Former assistant Secretary Kevin Washburn addressed the National Congress of American Indians annual convention in San Diego, California, on October 19, 2015. Photo by Indianz.Com
Kevin Washburn, the former leader of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, defends the Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations as an initiative that benefits tribes as well as individual Indian landowners:
The program gives each fractional Indian landowner a choice: They can either stay with the flawed system that the article documents well, or sell their fractional interests to help remedy a historical injustice and increase tribal self-governance. While the choice is not simple, it is the worst kind of 20th century paternalism to suggest that Indian people should be denied the opportunity to choose simply because they are poor. Moreover, a decision to sell will often benefit the sellers in more ways than just the sales price. The Obama administration has made a considered judgment that Indian people will be better served by empowering their own governments. Tribal leaders (who are elected by Indian people) are necessarily more accountable, and therefore more responsive, to Indian people than federal employees ever will be. The Land Buy-Back Program returns tribal lands to tribes and furthers tribal self-governance.Get the Story:
Kevin Washburn: Tribal lands, tribal self-governance (High Country News 5/2)
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