KYUK: Alaska Native corporation cancels shareholders' meeting (May 31, 2012)

"Calista’s board of directors canceled its June 2 shareholder meeting in Goodnews Bay through a resolution vote May 15. Chairman Art Heckman did not return a call to KYUK for an interview. However, in a written statement released May 23,...

South Dakota's highest court backs conviction in Aquash murder (May 31, 2012)

The South Dakota Supreme Court today upheld the conviction of John Graham for the 1975 murder of American Indian Movement activist Anna Mae Pictou Aquash. Graham, a Native man from Canada, was tried in state court for felony murder after...

Blog: Bad decision against Kickapoo Tribe in water rights dispute (May 31, 2012)

"A poor and disconcerting judicial decision on local legislative immunity came down on May 24 from the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas, Kickapoo Tribe v. Black. The tribe made the argument in its brief that a watershed...

Haskell University leader avoiding newspaper over investigation (May 31, 2012)

Haskell Indian Nations University President Chris Redman has indefinitely postponed a meeting with The Lawrence Journal-World as the paper looks into an investigation of falsified student-athlete test scores. Redman has canceled two interviews so far. He says he won't sit...

Review: 'Crooked Arrows' offering little more than generic drama (May 31, 2012)

"Movies featuring Native American heroes apparently are required to have their main characters hook up with their animal spirits and/or reconnect with their heritage before they can actually accomplish heroic actions. Even Val Kilmer's mixed-race FBI agent in 1992's “Thunderheart”...

Charlie Galbraith: Celebrating year of Let's Move! Indian Country (May 31, 2012)

"Tomorrow, June 1, 2012 at 1:30 p.m. EDT, the White House will host a panel discussion of leaders who have contributed to the progress of the First Lady’s Let’s Move! in Indian Country initiative and whose work can be expanded...

Navajo Nation spelling bee champ fails to advance in DC contest (May 31, 2012)

The top speller on the Navajo Nation competed in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., this week. Aarish Raza, 13, is from Chinle, Arizona. He attends Chinle Junior High, a public school on the reservation. Raza correctly spelled...

MSU News: Deadline approaches for Native student scholarships (May 31, 2012)

"The Department of Native American Studies at Montana State University in Bozeman has a number of $1,000 scholarships available to incoming Native students. Walter Fleming, director of the MSU Department of Native American Studies, said that three of the scholarships...

Boulder Weekly: Tribes feel connection to sacred Valmont Butte (May 31, 2012)

"As we approach the conclusion of the Ghosts of Valmont Butte series, we’re going back to the beginning. Back to the first people who used the butte — not as a dumping ground, but as a sacred place. There is...

Column: What's in a name? -- New policy affects Indian mascots (May 31, 2012)

"Sometimes political correctness supercedes logic. Which is precisely what has happened with the Oregon Board of Education's recent decision to prohibit Native American-themed nicknames at our state's high schools. The board voted 5-1 to force schools to change the nicknames...

Judge agrees to shut down First Nations smokeshop in Manitoba (May 31, 2012)

A judge in Manitoba ordered the closure of a First Nations-owned smokeshop. The judge granted a temporary injunction to the province, which has raided the Dakota Chundee Smoke Shop several times since it opened last November. The province says the...

Column: Pine Ridge Reservation is drowning in Whiteclay alcohol (May 31, 2012)

"Just six hours from Denver is the town of Whiteclay, Neb. Its population: about 12. Yet in 2010, this tiny town sold 465,000 gallons of beer, enough for nearly 5 million 12-ounce servings. There's no place in Whiteclay to legally...

Snoqualmie Tribe looking to discuss results of membership audit (May 31, 2012)

The Snoqualmie Tribe of Washington has called a general membership meeting on June 23 to discuss the results of an enrollment audit. The tribe has gone through three genealogists in an attempt to sort through its membership records. The audit...

Lise Balk King: Rapid City -- one of the worst places to be Indian (May 31, 2012)

"In western South Dakota, it’s all about perception. If you are Indian, or appear to be Indian, you are routinely judged by the color of your skin regarding the content of your character. If you are white, there is also...

White Mountain Apache man linked to a string of sexual assaults (May 31, 2012)

A member of the White Mountain Apache Tribe has been indicted for assaulting nine girls and women on the Fort Apache Reservation in Arizona. Jefferson Gatewood, 48, is a registered sex offender. He served time in prison for assaulting a...

Winnebago Tribe breaks ground on first Educare on a reservation (May 31, 2012)

The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska broke ground on the first Educare in Indian Country. The $10 million facility will provide a preschool and daycare services on the reservation. It will serve 191 children and their families. "It will give each...

Native Sun News: A brief but extraordinary life for Sisseton teen (May 31, 2012)

Wakanda Onawa Gonsalves, whose glowing, becoming smile could literally light up the room unexpectedly made her journey to the Spirit World, just days after celebrating her 19th birthday.

Winnemem Wintu Tribe requests privacy for a sacred ceremony (May 31, 2012)

The Winnemem Wintu Tribe of California is asking the U.S. Forest Service to close a section of McCloud River for its coming-of-age ceremony. The agency, however, isn't sure it can take action because the tribe lacks federal recognition. In prior...

Santa Ynez Band adds to enterprise with purchase of third hotel (May 31, 2012)

The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians of California announced the purchase of a hotel. The 71-room Hadsten House Inn is the third hotel in the tribe's enterprise. The purchase price was not disclosed. “We are excited about adding the...

Elizabeth Warren defends self-identification as Native American (May 31, 2012)

Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts, said she identified herself as Native American when she worked at two Ivy League law schools. Warren, who grew up in Oklahoma, says her family has Cherokee and Delaware ancestry....

NYT Blog: Lawsuit continues over bison on Montana reservations (May 31, 2012)

"The legal battle continues over the fate of a herd of wild bison that are roaming the plains of northern Montana for the first time in more than a century. In March, 63 bison from Yellowstone National Park were relocated...

No tribes are taking advantage of expanded criminal sentencing (May 31, 2012)

Tribes so far aren't taking advantage of expanded criminal sentencing under the Tribal Law and Order Act, according to a new Government Accountability Office report. The law allows tribes to sentence offenders to terms of up to three years. To...