Yes, we’re in a stubbornly lingering recession, and yes, “cut” is the watchword of the day

Nonetheless, “a general sense of satisfaction” is in the air, Indian Country Today’s Washington, D.C., reporter Rob Capriccioso writes here, as leaders review President Barack Obama’s proposed 2011 budget.

Not only are many programs serving Indian Country maintained, but variety of others – underfunded for decades – would be strengthened under that proposal. That would seem to bear out President Obama’s promises to Indian Country during his meeting with Native leaders last fall, one of the biggest Native American news events of the year. (See video above.)

“Last year, for FY 2010, Congress enacted historic increases to important programs that are essential to tribes, especially during this time of economic recession,” says Jefferson Keel, National Congress of American Indians president and lieutenant governor of the Chickasaw Nation.

“NCAI applauds the administration’s proposals for FY 2011 to continue to make investments in Indian health, tribal public safety, environmental protection programs, and self-determination contract support costs and administrative cost grants.”

That said, Capriccioso notes that there are still areas of concern. Patricia Whitefoot, National Indian Education Association president, proposed the creation of an assistant secretary of Indian education at the Department of Education as a way of dealing with underfunding in that area.

And Marty Shuravloff, National American Indian Housing Council chairman, pointed out that funds for the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act are actually dropping.

“To put this in proper context, funding appropriated by Congress in FY 1998 – 12 years ago – was $20 million more than the president’s budget request for FY 2011,” Shuravloff says.

Gwen Florio

Tags: buffalo post, Gwen Florio, National American Indian Housing Council, National Congresss of American Indians, National Indian Education Association, Native American news, Obama 2011 budget, President Barack Obama, Recession

Navajo special election to slash size of tribal council is Tuesday
Navajo Nation voters are being asked to reduce the size of the tribal council from 84 to 22. The proposal is part of a reform initiative by President Joe Shirley, as the Navajo Times reports here. Of course, Shirley has been temporarily removed from his post during an investigation into failed business dealings that cost millions of tribal dollars.

Helicopter reaches snowbound Blackfeet ranches
Heavy snow and temperatures as low as 35 below zero left people stranded on their isolated ranches on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation northern Montana. Authorities from the U.S. Border Patrol and the Blackfeet Department of Homeland Security report here that helicopters, and later off-road vehicles, were able to reach them with food and supplies.

Curtis photos on exhibit at Fort Worth’s Amon Carter museum
The museum obtained the iconic photos of Edward S. Curtis earlier this year, and this weekend, they went on display, according to this Fort Worth Star-Telegram story. Say what you want about the photos – although they seem to depict life before Indian Country was overrun, many were taken on reservations and were staged – they are striking. As the paper reports, “In 1899, he set out to document more than 80 tribes, from the Inuit in the north to the Hopi in the Southwest, compiling photographs, audio recordings and anthropological information to create a 20-volume set of books, each accompanied by a portfolio of 36 to 39 photogravure prints.” The exhibit features images from the first volume; more exhibits from later volumes are planned.

Violent Mapuche activism shakes Chile’s government, economy
Indigenous Mapuche activists in Chile are using any means necessary to pursue claims to ancestral and other lands they say were illegally taken from them. Those methods include arson, hikjackings and ranch seizures, according to this Time magazine story. Several communities have formed Mapuche Territorial Alliance, which seeks political independence from Chile.

Recession tarnishes sales of Native American jewelry
This Associated Press story by Heather Clark details the triple-edged sword facing Native jewelers. The prices of materials – silver and precious stones – is skyrocketing. Cheap knockoffs from foreign countries are flooding the market. And what was that third one? Can you say recession? Traders in Gallup, N.M., where the sale of Indian art is a mainstay of the economy, say their wholesale business is down as much as 40 percent.

Navajo Silversmith Jackie Platero says she can’t pretend to her 10 children anymore that things are OK. “I just told the kids that Christmas this year is going to be a lot less than they usually get because the bills come first,” said Platero, of To’hajiilee, west of Albuquerque.

Gwen Florio

Tags: Blackfeet Indian Reservation, buffalo post, Joe Shirley Jr., Mapuche, Native American jewelry, Native American news, Navajo Nation, Recession

As a counterpart to our earlier story about the possible closing of a Native health clinic in California, this Detroit News story proves that not all is gloom and doom with the economy.

The little town of St. Ignace, Mich. – population 2,800 – is flourishing in these tough times, thanks largely to help from the Sault Tribe of Chippewa. The tribe has helped fund new firetrucks, a community rec center with one of the state’s largest ice rinks, and even a new hospital.

“There’s no way we’d be where we’re at if it weren’t for the tribe. They give a lot to the towns up here,” says St. Ignace City Manager Eric Dodson.

As part of the state’s gaming compact, the tribe gives 2 percent of casino winnings to municipalities. But the Chippewa go above and beyond that, officials say.

“They’re always there for us,” says Anthony Boubous, a longtime area politico.

Gwen Florio

Tags: buffalo post, Mich., Native American news, Recession, Sault Tribe of Chippewa, St. Ignace