Good Morning, NUNAverse,

The Canadian government has agreed to pay more than $2 billion to hundreds of Indigenous communities to settle a lawsuit centered around nearly a century of abuse suffered by Native children at residential schools. The lawsuit, filed by 325 First Nations communities in 2012, sought compensation for the physical, sexual, and mental abuse suffered by Indigenous children during the residential school era in Canada. 

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in favor of Seneca Nation when it rejected the State of New York’s attempt to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the tribe in 2018. The lawsuit alleged ongoing violations of federal law related to the continued occupation of the New York State Thruway on the Nation’s Cattaraugus Territory. At issue is a three-mile stretch of highway on I-90 that goes through the Seneca Reservation, which is about 30 miles south of Buffalo, New York.

North Dakota lawmakers introduced a bill last week that would solidify the rules of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) into state law. Representative Jayme Davis, an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, is sponsoring House Bill 1536, and said that the law would ensure that Native children grow up with their cultural ties intact.

The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals recently ruled the historic Kickapoo Reservation in the central part of the state was disestablished more than a century ago and no longer exists. The court’s decision involves a case in which a citizen of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma challenged his state conviction on four counts of lewd acts with a child. The court agreed with a lower court’s ruling that the reservation had been ceded back to the United States in 1891 in the form of land allotments and cash payments to tribal citizens. 

Keep reading for a full news update. 

Law:

U.S. Circuit Court Rules In Favor Of The Seneca Nation In Case Against State Of New York 

Native News Online, January 28

North Dakota Introduces State ICWA Bill 

Native News Online, Elyse Wild, January 25

Hia-Ced O’odham Seek Federal Recognition

Cronkite News, Scianna Garcia, January 24

Bill Could Change South Dakota Tribal Relations Committee

South Dakota Searchlight,  Joshua Haiar, January 23

Oklahoma Court Says Kickapoo Reservation Was Disestablished

AP News, January 23

Boarding Schools:

Canada To Pay Survivors Of Indian Residential Schools More Than $2b

Native News Online, January 23

Politics:

Navajo Nation Elects Its First Female Speaker

Native News Online, Levi Rickert, January 25

Health:

American Indian Mental Health Organization Granted NGO Consultive Status By United Nations

Native News Online, Darren Thompson, January 25

Blackfeet Tribal Council Makes Narcan Training Mandatory

Native News Online, Darren Thompson, January 24

Native Mascots:

Why Billboards Urging Chiefs To ‘Change The Name And Stop The Chop’ Return For Playoffs

The Kansas City Star, Joseph Hernandez, January 27

Other:

Surgeon Wants To Be First Native To Summit Everest

Rapid City Journal, Darsha Dodge, January 29

Phoenix Suns Celebrates Native American Culture In Full Colors

Native News Online, Darren Thompson, January 29

Woman Who Faked Native American Heritage Resigns From Wisconsin University Residency

Fox News, Taylor Penley, January 29

The Museum Built On Native American Burial Mounds

ProPublica, Logan Jaffe, January 27

Donated Quilts For Native Families Provide Kinship

Indian Country Today, Kalle Benallie, January 27

A $250,000 Check Will Help Minnesota Group Buy Back Land Taken From Native Americans

Star Tribune, David Chanen, January 27

Dept. Of Interior Halts Mining In Pristine Boundary Waters With 20-Year Moratorium

Native News Online, Darren Thompson, January 27

US Moves To Protect Minnesota Wilderness From Planned Mine

AP News, Steve Karnowski, January 26

Biden-Harris Administration To Launch Summit Series To Advance Asian American, Native Hawaiian, And Pacific Islander Economic Equity

US Department Of Health And Human Services, January 26

Northern Arizona University Secures $10m To Advance Indigenous Students’ Success

Native News Online, January 25

Salem Nonprofit Gets Grant To Teach Documentary Work To Native Americans

Salem Reporter, Kevin Opsahl, January 25

A Proposed Gold Mine Generates Debate Among Alaska Natives

Alaska Beacon, Yereth Rosen, January 24

Hockey Cards Shed Light On First Nations Players

AP News, Stephen Whyno, January 24

Storm Deaths On Lakota Land ‘Could Have Been Prevented’

AP News,  Heather Hollingsworth, January 23

Native Hawaiians Flock To Las Vegas For Affordable Living

AP News, Jennifer Sinco Kelleher, January 23

Report: 11 Alabama Institutions Hold Native American Remains

Montgomery Advertiser, Evan Mealins, January 23

Native American Languages Are Disappearing. Colleges Could Help Preserve Them.

The Chronicle of Higher Education, Sylvia Goodman, January 23