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The Week in Review
ending July 29
Mesa Verde Fire
Fire in Mesa Verde National Park.
Photo © USFS
 
Missed our stories? All the headlines for the week can be found here.

Fire strikes Mesa Verde
The summer's been a hotbed of fire activity and this week, fire fighters successfully contained a fire started by lightning in the Mesa Verde National Park in southwestern Colorado.

The fire threatened not only the neighboring Ute Mountain Ute Reservation but also the park's Pueblo villages. Fortunately, both lives and archaeological resources were spared as the blaze was kept away from the park's main attractions.

But for a while, it was looking scary as fire officials said they were worried about being able to fight the growing blaze. As the week wore on, however, cooperating weather helped them gain a hold on the blaze.

The blaze consumed almost 24,000 acres and it also uncovered new sites for scientists, who hope to discover and probe them in an attempt to figure out some of the mysteries they associate with the park's former inhabitants. A Ute elder hopes that Pueblo leaders will conduct a healing ceremony at the park.

Get the Story:
Fire threatens reservation, ruins (Enviro 7/24)
Mesa Verde fire grows, nears ruins (Enviro 7/25)
Mesa Verde fire slows down (Enviro 7/26)
Rain could threaten Mesa Verde (Enviro 7/27)
Mesa Verde fire nearly contained (Enviro 7/28)
Elder sees signs of distress (Enviro 7/28)

Indian Country politics
Only 12 percent of readers who participated in an informal Indianz.Com survey believed Senator John McCain could properly educate Presidential candidate George W. Bush about tribal sovereignty, were Bush to chose McCain as his running mate.

But most likely for other reasons, Bush instead chose Dick Cheney, former defense secretary and Congressman, for the coveted position.

Meanwhile, fall-out from the Washington State Republican Party Fiasco continues to trickle through in various forms. As one columnist points out deficiencies in Senator Slade Gorton's stance on sovereignty, another urges tribal leaders to look at his record more closely.

With the Republican National Convention beginning today, all eyes are now on the party to see how many minorities, women, and, perhaps most importantly, tribal and other Indian leaders, will be active participants.

Get the Story:
McCain falls out of favor (The Talking Circle 7/24)
LETTER: Democratic landslide (The Talking Circle 7/24)
Mark Trahant: Sovereignty...except (The Talking Circle 7/24)
Cheney accepts VP nod (The Talking Circle 7/25)
Should Indian Country reconsider Gorton? (The Talking Circle 7/25)
EDITORIAL: Respect treaties, indigenous rights (The Talking Circle 7/25)

Government criticized over NAGPRA
The Native American Graves and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) of 1990 is one of the most heavily litigated areas of law today, having been contested by tribal leaders, scientists, and even the federal government.

But the government was the focus of much of the criticism as panelists before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs testified that the government wasn't doing its job properly. Failure to consult with tribes, repatriate in a timely manner, and an allegation of conflict of interest were the primary concerns made by those intimately involved with the law and its workings.

At least one success was noted last week, however. The scalp of Lakota Chief Big Foot was repatriated to his family.

Get the Story:
Leaders discuss NAGPRA (Indian U. 7/27)
Scalp to be repatriated (Indian U. 7/28)

more top stories
But wait, there's more! Get a recap of the other top stories of the week.


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