The second and final 2020 Presidential Debate took place last night in Nashville, Tennessee. If you missed the event, you can watch the full debate here, watch highlights here, and find a full fact check of both candidates here.
The Trump Administration is appealing the court ruling from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals blocking their attempt to exclude undocumented immigrants from the Census numbers that inform each state’s share of House seats. The Supreme Court is already slated to hear oral arguments on November 30 for an appeal to a similar ruling by a court in New York.
The Wisconsin State Department of Health Services reports that COVID-19 cases among the state’s Native population have tripled since September 1st. The Department of Health Services reported 59 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and one new death among Native people in Wisconsin on Wednesday. That raised the group’s totals to 2,333 confirmed cases and 23 deaths since the pandemic began, a huge jump from the 775 confirmed cases reported on Sept. 1.
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards signed a proclamation officially making November 2020 “American Indian Heritage Month” at the request of Baley Champagne, a tribal member of the United Houma Nation. Champagne also helped create the First Indigenous Peoples Day in Louisiana, Oct. 14, 2019 and petitioned the Governor to join others in moving away from Columbus Day and recognizing Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
The ruling from U.S. District Judge James Soto rejected an effort by the Pascua Yaqui Tribe to force Pima County Recorder F. Ann Rodriguez to open an early voting site on its reservation. Soto noted that the tribe waited until just three weeks before Election Day to sue, and he said it had not made a case that any tribal members will be denied the ability to vote without such a site.
Keep reading for a full news update.
2020 Election:
Judge Won’t Order Early Voting Site On Pascua Yaqui Land
Greensboro News & Record, Bob Christie, October 22
A federal judge on Thursday refused to order a southern Arizona election official to open an early voting and ballot collection site for the Nov. 3 election on a Native American reservation on the edge of Tucson.
COVID-19:
Navajo Nation Surpasses 11,000 Covid-19 Cases
Native News Online, October 21
On Wednesday, the Navajo Department of Health, in coordination with the Navajo Epidemiology Center and the Navajo Area Indian Health Service, reported 29 new COVID-19 positive cases for the Navajo Nation and no recent deaths. The total number of positive COVID-19 cases is now 11,030, which includes two delayed reported cases.
Coronavirus Cases Jump Among Wisconsin’s American Indians
AP News, October 22
Coronavirus cases among Native Americans in Wisconsin have tripled since Sept. 1 as the state continues to grapple with the pandemic. The state Department of Health Services reported 59 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and one new death among Native Americans in Wisconsin on Wednesday. The figures include Native Americans who live on reservations and those who live elsewhere.
Law:
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Files Request To Stop Dakota Access Pipeline
Native News Online, October 22
A request for injunction was filed in Federal District Court of the District of Columbia last week by Earthjustice on behalf of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe as an effort to shut down the Dakota Access pipeline. The brief was filed to have U.S. District Judge James Boasberg clarify his ruling from July 6 that ordered Energy Transfer, the company behind the Dakota Access pipeline, to shut down the flow of oil on August 6.
Ex-port Commissioner Sentenced For Damaging Memorial
AP News, October 22
Former Port of Poulsbo commissioner Mark James DeSalvo was arrested for vandalizing a memorial to a Native American man killed by police struck a deal with prosecutors to avoid a felony conviction. DeSalvo agreed to follow for a year the conditions set forth in Kitsap County District Court. At that point his second-degree malicious mischief charge will be dismissed.
Other:
November Declared American Indian Heritage Month In Louisiana
Houma Today, Scott Yoshonis, October 22
The contribution of American Indians to Louisiana is being recognized by the state.
November 2020 is officially American Indian Heritage Month in the state of Louisiana.
Dreams Become Reality For Native Comic Book Artists Joining The Marvel Universe
Naitve News Online, October 22
Marvel Entertainment continues to diversify its comic book universe just in time for Native American Heritage Month by introducing “Marvel’s Voices: Indigenous Voices #1.”
The comic and entertainment giant recruited Native artists and writers like Jeffrey Veregge (Coast Salish) and Weshoyot Alvitre (Tongva) to revamp previously established Indigenous superheroes.
Major Federal Grant Helps Sustain Native American Culture In ND
October 22
KX Net, Nicci Johnston, October 22
Native INC, a sister organization of the Native American Development Center, will receive just under $300,000 a year over the next three years. The funds will be used to integrate cultural services starting in the Bismarck metropolitan area and throughout North Dakota. There will be services like transportation, finding resources, supplies for cultural programs, and rent for a community center.
Apache Artist Expresses Power Of The Indigenous Vote
Indian Country Today, Kalle Benallie, October 22
Apache artist Douglas Miles knows what’s at stake in the 2020 election and wants to promote Native voices. He was commissioned by Culture Surge, a coalition of members and organizers dedicated to civic engagement, to create the mural “You’re Voting on Native Land,” which is displayed on his homelands at the San Carlos Apache Reservation in Arizona.
Native Volunteers Set Up Tipi Camp To Help Address Homelessness
Indianz.com, Kevin Abourezk, October 22
Along a meandering creek at the foot of the Black Hills, a decision by a group of Native activists last week to set up a small tipi encampment has brought them into conflict with local officials but has also brought attention to the plight of hundreds of homeless Native men and women in Rapid City, South Dakota. The Mni Luzahan Patrol, a coalition of Native volunteers that formed to protect homeless Native people living along Rapid Creek, set up the tipi camp last Friday.