Native American Press / Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 2001-05-04

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INDEX
News Around Indian Country 2
Commentary/Editorials/Voices 4
Smoke Signals of Upcoming Events 5
Classifieds 6-7
Upper Great Lakes
art exhibit features
American Indian
works
pg3
Repression on the
reservations -
three part series
pg4,6
Tribe chair James Billie's
hold on Seminoles is
slipping
pg3
Indian education in
Minnesota - teaching
Indian kids to fail?
pgi,6
Commentary
Supreme Court
pierces veil of
tribal sovereignty
pg4
Indian education in Minnesota—teaching
Indian kids to fail?
By Bill Lawrence and Clara NiiSka
The chart on page 6 chronicles American Indian students' basic skills test results from the thirty-six state school districts and tribal schools which educate the
majority oflndian students in Minnesota.
According to the data provided to Press/
ON by the Department of Children,
Families & Learning, there has been a
gradual increase in the rate oflndian students' passing the tests. In 1998 and
1999,38% ofthe students who took both
tests passed them; this year the "pass"
rate had increased four percentage points
to 42%.
The total number of eighth-grade Indian students tested is small, and varies
slightly from year too year. This year,
1180 students were tested in math, and
1252 in reading; in previous years less
than 1200 students were tested. Thus, the
increase does not indicate a solid statistical trend, and at least some ofthe apparent improvement may come from certain
students not taking tlie tests, rather titan
from an actual increase in basic skills levels. Forexample, Minneapolis public
schools tested 190 Indian eighth-graders
in 1998, but during 2000 only tested 131.
Also, not all of the students took both
tests, more schools are being tested, and
some ofthe schools which gave the basic
skills test in previous years did not test
year, or tlie test scores were not reported.
A slight success for State schools is one
way of interpreting tlie numbers. Another
way of looking at mat data is that almost
two thirds ofthe Indian students in Minnesota either did not take, or failed, the
basic skills test in math this year, and tliat
about half of this next generation cannot
read.
And, as the debate about how to improve Indian education continues in the
public forum, nearly 700 Indian kids are
privately coping with a perhaps all-too-
familiar label—"failure"—even though
the fault for their failure lies more heavily
with the educational system and the community, than it does with eighth-grade
kids.
What's wrong? The problem is not
money: Red Lake, 1he school district with
the highest rate of failure, spent almost
six thousand dollars per pupil on "regular
instruction" last year, $2,534 more than
the statewide average—and Pine Point
spent $7,444 per pupil on regular instruction. The problem is not in-school discrimination, nor lack oflndian control
over school—almost all ofthe students at
Red Lake are Indians, as is the school
board. The problem is not a lack of
multicultural education, nor is it old and
crumbling schools: Red Lake and some
ofthe other heavily-Indian schools have
extensive "cultural" programs and expensive new school buildings.
No few Indian parenls and grandparents at Red Lake are sharply critical of
1he amount of time taken away from basic education by cultural programs.
"Children should learn culture from their
parents and community" and the schools
should focus on "the three Rs." About a
fifth of Red Lake parents have chosen to
bus their children to school in Bemidji,
where the curriculum is more strongly
oriented toward teaching children basic
skills. Some grandparents point out that
thirty years ago—before the emphasis on
"culture"—the Red Lake schools and
other mostly-Indian schools were "about
average," The majority oflndian students
got a "reasonable education," and left
school able to read, write and do basic
math.
During the Spring of 1999, Press/ON
published a series of articles and letters
addressing the educational system's failing Indian students. Based upon the most
recent test scores, there has only been a
slight improvement or perhaps a manipulation ofthe test scores by "teaching
for the tests," and/or not testing the poor
students. The issue remains the most serious concern facing the Indian community, and Press/ON encourages community participation in addressing the issue.
Red Lake man claims false imprisonment led to
loss of vision in one eye
By Jeff Armstrong
On Dec. 18,1998, Tom Strong was
hospitalized overnight in Red Lake after an apparent adverse reaction to painkillers he had taken at his sister's home.
A Bemidji resident Strong had forgotten to bring his medication prescribed
for tlie aftermath of serious reconstructive surgery on his knee.       When the
pain flared up, he found some pain pills
at his sister's and took three of them. He
speculates that the reaction may have
been induced by his drinking the previous evening.
"I was looking for a Tylenol or aspirin at my sister's place. I was waking up
and [my knee] was really throbbing,"
said Strong. "I know it wasn't more
than three pills I took. I more or less
wanted to go to sleep; I don't think I really needed the ambulance."
Strong was released without incident
from the Red Lake hospital the following day—after medical staff checked to
see if mere was a police hold on him, as
the incident was initially characterized
as an overdose.
"I explained everything, that I didn't
have my prescription with me," said
Strong. "The doctor, he would have
never discharged me if he thought I was
suicidal."
Itwas not until tlie following summer,
when he attended Red Lake's annual
Fourth of July powwow, that Strong
discovered he had been charged with
attempted suicide, a criminal offense
under the Red Lake code carrying a
maximum six-monthjail sentence. Thus
began a two-year odyssey through tlie
Red Lake criminal justice system including "8 or 9" court appearances and
two jail sentences—one of which he
blames forthe loss of 80% ofthe vision
in one eye.
After several postponements, Strong
appeared in court on the attempted suicide charge on Aug. 16,2000. His
original judge had been replaced by
chief judge Wanda Lyons, who accused
him of contempt of court before he
could enter his not-guilty plea.
"She said I smelled like booze, but I
hadn't had a drink in diree or four
days," said Strong.
Lyons sentenced him to 20 days in
tlie tribal jail on criminal contempt
charges.
Strong served his sentence, 17 days
with good time, and appeared next in
court last Oct. 11. This time, he was accused of drinking by prosecutor Chris
Manydeeds. Judge Lyons asked
Strong's counsel, Donna Morrison if
her client smelled of alcohol, to which
she replied in the negative.
Judge Lyons ordered Strong to jail
pending results ofa urine test to ascertain whether he had been drinking.
"There was no reason to piss test me.
I was sober. How do they define intoxicated? I1T was intoxicated, I sure as hell
wouldn't have showed up in court,"
said Strong.
When the test results came back, no
alcohol was found. However, the test
identified traces of marijuana in his system, which he now admits to ingesting a
week prior to tlie court hearing.
"[Judge Lyons] gave me 30 days and
wouldn't let me explain anything. All
she said is "I don't want to hear if' My
counsel didn't say much," said Strong.
Strong also suffers from a 1991 injury to his left eye from a torn tear duct
incurred when he was cutting and selling wood. He has undergone numerous
surgeries and must take eyedrops daily.
Jailed unexpectedly, he had neglected
to bring the eyedrops lo court and was
unable to obtain them for several days.
"I left my eyedrops at home because I
thought I'd be home that day," said
Strong.
On Oct. 17,2000, Strong awoke to
intense pain and impaired vision in his
eye.
"I woke up that morning and everything was just blurry," Strong said. "It
RED LAKE to pg. 6
Supreme Court rules Oklahoma Indian tribe
open to construction lawsuit
By Gina Holland
Associated Press
WASHINGTON, D.C. - An Oklahoma Indian tribe can be sued in state
court over an off-reservation construction project the U.S. Supreme Court
ruled Monday, noting the tribe's prior
agreement to arbitration.
While tribal governments generally
are protected from lawsuits, the court
ruled that the Citizen Potawatomi Nation surrendered its sovereign immunity
by signing a construction contract requiring arbitration to settle disputes.
The roofing contractor, C&L Enterprises, sued after the Potawatomi decided to use another firm to install a roof
on a bank building in Shawnee, Okla.
The tribe owned tlie property, but it was
not on tlie Potawatomi reservation.
C&L tried to enforce the arbitration
agreement in state court, but the tribe
claimed sovereign immunity and asked
that the case be dismissed.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, writing
for the unanimous court, dismissed arguments that the arbitration provision
was unclear, noting that "the tribe proposed and prepared the contract."
The tribe changed contractors because theproject architect said a different roof was needed and C&L could not
build that model.
The high court had agreed to hear the
case because of conflicting state and
federal court rulings over tribal immunity.
An arbitrator initially awarded C&L
$25,400 plus legal fees and other costs
stemming from the 1993 broken deal.
The contractor then won a court judgment in Oklahoma C ity court requiring
the Potawatomi to pay.
A state appeals court upheld the lower
court, but then reconsidered in light ofa
separate Indian tribal immunity case decided by tlie Supreme Court in 1998.
In that case, the court held that an Indian tribe is not subject to suit in state
court - even for breach of contract off
the reservation - unless the tribe waives
immunity or Congress specifically authorizes the suit.
An attorney for the Potawatomi had
argued before the Supreme Court in
March that "no court" on earth or even
on the moon has jurisdiction over the
C&L-tribe dispute.
An Oklahoma appeals court sided
with the Potawatomi, but Monday's ruling sends the case back to the Oklahoma
court.
The case is C&L Enterprises v. Citizen Potawatomi Nation, 00-292.
On the Net: Supreme Court site: http:/
/www.supremecourtus.gov.
Potawatomi: http://
www.potawatomi.org/
Navajo Nation
president vetoes
gambling
ordinance
AssociatedPress
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. - Navajo
Nation president Kelsey Begaye, saying
he was responding to the will of tribal
members, vetoed a gaming ordinance
Friday approved by the tribe's council
earlier this month.
The Navajo Nation Council on April
19 approved tlie ordinance that established tribal procedures for governing
the Tohajiilee Chapter's proposed casino as a pilot project.
The ordinance stated gambling would
be legal only for that chapter, but there
was speculation the ordinance would
apply throughout the Navajo Reservation that includes portions of Arizona,
New Mexico and Utah. Thus, some
said, it could make gambling elsewhere
on the reservation a possibility in the fu-
NAVAJO to pg. 7
New BIA head once recommended
broad changes at the agency
at the local tribal level. An organization
cannot cany out goals which are
in conflict with one another."
Besides criticizing the BIA, the
report contained numerous recommendations for ways the federal government could remove
roadblocks to tribal economic development, including suggestions
tliat tribes give up some sovereignty to lure business. Tlie report
also recommended that the BIA
shift some of its oversight responsibilities for tribes to the private sector.
Terri Angier, a spokeswoman for
McCaleb, said he is proud ofthe report
and sees it as an important document to
promote tribal self-sufficiency.
"He thinks he helped the tribes in many
ways by giving them a model for economic development" she told The Day.
"He thinks it had a lot of common sense
and that it could help tribes and governments. He thinks it's a doable plan to
implement"
McCaleb, secretary of transportation in
BIA to pg. 7
Neal McCaleb
AssociatedPress
President Bush's choice to
head the federal Bureau of
Indian Affairs was once part
ofa presidential commission
that harshly criticized the
agency and recommended
broad changes.
Neal A. McCaleb helped
draft a 1984 report that called
the BIA a schizophrenic, incompetent and mismanaged
agency that impeded tribal economic independence, The Day ofNevv London
reported Saturday.
The report also said the BIA over-regulates tribes and provides incompetent assistance to them, and found that the BIA's
basic mission is fundamentally flawed.
"The Bureau of Indian Affairs operates
in a schizophrenic manner because it has
conflicting goals," the report states. "It is
charged with the responsibility of managing all Indian affairs, and it is charged
with Indian self-determination which
seeks to place tlie management function
Voice     of     t h e     People
web page: www.press-on.net
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Volume 13 Issue 24
May 4, 2001
Photo credit: Devlyn Brooks, Bemidji Pioneer
Residents at Red Lake and the surrounding community walk toward the Red Lake Humanities Building during the
Red Lake of Chippewa's third annual Walk Against Child Abuse. About 1,200 people - from toddlers to elders -
itlCipated. || %    photo credit: Devlyn
Brooks, Bemidji Pioneer
Red Lake holds Walk
Against Child Abuse
Bj Devlyn Brooks
The Bemidji Pioneer
RED LAKE - Members ofthe Red
Laie community and guests walked
more than 1,000 miles Thursday, April
26" to raise awareness ofthe serious
problem of child abuse and neglect.
About 1,200 people - from toddlers
to elders - gathered here to each walk a
mile in the Red Lake Band of
CKppewa's third annual Walk against
Chid Abuse. Tlie participants walked
from the Red Lake Hospital down State
Highway 1 east to tlie Red Lake Humanities Building.
The annual walk is held in conjunction with National Child Abuse Prevention Month - held each April - to promote awareness of child abuse, a social
problem in Red Lake that is closely associated with other problems such as alcoholism and poverty.
"We just want to let people know tliat
children area voluble, said walk coordinator Willa Beulieu. "We're educating
the community about tiiis, but I think tlie
community knows there's problem."
Beulieu who works in the Red Lake
Band's mental health division, said she
started the walk three years ago to honor
the community's children, but yet deliver a message to tlie community as
well.
"I think you see tlie community working together (today) for the protection of
our children," she said. "Children are
our most precious resource."
Beaulieu, said she
and other staffmembers work with many
children who are
abused or neglected
and the number of
cases reported this
past year even increased.
Some ofthe increase probably is due
to better reporting and society's decreasing tolerance for child abuse, she said,
but an increase is an increase.
"It's real sad to see the children
bought to us on a weekly basis," she
said. "I've seen a lot more this past
year."
She said thankfully tlie situation is
better than when she first came back to
the reservation in 1975 to take a social
worker position. Tliat year she and several others completed work to have a
man prosecuted for sexual abuse ofa
child.
"Back then it was hush-hush," she
said. "It was taboo. People didn't want
to talk about it."
Now, she said die Red Lake community can host a walk such as the one
Thursday, and people are willing to admit there is a problem.
Red Lake High School Principal
Chris Dunshee, who walked Thursday
alongside his staff and students, said he
was glad to see an event to honor the
children.
"We're very fortunate to have people
who will organize these events for our
Twenty-
month-old
Verdell Cook
rests in his
snazzy stroller
while dad,
Kevin Cook,
finishes his
mile walk
during the
annual walk
against child
abuse.
children up here," he said. "Child abuse
and neglect is a big problem in this
community and the surrounding area
It's more of an insidious problem than
people will admit"
Dunshee said he was glad to see the
staff from all ofthe Red Lake and
Ponemah schools -which let students
out to participate - walking too.
"It's good to see people coming from
the surrounding community to take
part," he said. Tlie children "need to see
tlie teachers as role models and taking
part in the community."
Beaulieu said she appreciated the support for the walk she received from the
schools, which play such a vital role in
helping children who have been abused.
Red Lake Hereditary Chief Greeting
Spears, who also participated in the
walk, said it was good to see the elders
coming together with the children.
"We're supposed to all get together
and help each other, no matter what
tribe it is," he said. "It's great to gather
all the kids and the elders. That's what I
like to see."
Federal judge will
temporarily stop
tribal court action
against hog farm
ByChetBrokaw
Associated Pi-ess
PIERRE, S.D. - A federal judge said
Monday he intends to temporarily prevent the Rosebud Sioux Tribe from using its tribal court to stop a second
large hog farm on tribal land.
After a telephone hearing with lawyers, U.S. District Judge Charles
Kornmann said the order will stand until a May 11 hearing in Pierre to consider additional arguments.
The Rosebud Sioux Tribal Council
last week voted to ask tlie tribal court to
order Sun Prairie Partnership of Nebraska to stop work on a second hog-
farm site. It later issued an order stopping all work at the site, according to
Sun Prairie lawyers.
The previous tribal council had
signed a lease with Sun Prairie, an affiliate of Bell Farms of Wahpeton,
N.D., to build up to 288 hog bams in
ACTION to pg. 7
Minnesota House to repeal
Crazy Horse malt liquor ban
Representatives vote nearly unanimous
By Jeff Armstrong
Tlie Minnesota House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly April 18 to
repeal a 1994 legislative ban on alcoholic beverages bearing the names of
historical indigenous figures.
Aimed primarily at the brewers of
Crazy Horse malt liquor, the law also
prohibited sales of Chief Oshkosh beer,
named for a prominent Menominee
leader, and any other malt beverage
"which states or implies a false connection with an actual living or dead American Indian leader."
By a vote of 132-1, the House struck
down the law, which had been deemed
unconstitutional by the Minnesota Court
of Appeals in 1996 because it singled
out Native people for protection.
Homell Brewing Company, defended
by the Minnesota Civil Liberties Union,
had appealed the 1995 decision ofa
state administrative lawjudge upholding
the law. Tlie MCLU contended the ban
"restricts commercial speech based on
its content," which the court found as in
violation ofthe First Amendment.
To broaden the legislation would
likely require banning the popular
Samuel Adams beer, named for an
American Revolutionary hero.
"Respondent has not explained why a
statute that prohibits only false or misleading labels that state or imply a connection with an American Indian leader
is necessary to serve the state's asserted
interest in prohibiting the false, misleading unauthorized, or unsupported appropriation of individuals' names. Absent any rationale for acting to protect
this interest only when the name appropriated is within a narrowly described
category, we cannot conclude that there
is no realistic possibili ty tliat official
suppression of ideas is afoot," the Appeals Court wrote.
According to the only legislator to oppose repeal ofthe law, however, state
representatives were entirely unaware
that they were voting for the measure,
which was attached to fire safety revisions.
Rep. Loren Solberg (D) contended
CRAZY HORSE to pg. 7