The Ojibwe News / Native American Press (Bemidji, Minnesota), 1998-05-29

              Widow of   Wub-e-ke-niew removed from
Red Lake probate hearing
Whitefeather issues reservation removal order
Wub-e-ke-niew had a sharply honed
sense of irony and a keen wit. and there
were aspects ofthe hearing on "Court
File No.98-002,//;/-e.-Estateof 'Francis
George Blake'Deceased" which would
have provided Wub-e-ke-niew with
plenty of material fora long series of
columns of political satire about the
"Red Lake Nation Tribal Court, Red
Lake Indian Jurisdiction." There was
a more serious side to the May 22
"hearing" and the May 26 "continuance," too—-aspects of which are
rooted in the very nature ofthe United
States' "Indian" establishmentand the
Euroamerican legal-political system as
applied to "Red Lake Indian Reserva
tion. Hidden underneath the day-today turmoil of "Indian politics" and a
shamefully long chronicle of United
States violations of civil, human and
natural rights on the Rez. and at the
very foundation of the present "Indian" system, is the Europeans' and
Euroamericans' legacy of the genocide which they havecommitted against
the Ahnishinahbceo'jibway and other
Aboriginal Indigenous peoples
throughout the world. Somehow, perhaps the probate hearing over which
the Red Lake Indian Courts claimed
jurisdiction—and all of the beyond-
the-law back room deals which accom-
pan ied it—m ight have been someth ing
which Wub-e-ke-niew found very
funny.
The official notice stated that a probate hearing of "Francis George
Blake's" estate would be held at 2:00
p.m. on May 22,1998. at the "Red Lake
Nation Tribal Courthouse." The Notice included the advisory that, "any
objections that you may have to this
petition must be filed with the Court
and hear by the Court at said last
mentioned time and place or else the
same are forever barred." The Notice
was mailed to twoof Wub-e-ke-niew's
sons, made its way fourth-hand through
the grapevine to Wub-e-ke-niew's
wife, Clara NiiSka, and it may have
WidOW/to pg. 3
•Whitefeather issues reservation removal order, pg. 1
•Unapologetic attorney cashes in on tribal corruption, pg. 1
•BIA stalling McArthur recall effort at White Earth, pg. 1
•Chairman disregards due process at White Earth, pg. 3
•Chairman McArthur's employee update memo, pg. 4
•MPR show blocked MCT members from responding to
misplaced stereotypes, pg. 6
Voice ofthe People
i
e-mail: presson@bji.net
Fifty Cents
Brink laughing all the way to the bank
Unapologetic attorney cashes in on tribal corruption
By Gary Blair
Ripping-off the reservation Indian is
easy, when our tribal leaders lack
integrity, misuse Sovereign Immunity
and receive assistance from self-
serving employees and others who are
also willing to benefit from their
thievery.
Thus was the case of former White
Earth chairman, Darrell "Chip" Wadena
and two other tribal officials whose
legal fees were paid with tribal funds
issued by the reservation's former
executive director. Darwin "Darb"
McArthur. However, McArthur's
actions may have never occurred, if he
could have heard a recent phone
conversation that your writer had on
Wednesday with John Brink, the
Wadena gang's former lead defense
attorney. Brink laughed and would
not respond to questions about the
payments he received forrepresenting
the Wadena gang on federal
corruption charges.
Brink said he had not seen the PRESS/
ON May 22,1998, edition that carried
copies of cancelled checks that were
issued during the time that the Wadena
gang was indicted. When informed
that the checks were issued on the
Reservation Business Committee's
General Fund account and one of them
wad made out to him in the amount of
$300,000.00, Brink responded, "I am
not going to make any comments about
anything sir." When pressed further.
Brink started giggling and then his
laughter turned into chuckles when
your writer told him that he had just
"ripped-off a bunch of poor Indian
people." Brink then ended the
interview by saying, "Good-bye."
It appears that the Wadena gang's
greed for "Indian money" was equal
to Brink's eye for easy money, as well.
Brink's chuckling sounded like a person
who had just pulled off a fast one on
someone who they believed was of
lesser importance than themselves
and now they were glad that their trick
Native
American
Press
Ojibwe
News
We Support Equal Opportunity For All People
DC promises to improve
greeted skeptically
Brink/to pg. 6
Indian health
WASHINGTON (AP) - Though still
a teen-ager, Jessie Taken Alive
captures much ofthe frustrations that
American Indians feel with the federal
government when it comes to
addressing the health-care and social
problems plaguing reservations.
"It's always been a lack of resources
and never a lack of know-how," she
told a Senate committee recently.
i lie 17-yeai-olu from McLaughlin,
S.D., is a member ofthe Standing Rock
Sioux, whose reservation was wracked
in recent months by an epidemic of
suicides blamed in part on the paucity
of doctors, psychologists and
counselors to deal with troubled
youths.
The Clinton administration says it's
determ ined to do something about the
problems. The White House earlier
this year pledged to end all ethnic
health disparities by 2010, and Surgeon
General David Satchersays that applies
to Indians, too.
Satcher told lawmakers that the
Department of Health and Human
Services would put its "full weight"
into ending the high rates of death and
disease among Indians.
The department, through the Indian
Health Service, is responsible for the
health care of 1.4 million Indians
nationwide. Given the scale of the
problems and recent trends in federal
funding for Indian health care
achieving the administration's goal is
a monumental task.
And critics question how committed
DC/to pg. 5
Senate chairman proposes Indian legal
reform
WASHINGTON (AP) - Seeking to
head off tougher restrictions on Indian
legal rights, a key Senate Republican
has proposed requiring tribes to buy
liability insurance and settle tax
disputes with states through
arbitration.
"Civil rights in Indian country need
to be protected for both Indians and
non-Indians alike," said Colorado Sen.
Ben Nighthorse Campbel I, chairman of
the Senate Indian Affairs Committee
and the Senate's lone Indian.
Tribes have strongly resisted any
restrictions on their legal powers,
especially their immunity from lawsuits
by individuals, businesses or other
governments.
The committee was to have voted
Wednesday on a broad rollback of
tribal immunity proposed by Sen. Slade
Gorton, R-Wash.. But he withdrew the
legislation, saying he would pursue
portions of it separately. The committee
has "recognized that this is a legitimate
issue that must be addressed," Gorton
said. Thepanelisnormally considered
a staunch ally of tribal interests.
Campbell told the committee he was
"not convinced that tribes are involved
in a broad-based effort to violate the
rights of others." But, he said,
"changes in the status quo need to be
proposed, they need to be seriously
considered by Indian tribes ... and
they need to be implemented."
Tribes routinely refuse to be sued in
federal orstate courts, forcing plaintiffs
to file complaints in tribal courts
Senate/to pg. 5
Submitted Photo By Bill I.ivloi
Fresh from last week's victory over incumbent Bobby Whitefeather in Red Lake's Primary Election, Red Lake Tribal
Chairman run-off candidate Gerald "Butch" Brun is pictured holding a star quilt he received from Fabian and Susan
Hurd of Wyoming at Bemidji's Northern Inn last Saturday, May 23,1998.
BIA stalling McArthur recall effort at
White Earth, petition organizers charge
No legal authority to appoint trustee, BIA
head says
TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- The Cherokee
Nation may have spent federal funds
illegally, but it isn't known whether
those actions were criminal, the head
ofthe Bureau of Indian Affairs says.
"Remember, the Cherokee Nation is
a self-governance tribe," BIA Director
Kevin Gover told the Tulsa World.
"That means we have to find imm inent
jeopardy to trust assets before we are
allowed to step in and take over
programs. "We don't see anything
indicating imminent jeopardy of trust
assets.
So instead, we are dealing with this as
a management issue, and that's how
w c are going to proceed."
Early this week. Rep. Tom Coburn, R-
Okla., said as much as S10 million in
federal funds may have been
mishandled by the tribe. He called for
an independent trustee to be appointed
to make sure federal funds are spent
properly.
Gover said there is no legal authority
for the BIA to appoint such a trustee.
Coburn said an audit by the Department
of Interior's inspector general will
show illegal acts concerning a number
of spending practices by the tribe.
"What we are seeing is some
indication that from time to time the
Cherokee Nation would dip into federal
funds to pay expenses that are
nonfederal," Gover said. "What we are
trying to determine is to ensure those
fu nds were eventual ly paid back. "That
is technically a violation ofthe law.
Whether or not it is criminal, we don't
know." Gover said the audit, which he
preferred to call a review by the
inspector general, also indicates that
none ofthe money was stolen. "It is
notaquestion of individuals enriching
themselves," he said. "Clearly there is
a management problem."
A final report from the inspector
general is not expected for at least a
month. Gover said his agency will not
wait that long to begin working with
the Cherokee Nation to address the
problems.
Cherokee Chief Joe Byrd consistently
has played down problems
documented by the inspector general.
Byrd said these problems are known
and are being addressed.
By Jeff Armstrong
Organizers ofa petition against Eugene (Bugger) McArthur accused the
Bureau of Indian Affairs this week of
attempting to shirk its duty under Article X ofthe MCT Constitution to put
the matter to a vote ofthe White Earth
electorate.
More than 500 resident White Earth
members signed the petition, well over
the constitutionally required 20%. In
fact, the 519 signatures exceed by 84
the number of on-reservation votes received by McArthur in the 1996 election.
In a May 20 letter to Erma Vizenor,
however, BIA agency superintendent
Joel Smith suggested that the Bureau
will allow the RBC to hold a hearing on
the issue before deciding on the merits ofthe petition.
Petition spokesperson Marge Dalve
said the BIA is grasping for an excuse
to delay action. "Why is the Bureau
waiting for an illegal council to take
action on it when they're the ones that
caused the problem in the first place?"
asked Dalve. "They've had their
chance. Now the people have spoken."
Dalve said the BIA's position is in
contravention ofthe Dec. 11,1996 decision ofan Interior Board of Indian
Appeals judge which revoked federal
recognition ofthe three non-appointed
members ofthe RBC. The Bureau never
recognized the installation of E\rma
Vizenor and Irene Auginaush Hvezda
(Turney), whose appointment in an
even-numbered year was contrary to
the express terms ofthe MCT Constitution.
Bulletin:
Putative RBC chair
McArthur grows
desperate, threatens
employees with
reservation
shutdown if recall
succeeds, see Pg. 4
In that ruling, chief administrative
Judge Kathryn Lynn overturned the
Bureau's recognition of McArthur,
John Buckanaga and Tony Wadena as
an "interim tribal council." Lynn held
that, "As long as the Band's final resolution does not conflict with its governing documents..., BIA must defer
to the Band's resolution of this intra-
tribal dispute." Article X ofthe tribal
constitution is the only means provided for the resolution of such disputes.
Marvin Manypenny, also a spokesperson for the petition, said the BIA's
obligations are clearly stated in the
constitution. "It's right there in black
and white," Manypenny said. "If they
fail to act, they are in neglect of their
duty to carry out the dictates of the
constitution that they're named in."
Dalve and Manypenny responded to
Smith's letter to Vizenor on May 23,
clarifying the BIA superintendent's
obligations under the tribal constitution. "The Bureau of Indian Affairs
BIA/topg.3
High Court gives tribes lawsuit immunity
Indians can't be sued in courts for off-reservation busi
The ruling comes at a time when
Tribes getting less in oil and gas royalties
RIVERTON.Wyo.(AP) -Declining
oil prices and production have resulted
in large decreases in the monthly
payments Shoshone and Arapaho
tribal members have received from
royalties and taxes for the use of their
land.
Formany tribal members, the per capita
payments are their only source of
income, but the payments are just part
of the way tribal leaders sa> the
residents ofthe Wind River Indian are
getting shortchanged. The tribes do
not have control over large portions of
their overall revenue.
Federal grants have to go toward
specific programs, and the tribes are
required to spend 85 percent of the
income earned through oil and gas
royalties on per capita payments to
tribal members.
For April, May and June, the per
capita payments were set at S125 for
Shoshone members and $50 for
Arapaho members. Those amounts are
down from the last three months of
1997. when Shoshone members were
paid S200 a month and Arapaho
members were paid $80 a month.
An increase in the number of people
receiving the payments has also
increased, 9 percent forthe Shoshone
tribe and 17 percent for the Arapaho
tribe, between 1981 and 1991.
Tribal government cannot provide
adequate services because of state
taxes on oil and gas revenues, said
Mark Berkman. a consultant for
National Economic Research
Associates Inc. in San Francisco.
"Since oil and gas revenues represent
the single largest source of tribal
re\enues.W'yoming'sseverance taxes
have seriously infringed on the tribes's
abilities to provide needed sen ices
Tribes/to pg.5
WASHINGTON (AP) - Indian tribes
generally cannot be sued in state
courts over business deals outside
tribal lands, the Supreme Court ruled
Tuesday.
The court, by a 6-3 vote in an
numerous tribes have increased
revenues by operating on-reservation
gambling establishments and are
seeking more investment opportunities
outside Indian country.
Lower courts, both state and federal.
Oklahoma case, said tribal sovereign had split on the issue,
immunity extends beyond Indian "Tribes enjoy immunity from suits on
country and bars such lawsuits. contracts, whether those contracts
Clinton administration lawyers had involve governmental or commercial
warned thejustices that allowing such activities and whether they were made
liability would threaten the economic on or off a reservation," Justice
well-beingof320 federally recognized
tribes.
The decision does not mean Indian
tribes never can be the targets of such
lawsuits, but those who deal with the
Anthony M. Kennedy wrote for the
court.
He said that tribal immunity, like
foreign sovereign immunity, "isamatter
of federal law" and is not subject to
ness deals
Sandra Day O'Connor, Antonin Seal ia,
DavidH.SouterandStephenG. Breyer.
Justice John Paul Stevens, in a
dissent joined by Justices Clarence
Thomas and Ruth Bader Ginsburg,
said tribes should be subject to being
sued in such cases.
"There is no federal statute or treaty
that provides... any immunity from the
application of Oklahoma law to (the
tribe's) off-reservation commercial
activities." Stevens said. "Nor. in my
opinion, should this court extend the
judge-made doctrine of sovereign
immunity to pre-empt the authority of
the state courts to decide for
themselves whether to accord such
immunity to Indian tribes."
Oklahoma courts had allowed a
lawsuit against the Kiowa Tribe and
tribes must protect themselves by being diminished by any individual
requiring   wai\er   of  sovereign state.
immunityifCongresshasnotexplicitlv Kennedy was joined by Chief Justice
authorized such lawsuits. William H. Rehnquist and Justices    HlQll/tO pg. 3