Secretary Washburn, YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS On Disenrollment PART TWO

Yesterday, we had some pointed comments to make on Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn's comments to Indian Country Today concerning Tribal Disenrollment.  Today, we have MORE.

Our commenters from yesterday seem to have a handle of Mr. Washburn's shortcomings.  It almost seems as if he came to do the bidding of Tribal Leaders, not to articulate what is right and just.

Let's start again with this quote from Washburn:       “I think the question is, should tribes always be sovereign and self-governing? Or are there times when the United States should trample over their sovereignty and self-governance for some other purpose – the principle of justice or equity or something like that?”

TRAMPLE OVER THEIR SOVEREIGNTY.  Let that roll around for a minute.  He seems to forget about justice and equity for those NATIVE AMERICANS whom the federal government, you know....HIM.

In Miwok vs. Jewell, the presiding judge, Rothstein had THIS to say:

"In the federal defendants view of this case, once a tribe announces a government, the BIA is prohibited from ever questioning the legitimacy of the government no matter how many allegations of fraud are raised. Such a conclusion is not consistent with the 'distinctive obligation of trust' the federal government must employ when dealing with Indian tribes." 

In other words, HANDS OFF is not what the BIA should be doing.  It should be doing it's duty to protect the TRUST RESPONSIBILITY of ALL Native Americans.  Here's how my friend Marilyn Vann put it:  Perhaps they do not understand  that the trust responsibility of the US government to "Indians" isnt just to the chiefs and chairmen.....


We don't have a lot of respect for Washburn's predecessor Larry Echohawk's legacy, but he said  in the San Pasqual/Alto Family matter:  Bia treats enrollment & dis-enrollment differently. Tribes must use fairness & due process in disenrollment decisions. The federal government recognizes its trust responsibility to all indians and has a duty to protect their rights.

Here's how one commenter put it:

Expecting the tribes to sort this out while their leaders threaten members with disenrollment for opposing their policies is unrealistic. To say that there is no fair way to rule that disenrollment requires due process, equal protection under the law, meaning that the same standards must apply to all, is a failure to attempt to solve a problem that was created by BIA and US Government policies in the first place.


We will have MORE later.   Meanwhile, PLEASE help spread the word, ask your friends to drop by, share some posts via Twitter ( @USIndianAffairs   @IndianCommittee  @Interior  @NPR @CantwellPress ) and Facebook.     

A SPOTLIGHT on the corruption is the BEST disinfectant.


Learn More on Disenrollment, Ethnic Cleansing in Indian Gaming Country at these Links:
Gaming Revenue Blamed for Disenrollment
disenrollment is paper Genocide
CA Tribal Cleansing
Tribal terrorism
TRIBAL TERRORISM includes Banishment
Nooksack Disenrollment

Former Indian Affairs Secretary Larry Echo Hawk's Legacy Tarnishing??

Apparently, Larry didn't need no stinkin due process to select TEJON TRIBE for Recognition...

The Office of Inspector General investigated former Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs (AS-IA) Larry Echo Hawk’s decision to “reaffirm” the Tejon Indian Tribe of California in December 2011 without going through the acknowledgment process set forth in 25 C.F.R., Part 83, “Procedures for Establishing That an American Indian Group Exists as an Indian Tribe.”

We found that the Tejon Tribe, along with several other American Indian groups, submitted petitions requesting reaffirmation by the AS-IA. These petitions were outside the Part 83 acknowledgment process, which is the official process for recognizing Indian groups as tribes and is administered by the AS-IA’s Office of Federal Acknowledgment (OFA). We could not find any discernible process Echo Hawk and his staff might have used to select the Tejon Tribe for recognition above the other groups.

We also found that Echo Hawk and his staff did not consult with OFA or with Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) leadership before deciding to reaffirm the Tejon Tribe. Because OFA was not consulted, other American Indian groups with historical, genealogical, and ancestral claims to the original Tejon Indians were left out of the process. In addition, not involving BIA leadership caused budgeting and operational difficulties for BIA, which in turn slowed down the process for providing Federal services to the Tejon Tribe. The AS-IA also denied subsequent requests by BIA for additional FY 2013 funding, which was needed to provide these services for the newly recognized Tribe.

Read the report HERE

Read about MORE of Larry Echo Hawk's process on San Pascual.

BIA's Larry Echohawk, After Destroying Lives at San Pascual, RESIGNS.

Screw the Alito Family, then resign. Good to see you GO, Mr. Echo Hawk. You have left a legacy of destruction of Indians, congratulations.

The top official for the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs is resigning to accept a full-time leadership position with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ending three years with the department that Interior Secretary Ken Salazar says "opened a new chapter" in U.S. relationships with American Indian tribes.

Larry Echo Hawk, the assistant secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs, is being appointed to the Quorum of the Seventy, which is the Mormon Church's third-highest governing body. The announcement from the church came Saturday during its semi-annual general conference in Salt Lake City.

President Barack Obama appointed Echo Hawk, 63, to oversee the BIA in 2009.

"With Larry Echo Hawk's leadership, we have opened a new chapter in our nation to nation relationships with American Indian and Alaska Native tribal governments, accelerated the restoration of tribal homelands, improved safety in tribal communities, resolved century-old water disputes, invested in education, and reached many more milestones that are helping Indian nations pursue the future of their choosing," Salazar said in a statement.

During Echo Hawk's tenure, the Interior Department settled a $3.4 billion class-action lawsuit with Native American landowners over mismanaged royalties. The settlement reached in late 2009 is under appeal.

Salazar said he would work with Echo Hawk to ensure a smooth transition within the BIA. It was not clear who would be appointed to oversee the BIA after Echo Hawk's departure.

Echo Hawk, a member of the Pawnee Nation, was elected Idaho attorney general in 1990, the first Native American to be elected to the position in any state. He ran unsuccessfully in 1994 for Idaho governor as a Democrat.

Related Links:

http://www.originalpechanga.com/2011/01/dept-of-interiors-larry-echo-hawk-rules.html

http://www.originalpechanga.com/2010/03/larry-echo-hawk-to-decide-san-pascual.html

http://www.originalpechanga.com/2009/04/mormon-to-head-bureau-of-indian-affairs.html

Indian vs. Indian: The Despicable Picayune Rancheria OPPOSES New Casino for their Neighboring Tribe. Says EchoHawk Lies.

Lest our readers falsely believe that all Native American Tribes want their brother and sister tribes to succeed, we have this news:

The owners of Chukchansi Gold Resort & Casino plan to fight a recent federal approval of a proposed Indian casino off of Highway 99 north of Madera.

Picayune is a tribe that decimated their membership, in a genocide-like move eliminating 50% of their tribe.  In a statement, Reggie Lewis, tribal chairman of the Picayune Rancheria of the Chukchansi Indians, said the decision by the Interior Department last week opens the doors to "unrestricted off-reservation gaming across the United States."  TRANSLATION:  Wah!  That would mean the casino is closer to Fresno, and would take customers away from us!!

The North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians has been working since 2005 to build the casino on 305 acres located about 40 miles from its foothill home near North Fork. It would include a 200-room hotel and up to 2,500 slot machines.

The North Fork Rancheria maintains the land between Avenues 17 and 18 is part of the tribe's "historical area." Assistant Interior Secretary Larry Echo Hawk announced the decision Friday.

“For years, this project has been vehemently opposed by local, state and federal officials and Mr. Echo Hawk has received dozens of letters from elected officials to that effect," Lewis said in his statement. "For Mr. Echo Hawk to now claim that North Fork has ‘historical connections’ to the proposed gaming site is just not true — and he knows that.”

The state must now sign off on the casino plans.

“We strongly urge Governor Brown to reject this ill-conceived project,” Lewis said, adding that the Picayune Rancheria will continue fighting the project "through all means available to our tribe

Original Pechanga's Blog strongly urges the people of California to AVOID the Chukchansi Gold Resort and Casino.

Asst. Secretary of Indian Affairs Larry Echohawk Has Recieved Request to Meet

We have received word from Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Larry Echohawk's office that they have received our request form they require to facilitate a meeting.  The confirmation comes outside the two week window they require so that should not be an issue.

We hold out hope that Secretary Echohawk will speak to a group of Native Americans that will be protesting at the reservation of a tribe that practices apartheid, and one that has violated the civil rights of a significant portion of its citizens.  Please invite our speakers into Pechanga's meeting area or come out to the street, where the protesters will be..

THANK YOU in advance for your consideration, Mr. Secretary.

Read more on Pechanga's Apartheid Practices HERE   On Snoqualmie Abuses HERE    On Redding Rancheria Here

"Without A Tribe" KNBC's Report on Pechanga's Disenrollment; See Macarro Lie in 16 seconds.

This details the disenrollment of Pechanga members in 2006.  The Paulina Hunter descendents, which was the second family to be terminated from the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians.  Please listen to THEIR expert Dr John Johnson speak. WE DID NOT HIRE Dr. Johnson, the foremost expert on California Indians PECHANGA DID.

Why did they not believe their OWN expert? Because he didn't come to the conclusion they wanted.  They accepted hearsay evidence versus the historical record of their own tribe.






SADLY, Lawrence Madariaga, Hunter Family Elder, has passed away. This happened because Frances Miranda, Ihrene Scearce and Ruth Masiel disregarded their experts report, and believed a CHILD MOLESTER instead.  It's a disgrace and an action worthy of your scorn.

Joe Liska: YouTube Take on Larry Echohawk and the BIA = Worthless

Joe Liska takes a sharp point to the BIA and Larry Echohawk. Do something, sir. Some more videos to follow

Larry Echo Hawk to Decide San Pascual Membership Dispute

Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs, Larry Echo Hawk says he will decide on a membership dispute within the San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians of California.

In January 2009, the tribe blocked the descendants of the late Marcus R. Alto Sr. from participating in an election. About 60 to 80 people -- around a third of the tribal membership -- are affected. See the VIDEO HERE

In November 2009, the acting director for the Pacific Region of the Bureau of Indian Affairs said the tribe violated its own laws and declared the election invalid.

The tribal council that was elected in January 2009 filed an appeal and Echo Hawk said he will make a decision on the matter after receiving briefs from all of the parties involved. Until then, the BIA continues to recognize the tribal council that was elected in January 2007 as the valid San Pasqual government.

Do what is right, Mr. Echo Hawk. This tribal council is not doing what is right for the people of San Pascual.

San Pascual is but ONE tribe in CA that has disenrolled members. The Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians, which hijacked the Temecula Band of Luiseno Indian's federal recognition, is well known for terminating Indians from their rightful place in the tribe. Since the advent of casino gaming Pechanga's disenrollment of 230 adults from the tribe is second only to the Picayune Rancheria in the termination of Native Americans in CA.