Recently, the U.S. Department of Interior released its draft proposal for utilizing the $1.9 billion from the Cobell settlement allocated for consolidating Indian Lands. According to John Dossett, the general counsel for the Native Congress of American Indians, cited in an article by the Associated Press, “the general counsel for the Native Congress of American Indians, said the draft proposal appears to address most of the tribes’ major concerns. Of particular importance was that the tribes be involved in implementing and administering the land consolidation program through cooperative agreements, which are addressed in the draft plan. While the plan may have support from Tribal Governments, it does not address the concerns of many individual land owners who feel that programs like this take advantage of people’s desperation, forever divesting them of their lands for a small one-time payment, and transferring them to the control of Tribal Governments who may not use them for the benefit of their people as a whole.  Of course, the impact of transferring large amounts of land from individual to tribal management will depend upon the particular tribe.

The alternative to this strategy has been to support individuals to consolidate their lands on their own through estate planning, tribal land exchange programs, partitions, and gift deeds. Despite their proven success, funding for these programs have been cut dramatically in the past few years, leaving little help and few options for Indian land owners to protect their lands. Not only is the government not sufficiently supporting these strategies, their appraisal process is backlogged, creating on of the biggest hurdles in the process to consolidate their lands.  According to a study by Village Earth of the Pine Ridge Reservation, the average time for a land exchange application to be processed is nearly 5 years!  Yet, if you want to sell your lands through programs like Indian Lands Consolidation Act (ILCA), the process can take a matter of weeks. Furthermore, in more than one instance, we have noted BIA workers providing incorrect information about the options available to land owners and then advising them to sell her land through ILCA. While we do not oppose solutions like the one proposed by the Department of Interior, advocating on behalf of Individual land owners, we feel strongly that equivalent support should be made available to programs that support individuals and families wanting to consolidate and utilize their lands or prevent further fractionation through estate planning.

If you’re concerned about draft proposal please send your comments before March 1st, 2012 to the designated contact at the Department of Interior  -  Meghan_Conklin@ios.doi.gov

Reposted from: Owe Aku International Justice Project

PRESS RELEASE: January 6, 2012

“Winyan Ituwan”, (Vision of the Women), will be held on January 15, 2012 beginning at 1pm and ending with an evening meal at the Pahin Sinte School in Porcupine, South Dakota. Topics include Mother Earth and water, mining issues facing the people living on the great plains of the United States, and roles and responsibilities of Native women. Speakers will share their experiences in frontline activism work around these issues.

Tantoo Cardinal, a First Nations Cree actor and activist will speak on the tarsands oil mine and its impacts in her homelands of Ft McMurray, Canada. Ms Cardinal was recently inducted as a Member into the Order of Canada for her contributions. Famous for her roles in movies such as Smoke Signals, Legends of the Fall, Black Robe, and Dances with Wolves, Ms. Cardinal is also a founding member of the Saskatchewan Native Theatre Company, which works with and to inspire First Nations youth in the performing arts.

Debra White Plume, Oglala Lakota from Pine Ridge, will speak on the tarsands oil mine, the Keystone XL Oil pipeline planned to cross the plains from Montana to Texas. She will share updates as the lead plantiff in the case against Cameco, Inc. in its attempt to mine uranium near the reservation, and the PowerTech, Inc. plan to mine uranium in the Black Hills. White Plume is co-founder of Bring Back the Way, a grassroots nongovernmental organization dedicated to the preservation of the Lakota Way of Life and Treaty Rights.

Kandi Mosset, Mandan/Arikaree from New Town, ND, works on the tarsands oil mine and xl keystone pipeline campaign with the Indigenous Environmental Network. Ms. Mosset recently returned from the UN Climate Convention in Durban, South Africa. She will speak on these issues and on oil mining impacts on her Mandan/Hidotsa/Arikaree community in North Dakota.

White Plume, Cardinal, and Mosset were part of the 1200 people arrested at the White House in a mass civil disobedience to bring awareness to the American people and President Obama regarding opposition to the XL Keystone pipeline permit.

A panel of Oglala Lakota women will include Regina Brave, who will speak of her experiences at Wounded Knee Occupation for 71 days in 1973; Marilyn Charging Crow, Vivian Locust and Arlette Loud Hawk. Loud Hawk will speak as the Whip Bearer for the Tokala KitFox Warrior Society. Special guest speakers include Marie Randall and Lily Mae Red Eagle.

A slideshow of the tarsands oil mine in Canada will be shared, and a 10 minute video short of the documentary Crying Earth Rise Up! about uranium mining in Lakota Territory by Prairie Dust Films will be shown. There will be an open microphone for women to express themselves and offer words of wisdom to the young generations. Tiana Spotted Thunder of Independence Through Music, and the group Scatter Their Own will share their songs and music. Pte San Win will serve as the MC.

Winyan Ituwan is a collective effort to bring women together to share experiences, vision, and wisdom. There will be many door prizes including fire wood, propane, jewelry, much more. All women are encouraged to attend, the gathering is open to the men who want to hear the voice, vision and wisdom of the women. Winyan Ituwan is the first of four women’s gatherings, with one set for spring, summer and fall. People can call 605-899-1419 or connect at Winyan Ituwan on Face Book for more information. ####

Owe Aku Bring Back the Way Owe Aku Internaitonal Justice Project
PO Box 325 720 W. 173rd St, Apt 59
Manderson, SD 57756 New York, NY 10032
605-455-2155 646-233-4406
lakotaone@gmail.com oweakuinternational@me.com
www.bringbacktheway.com www.oweakuinternaitonal.org