Opinion

Vincent Armenta: Obama discusses tribal issues at annual meet

Thursday, January 3, 2013

"In my last column, I discussed some of the events at the White House Tribal Nations Conference in Washington, D.C., last month. Tribal government leaders — more than 500 of us — participated in sessions with federal officials to improve the lives of American Indians today and for future generations.

This was the fourth conference for the Obama administration, with the goal of enhancing government-to-government relationships.

President Obama delivered the conference’s closing remarks and reaffirmed his commitment to tribal sovereignty and the increasing well-being of tribal members.

The president began his speech noting the recent passing of Crow nation elder Hartford “Sonny” Black Eagle. A number of years ago Black Eagle had given the president the name “Awe Kooda Bilaxpak Kuxshish” in the Crow language, meaning “One Who Helps People Throughout the Land.”

The president said: “We can celebrate his remarkable life and all that happened along the way, because Sonny’s story is not just one man’s journey to keep his culture alive, but one country’s journey to keep perfecting itself.”"

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Vincent Armenta: President highlights tribal governance (The Solvang Valley News 1/3)