Joint Indigenous Organizations Statement About the Gabby Petito Case #MMIWG

 

Organizations: StrongHearts Native Helpline, Alaska Native Women’s Resource Center, National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center, Alliance of Tribal Coalitions to End Violence

Several weeks of national mainstream news media coverage has been focused on Gabby Petito, a 22-year-old white woman who recently was reported missing and subsequently found murdered. We offer our sincere condolences to her family. No one should have to experience this kind of tragedy exacerbated by noted indicators of domestic violence.

We are national Indigenous organizations dedicated to ending the cycle of violence that adversely affects 84% of Indigenous women (Rosay, André B.) during their lifetime. Indigenous women are murdered at a rate 10 times higher (Bachman, Ronet) than other races in some communities. More than half have been physically abused by an intimate partner, according to the National Institute of Justice.

The loss of an Indigenous woman’s life is all too familiar in our communities. Hundreds of Indigenous people go missing every year. Many of them vanish without a trace, never to be seen or heard from again. Too many of them are found murdered with their cases often left uninvestigated and unresolved by local, state and/or federal authorities.

Yet, none of our relatives to date have received much, if any, attention from the news media, concentrated efforts by law enforcement departments, or an outpouring of financial contributions from ordinary citizens. Indian tribes, communities and family members don’t have unlimited financial resources to help us locate our missing relatives. Up until recently, our missing relatives have not amassed social media followings to galvanize searches. The contrast that we are witnessing regarding this particular case is heartbreaking to the many Indigenous families and communities dealing with the daily pain of losing their loved ones. The contrast sends the message that society has little regard for Indigenous lives.

We are not alone in seeing systemic and law enforcement bias when it comes to the lack of coverage of and case resolutions of missing and murdered Indigenous relatives (MMIR). In 2004 this lack of attention and bias was given a title — “Missing White Woman Syndrome” — by the late American news anchor Gwen Ifill. Moreover, American news outlets continue to be less demographically diverse, with staffing consisting of primarily white male journalists, according to the Pew Research Center. The lack of Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) journalists in the mainstream contributes to additional challenges that Indigenous people face when it comes to equal coverage of MMIR and other related issues.

It is truly devastating to lose another life to violence. There are no words to fully express the pain of a parent losing a child in a violent way. As Indigenous peoples, we understand too well the ugly, ongoing nature of violence across this land and upon our people through our lived experiences. It’s been happening since the advent of colonization.

Missing and murdered Indigenous relatives deserve the same attention and resources that society, the media and the justice system have given to Gabby Petito’s case. Their lives are important. As partner organizations in the effort to provide support and advocate for Indigenous women and peoples impacted by domestic violence, intimate partner violence, dating violence, and sexual violence, we honor all individuals, families and communities impacted by MMIR and all those working so diligently to end this crisis of violence.

What you can do to help:

For Individuals 

●      Educate yourself on the high rates of violence in our Indigenous communities and other communities of color, as well as community-based solutions

●      Engage with media about MMIR

○      Send emails, make phone calls, comment on articles, send letters to editors, etc.

●      Learn about and share the stories of MMIR in your area, including their names, and the circumstances of their cases, etc.

●      Learn who your law enforcement are in your community and educate yourself on cross-jurisdictional issues

●      Donate to organizations advocating for justice for MMIR and ending domestic violence

●      Raise awareness on social media: like, follow and share the organizations listed below that are focused on domestic violence and MMIR at the national, regional and local levels

○      StrongHearts Native Helpline

○      National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center

○      Alaska Native Women’s Resource Center

○      National Congress of American Indians

○      Sovereign Bodies Institute

○      Alliance of Tribal Coalitions to End Violence 

○      Indian Law Resource Center 

○      Urban Indian Health Institute

○      Rising Hearts Coalition

●      Learn how to support loved one, friend or colleague struggling against intimate partner

●      Learn about and practice bystander intervention

●      Learn how to hold batters, predators and other offenders accountable

●      Volunteer at organizations working to respond to and end domestic violence

●      Attend, support or organize a socially distanced community event in your area to raise awareness of MMIR. Organizers can plan a community walk or run, vigil or any type of fundraiser/awareness event they choose.

For Organizations 

●      Center BIPOC voices on your platforms

●      Practice unbiased, equitable attention on all missing and murdered people

●      Uplift Indigenous organizations and coalitions advocating for MMIR

●      Support May 5th annually as the National Day of Awareness for MMIW

Additional Resources

Check out these MMIW resources: 

●      Learn more with MMIW Special Collection in NIWRC’s Resource Library

●      Explore the MMIW Toolkit for Families and Communities developed by NIWRC

●      View the MMIW database on Sovereign Bodies Institute website

●      Download Urban Indian Health Institute’s “Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women & Girls: A Snapshot of Data from 71 Urban Cities in the United States”

●      View the NamUS-National Missing and Unidentified Persons System

●      Explore the NIWRC’s Online Resource Library and Restoration Magazine for articles and resources on MMIW

References

Rosay, André B., “Violence Against American Indian and Alaska Native Women and Men,” NIJ Journal 277 (2016): 38-45, available at http://nij.gov/journals/277/Pages/violence-againstamerican-indians-alaska-natives.aspx. 

Bachman, Ronet; Zaykowski, Heather; Kallmyer, Rachel; Poteyeva, Margarita; Lanier, Christina, “Violence Against American Indian and Alaska Native Women and the Criminal Justice Response: What is Known”, NIJ (2008): 223691, available at https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/223691.pdf

Orange Shirt Day!

 

Dear People who Care about First Nations kids, Tomorrow is my birthday and I am so honoured to share it with Orange Shirt day. I have a wish- please tag @JustinTrudeau - demand he stop fighting kids and survivors in court, obey the law and get to work on the TRC Calls to Action https://t.co/NWjnH0ADqb

— Cindy Blackstock (@cblackst) September 29, 2021

Thanks I hate it pic.twitter.com/zdX0aH1pBh

— Rob Taylor-Case (@robtaylorcase) September 30, 2021

*TW: readers may be triggered by the recount of Indian Residential Schools. To access a 24h National Crisis Line, call: 1-866-925-4419*

Today is #OrangeShirtDay. Take a moment to listen and learn from Shingwauk Residential School Survivor Charles Fox: https://t.co/2GMETply1O

— Anishinabek Nation (@AnishNation) September 30, 2021

OCTOBER 2021 Domestic Violence Awareness Month

 

StrongHearts Native Helpline Statement 

(EAGAN, Minn., 2021) —  During Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October, StrongHearts Native Helpline joins advocates, sister organizations and communities throughout Indian Country to raise awareness about domestic violence and to support and honor survivors and victims. This year, StrongHearts calls on everyone — advocates, tribal leaders, reservation and urban Indian community members, service providers and Native organizations — to support and strengthen the movement to prevent and end domestic violence.

According to the National Institute of Justice, domestic violence disproportionately impacts Native Americans and Alaska Natives, with more than 1.5 million Native women and 1.4 million Native men experiencing violence during their lifetime, often by non-Native perpetrators. Domestic violence has several faces: physical, sexual, emotional, cultural, financial and digital. Children, elders and LGBTQ2S+ individuals can experience domestic violence.

Domestic violence among Native Americans is not natural or traditional. The domination and subjugation of Native Americans began with colonization and continues today. Colonization was responsible for the theft, occupation, pollution and exploitation of Indigenous lands. Today, Native Americans who are living in tribal communities on or near lands that are exploited by extractive industries face the highest rates of domestic and sexual violence.

“There is a viable connection between the violence that has been inflicted on the land through colonization and violence brought on Native peoples,” says Lori Jump (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians), director, StrongHearts Native Helpline. “When the value of the land is lost, the value of Indigenous peoples of the land is lost and violence follows.”

“StrongHearts Native Helpline is doing its part to raise awareness about this critical issue in our Native communities and to promote healing,” says Jump. “No matter where Native Americans live in the U.S. — on a reservation, in a small town, a rural area, or in a major U.S. city — we are here for you. Please join StrongHearts in believing survivors and victims. Let’s bring our voices together, and take action. Let’s collectively put an end to domestic violence once and for all.”

 

StrongHearts Native Helpline is a 24/7 culturally-appropriate domestic, dating and sexual violence helpline for Native Americans and Alaska Natives, available by calling or texting 1-844-762-8483 or clicking on the chat icon at strongheartshelpline.org. Advocates offer peer support, crisis intervention, safety planning and referrals to Native-centered services. StrongHearts Native Helpline is a proud partner of the National Domestic Violence Hotline and the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center.

Sport's role in “cultural genocide”

 As Lacrosse Ascends, a Reckoning With Its Past

In Canada, horrid discoveries have forced a humbling conversation about the sport's role in “cultural genocide” against Indigenous peoples.

 Ben Pickman

On June 12, in the second week of the Premier Lacrosse League season, one of the greatest players of the game’s modern era darted around Fifth Third Bank Stadium in Atlanta, just as he has done so often across his seven-year career. Cannons attackman Lyle Thompson fired home four goals, all from a variety of angles, on a PLL-season-high 14 shots—and while, yes, the Whipsnakes threw everything they had at him on defense, Thompson found himself weighed down less that afternoon by the body checks and poke checks than he was by the orange ribbon weaved through the bottom of his long, black braid. And by all that it represented.

Thompson, a member of the Onondaga Nation, took the field in Atlanta grieving 200-plus Indigenous children whose unmarked graves had been discovered a month earlier at the site of what was once the Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia. By wearing the ribbon he aimed to channel his sporting spirit toward those who’d gone without a proper burial, and who’d never been acknowledged. And that energy, he says, “played a toll on my body. It played a toll on my mind.”

Kevin D. Liles/Sports Illustrated

Canada’s so-called residential schools first opened in the late 19th century, and as recently as the late 1990s they remained a place where Indigenous youths—more than 150,000 of them, some as young as 3—were taken to be culturally indoctrinated. So far, 139 such institutions have been identified, the majority of them run by the Catholic Church, and there Indigenous children were systematically stripped of their Native culture, language and spirit.

In 2015, Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Committee produced a report alleging that children in those schools faced sexual, physical and emotional abuse and violence. They lived in unsanitary, cramped quarters and were often underfed. At least 4,100 students died, the committee estimated—but that number is likely higher given the spotty record keeping of the time. This summer alone, Indigenous nations released reports of some 1,300 unmarked graves found across the country, at Kamloops and at three other sites—and these recent findings have sparked an intense response, as an increased awareness of Canada’s often-exploitive past has forced a reckoning. (The United States is not innocent of such mass mistreatment, having opened 350-plus similar boarding schools, operated with a similar purpose.)

For Thompson, and other allies across the PLL, that reckoning is focused largely on the ways in which their sport was leveraged in what the committee called “cultural genocide.” 

Lacrosse, a game invented some 1,000 years ago by Native peoples, became an assimilative tool used at residential schools—“which is extraordinary,” says Allan Downey, an associate professor at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, and the author of The Creator’s Game, which explores Indigenous identify formation as it relates to the sport. “They [used] an Indigenous element—an Indigenous game that has deep connections to the epistemologies of Indigenous peoples—and they [used] it to assimilate Indigenous youth.”

Throughout the PLL season, to draw awareness to the subject and inspire education, Thompson and other players wore—and the league sold—orange helmet chinstraps, with proceeds going to the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition. Indigenous players emphasize that acknowledging lacrosse’s origins is key to the future of a game that today is widely perceived as white and upper-middle-class. “Our ancestors, they deserve the recognition,” says Zed Williams, who grew up on the Cattaraugus Reservation, just south of Buffalo, and who will lead the Whipsnakes into the PLL championship game against the Chaos this Sunday. “They deserve the voice they never had.”

“Right now,” says Thompson, “our ghosts—our ancestors—aren’t even being learned.”

What’s standing in the way of teaching about residential schools?

St. John’s Indian Residential School in Chapleau, Ont., June 1941. Library and Archives Canada

Ontario’s curriculum now includes the history of residential schools, but the status quo still prevails in Indigenous education.

---

by Paul W. Bennett September 17, 2021

Unearthing the unmarked children’s graves on or near former Canadian Indigenous residential schools could well be the tipping point. Since the June 2021 revelations at Kamloops Indian Residential School, the broader public has finally been engaged and it has injected a sense of urgency into the movement to integrate that shameful legacy into social studies K-12 curricula from province-to-province across Canada.

Newly awakened citizens are now realizing that their education never included curriculum or discussion about residential schools and their horrible legacy. That was definitely true 25 years ago, but less common today because of gradual, incremental changes in provincial social studies curricula. The massive Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) report in 2015 made teaching this history one of its highest-priority calls to action – a move that inspired a wave of First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) curriculum initiatives. Gauging the actual reach and effect of such projects is worthy of much closer scrutiny.

Mandating curriculum change does not necessarily lead to effective, consistent or discernable modifications in teaching practice. Implementation challenges can thwart policy guidelines and directives (as Michael Fullan’s book illustrates) and it’s critical to assess the gaps between the official curricula, the recently commissioned teaching resources, compulsory course offerings and the actual received curricula. The Ontario experience in integrating First Nation, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) perspectives and content into the curriculum is a case in point.

Since the TRC report, provincial and territorial governments have been entrusted with a very specific mandate – to make the history of residential schools, treaties, and historical and contemporary contributions of First Nations, Métis and Inuit a mandatory educational requirement for all kindergarten to Grade 12 students. While it emanated from the TRC, the whole idea of teaching independent, elective FNMI-focused courses and cross-curricular perspectives was hardly new to most people familiar with social studies curricula.

The Ontario Ministry of Education has invested considerable time, energy and resources into the creation and implementation of a native studies high school curriculum from the early 1970s onward. Its initial iteration, the 1975 People of Native Ancestry (PONA) curriculum guide and documents, was largely part of the Indigenous cultural revival that swept Canada after the first wave of closures of the residential schools. That curriculum was also created after the passage of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, in collaboration with Indigenous advisers and educators.

The fundamental shortcoming of Ontario’s PONA initiative was that it was entirely focused on creating and implementing a self-standing set of optional social studies courses. It was never a required component of the curricula and it was never mandatory and never integrated with other parts of Canadian history. By the fall of 1999, the provincial curricula had expanded to a suite of 10 individual native studies courses spanning grades 9 to 12. While the initial native studies courses were innovative at the time, they were offered in only 39 Ontario high schools and in significant numbers of actual courses in only four of those schools between 1999 and 2006. Furthermore, proposals to offer several of the courses, in part, in the Indigenous language were essentially shot down by federal authorities in Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC), which was more committed to advancing English literacy and raising graduation rates.

Faced with growing public demand in Ontario for improved Indigenous education, the Ministry of Education responded in 2006 with a new, broader strategy known as the Ontario First Nation, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) Policy Framework intended to expand native studies content in schools across the province. It proposed the implementation of “quality Native Studies education,” to Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, with the aspirational goal of raising the awareness of all Ontarians of Indigenous perspectives, histories and cultures.

Indigenous residential schools began to pop up in Ontario classroom resources. From 2000 onward, Ontario’s core history textbooks such as The Canadian Challenge started to include short references to the Indigenous residential schools, and that expanded following then-prime minister Stephen Harper’s 2008 formal apology for the abuses that students suffered in Canada’s residential schools.

One of the most widely used textbooks, Creating Canada: A History of Canada – 1914 to the Present, identified the abuses, referenced the 2006 financial compensation package, featured Harper’s apology and gave expression to rising demands for further initiatives addressing unresolved problems affecting Canada’s Indigenous peoples.

How Bill 96 could harm English-speaking Indigenous people

Opinion: It may further embolden those who, regardless of official policies, already won't provide health or police services to Indigenous people in English.

Nakuset  •  Special to Montreal Gazette | Sep 17, 2021 

Nakuset, executive director of the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal, says that regardless of what the official policies may be, English-speaking Indigenous people are already getting services refused because they can’t speak French, and she says she fears Bill 96 will make things worse. Photo by Pierre Obendrauf /Montreal Gazette

An Indigenous woman is raped.

She summons the courage to report her assault to Montreal police, but they won’t let her recount it in English. Adding to this humiliating experience, she doesn’t understand that the police have to process the crime scene at her apartment.

So when the police show up at her door unannounced, she has to pack up her things and spend the night at a friend’s house, unsure exactly what’s going on. The experience left her shattered.

This happened to someone I know and it’s one example of how access to English services is crucial for Indigenous people living in Quebec. So when I testified about Bill 96 Tuesday at the Quebec Community Groups Network hearings, I expressed my fears that the new language law will have dire consequences for Indigenous people in life-or-death situations.

Apparently, this drew the ire of La Presse columnist Patrick Lagacé.

To Lagacé, who claims I’m fear-mongering, I would simply say this:

As a Cree woman, whose mother is a residential school survivor, and who was subsequently stolen from her family and community during the ’60s scoop, much of my life has been defined by a loss of culture and language.

Subjected to aggressive assimilationist policies, I have seen much damage and suffering to Indigenous people who have moved to urban areas and tried to make a better life. I watch how they fall through the cracks. It was this awareness that led me to seek an education and dedicate my life to improving the situation.

In the early days of residential schools, children had to learn English and were told that their language was evil, the devil’s language. The language was beaten out of them. Upon returning from residential schools, they had difficulty communicating with their parents, as they lost their Indigenous language, further alienating them from their family, community and culture.

While many of the laws that were created to explicitly deny rights to Indigenous people have since been repealed, we still live in a society whose foundation was built on our oppression. The result is that we live with systemic racism and racial profiling. Here in Quebec, few of the 142 Viens Commission recommendations have been implemented and Indigenous youth in care are still denied the right to use their traditional languages.

And so, Indigenous people are struggling. Most were sent to English residential schools and have had difficulty accessing services in the only language they speak. Regardless of what the official policies may be, they are already getting services refused because they can’t speak French. I know this because I run a women’s shelter where Indigenous women routinely report these kinds of incidents to me.

Now imagine what it would be like if you’re homeless, have been assaulted, raped or are otherwise in crisis and Bill 96 further emboldens those who already think they don’t need to bother to speak English to Indigenous people. How will you explain your predicament if you can’t express it in French?

Indigenous people, be they English-speaking or French-speaking, are still afraid of entering hospitals since the death of Joyce Echaquan. As systemic racism is still rampant in institutions, we now have to worry about the way we communicate our emergencies and whether they will be understood. In her documentary Indecently Exposed, diversity educator Jane Elliott says “If you make the situation uncomfortable enough, people will refuse to tolerate it, and they will leave.”

Indigenous people will continue to experience emergency situations, but if the climate of the institutions is oppressive, they will not subject themselves to this treatment. It is far too painful.

In 2008, Brian Sinclair arrived at the Health Sciences Centre ER in Winnipeg. When he passed out in a wheelchair, staff assumed he was drunk, when in fact he had died. I was outspoken when the government announced the COVID-19 curfew and had stated at a protest that someone could die because of the failure to acknowledge the realities of homeless people.

Unfortunately, Raphaël André was collateral damage, and therefore, I spearheaded the establishment of the Raphaël André Memorial tent, in the hope of keeping others safe.

My testimony at the hearings was meant to demonstrate our reality and no, we are not fearful, we are terrified.

Nakuset is executive director of the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal and the director of development and philanthropy for the day shelter Resilience Montreal.

'Pain, loss and courage': New art exhibit tells the stories of '60s Scoop survivors

David Prisciak CTV News Regina
September 16, 2021 

The Bi-Giwen exhibit is advertised as the “first of its kind” by The Legacy of Hope Foundation. (David Prisciak/CTV News)

REGINA -- A new travelling art exhibit focuses on the stories of 12 ‘60s Scoop survivors and their individual experiences during a dark chapter of Canadian history.

“Bi-Giwen: Coming Home, Truth Telling from the Sixties Scoop” was on display at the Regina Public Library on Wednesday and features artwork created by some of the survivors that reflects their experiences.

“Their pain, loss, and courage are apparent on each canvas,” said Sandra Relling, the Vice President of the Sixties Scoop Indigenous Society of Alberta, whose organization is partnered with The Legacy of Hope Foundation for this project.

The exhibit was created by The Legacy of Hope Foundation, a national, Indigenous charitable organization with a mandate to educate and create awareness on Indigenous issues.

Adam North Peigan is the president of the foundation, and believes that exhibits like this one are fundamental in the effort to combat systemic racism.

“The importance is really creating that awareness,” he said. “We all know that racism, systemic racism is alive and well in Canada. And I think if mainstream Canadians can take a step back and take the opportunity to learn a little bit more about the history of our people that it will impact those unhealthy attitudes that fuel racism towards our people.”

Peigan, a sixties scoop survivor himself, explained the deep meaning behind unveiling the exhibit in a public library.

“Where I went and where a lot of Sixties Scoop survivors went to find some sanctuary and some peace was to the public libraries, he said. “That’s the only place we felt safe.”

Relling explained that the exhibit gives insight to the trauma inflicted on the survivors.

“It gives us a better understanding of the impacts of child removal policies within the child welfare system and the ongoing effects as well as the long term effects that it has on people who have gone through those systems,” she said.

After moving on from Regina after its one day showing at the Regina Public Library the exhibit will continue its tour across Saskatchewan. Visiting North Battleford, Swift Current, Prince Albert, and Saskatoon beginning in October.

You can see testimonies from the 12 survivors featured in the exhibit by visiting The Legacy of Hope’s website at: https://legacyofhope.ca/bigiwen/

Canada knowingly underfunding services for 165,000 First Nations kids and their families for decades

 

Where They Stand: The Parties on Indigenous Child Welfare

It’s been five years since a tribunal ruled that Canada discriminates against First Nations kids. Advocates still await change.

Katie Hyslop 16 Sep 2021 | TheTyee.ca

 

Cindy Blackstock, centre, has fought for equitable funding for First Nations children since 2008. She weighs in on the parties’ plans on child welfare. Photo by Sean Kilpatrick, the Canadian Press.

Cindy Blackstock doesn’t know why Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau lied about taking First Nations kids to court during the leaders’ debate last week. But Blackstock, the executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society, is “really sad” he did.

Especially when there is over 14 years of evidence — including court transcripts, news articles and 20 non-compliance orders from the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal — to the contrary.

“They have every legal right to litigate against our kids. I think it’s morally wrong — and it’s bad for the country — but they’ve chosen to do it,” said Blackstock of the government’s Federal Court case arguing against a tribunal ruling that First Nations children and families impacted by the child welfare system should be compensated.

“What they don’t have a right to do is then lie about it to protect themselves from accountability for their own behaviour.”

Blackstock would know: along with the Assembly of First Nations, her organization took the federal government to the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal in 2008 over its systemic underfunding of child welfre on reserves.

In 2016, the tribunal issued its ruling: the federal government had been knowingly underfunding services for 165,000 First Nations kids and their families for decades. The tribunal ordered the government to stop its discriminatory practices.

More than 50 per cent of children in government care in this country are Indigenous, despite representing fewer than 10 per cent of all children. The majority are First Nations children taken into care for “neglect,” which child welfare researchers say is another word for poverty.

In 2019, the tribunal declared the government must pay $40,000 — the maximum the tribunal can award — to every First Nations child removed from their family since 2006. Their guardians before the children were taken into care are entitled to $20,000.

The tribunal also awarded $40,000 to every First Nations child denied federal medical coverage between 2007 and 2017, citing Jordan’s Principle, a 2007 policy that governments should pay the medical bills of any First Nations child, on or off-reserve.

But two weeks before the 2019 election, government lawyers requested a judicial review of the compensation orders.

Hearings were held in Federal Court in June, less than a month after the Tk’emlúps te Secwe̓pemc Nation announced the rediscovery of 215 bodies on the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.

The Federal Court’s ruling is expected at any time.

The government also took issue with the tribunal’s 2020 declaration that all children with Indian Act status; eligibility for status; or parents or guardians who have status, live on-reserve and whose First Nation acknowledges their membership — are covered by Jordan’s Principle.

The federal government argued before the court that only children with status under the Indian Act — a racist Canadian law that determines First Nations’ band membership — should be covered.

The Liberals have tried to respond to Canada’s child welfare crisis. In 2018 they released a six-point plan to reform child welfare, including implementing the tribunal’s ruling and working with Indigenous leaders to re-establish jurisdiction over child welfare.

In January 2020, the federal Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families became law, starting the process to return jurisdiction to Indigenous communities. But it did not come with funding, and a year and a half later the federal government has yet to release a funding plan.

In B.C., a working group on child welfare and family services was established by the provincial and federal governments, the BC Assembly of First Nations, the Union of BC Indian Chiefs and the First Nations Summit.

Assembly Regional Chief Terry Teegee said that three of the 198 First Nations in the province are close to reclaiming their inherent jurisdiction over child welfare, though a federal funding commitment is needed.

“It’s always a work in progress, and I certainly know that a lot of these changes weren’t going to happen overnight,” Teegee said, adding the assembly is also waiting on provincial child-welfare jurisdiction legislation.

“We can’t let up. We need to continue on to allow our First Nations to take their rightful place in asserting their jurisdiction and their ability to express their sovereignty and self-determination in terms of children.”

The Splatsin of the Secwe̓pemc Nation is one of the three nations. It was close to signing a child welfare co-ordination agreement with the federal government before it was scrapped due to the election.

But despite how close they were, Splatsin Kukpi7 (Chief) Wayne Christian said the process has been frustrating, in part because the federal government has approached transferring child welfare jurisdiction like it is creating a new federal program.

“It’s beyond belief that you have a whole number of bureaucrats staffing up to offer this program,” he said.

No matter which party forms government, Christian said, the main stumbling block to re-establishing jurisdiction are the bureaucrats who have worked in the departments dedicated to Indigenous affairs for decades.

“They have a certain culture of how to operate with ‘the Indian problem’ and they’re still acting like Indian agents, except there’s a multitude of them now,” he said.

“It’s the bureaucracy that makes things happen, and they’re very slow to react to what we actually need to happen. They deny, delay and distract, that’s what they do.”

READ MORE

Morongo, 3 other tribes ask U.S. Supreme Court to uphold Indian Child Welfare Act

updated podcast: https://crooked.com/podcast-series/this-land/

 NEWS

'There’s a lot at stake here, and it’s important that the general public understands that (ICWA) stands as a beacon in child welfare practices'

The Morongo Band of Mission Indians and four other tribes from across the nation have joined the federal government in petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a law that gives adoption preference for American Indian children in state foster care to American Indian families.

In a petition filed Sept. 3, the tribes are essentially requesting that the high court leave intact the Indian Child Welfare Act, a law enacted in 1978 amid a trend that saw an “alarmingly high percentage” of American Indian children separated from their families by nontribal public and private agencies.

U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, who is of American Indian descent, also has petitioned the Supreme Court to uphold the law, while the state of Texas, on behalf of Chad and Jennifer Brackeen, have petitioned the high court to repeal the law, claiming it is unconstitutional.

On April 21, the Fifth Circuit released its more than 300-page opinion — a mixed bag that largely upheld the law, but in which some judges agreed that certain provisions of ICWA were unconstitutional and others were constitutional, leaving the outcome less than clear.

Now, both the plaintiffs and the defendants have petitioned the nation’s highest court to review the case.

A Supreme Court response to the tribes’ petition and the petition filed by the plaintiffs is due on Oct. 8, according to the docket.

Ken Ramirez, chairman of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians in San Bernardino, said in a statement Friday that, for more than 40 years, the Indian Child Welfare Act has helped reverse the tide of one of the most enduring historical attacks on Native American people: the forcible removal of American Indian children from their homes, tribal cultures, and tribal communities.

“We are hopeful that the United States Supreme Court will review this case and affirm the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act,” Ramirez said. “Those who seek to remove Native children from their homes and tribal communities should not be emboldened to return to the harmful and tragic practices of the past.”

 KEEP READING

Goldwater and other rich interests have their guns pointed at us... we will fight them with laws and ceremony... Blog Editor TL Hentz

 

Wawa to mark the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation #OrangeShirtDay

from unlearn.com

Wawa, Ontario | September 30th – Orange Shirt Day has been recognized by the Federal Government as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a new statutory holiday. The Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action #80 states that the federal government will work with Indigenous people to establish a statutory day to “honour Survivors, their families, and communities, and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process”. There are 94 Calls to Action.

In Wawa, the Town Hall and all municipal facilities will be closed and staff is encouraged to continue to expand their education as part of their individual reconciliation efforts.

Municipal Council notes that anyone who is interested in developing a better understanding can visit the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s website, or use the Libby App to access digital books by Indigenous authors, such as “21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act” by Robert P.C. Joseph.

Other books that residents may find educating are:

• Clearing the Plains – James Daschuk
• The Inconvenient Indian – Thomas King
• Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death, and Hard Truths in a Northern City – Tanya Talaga

Residents may wish to visit these two websites:

• Orange Shirt Day (www.orangeshirtday.org). Orange Shirt Day originates from the story of Phyllis Webstad from the Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation. In 1973, on her first day at St. Joseph’s Residential School in Williams Lake, BC, Phyllis’s shiny new orange shirt was stripped from her, never to be seen again. 40 years later, on September 30th, 2013, Phyllis spoke publicly for the first time about her experience, and thus began the Orange Shirt Day movement.
  
• National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (https://nctr.ca). From September 27th to October 1st the NCTR will provide historical workshops, exclusive video content, and activities for students — all supported by artistic and cultural performances by First Nations, Métis, and Inuit artists.

A new broadcast special, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, in partnership with APTN, CBC/Radio-Canada, Insight Productions and Canadian Heritage. In recognition of the new federal statutory holiday, also known as Orange Shirt Day, this unique one-hour, commercial-free primetime special honours the stories and perspectives of Indigenous Peoples affected by the tragedies of the residential school system in Canada, with musical tributes and ceremonies in Indigenous communities across the land. National Day for Truth and Reconciliation will broadcast and stream live Thursday, September 30 at 8 p.m. ET on APTN, CBC, CBC Gem, ICI TÉLÉ and ICI TOU.TV.

Additionally, the Wawa Goose Monument will be illuminated in orange on September 30th, to honour survivors of residential schools, along with their families and communities.

“Council has prioritized relationship building with our Indigenous neighbours,” said Mayor Rody. “We will continue to work with local Indigenous leaders to best determine how we can support their efforts and find opportunities to learn and highlight the First Nation roots of the community. Thank you to municipal staff for having the orange lights illuminating the Wawa Goose in honour and recognition of the residential school survivors and their families on September 30th. This is only a small part of recognition, and we have much more work to do.”

In June, the federal government passed legislation recognizing Sept. 30 as a federal holiday, a paid day off for federal workers and employees in federally regulated workplaces. On Sept. 9, the Ontario government confirmed that the day will not be a holiday for the province.

SOURCE

Bay Mills president's Indian Affairs appointment will transform relationships #ProtectICWA

 | Opinion by Kirsten Matoy Carlson

It was a historic ceremony: U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, the first tribal citizen to hold the position, swearing in Bryan Newland, a citizen of the Bay Mills Indian Community, as Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs.

For the first time in American history, tribal citizens lead the U.S. in its government-to-government relationship with American Indian and Alaska Native Nations. 

As assistant secretary, Newland becomes the highest-ranking official in the Bureau of Indian Affairs. One of the oldest federal agencies, the Bureau of Indian Affairs exists to enhance the quality of life, promote economic opportunity, and carry out the federal responsibility to protect and improve the trust assets of American Indians, tribal governments and Alaska Natives. 

Newland’s experiences as an attorney for tribal governments, a policy advisor in the Obama Administration, the Chief Judge of the Bay Mills Indian Community, and the President of the Bay Mills Indian Community make him especially qualified to lead the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The Bay Mills Indian Community is located near the Upper Peninsula's Whitefish Bay, on the shores of Lake Superior. 

Newland is uniquely positioned to advance the Biden Administration’s priorities of upholding the United States’ trust responsibility to tribal nations, strengthening the nation-to-nation relationship between the United States and Indian tribes, and working to empower tribal nations to govern their own communities and make their own decisions.

In leading the BIA, Newland will draw on many of his own experiences as a tribal leader to improve the relationship between tribal governments and the United States. 

Having just finished serving his community as tribal president, Newland knows firsthand the struggles faced by tribal governments in developing sustainable economies, protecting their territories, and serving their communities. He showed tremendous leadership during the pandemic, urging the BIA to provide adequate testing in Indian country and ensuring that tribal governments received funding allocated to them under the CARES Act. 

His advocacy for federal government accountability to Indian country demonstrates his deep understanding of the trust relationship between the United States government and Indian tribes. This understanding will serve him well as he takes on a key role in implementing the trust relationship and assisting tribal governments as they recover from a pandemic, which has disproportionately affected their communities.

Newland’s vision for helping tribal governments stems from his knowledge that tribal communities are best served when they are empowered to craft their own solutions to problems. Like President Biden and Secretary Haaland, he is dedicated to advancing the federal government’s commitment to ensuring tribal consultation on and input into federal policymaking. As a former Tribal President, he brings key insights into what works for tribal leaders in this process as he seeks to improve it.

Newland shares many of the values of other tribal leaders and will prioritize them as Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs. Raised in his traditional Anishinaabek homeland along the shores of Lake Superior, he values the restoring and strengthening of tribal homelands so that every Native person has a place to call home. He understands that tribal homelands must be economically viable and has emphasized the need to restore tribal wealth to tribal communities so that they will thrive for generations yet to come. As tribal president, he sought to protect his own tribal homeland by vocally opposing Enbridge’s Line 5.

In addition to his on the ground experiences in Indian country, Newland understands the challenges facing the BIA, which has not always served Indian country well. 

He acknowledges that the agency has contributed to the state of affairs in Indian country and sees undoing colonization as intergenerational work. He has emphasized the importance of children to Native communities and acknowledged the incredible harm done to tribal families, cultures, and communities when their children are removed. 

As assistant secretary, he will support enforcement of the Indian Child Welfare Act, which prevents the unnecessary removal of Indian children from their tribal communities.

Newland’s appointment, alongside Haaland's historic appointment, will usher in a transformative new era in federal Indian affairs. As head of the BIA during an administration devoted to tribal sovereignty and racial equity, Newland can start to undo the colonization that has pervaded federal Indian law and policy from within.

Kirsten Matoy Carlson is a professor of law and adjunct associate professor of political science at the Wayne State University Law School, and is a leading authority on federal Indian law and legislation.

SOURCE