2010 Annual Report Justice for Indigenous Peoples
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2010 AnnuAl RepoRt JUSTICEJUSTICE FOR INDIGENOUS FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLES PEOPLES JUSTICEJUSTICE FOR INDIGENOUS FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLES PEOPLES CENTROCENTRO DE RECURSOS DE RECURSOS JURID JURIDÍCOS PAÍCOSRA PALORAS PUEBL LOS PUEBLOS INOSDÍGENAS INDÍGENAS CENTROCENTRO DE RECURSOSDE RECURSOS JURIDICOS JURIDICOS PARA PALOSRA PUEBLLOS PUEBLOS INDÍGENASOS INDÍGENAS who we are “We work to protect the legal rights, cultures and environments of Indian nations and other indigenous peoples of the Americas.” ouR mission stAtement ouR puRposes And goAls he Indian Law Resource Center provides ndian nations and tribes and other indigenous legal assistance to indigenous peoples of the communities throughout the world are afflicted Americas to combat racism and oppression, to by poverty, poor health and discrimination. Many Tprotect their lands and environment, to protect INative communities are subjected to grave human their cultures and ways of life, to achieve sustainable rights abuses. Indian land and natural resources are economic development and genuine self-government, often expropriated or degraded. When indigenous and to realize their other human rights. peoples are deprived of their ways of life and their ties to the earth, they suffer. Many have disappeared The Indian Law Resource Center seeks to overcome completely. Profoundly aware that when any culture the grave problems that threaten Native peoples by ceases to exist, the whole world is diminished advancing the rule of law, by establishing national and irrevocably, the Indian Law Resource Center’s principal international legal standards that preserve their human goal is the preservation and well-being of Indian and rights and dignity, and by challenging the governments other Native nations and tribes. of the world to accord justice and equality before the law to all indigenous peoples of the Americas. The Center provides legal assistance to Indian nations and other indigenous peoples in the United States and throughout the Americas at no cost to our clients. The Center has an international Board of Directors, and it is a Non-Governmental Organization in consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council. The Indian Law Resource Center is a tax-exempt organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. We are funded entirely by grants and contributions from Indian nations, foundations and © individuals. The Center accepts no government support. Adobe Wall, Jane Ash Poitras Adobe Wall, Adobe Wall, Jane Ash Poitras © pResident’s messAge “ There is now worldwide acceptance of indigenous peoples and our governments as a permanent part of the world community and the countries where we live.” he Indian Law Resource Center has had an In addition, we want to restore rights to sovereign Indian exceptionally productive year in 2010, making nations in order to make possible better protection of major strides towards ensuring justice for Native people, especially women. It has never been Tindigenous peoples. more urgent for us to carry on the legal battles to stop violence against Native women. The statistics are In December, 2010, the United States at last gave staggering: one of three American Indian women will its support to the UN Declaration on the Rights of be raped in her lifetime; three of five will be physically Indigenous Peoples. This, on the heels of endorsements assaulted. Current federal laws must be reformed to by New Zealand and Canada earlier in the year, means stop this epidemic. there is now worldwide acceptance of indigenous peoples and our governments as a permanent part Beyond North America, the need is also great. This of the world community and the countries where we year we decided to help the Rapa Nui people of Easter live. We have worked on the Declaration for more than Island, which is a special territory of Chile. The Rapa 30 years, and we are eager to see the promise of the Nui asked for our help to reclaim their land and self- Declaration become a reality. government rights and to secure better protections for their sacred sites—which include the massive stone Our collaboration with Indian leaders, advocates and figures for which the island is famous. tribes to win acceptance of the Declaration, leads us to believe the time is right to tackle some of the big legal These are just a few areas of our work. We need your issues that have hindered Indian and Alaska Native continued help. nations and tribes for decades. The momentum is building. We need to continue The Center is providing legal help to Native nations on advocating and creating opportunities for change to their land rights and their rights as sovereign Indian better the lives of indigenous peoples around the world. and Alaska Native nations. We are already seeing I am grateful for your individual donations and for the the formation of a coalition of tribal leaders who are generosity of our partners such as the Ford Foundation, eager to take action to reform federal Indian law and Lannan Foundation, Oak Foundation, Libra Foundation, implement the UN Declaration. Moving forward will the U.S. Human Rights Fund, and the Charles Stewart mean engaging federal government officials and also Mott Foundation. We also thank Indian nations such as educating lawyers, federal judges and the general the Onondaga Nation, the Tonawanda Seneca Nation public about fair and just legal principles. and others who have been very generous with financial © support. We are grateful to all. Your generosity makes our work possible. Let’s make 2011 another exceptional year. RobeRt t. CoulteR 3 Blackfeet Leader, Jane Ash Poitras Blackfeet Leader, www.IndIanlaw.org Land Rights “The current legal framework, more than any other factor, is responsible for the longstanding poverty, political marginalization and social ills that are so common in Indian Country. —Draft General Principles of Law: Introduction ” Native Land Law ederal law concerning Indian and Alaska Native With the United States’ endorsement of the UN land—and Native nations in general—is terribly Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the unjust and out of keeping with the Constitution movement for law reform is growing. Many tribal leaders Fand basic American values. Our Native Land are eager to begin developing strategies for improving Law project is focused on creating a fair and principled the present framework of law. We are pleased with the framework of law concerning the rights of Native progress made in 2010. We are consulting with Native Americans to their lands and resources—a framework tribes and making plans for providing legal assistance consistent with the United States Constitution and to tribes in their efforts to change the law. Indian treaties, and with American concepts of fairness and modern principles of international human In addition to meeting with Indian leaders, we have met rights law. Our long-term goal is to reform—through with White House staff, the U.S. Department of State, political, judicial and administrative processes—the and others to discuss how the federal government present discriminatory laws affecting Native lands and can begin to make changes in federal law and policies resources in the United States. and how the government can implement the UN Declaration in a meaningful way. We are studying how We have written a set of General Legal Principles and we can present the Native Land Law Principles and supporting Commentaries stating what we believe related legal materials to judges and other government federal law really is or what it ought to be. These General officials. Principles cover the topics of self-determination, the doctrine of discovery, aboriginal title, the power of the We hope that debate and discussion will in time lead federal government to take Native lands, the plenary to consensus among Native leaders about the changes power doctrine, and the taxation of tribally held lands. they wish to seek in federal law. These draft principles form a consistent framework of legal rules that would overcome the truly unfair and discriminatory rules that now are applied to Native © nations. We wrote two versions of these Principles and Commentaries: a General Edition, and a Lawyers Edition for those interested in detailed analysis of the law. 4 IndIan law resource cenTer Jane Ash Poitras Do Not Need An Interpreter, We We Do Not Need An Interpreter, Jane Ash Poitras © “No person…shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall property be taken for public use, without just compensation. —Excerpt from the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution ” timbishA shoshone Tribe mohAwk Land Rights n June 10, 2010, the Center filed a lawsuit on ome of our most important legal work is to help behalf of the Timbisha Shoshone Tribe to Indian and Alaska Native nations protect—and stop an act of Congress that will take money sometimes regain—their homelands. obelonging to the Timbisha Shoshone and other s Western Shoshone tribes. This suit challenges the The Mohawk Nation and other nations of the power of Congress to control and even take Indian Haudenosaunee, or Six Nations Confederacy, have money and other property. been fighting for many generations to recover a part of their homelands in New York State that was taken from The case arises out of the astonishing injustices the them in violation of federal law. Our work on behalf federal government has meted out to the Western of the Mohawk Nation in this case has made some Shoshone tribes, including the Timbisha, in order progress. We are awaiting a decision from the federal to divest them of rights to their lands in Nevada and district court. Our greatest challenge in the case is to California. These nine tribes live on tiny remnants of assure that the federal courts accord Indian nations their lands, while the federal government controls true equality before the law.