Win News 2-5-11.Indd
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Published Bi-Weekly for the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska • Volume XXXIX, Number III, Saturday, February 5, 2011 Local Organizations Host Winter Teen Dance BBagoago BBits…its… Terry aka “T Bone” Medina was a chaper- one at the recent Winter Teen Dance. A group of local organizations hosted a much needed Winter Teen Dance last weekend on the Winnebago Indian Reservation. The group’s pitched in their resources and personnel to treat local teen’s to an old fashioned record dance, well not records, but the music was good. Dance attendees danced the night away, and played a number of games and were able to win prizes if their dancing skillz measured up. Here a group of the girls participating in the Dance showed off their smiles and sheded some cabin fever. Senecas’ long, tragic history… The Winnebago Reservation joined the rest Effort to protect sovereignty must be viewed against backdrop of injustices of the Nation last week with soaring gas prices, reaching the $3 mark. By Keith R. Burich ing in Western New York is merely the statistics are startling and dishearten- Special to the News latest chapter in the long, often sordid, ing. Indians have a higher mortality rate, and always tragic history of Indian and including among infants, have a shorter The Seneca Nation of Indians has em- white relations. life expectancy and are more likely to die barked on a campaign to tell its side of Indians have been driven off their from cancer, heart disease and alcohol the story over taxation, casinos, sover- lands, herded onto reservations, de- abuse than the general population. On eignty and treaty rights and obligations. prived of their ability to sustain them- some of the more isolated, Western res- The nation’s new president, Rob Porter, selves and their way of life, stripped of ervations, unemployment can reach 50 has even set out on a goodwill tour of their languages and cultures, denied percent to 60 percent, and The Buffalo Creighton University and HCI partnered local and state political and business their right to practice their religions News has recently reported that Indians again this year to provide FREE tax leaders. and, when they resisted, subjected to are the poorest people in America. service to those tribal members wanting The Senecas are trying to explain that warfare that in any other instance would Government policies have made the extra help. Here are the Creighton the rights they claim are guaranteed in be considered genocide. matters worse. Shipping children off students after they enjoyed some Ndn treaties and that those treaties are invio- The numbers don’t lie. The North to boarding schools to be Christianized Tacos with Father Dave and the Red Life late and protected by the “supremacy” Youth Group. American indigenous population in and civilized, or relocating families to clause of the U. S. Constitution. They 1492 was between 15 million and 18 cities far from reservations, created could also point out how their exemp- million. It was less than 250,000 by generations of children who, to bor- tion from state taxes came in exchange 1900. The fi rst peoples of this country row a popular Indian metaphor, were for millions of acres of land—an exemp- were on the verge of extinction by the neither wolf nor dog, neither white nor tion that was really no different than early 20th century. The removal of In- Indian. Alone and lonely, desperate and the tax breaks and subsidies granted dians from their ancestral territories to despairing, they all too often succumbed developers for building condos on the reservations resulted in the loss of land to the self-destructive behaviors that waterfront, rehabilitating buildings, and the disintegration of social, political, have ravaged Indian communities for keeping businesses downtown or luring economic and family structures that left generations. businesses from one town to another. tribes in a perpetual state of dependency In Western New York, the Senecas However, there is far more to their and vulnerable to the whiskey and wiles have enjoyed a revival due largely to story than broken treaties and promis- of the white man. casino revenues and their tax-free ciga- es—a story that the government and the Although the days of warfare, remov- rette and gasoline enterprises, but that A tough winter is once again hitting the American public would like to dismiss or al and epidemics sweeping through their prosperity is only recent and came only Winnebago Indian Reservation, a wel- forget. The determination of the Senecas populations ended long ago, the trauma after they were robbed of millions of comed site to most people is Denbone to jealously and zealously protect their arriving in his front end loader to scoop of the past was transmitted along gen- acres of land and, thus, their ability to them out. sovereignty and independence must erational lines in the form of new and sustain themselves and their language, be understood against the backdrop of just as deadly epidemics: alcohol and culture and independence. A few de- the injustices they and all Indians have meth, teenage pregnancy and sui- endured for 400 years. The story unfold- cide, diabetes and heart disease. The Con’t. on page 5... Indianz.com… Echo Hawk decision allows ouster of dozens from San Pasqual Band Tuesday, February 1, 2011 “The Assistant Secretary’s thorough fi nally acted to correct its mistake.” Assistant Secretary Larry Echo Hawk and well-reasoned decision vindicates About 60 of Alto’s descendants will has issued a decision in a membership the tribe’s continuing opposition to the be disenrolled from the tribe. dispute within the San Pasqual Band of Bureau’s enrollment of Marcus Alto’s Get the Story: Mission Indians of California. descendants,” tribal spokesperson Al- Ruling ousts 60 from San Pasqual Echo Hawk ruled that descendants len Lawso told The San Diego Union band (The San Diego Union Tribune of Marcus Alto Sr. don’t have enough Tribune. “Nothing is more important to 2/1) San Pasqual blood to qualify for mem- the exercise of tribal sovereignty than a For these and more stories from bership. Alto was adopted into the tribe tribe’s right to defi ne its own member- around Indian Country visit us at www. The Rez Car’s boys perform their fi rst oil in 1907. ship. After 20 years the Bureau has indianz.com. change. Call up Dubbz or Donald at 878- 4210 for an appointment. “More than just cars, Rez Cars!” Visit us at www.winnebagotribe.com Page 2 — Winnebago Indian News, Saturday, February 5, 2011 I Was Thinking where always small and instead the Getting just enough gaming money Thoughts from the Tortoise… by Lance Morgan money was put to developing our tribe allowed us to grow, but since nothing socially and economically. was easy we had to evolve, learn and When gaming happened, dozens of Since gaming started the Win- be creative. As a tribe and community, tribes went from poor to rich practi- nebago Tribe has bought thousands we are light years ahead of where we cally overnight. I like it for these tribes, of acres of land, started our own col- were just 20 years ago. Our natural but sometimes they didn’t do the little lege, expanded the gaming operation creativity and intelligence has fi nally things you need to sustain success. twice, started two more casino’s in met real opportunity. We don’t blame I worry that some of these tribes will Nebraska, started HCI, developed the the government like we used to. We slip back fairly quickly if their gaming Kelly property, built over 100 housing are the government now and we are revenues were lost. units, developed the Ho-Chunk Village, taking control of our lives across the These tribes must realize the same built the senior citizens center, got the board and it is refreshing. thing because we get a lot of wealthy hospital built, added two buildings to I know that a lot of us hear about tribes visiting us in Winnebago to the college, built a new community the gaming tribes and their large per learn about how we set up Ho-Chunk, center, added 300 jobs at the Tribe, capita payments and wish we could Inc. and how we work with the Tribe 300 plus at WinnaVegas, 1400 jobs at get in on that action, but if we are to create a better rez. We share all of HCI of which about 200 are local, and honest with ourselves our approach is our documents with the visiting tribes, hundreds of smaller things all designed much more sustainable and in some but only about half of them actually go to create a better community. ways more satisfying. We have a long back and implement some of the steps We got gaming a little less than 20 ways to go and as a people we seem we discuss. years ago—one generation. In less to like to focus on the negative, but if When these tribes would visit I than one generation we have com- you think about it our tribe has been would often wish HCI had some of that pletely changed the community and having things taken from it since the big gaming money to help grow our created opportunities for our young 1830’s and the fi rst treaty. Our recent business. But now that I look back people that our grandparents wouldn’t growth economically and socially is on it, I think our slow Tortoise like have dreamed possible. We have In- the turning point and for the fi rst time approach might have been good for us.