It’s been a full decade since the Crow people ratified their constitution for the Crow Indian Reservation.

On Monday, as the Billings Gazette reports, the tenth set of legislators were sworn in there to the sounds of a Crow warrior song.

Master of ceremonies Robert “Corky” Old Horn told the audience that in the time before the Crow people lived on the reservation, Crow warriors would sing a similar song when they returned from battle against other tribes.

“These were the songs that were sung by the warriors when they would come home victorious,” he said. “And it’s very appropriate to sing such a song to honor our senators that have been re-elected and a new elected senator, along with our veterans who are among the audience here.”

Veteran legislator Carlson “Duke” Goes Ahead gave the keynote speech.

“We collectively represent all the Crow people,” he said. “And whatever legislation we pass affects all of us in one way or another. And so there’s a lot of thought and intent that goes into drafting these laws.

Legislators learn from each other and they learn from their mistakes, Goes Ahead said. The Bible talks about a righteous man falling and getting back up, he told his audience.

“God created us to stand up and move forward,” he said, adding that the Crow people need God to move forward.

Click here to see a photo gallery from the event by Gazette photographer Larry Mayer.

Jenna Cederberg

Tags: billings gazette, carlson goes ahead, corky old horn, Crow Indian Reservation, crow legistla, duke goes ahead, larry mayer, robert old horn, susan olp

As Lodge Grass, a small town on the Crow Agency in eastern Montana, slowly recovers from a flood that washed through there this week, plans are coming together in Washington, D.C., to give tribes better access to disaster funds.

The Billings Gazette continued its coverage of the Lodge Grass floods. Today, the Gazette reports the slow cleanup begins.

By Tuesday morning, a restoration crew had pumped an estimated 212,000 gallons of water from the basement of the Little Horn IGA here, but the ground was so saturated that more kept seeping in.

“It was a nasty mess in there,” store co-owner Doug McCormick said. “All the floors were just covered in mud.”

Rob Capriccioso, of ICTMN, reports from Washington:

On May 24, (Nick J.) Rahall, (D-WV) introduced legislation that he said “reinforces Indian tribe sovereignty during major disasters and emergency situations.” The bi-partisan bill would amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to authorize tribes to directly request the President of the United States to release federal resources.

. . .

Tribal officials noted to Rahall that under current law, tribes that face a disaster or emergency situation must rely upon a state governor to ask the president for an emergency declaration, which in turn triggers federal resources. This process is harmful to tribal sovereignty, according to Indian leaders who say that as sovereign nations, tribes should be able to have a direct relationship with the federal government in emergency situations.

Jenna Cederberg

Tags: billings gazette, Crow Agency, floods, ICTMN, Lodge Grass, Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act

By SUSAN OLP, Of The Billings Gazette

Crow tribal chairman Cedric Black Eagle has appointed Dr. Janine Pease to head the tribe’s Education Department.

The Crow Legislature unanimously confirmed the cabinet-level appointment at a special session on Feb. 23.

In announcing Pease’s appointment, Black Eagle cited her extensive experience in education.

“Education for all the Crow people at all levels is a highest priority for our Crow national development,” he said. “Dr. Pease brings specific knowledge and experience of adult, vocational and college services, special programs for school-aged children, tribal language initiatives and workforce development training.”

Pease, a member of the Crow Tribe, will oversee a staff of eight. She holds both a master’s and a doctorate degree in adult and higher education from Montana State University.

Most recently, Pease was vice president for academic and vocational programs at Fort Peck Community College in Poplar for 2-½ years.
Before that, she was vice president for Indian Affairs and Planning and Rocky Mountain College for nearly five years. She also served on the Governor’s Kindergarten to College Task Group from 2006 to 2010 and on the Montana Board of Regents from 2006 until Feb. 1 of this year, when her term expired.

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Tags: billings gazette, Cedric Black Eagle, crow department of education, Crow Tribe, dr. janine pease