in his young gang. Within a few
years, he would then be moved
into the leadership on the 'rez',
as the reservation was known.
He was to recruit students who
would not have fear, who would
fight when asked, and would
follow the direction ofthe gang,
in other words, he recruited
the FASD kids, both male and
female.
I began to see a direct link
between heavily impacted FAS
kids and gangs. Mille Lacs
was experiencing a staggering
increase in gang activity and
our school was a hotbed of
recruitment. Two major gangs
were establishing territories and
the schools were included in
that territory.
Studies show women drink
during their pregnancies at
unbelievable rates. Binge
drinking is linked to unplanned
pregnancies and binge drinking
is especially damaging to the
child. Studies show drinking
one half of a drink a day can
lower the child's language skills.
Drs. Joanne L. Gusella and
P.A. Fried found even light
drinking (average one-quarter
ounce of absolute alcohol daily)
could have adverse affects on
the child's verbal language
and comprehension skills.
[Neurobehavioral Toxicology
and Teratology, Vol. 6:13-17,
1984]
A 2001 study revealed that
an adverse behavior effect can
result from an average of one
drink per week and children with
any prenatal alcohol exposure
were 3.2 times as likely to have
delinquent behavior scores in
the clinical range compared
with non-exposed children...
web page: www.press-on.net
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An FASD victim may have
an IQ of 140, but not be able
to maximize their IQ due to
other parts of the brain being
damaged. On the other hand,
prenatal exposure to alcohol is
recognized as the single greatest
cause for mental retardation
and the only totally preventable
cause.
According to Dr. Anne
Streissguth, (Final Report
from Research on Secondary
Disabilities by Ann Streissguth,
presented to the FAS Conference
in Seattle in September of
1996) the academic abilities of
individuals with FASD are below
their IQ level, and their living
skills, communication skills
and adaptive behavior levels are
even further below IQ levels.
Because the damage is directly
linked to the time and amount
of exposure, victims of FASD
show none, some, or all, of the
spectrum of behaviors.
Specific areas of the brain
are linked to both academic
and social behaviors. The
large complex frontal lobes of
the brain are vital for speech,
planning, problem solving,
social behavior, self-awareness,
EXCERPTS to page 5
We Support Equal Opportunity For All People
A weekly publication.  Copyright, Native American Press, 2008
Founded in 1988
Volume 20 Issue 1
May 15, 2008
Red Lake man pleads guilty to
sexual abuse of a minor
A 26-year-old Red Lake man
pleaded guilty yesterday in
federal court to one count of
sexual abuse of a minor.
Donald Wayne-Clark entered
his plea May 12 in Minneapolis
before United States District
Court Judge Michael Davis.
Clark was indicted on Jan. 8.
According to Clark's plea
agreement, he knowingly
engaged in forcible sexual
intercourse with a 14-year-old
girl within the boundaries ofthe
Red Lake Indian Reservation on
March 4, 2007.
Clark faces a potential
maximum penalty of 15 years
in prison. Judge Davis will
determine sentencing at a
future date.
This case is the result of an
investigation by the Federal
Bureau of Investigation and the
Red Lake Police Department,
and is being prosecuted by
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Erica
H. MacDonald and William
Otteson.
Federal prosecutor to be added in South Dakota
Associated Press
PIERRE - The U.S. attorney
is getting another prosecutor
in South Dakota.
Marty Jackley says there
were 128 requests for extra
prosecutors across the country,
and his office is one of 43
to get another assistant U.S.
attorney.
The Justice Department is
adding prosecutors to handle
people who harm children on
American Indian reservations
and to enforce the Adam Walsh
Act.
The law is named for a 6-
year-old boy who was abducted
from a Florida mall in 1981
and killed. A condition of the
act requires convicted child
molesters to be listed on a
national Internet database.
Jackley says South Dakota
will now have 28 federal
prosecutors. Twenty of them
are assigned to cases involving
violence, firearms, drugs and
immigration.
Assistant U.S. attorneys
also handle major crimes
on the state's nine Indian
reservations.
Celebration,
somber protest
at Capitol
By Kara McGuire
Star Tribune
After years of preparation,
Minnesota kicked off its 150th
birthday celebration week
Sunday, the actual anniversary
of Minnesota's statehood. There
was no cake and it was too windy
to light 150 candles anyway, but
the citizens who came out to
remember Minnesota's past and
ponder its future were treated
to a wagon train, remarks by
several politicians and, on a
more solemn note, a protest.
About 75 American Indians
and supporters gathered on
sacred ground at Indian Mounds
Park on Sunday morning for a
march to the Capitol, holding
banners with phrases such
as "take down the Fort"— a
reference to Fort Snelling,
which they said played a key role
in abuses of Minnesota's native
tribes. Others wore black masks
and carried scaffolding with 38
nooses in remembrance of the
38 Dakota men executed in
Mankato by order of President
Abraham Lincoln, on Dec. 26,
1862.
"We tried to encourage
[sesquicentennial organizers] to
use this year for truth-telling,"
said Gustavus Adolphus scholar
Waziyatawin Angela Wilson.
According to Wilson, Minnesota
leaders "refused and wanted to
continue with their birthday
celebration and not let truth-
telling get in the way."
On Saturday, the Dakota
protesters briefly stalled the
Sesquicentennial Wagon Train
as it approached its camping
area at Fort Snelling. Police
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removed several protesters from
the path of the train, which left
Cannon Falls seven days ago
on a circuitous 101-mile trip to
the Capitol. It arrived Sunday
afternoon and this time police
kept the two groups separated.
In remarks at the launch of
Statehood Week on Sunday
afternoon, Gov. Tim Pawlenty,
as well as U.S. Sens. Norm
Coleman and Amy Klobuchar
and other officials, acknowledged
the Dakota people. Pawlenty
reminded the crowd that he
declared May American Indian
Month in Minnesota.
"We're committed to telling all
the stories of Minnesota as a state
- both the failures and tragedies
as well as the successes," said
Sesquicentennial Commission
executive director Jane Leonard
in response to the Dakota
concerns. She said the story of
Minnesota "is kind of the story
of America in a way, with Native
Americans being pushed out
with westward migration."
The politicians also spoke
to the state's character and
PROTEST to page 6
Billy Mills
to Headline
'Positive Living'
Month at Bois
Forte
Olympic Gold Medalist
to Encourage Health and
Cultural Pride Among
American Indians
NETT LAKE, MN-(Marketwire
-May 12,2008)- The Bois Forte
Tribal Council has declared May
"Positive Living" month, and to
drive the point home, it moved
beyond text books to the flesh
and blood, inviting Olympic gold
medalist and Lakota Indian Billy
Mills to the reservation.
Mills sprinted to the lead in the
final seconds of 1964's 10,000-
meter run, stunning millions
of viewers, setting an Olympic
record and pulling off one of
the games' greatest upsets of
all time. The international star
grew up at the Pine Ridge Indian
Reservation in South Dakota.
'The Indian community could
not ask for a more inspirational
role model than Billy, who
reminds us that we can each
achieve that which has never been
done before," Tribal Chairman
Kevin Leecy said. "He is a record
setter, a Hall of Famer, a dream
chaser, an American hero, and an
American Indian."
In anticipation of Mill's
visits, slated for May 22 and
May 23, Nett Lake students
are conducting month-long
research on Mills and other
American Indian role models.
The students are also running
10,000 meters and timing
themselves to better appreciate
MILLS to page 6
Educator has greater mission
Crowe's new nonprofit
dedicated to stopping
drinking during
pregnancy
By Linsey Maughan
Staff Writer
WASECA - While working on
American Indian reservations
in the 1990s, Jody Crowe
realized he was witnessing
firsthand what happens to
children whose mothers drink
during pregnancy. Motivated
by his concern for his own
students, he began studying
the effects of alcohol on an
unborn child's brain. But
as Crowe immersed himself
deeper into the subject matter,
his research took a series of
unexpected twists.
"I was seeing things happen
in my classroom that I didn't
have an answer for," Crowe
said. "Then I started seeing that
in my own family I was seeing
some ofthe same things. Now
I'm not on the reservation and
I'm in a public school, and I'm
seeing it here. These are our
kids coming into our buildings.
These are our families out
there that are drinking during
the pregnancies."
Crowe, who is currently
finishing up his first year as
director of TEAM Academy
in Waseca, reports that 25
to 30 percent of expectant
mothers drink alcohol while
pregnant. Though he is still
fully committed to TEAM
Academy, the surprising
statistical finding has fueled
him to dedicate his free time
to making the facts known
regarding alcohol consumption
during pregnancy. To
initiate the conversation, he
recently started a nonprofit
organization called Healthy
Brains for Children.
"We're going to try to change
how people work with the kids
who already have the brain
damage, but the greater issue
in my mind is stopping the
mothers from drinking alcohol;
Jody Allen Crowe
having everybody understand
that your baby might look
beautiful and perfect, but you
can't see the brain damage,"
said Crowe. "I'm trying to get
people to understand that if
we can stop mothers from
drinking alcohol, we will have
many more children who are
going to be more successful in
school and successful in life."
Between 50 and 60 percent
of women of childbearing age
in the United States drink
to some extent, Crowe said,
whether that be light, social,
binge or heavy drinking. He
also said 50 percent of all
pregnancies are unintended
or unwanted.
"If you put those two figures
together, a full 25 to 30 percent
of children are being exposed to
alcohol, and the mothers don't
even know it," said Crowe.
"That's the scary part about
this whole thing. And the
research shows that you can
have one binge of five drinks
and damage the brain of your
child, and actually damage
the cell structure of the child
to the point where you have
a full-syndrome child. And
that binge of five drinks could
happen when you're five weeks
pregnant, and you've done
it. That's the message that
Healthy Brains for Children is
going to be delivering."
Crowe emphasized that it's
important for women who
could be pregnant to realize
the danger in drinking any
alcohol at all - that stopping
drinking when you learn you
are pregnant is not enough. He
describes brain damage from
prenatal exposure to alcohol
in an easy-to-grasp way: that
while the brain should function
as a "superhighway," the effects
of alcohol can reduce that
superhighway to a dirt road.
"They don't have the brain
capacity to think the way we
EDUCATOR to page 7
Cancer survival handbook aims
at Alaska Natives
By Randall Howell
The Arctic Sounder
The best defensive weapon
of choice for Alaska Native
cancer survivors is a return to
traditional subsistence food.
In a world gone awry with
high-fat, processed food,
scientific health studies show
that a cancer-fighting, low-
fat, low-processed diet can be
found locally for Alaska Natives
_ indigenous people with the
highest cancer death rates in
the country.
In fact, the evidence is so
powerful that the Alaska Native
Tribal Health Consortium
has built a book, "Traditional
Food Guide for Alaska Native
Cancer Survivors," around the
research.
Beyond its role for cancer
patients, the book serves as
a practical guide to wild food
available throughout the state.
"The traditional food guide is
not only for Alaska Native cancer
survivors and their medical
providers, but (also) for everyone
who enjoys the natural foods
from Alaska's lands," said Desiree
Simeon, a Tlingit nutritionist
from Ketchikan.
Co-authored by Simeon,
Christine DeCourtney and Karen
Mitchell, a Yup'ik, the full-color
spiral-bound book has an initial
press run of 3,000. The coauthors work in the consortium's
cancer program.
"It's the first of its kind," said
DeCourtney, the consortium's
cancer program planning and
development manager. "It's
healthy eating for all people."
The book, available for
$24.95,
is being distributed statewide by
the consortium so that Alaska
Natives have one of their first
opportunities to not only see
traditional subsistence food
move center table in the cancer
fight but also read about the
nutritional value that scientific
research has assigned to it.
"The book is very informative,"
said Patricia Bunyon, a Yup'ik
elder from Hooper Bay. "I
eat some of the Native foods
described in the guide but did
not know a lot about some of
them, like gumboots, and some
ofthe plants gathered from areas
other than the Y-K area."
Developed with grant money
from the Lance Armstrong
Foundation, the 142-page
book also received financial
CANCER to page 7
Feds object to
$380 million
Crow Tribe
land bill
By Matthew Brown
Associated Press
BILLINGS, Mont The Bureau
of Indian Affairs on Thursday
objected to details of a proposed
$380 million loan program that
would let the Crow tribe buy
up and consolidate land on its
Montana reservation.
The government loans would
offer the Crow a chance to
reclaim lands stripped from the
tribe or sold to outsiders over
the last 140 years. After all those
years under federal oversight,
Tribal Chairman Carl Venne said
the Crow want to manage their
homeland themselves.
"We as a tribe have given and
given and given our lands. Now
I want that to stop," Venne
said. "We need to protect our
homeland for our kids, our
grandkids."
But Indian Affairs Director
Jerold Gidner told a Senate panel
in Washington that his agency
is concerned about the size of
the loans. He also said it was
unclear who would determine
land prices and whether the
program could meet a September
2012 deadline outlined in a bill
before Congress.
That bill, introduced last
year by Montana's Democratic
U.S. Sens. Max Baucus and Jon
Tester, would loan the Crow $380
million to purchase non-tribal
land and put it into federal trust
It would cost the government $5
million a year to administer, and
FEDS to page 7