Good Morning NUNAverse,
Indian Country reveled in the fact the Indigenous presenters would be coming to the stage to present a category for the Emmy Awardss as well as represent Native inclusion on Sunday. “Reservation Dogs” co-executive producer and director Sterlin Harjo (Seminole and Muscogee) made it to the 73rd Emmy Awards stage alongside D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai (who plays Bear Smallhill), Devery Jacobs (Elora Danan), Paulina Alexis (Willie Jack), and Lane Factor (who portrays the character Cheese). Before the crew presented the Emmy for “Outstanding Directing in a Limited Series,” they expressed some sentiments that left the room and Indigenous people everywhere rejoicing and crying happy tears.
Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor filed two new petitions with the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday seeking the reversal of last year’s decision reaffirming the Muscogee reservation, or at least a ruling that Oklahoma still has jurisdiction over some crimes involving Native people on sovereign land. Both petitions focus on cases in which the Supreme Court’s decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma led to the reversal of convictions of crimes committed by non-Indians against Native Americans. O’Connor argues in the petitions that neither federal law nor U.S. Supreme Court precedents bar state prosecution of non-Indians accused of committing crimes against Native people in Indian Country and that the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals was wrong to reverse convictions on those grounds.
A coalition of Native communities has proposed redrawing New Mexico’s political map to boost Indigenous voters’ influence in elections. The proposed changes from New Mexico’s 19 Pueblos and the Jicarilla Apache Nation would reshape a congressional swing district where Republicans regained control in 2020. They would also bolster Native majorities among eligible voters in six state House and three Senate districts in northwestern New Mexico. The proposals were submitted to a committee that will provide recommendations to the Legislature at the end of October. The Democrat-led Legislature can draw its own lines, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham must approve the redistricting, and court challenges are possible.
Opposition to the Line 3 pipeline in Minnesota has reached a fever pitch in recent weeks with the project nearly complete. Environmentalists, Hollywood celebrities, and Democratic lawmakers have called on the White House to intervene at the eleventh hour, arguing that the risk of a potential spill is too great, and tribal sovereignty has been violated. Most of the opposition has centered around 337 miles of the pipeline in Minnesota that crisscrosses dozens of bodies of water, including near the start of the Mississippi River. The Red Lake Nation joined the White Earth Band of the Ojibwe tribe, Honor the Earth, the Sierra Club, and others in a number of lawsuits trying to stop the project, but the Minnesota Courts sided with the State and Enbridge Energy.
Keep reading for a full news update.
MMIW:
Hundreds Of Indigenous Women And Girls Remain Missing, Many In NM
KRQE News, Jami Seymore, September 20
As the disappearance of Gabby Petito continues to get national attention, advocates point out she’s not the only one. Now, they’re trying to draw more attention to the problem of missing women across the West. Right now, there are hundreds of missing Native women whose cases are ongoing or cold, including many in New Mexico. Local organizations are working to change that and bring their loved ones home. From domestic to sexual, violence against women in tribal communities – both nationwide and here in the state – continues to grow, with little light shed on the issue.
COVID-19:
Nearly 100 Quarantined On St. Regis Mohawk Reservation
WCAX News, September 20
So many people on the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation are in quarantine, tribal leaders are asking everyone to stay in their household bubble and treat everyone else as if they are positive. The tribe reports 13 new cases over the weekend. That makes for 26 active cases. Another 94 are in quarantine. Testing is available seven days a week on the reservation: Saint Regis Mohawk Health Services is conducting COVID-19 PCR Test Collection Clinics from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at their main campus located at 404 State Route.
Law:
Line 3 Pipeline Resistance Continues As Activists Ask Biden Admin To Shutdown Project
ABC News, Stephanie Ebbs and MaryAlice Parks, September 21
Opposition to the Line 3 pipeline in Minnesota has reached a fever pitch in recent weeks with the project nearly complete. Environmentalists, Hollywood celebrities and Democratic lawmakers have called on the White House to intervene at the eleventh hour, arguing that the risk of a potential spill is too great and tribal sovereignty has been violated. Most of the opposition has centered around 337 miles of the pipeline in Minnesota that crisscrosses dozens of bodies of water, including near the start of the Mississippi River. The Red Lake Nation joined the White Earth Band of the Ojibwe tribe, Honor the Earth, the Sierra Club and others in several lawsuits trying to stop the project, but the Minnesota Courts sided with the State and Enbridge Energy. A D.C. federal court has yet to rule on a lawsuit arguing that permits for the project issued by the Army Corps of Engineers should be re-evaluated.
Native Americans Aim To Boost Voting Power In New Mexico
Native News Online, Morgan Lee, September 20
A coalition of Native communities has proposed redrawing New Mexico’s political map to boost Indigenous voters’ influence in elections. The proposed changes from New Mexico’s 19 Pueblos and the Jicarilla Apache Nation would reshape a congressional swing district where Republicans regained control in 2020. They would also bolster Native majorities among eligible voters in six state House and three Senate districts in northwestern New Mexico. The proposals were submitted to a committee that will provide recommendations to the Legislature at the end of October. The Democrat-led Legislature can draw its own lines. Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham must approve the redistricting, and court challenges are possible.
Law:
O’Connor Files New Petitions Asking High Court To Reverse Mcgirt
AP News, Chris Casteel, September 20
Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor filed two new petitions with the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday seeking the reversal of last year’s decision reaffirming the Muscogee reservation, or at least a ruling that Oklahoma still has jurisdiction over some crimes involving Native people in Indian Country. Both petitions focus on cases in which the Supreme Court’s decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma led to the reversal of convictions of crimes committed by non-Indians against Native Americans. O’Connor argues in the petitions that neither federal law nor U.S. Supreme Court precedents bar state prosecution of non-Indians accused of committing crimes against Native people in Indian Country and that the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals was wrong to reverse convictions on those grounds.
Other:
Indigeneity At The 2021 Emmys
Indian Country Today, Vincent Schilling, September 20
Indian Country reveled in the fact the Indigenous presenters would be coming to the stage to present a category for the EMMYs as well as represent Native inclusion on Sunday. “Reservation Dogs” co-executive producer and director Sterlin Harjo (Seminole and Muscogee) made it to the 73rd Emmy Awards stage alongside D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai (who plays Bear Smallhill), Devery Jacobs (Elora Danan), Paulina Alexis (Willie Jack), and Lane Factor (who portrays the character Cheese). Before the crew presented the Emmy for “Outstanding Directing in a Limited Series,” they expressed some sentiments that left the room and Indigenous people everywhere rejoicing and crying happy tears.
California Art Center Hosts Controversial Leonard Peltier Exhibition
Native News Online, September 20
The Richmond Art Center in Richmond, Calif. is hosting Time and Again, an exhibition centered on artist Rigo 23’s monumental sculptural tribute to imprisoned Leonard Peltier (Turtle Mountain Ojibwe). Peltier has been incarcerated for the past 45 years for the murder of two FBI agents, who were shot and killed at Oglala on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in 1975. To many American Indians and others, Peltier, who turned 77-years-old on September 12, is a symbol of an oppressive federal system that confines Native people to a dismal place in American society. Rigo 23 is a well-known artist in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has exhibited his work internationally for over three decades, often placing murals, paintings, sculptures, and tile work in public venues.