5 november and the days after...

The Obama speech


Tribal Nations Conference: Public Safety and Housing Panel


Tribal Nations Conference: Education, Health Care and Labor Panel


Tribal Nations Conference: Economic Development, Natural Resources, Energy, Environment and Agriculture Panel


Closing Remarks



First Reactions
(http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/home/content/69340852.html)

...Significantly, Obama imposed a time limit as part of the executive order, which he signed in front of the tribal attendees. The memorandum directs every Cabinet agency head to provide the president a detailed plan within 90 days of how they will implement and improve tribal consultation.

During a break after the signing, several tribal leaders heralded the move.

Derek Bailey, chairman of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, said he was especially impressed that the president imposed a tight deadline for agencies to begin complying.

“Too many times these kinds of orders just sit there. This is a strong call for rather immediate action.”

The president noted, too, that he’s hired several Native Americans to fill key roles in his administration, while also dramatically increasing financial support to various tribal programs, including those of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Indian Health Service.

Myra Pearson, chairwoman of the Spirit Lake Tribe, said she had intrinsic feelings Obama would take those kinds of positive steps for Indian country if he was elected.

“He promised me he would make change, and I believed him. Today, he proved us both right. I think it will continue.”

The day was not meant for the president and his agency officials to simply tout their merits. Tribal leaders were also invited to interact with the administration, explaining their own concerns – not an easy task by any means, considering the unique and specific conditions facing each tribal nation.

Common desires did emerge, however. Generally, tribal leaders said they want the administration to respect tribal sovereignty, promote self-determination, conduct consultation and increase funding in health, education, law enforcement and other key areas.

Tribal leaders also appeared to grow sharper as the day wore on. After a morning session during which a few gushed that they wanted to shake the president’s hand, leaders in the afternoon sessions carried out a more coordinated plan, highlighting broad issues by region and topic area.

Some had been disappointed after early discussions that more topics weren’t getting across. Groups of leaders chatted during lunch to formulate an on-the-fly approach to make better use of the day based on regional issues.

“Laying our concerns out by region seemed to make sense and helped spell out areas that need meaningful action,” said James Ransom, chief of the St. Regis Mohawk Tribal Council.

Ned Norris Jr., chairman of the Tohono O’odham Nation, expanded on the idea, saying he would like the administration to hold regional meetings with tribes in the future in order to better address tribal concerns.

The region-based tactic at the conference appeared successful, as tribal leaders ended up achieving new promises in several key areas from top administration officials.

On the issue of tribes and homeland security, which Ransom raised, Department of Homeland Security officials said they would consider provisions that would better address specific tribal situations. Along those lines, they said they are supportive of legislation that would provide financial support to tribes that produce identification cards.

Ransom also noted that there are only three countries that have not signed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People, including Canada, Australia and the United States.

While Obama himself did not promise to sign the document, which is aimed at ending human rights violations against the world’s indigenous people, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said he is urging the president to do so.

Obama did make a pledge toward ending violence against Native Americans. In his opening remarks, he related the statistic that one in three Native American women will be raped in her lifetime. He said the grim figure represented “an assault on our national conscience that we can no longer ignore” – noted as a major acknowledgment by many tribal leaders.

Later, a new agency pledge occurred after tribal leaders discussed an ongoing lawsuit of tribal farmers suing the United States Department of Agriculture based on alleged discriminatory financial assistance practices.

USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack told the leaders that he knew the litigation has been going on for a considerable period of time, and he added that he is committed to resolving it. To date, agency officials had not made that kind of promise.

Another area of responsiveness to tribal leaders’ concerns arose after Jonathan Windy Boy, a Chippewa Cree Tribal Council member and a Montana state representative, said the administration should support a permanent reauthorization of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act, so Native Americans don’t have to beg to see their basic health care rights fulfilled every few years.

Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius was amenable to the idea.

Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., a citizen of the Chickasaw Nation and the only Native American serving in Congress, said he was impressed by the tribal leaders’ prowess.

“I think they’ve done a very good job,” the lawmaker assessed.

“The turnout, respect and desire to work together have been amazing. The ideas are just there.”

In terms of follow-up on promises made during the conference, Jodi Archambault Gillette, the Obama administration’s Standing Rock Sioux intergovernmental affairs adviser, said she and others would create a report focused on moving forward.

Several tribal leaders said they would press for quick release of the report.

The historic nature of the event was also celebrated by many attendees.

“We’re definitely living history,” said W. Ron Allen, chairman of the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe. He noted that President Bill Clinton started many initiatives that tribal officials viewed as positive, and he said Obama is now expanding on them.

“He wants to be more engaged, have truly more dialogue,” the National Congress of American Indians board member said.

“That’s a different kind of relationship – a better one.”

Obama himself said the event was the largest and most widely attended gathering of tribal leaders in the nation’s history.

Chad Smith, principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, took a slightly different view.

“You know, every day is a historic day in Indian country,” the tribal leader said.

“Some have been better than others. And this is one of the better ones.”