Featured Story
Interior to start payment processing
The Department of Interior today plans to turn on a major computer
system that has been idle for more than a month, hoping some royalty
payments can be sent to Indian Country as soon as possible....
Featured Story
White House orders review of Andersen contracts
The White House has ordered a federal review of all contracts with Arthur
Andersen and Enron....
Featured Story
Health gains few in Indian Country
The overall health of racial and ethnic minorities improved over the past
decade, according to a federal report released on Thursday, with the
exception of American Indians and Alaska Natives, who saw no progress
in some areas and declines in others....
Featured Story
In The Hoop: Winners, Losers
Is it Friday already? That means it's time for the weekly list of the
movers and shakers in Indian Country and beyond....
Featured Story
Trust fund accounts getting Interior boot
The Department of Interior is moving to close thousands of Indian trust
accounts even though it can't guarantee the balance of any is correct
and has yet to start the massive undertaking required to do so....
Cowlitz Tribe sues over treaty rights
The Cowlitz Tribe of Washington has filed a lawsuit against the state
Department of Fish and Wildlife over treaty rights....
Tlingits keep Olympic torch alive
The Olympic torch came to Alaska for the first time on Thursday, aided in
its journey by the Juneau Tlingit Warriors....
Students not pleased with new Aztec
As expected, students at San Diego State University aren't exactly
jumping for joy about their new cultural symbol Montezuma....
911 understaffed at busy times
A 911 operator who took one of the calls from two Aboriginal sisters
killed in a domestic violence dispute testified on Thursday that there are
no dedicated 911 operators at some of the most busy times of the year....
Nev. wants nuclear recomendation delayed
Citing irreparable harm to its economy and well-being, the state of
Nevada asked a federal appeals court on Thursday to stop Secretary of
Energy Spencer Abraham from recommending the nation's nuclear waste
be buried there....
Mohican compact getting approval
The Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohicans of Wisconsin gained approval
in two places for its $600 million casino in the Catskills region of New
York....
More casino money headed to Conn. towns
Leaders of municipalities in southeastern Connecticut are praising Governor John Rowland (R) for moving to increase their share of money taken in
from two tribal casinos....
Tribe's water standards lauded
The Northern Cheyenne Tribe of Montana was praised for developing
water standards at a public hearing in Billings on Thursday....
Pequot golf course focus of lawsuit
A settlement over a lawsuit filed by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal
Nation and a developer may be near....
Village cop quits in lid over pot
Felix Edmund has resigned from his job as Alakanuk village police chief
after being cited for smoking marijuana with a 15-year-old....
House schedules campaign finance vote
Proponents of legislation to reform the way federal political campaigns
are financed won a significant victory in the House on Thursday....
Predatory lending strikes tribe
Predatory lending practices in the home mortgage industry were the
subject of a meeting held in Oklahoma on Thursday....
Winnebago chairman not optimistic on funds
The Department of Interior said it is ready to start processing grazing
checks for individual Indians but the chairman of the Winnebago Tribe of
Nebraska isn't ready to make the trip to the bank....
Navajo comic gets in the laughs
The boarding school styles of Navajo comic Vincent "You look somehow"
Craig will serve as the entertainment tonight at the 85th anniversary
party of the Museum of Fine Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico....
Radiation exposure believed underestimated
A draft report prepared for the federal government says tribal members
exposure to radiation from the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in
Washington may have been underestimated....
Enron / Andersen hearings kick off
Two Congressional committees on Thursday held hearings into the fall of
energy giant Enron Corp., the most exciting being the one into shredding
which occurred at accounting firm Arthur Andersen....
Former top trust official opposes receiver
Appointing a receiver to take over the Individual Indian Money (IIM)
trust is not the way to reform the system, and neither is a
reorganization, the Department of Interior's first Special Trustee says....
First Nations police have broad authority
A Mi'kmaq First Nations police force has jurisdiction over the entire Nova
Scotia province, a provincial court judge ruled on Thursday....
Report: FCC refunding Native investment
The FCC will be refunding a billion dollar investment to three Alaska
Native corporations for a failed wireless deal, InfoWorld Daily News
reports....
Indian commission sought in Indiana
A protest on Thursday by Native Americans at the Statehouse in Indiana
convinced a state lawmaker to amend a bill to create a commission of
Indian affairs....
ABC hosting Native talent showcase
The ABC television network is hosting a Native talent showcase featuring
"Smoke Signals" filmmaker Chris Eyre in Los Angeles, California, on
Monday....
Norton subpoenaed but won't appear
The US Commission on Civil Rights has subpoenaed Secretary of
Interior Gale Norton to appear at a hearing on environmental justice but
she won't appear due to a scheduling conflict....
Alaska Natives take shots at Norton plan
It was much colder in terms of temperature but the reaction of Alaska
Natives to Secretary of Interior Gale Norton's proposal to reorganize
Indian trust was much the same as elsewhere in the nation....
N.M. judge approves Indian districts
A New Mexico state judge on Thursday approved majority-Indian voting
districts suggested by the Navajo Nation and Jicarilla Apache Nation....
Gold deposit could be bounty for Natives
Land in western Alaska owned by Alaska Natives holds some of the
densest gold deposits, according to a company that wants to mine the
metal....
Featured Story
In The Hoop: Enron Reform
After spending $40 million on a computer system that had a number of
software bugs, the state of New Mexico has decided to scrap it for a
cheaper package....
Featured Story
Agreement paves way for trust fund payments
After surviving more than a month without critical funds, thousands of
American Indians throughout the country are closer to getting money
that has been locked up in a political, legal and technical dispute....
Featured Story
Calif. school debuts new Aztec 'ambassador'
California's San Diego State University on
Wednesday debuted its new Aztec symbol,
refashioned as a cultural ambassador after
Hispanic and Native students complained
about the spear-chucking, red-faced warrior
that had been a tradition for decades....
Racial profiling discussed at forum
The Montana State University at Billings hosted a forum on racial profiling
on Wednesday, an event which included a Bureau of Indian Affairs
criminal investigator....
Cops implicated in death of Native man
Law enforcement authorities in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, are
investigating new evidence that suggests police officers played a role in
the death of an Aboriginal man who was found frozen on the outskirts of
town two winters ago....
Opinion: Casinos say tribes 'still here'
"When I was a child growing up in central New Mexico, we used to pass
Isleta Pueblo on our way to Albuquerque....
Group doubts use of mammograms
A group which writes information for the National Cancer Institute but
doesn't make specific medical recommendations said on Wednesday it
was changing its position on mammogram screening....
Cheney pushed again on energy records
The chairmen of three Senate committees on Wednesday asked Vice
President Dick Cheney to release documents and records from the
national energy task force he chaired....
Federal deficit to return under Bush
Confirming projections by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office,
the White House on Wednesday said the national deficit has returned
and would stay until the end of President Bush's term....
Nuclear waste rules up for change
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is proposing to relax rules governing
the storage of nuclear waste by eliminating events it considers unlikely....
Mohegan fishery still under review
The US Army Corps of Engineers is still reviewing a fisheries plan
proposed by the Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut....
Wis. tribe has deal in Catskills
The Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohicans from Wisconsin has reached a
deal to open a casino in the Catskills region of New York....
Kudos for Ponca Tribe on agreement
In a short editorial, The Lincoln Journal Star today gives the Ponca Tribe
of Nebraska kudos for coming up with an innovative way to sell energy to
a local university....
Cantwell snubbed on Bush pick
Washington's two Democratic senators are miffed they weren't
consulted over the nomination of the state's U.S....
Death of Native women scares 911
A 911 operator who took one of the calls from two Aboriginal sisters
killed in a domestic violence dispute testified on Wednesday that the
incident has had negative effects on the emergency system in Winnipeg,
Manitoba....
Peyote against tea dispute heats up
Three Native American Church groups have asked a federal judge for
permission to intervene in a religious freedom case occurring in New
Mexico....
Neb. tribes could operate 'border' casinos
Nebraska State Sen Chris Beutler of Lincoln has introduced a bill to
legalize casino gaming on and off reservations in the state....
ANWR money clears Alaska House
The Alaska House on Wednesday voted 33-2 to give $1.1 million to a
lobbying group trying to convince the Senate to open up the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge to drilling....
Native verse in Alaska song sought
The Alaska House on Wednesday unanimously approved a bill to add a
second verse to the state song that recognizes Alaska Natives....
Ex-tribal attorney up for top post
A South Dakota attorney with experience in Indian law is up for the U.S.
Attorney's job....
Status of kitty litter mine in limbo
The Washoe County Commission has decided to delay by one month a
decision on a controversial kitty litter mine....
Teepee erected on school president's lawn
Native American activists erected a teepee on the lawn of University of
Minnesota President Mark Yudof's home on Wednesday to protest the
school's involvement in an telescope project....
N.M. Indian affairs leader asked to leave
The 10-member New Mexico Commission on Indian Affairs voted last
Friday to remove executive director Terry Aguilar from his position
should he choose not to resign voluntarily....
Enron / Andersen hearings start today
Two Congressional committees are holding hearings today on the Enron
/ Arthur Andersen debacle....
Bill would prohibit new liquor at Whiteclay
Nebraska Senator Don Preister of Omaha has introduced a bill that would
prohibit the issuance of new liquor licenses within a five-mile radius of
any reservation that bans alcohol....
Featured Story
EDS facing another Indian trust task
The management consulting firm which recommended Secretary of
Interior Gale Norton appoint a single person to be in charge of Indian
trust, thereby setting forth a reorganization proposal roundly rejected by
tribes, is on board for yet another project....
Featured Story
Court forcing Interior on security
Among the many changes to the Department of Interior's trust reform
update that Secretary Gale Norton personally submitted last week is the
addition of a section on information technology and computer security
issues....
N.M. violence programs may get funds
The New Mexico Legislature is moving forward a bill to provide $2 million
in funds, up from $750,000, to domestic violence programs....
Letter: Speaking for the Sioux Nation
"I hear the Sioux Nation speaks of disgust and shame concerning the
Washington High School mural....
Nuclear plants cited for threats
The Department of Energy is being urged to beef up security at weapons
plants throughout the nation by a government oversight group and a
Democratic Congressman....
ANWR lobby funds getting approval
The House Finance Committee of the Alaska Legislature on Tuesday
approved a bill to give a lobbying group an additional $1 million to
support drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge....
Senate building finally reopens
The Hart Senate Office Building finally reopened on Tuesday, more than
three months after it was shut down when anthrax letters were received
there....
Utah suit challenges Census counting
The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to consider whether a key U.S.
Census Bureau counting method is unconstitutional....
Subpoenas sent to Arthur Andersen
The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday issued
subpoenas to senior Arthur Andersen executives involved in the Enron
debacle as President Bush defended his administration's handling of the
situation....
American appeals sentence in Peru
Peru's Supreme Court on Tuesday heard arguments in the case of former
Massachusetts Institute of Technology student Lori Berenson, convicted
of aiding separatist rebels try to take over the nation's Congress....
Death of sisters haunts 911 operator
The 911 operator who took a call from three Aboriginal sisters killed in a
domestic violence dispute was on the stand Tuesday for an inquest into
their death....
Neb. Natives protest justice system
Native Americans and other minorities aired their complaints about
Nebraska's justice system at a public forum held Tuesday night....
Blue lights flickering for Kmart
Discount store Kmart on Tuesday filed for bankruptcy in federal court,
making it the largest retail declaration in history....
Anti-Pequot towns have hope in case
Three Connecticut towns who have been fighting the Mashantucket
Pequot Tribal Nation over trust land say they have hope with a recent
Supreme Court decision....
Report highlights health disparities
The Children's Defense Fund of Minnesota is releasing a report today on
health disparities affecting Native American, African-American, Hispanic
and Asian children....
Mont. tribe pushing water standards
The Northern Cheyenne Tribe of Montana has developed standards for
water quality on the reservation, affecting a number of uses from
drinking to recreation to agricultural....
Name for Nev. brothel changed
After receiving complaints from Native American activists, the owners of
a Nevada brothel have changed the name to "Wild Horse."
The Storey County brothel was originally going to be called "Crazy Horse
Resort and Spa." But the operators received complaints and decided to
pick another name....
Conn. tribe waiting on recognition
Chief Richard Velky of the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation of Connecticut says
he expects the Bureau of Indian Affairs to issue a proposed finding on
this tribe's recognition in the second half of 2003....
Landowners removed from Mohawk claim
A federal judge in New York has agreed to remove private landowners
from the Mohawk land claim....
Oneida land claim talks resume
There appears to have been a breakthrough in talks between the Oneida
Nation, the state of New York and two counties over the tribe's unsettled
land claim....
New group to fight Idaho tribe
A new group called the Property Owners and Citizens Rights Organization
has popped up in northern Idaho and its goal is to challenge the
sovereignty of the Coeur d'Alene Tribe and the Environmental Protection
Agency....
Opinion: Sacred Sites v. Money
"Does Orange County need another 2,500 homes near Turtle Rock?
Absolutely....
Windy Boy: Tribes and welfare reform
"Under welfare reform, for the first time, tribes are given a choice to
develop, implement and administer their own welfare program, which
would be beneficial for tribes....
Plains tribes rally on health
The Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council kicked off its health care
roundtable in Montana on Tuesday as tribal leaders called on joining
together to fight numerous problems facing reservations in the Plains....
MacDonald recalls year of freedom
Former Navajo Nation leader Peter MacDonald on Monday said it was a
"miracle" that he was released from prison a year ago....
Indian preference an issue for tribe
The Passamaquoddy Tribe of the Pleasant Point Reservation in Maine is
moving to enforce its Indian preference policy to try and keep young
tribal members at home....
Featured Story
The Week in Review
Trust reform project gets new direction, Secretary of
Interior Gale Norton's contempt trial finds one too, Interior
computer shutdown stays the same, and tribal
counsultation does as well....
Featured Story
A year of backsteps under Bush
President George W Bush took office a year ago this week with little
to go on in terms of Indian policy....
Featured Story
Tribes meeting for consultation in Alaska
The Department of Interior is hosting its sixth consultation on a proposal
to create an Indian trust agency....
Featured Story
Trust reform update sheds some light
As tribal leaders work to come up with alternatives to the Bush
administration's proposed, and opposed, reorganization of the Bureau of
Indian Affairs, a key question about the status of various trust reform
projects has been raised....
Tribe seeking to supply lottery machines
The Oneida Nation is hoping the state of New York will be
tribally-supplied video lottery machines....
Democrat offering energy proposal
Sen John Kerry (D-Mass.) is offering his own alternative to the Bush
administration's energy plan....
BLM ordered to rewrite drilling plan
The Department of Interior's Board of Land Appeals has ordered the Bureau of
Land Management to rewrite parts of a gas drilling plan in Wyoming....
Drilling backed in Clinton monument
The Department of Interior last Thursday released an environmental
analysis that finds no significant impact should eight natural gas wells be
drilled in and around a national monument created in the last month of
the Clinton administration....
GOP Congressman has doubts on Yucca
The Bush administration's move to send the nation's nuclear waste to
Nevada might have a more difficult time clearing the GOP-controlled
House if sentiments voiced by a Congressional leader are any indication....
Women's business meeting set
The Cheyenne-Arapaho tribal complex near El Reno, Oklahoma, will play
host this Thursday to a workshop for women entrepreneurs....
Shredding reported despite probe
A former executive of failed energy giant Enron said on Monday that
document shredding was taking place as recently as last week despite
the company being under a federal investigation....
Solution to waste poses problems
The Northern Ute Tribe of Colorado is helping contribute funds to clean up
a 130-acre pile of radioactive mine waste in Utah but how exactly to do
that is still under debate....
Slain woman may be Native
Law enforcement in Seattle, Washington, are seeking help in identifying
a woman found dead in a park restroom last week....
'Reds' mascot in Colo. opposed
A group of Native Americans in Colorado is calling on Eaton High School
to get rid of its "Reds" logo, which features an Indian man with a large
nose and a feather in his hair....
National Park Service ranger can talk again
Thanks to a settlement brokered through the Office of Special Counsel,
an independent federal agency that works on government whistleblower
cases, a National Park Service ranger is now allowed to speak freely
about his job and his concerns as a ranger in Yellowstone National Park....
Ariz. tracks seek slot machines
Arizona tribes will seek to fight a proposal by four race tracks to add
video slot machines to their facilities, said Ivan Makil, president of the
Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community....
Norton releases budget 'good news'
When President Bush releases his fiscal year 2003 budget on February 4,
it is expected he will increase funding for terrorist-related programs
while other areas will see little or no growth....
Health meeting starting in Mont.
The Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council, in partnership with the
Indian Health Service, is hosting a three-day roundtable in Billings,
Montana, to discuss health care disparities on reservations....
Donors sought for Native child
The Montana Marrow Program is holding a blood drive today in Billings for
Arianna Jordan, a 1-year-old Native child with osteopetrosis....
Babbitt writing about Interior
Buried at the end of an Arizona Republic article about a new book by
Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor is a tidbit about former
Secretary of Interior Bruce Babbitt....
Navajo candidate wants helicopter
Navajo Nation presidential candidate Joe Shirley wants to ensure the
voice of tribal members on the three-state reservation is being heard....
Native performers slated at Olympics
Walela and Robbie Robertson will be joining Sting, Lee Ann Rimes, the
Dixie Chicks and a host of others for the Opening Ceremony at the Winter
2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah....
Tigua Tribe helping employees
The Tigua Tribe of Texas is working to try and make expected layoffs of
hundreds of employees less harsh by offering severance packages and
post-employment aid....
Native man denied by Supreme Court
The Supreme Court today declined to review of an appeal by an American
Indian man convicted of the same crime under both tribal and federal
jurisdiction....
Native students helping EPA study
Native students from the villages of Barrow in Alaska and two in Siberia
are taking part in a five-year research and education project funded by
the Environmental Protection Agency....
Prairie dog debate includes tribes
Prairie dogs are spreading "like wildfire" on the Pine Ridge Reservation in
South Dakota, a land coordinator for the Oglala Lakota Tribe told The
Sioux Falls Argus Leader....
Makah gearing up for whale hunting
The Makah Nation of Washington has requested $70,000 in federal funds
from the National Marine Fisheries Service for use in its traditional whale
hunt....
Colombia, rebels extending talks
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) on Sunday
proposed to sign a cease-fire agreement with the Colombian
government by April 7....
Alaska lawmakers push for ANWR lobby
The Alaska Legislature is once again moving to fund Arctic Power with an
extra $1 million so the group can lobby Congress to open up the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling....
Artifact ruling described as setback
A December 2000 ruling by a federal appeals court affecting protection of
Native artifacts is being described as a setback by federal officials and
Alaska Natives....
Neb. court rules against tribal arrest
The Nebraska Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the state was wrong to
revoke the license of a non-Indian man who was pursued off the Iowa
Reservation by a tribal officer....
Beluga count up in Cook Inlet
The beluga whale population in Alaska's Cook Inlet is growing by about 3
percent a year, according to federal scientists, giving them hope that the
mammal's numbers are rebounding after a decade of decline....
Roger Ebert loves 'Skins' at Sundance
"I also admired Chris Eyre's "Skins," a drama about murder, vigilantism,
alcoholism and despair on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South
Dakota....
Native center honors King
The Alaska Native Heritage Center on Sunday held a celebration in honor
Martin Luther King Jr., which featured a speech by Anchorage police chief
Walt Monegan....
Abenaki Tribe fights opposition to status
The St Francis Band of the Abenaki Nation of Vermont on Friday held a press
conference to respond to opponents of the tribe's bid for federal
recognition....
Tribe forms partnership with school
The Ponca Tribe has formed what is being called a unique partnership
with the University of Nebraska....
Ute tribe won't attend Olympics
The Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado has decided not to send a delegation
of members to the Winter 2000 Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah....
Landless tribe seeks property
The federal status of the Little Shell Chippewa Tribe of Montana is not yet
finalized but the landless tribe is already cultivating economic
development prospects....
GRAMMY nominee a family affair
When the Black Eagle Singers of Jemez Pueblo go to the GRAMMY awards
ceremony next month, they'll be bringing along friends from New
Mexico's other Pueblos....
Group camps out at Hidatsa village
Over the weekend, a group of about 20 people camped out at an historic
Lower Hidatsa village in North Dakota as part of a recreation of Lewis and
Clark's journey through the West....
Push to keep tribes in line
Tribal and gaming issues are becoming a rallying cry for Democratic
candidates opposing Connecticut Gov....
Linda Chavez: I'm Still Here
"It was barely a year ago that Linda Chavez was on CNN's "Wolf Blitzer
Reports," lamenting her ill-fated bid to be secretary of labor and
organized labor's opposition....
Norton visits southern Calif.
A day after her department held a consultation session with tribal
leaders, Secretary of Interior made her first official visit to the Coachella
Valley in southern California....
Interior shutdown has wide effects
The Department of Interior's drawn out Internet shutdown has had
far-reaching effects on daily business, as a dispatch from The Billings
Gazette notes....
Editorial: Norton's excuse not enough
In an editorial today, The Washington Post criticizes Secretary of Interior
Gale Norton for not submitting comments her agency drafted in response
to a major environmental plan....
Editorial: Norton, McCaleb 'deluding' selves
Secretary of Interior Gale Norton and Assistant Secretary Neal McCaleb
are "deluding themselves" if they think tribes are going to buy into their
plan to create an Indian trust agency, The Sioux Falls Argus Leader says
today in an editorial....
Norton: Leave no Indian child behind
"The 50,000 American Indian students served by Bureau of Indian Affairs
schools deserve higher academic standards, greater parental
involvement and local control, and more flexible and efficient federal
support....
Senate building set to reopen
The Hart Senate Office Building is set to reopen tomorrow after tests on
protective gear found last week in a hallway came up negative for
anthrax....
Online casinos seeing problem
Online casinos are facing an interesting problem in the post-dotcom bust
age....
Stay Connected
Contact Us
indianz@indianz.com202 630 8439 (THEZ)
Search
Top Stories
Trending in News
1 Tribes rush to respond to new coronavirus emergency created by Trump administration
2 'At this rate the entire tribe will be extinct': Zuni Pueblo sees COVID-19 cases double as first death is confirmed
3 Arne Vainio: 'A great sickness has been visited upon us as human beings'
4 Arne Vainio: Zoongide'iwin is the Ojibwe word for courage
5 Cayuga Nation's division leads to a 'human rights catastrophe'
2 'At this rate the entire tribe will be extinct': Zuni Pueblo sees COVID-19 cases double as first death is confirmed
3 Arne Vainio: 'A great sickness has been visited upon us as human beings'
4 Arne Vainio: Zoongide'iwin is the Ojibwe word for courage
5 Cayuga Nation's division leads to a 'human rights catastrophe'
News Archive
2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000