President Barack Obama steps off Air Force One in Durant, Oklahoma. Photo by Choctaw Nation / Facebook
President Barack Obama made his second trip to Indian Country on Wednesday, delivering a wide-ranging speech to members and guests of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, the third-largest tribe in the U.S. More than 900 people packed into the Durant High School on what Chief Gary Batton called a "historic day" for the Choctaw people. He called Obama a "great partner" for having named the tribe the first Promise Zone in Indian Country. "He has come to Indian Country to secure the nation-to-nation relationship between the United States and Indian tribes and to highlight the progress of the Choctaw Nation," Batton told the eager crowd.
YouTube: Chief Gary Batton speaks on the Presidential Visit
Since the designation in January 2014, more than $58 million in federal funds have flowed into a 10-county area in the southeastern part of the state. The money has been used to start work on a 100,000 square-foot medical campus in Durant, to build a new health clinic in nearby Boswell and to help public schools and local communities with equipment, facilities and other needs. "The Promise Zone is turning our nation-to-nation relationship into a nation-to-nation partnership," Batton said. During his visit, Obama announced another initiative that he said will help the tribe even more. A pilot project known as ConnectHome will bring high-speed Internet service to public housing units with the goal of bringing more economic opportunity to Choctaw people, especially youth.
Kelsey Janway. Photo by Choctaw Nation / Facebook
"This will make a difference for young people like Kelsey Janway," said Obama, referring to Kelsey Janway, the president of the Choctaw Nation Youth Advisory Board who met with the president during the 2014 Tribal Nations Conference and who attended last week's historic White House Tribal Youth Gathering in Washington, D.C. Obama noted that technology has been slow to arrive in Indian Country. But he promised that ConnectHome will help more people like Janway reach their goals. "So I’m proud of Kelsey. I’m proud of these young people," Obama said in his speech. "I’m proud of Choctaw Nation. And I surely am proud of these United States of America. Let’s get to work and make sure we’re leaving the kind of country we want for our kids."
Indianz.Com SoundCloud: President Barack Obama visits Choctaw Nation
Before his speech, Obama met privately with Chief Batton and with a group of young member of the Choctaw Nation, Cherokee Nation, Muscogee Nation and the Chickasaw Nation. According to the White House, they discussed Generation Indigenous, the president's initiative to create opportunities and empower Native youth. In total, Obama spent more than two hours in Durant. He continued his visit to Oklahoma today with a trip to a corrections facility in El Reno, becoming the first president in history to step inside a federal prison. The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes are based in the El Reno area and some tribal members planned a protest during the visit in order to press for the return of Fort Reno. Congress has prevented the government from returning the 10,000-acre site to the tribe. Relevant Documents:
Transcript: President Barack Obama speech to Choctaw Nation | ConnectHome Fact Sheet Related Stories:
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