Yup'ik Speakers to Receive Language Assistance in Bethel Elections

Yupik-speaking voters in Bethel, Alaska, will receive additional language assistance for municipal elections, according to a settlement reached by the city, the Native American Rights Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union.

Yup'ik is the primary language of a majority of citizens in the Bethel region. The settlement agreement follows a lawsuit filed against the city by NARF and the ACLU on behalf of the two local Alaska Natives.

The lawsuit Nick, et al. v. Bethel, et al., remains pending in the federal district court for the District of Alaska against the State of Alaska. The lawsuit was brought on behalf of the same Alaska Natives who agreed to the current settlement as well as two other Alaska Natives and four tribal governments.

Under the settlement agreement, the city of Bethel will provide enhanced language assistance to Yup'ik voters, including trained poll workers who are bilingual in English and Yup'ik; sample ballots for election measures in written Yup'ik; a written Yup'ik glossary of election terms; advance notice of translator services; election announcements on the radio; and pre- and post-election reports to the Federal District Court for Alaska tracking the city's efforts.

U.S. Attorney Stepping up Efforts in Montana Indian Country

Here’s an interesting bit of information reported yesterday by the Great Falls Tribune: only six burglaries were prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Montana’s Indian Country last year, despite the fact that for the two previous years, the Bureau of Indian Affairs records show that about 400 burglaries were reported each year on six reservations. U.S. Attorney Bill Mercer indicated that law enforcement officials are not referring the cases, and in some cases, may not be aware that the cases should be referred to his office.

Mercer drafted memos to all BIA law enforcement leaders, tribal prosecutors and county sheriffs in Montana's Indian Country to inform them of the types of cases his office should be aware of. In the letter, he asked that those officials fax his office details of the crime immediately, rather than waiting until an investigation is complete.

Master Key and SmarteSoft Announce Partnership

SmarteSoft Inc., the industry leader in easy-to-use, high-return on investment software test automation products and services, and Native-owned Master Key Consulting, a provider of verification and validation (V&V) services to the Federal Government, are partnering to offers federal government clients enhanced access to expert IT support services linked to automated software testing.

Gary Bowers, SmarteSoft's Vice President of Sales, notes that Master Key's considerable presence in the federal sector represents an excellent opportunity for SmarteSoft.

"Our partnership with Master Key Consulting offers us the ability to assist more government agencies, plus they’ll have access to a vital, cost-effective suite of QA software," said Bowers. "It's an ideal partnership."

Master Key Consulting Chief Executive Officer, Jonathan Wilber, believes the key to a successful verification and validation engagement is to push software testing to the front of the project life cycle for faster, better and less costly product delivery.

Since opening in 2000 with three employees, Master Key Consulting has won federal contracts totaling more than $100 million and has grown to a team of more than 140 individuals in eleven states and the District of Columbia. The company’s commercial and federal projects include work with the Environmental Protection Agency; the Bureau of Indian Affairs; and the Departments of Education, Justice, Health and Human Services, and Homeland Security. The company’s key services include program management, information technology, grants management support, testing and training. Another Master Key niche involves working with agencies and organizations that serve Native people.

Tribal Members Protest, Allege Nepotism

Eight Saginaw Chippewa Tribal members gathered outside the tribal casino to protest the appointment of Charmaine Benz to Tribal Council. She was appointed to fill the vacant District 1 seat originally held by former Council Member Simon Jackson, who was suspended from office on May 6. He was later convicted of felony drunken driving.

Protesters say that Benz, who was sworn in to office on Tuesday, is related to tribal leaders. Protesters held signs that read "No Democracy Axis of Evil Appointment." Another sign read “Stop nepotism appointment.”

You can read more about it here.

Tribal Leader in Arizona Pleads Guilty to Theft of Tribal Funds

Evelyn James, a Tribal Council member of the San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe in Arizona, pleaded guilty on July 1 to false statements, theft from a tribal government receiving federal funds and money laundering, according to a report released last week from the Justice Department.

James, 54, admitted to stealing almost $300,000 in tribal funds. James intermittently served as the Tribal President of the San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe and in that capacity, completed, signed and submitted false statements and records to obtain funds for the tribe from the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program. James submitted falsified accountings in which she asked for reimbursement from the COPS program for expenditures that were never made by the tribe. The false submissions indicated that the tribe hired and paid three police officers when no peace officers were ever hired, trained or employed.

James will be sentenced in September.

Swearing-In Ceremony for Larry EchoHawk

On May 22, Larry EchoHawk was officially sworn in as the Department of the Interior’s 11th Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs. This morning, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar administered the oath of office to EchoHawk at a Swearing-In Ceremony in Washington, D.C.

EchoHawk is an enrolled member of the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma. He joins the Department of Interior in D.C. after a move from Utah where he was a Professor of Law at Brigham Young University’s J. Reuben Clark Law School. EchoHawk is a former U.S. Marine, served two consecutive terms in the Idaho House of Representatives, and was the very first American Indian to serve as a state attorney general (for Idaho, 1990).

Hosted by Nedra Darling, Director of Public Affairs for the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), the event gave tribal leaders, family, friends, congress and Native organizations the opportunity to celebrate this momentous appointment.

Salazar expressed that while he and EchoHawk stand at a new beginning, they will be met by many difficult challenges; however, he is sure that, “Indian Country will not be forgotten” by the United States.

During his remarks, EchoHawk stated that “things are lined up just right to do something special, something magical.”

Director of Public Affairs for the BIA Nedra Darling
After a cedar blessing performed by Marshall Gover of the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma, Darling welcomed EchoHawk and Salazar to the “Indian family of this country.”

Lee Juan Tyler of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Ft. Hall Reservation of Idaho
Lee Juan Tyler led a prayer.

Assistant Secretary Larry EchoHawk, Wife of Larry EchoHawk Terry EchoHawk, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar

EchoHawk

EchoHawk, Salazar, President of the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma George E. Howell

Photo Credit (All): Cerissa Hontiveros

Native American Languages Preserved with Technology

Indian tribes have really embraced technology, but when it comes to solutions and tools that can help them save their languages, their arms could not be open any wider.

As the Indigenous Language Institute sees it, there is a definite symbiosis from old knowledge and new tools. To show tribes just how harmonious this relationship can be, ILI launched, in collaboration with the University of Washington, a workshop series in 2001 called Ancient Voices, Modern Tools: Native Languages and Technology.

More than 300 Native American languages have already been lost, according to Santa Fe, N.M.-based ILA, and more than 75 of those languages went extinct over the last century.

Read the full story here.

A Digital Story created by Deborah S. Bia. The story is about the history of Canyon De Chelly. It is told in the Navajo Language.