Good Morning NUNAverse,
Mary Kininnook (Tlingit) was one of nearly 200 children who died and were buried while students at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, the nation’s first off-reservation Indian Boarding School. But you wouldn’t know it by scouring the graveyard at the former school grounds. Despite historic records noting Mary’s death at age 14—caused by pulmonary tuberculosis —and details about her December 28, 1908 funeral service, none of the 173 headstones at Carlisle bear Mary’s name. That’s because of Carlisle school administrators’ failure to mark and maintain all of the graves promptly and consistently, Carlisle Indian School Digital Research Center archivist Jim Gerencse said. Headstone markings were either washed away over time, or never there to begin with, he said. So when the Army, which took over Carlisle in 1918, moved the cemetery nine years later, they were left with 14 children without known identities. Now, nearly a century later, the Army says it will begin to identify and return those “lost” children buried beneath the ‘unknown’ headstones, beginning with Mary Kininnook.
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem said Friday that she will relaunch the state’s review of social study standards after it was bogged in controversy. Noem said she has “set aside” the standards proposed by the Department of Education and told the department to restart the process. The Republican governor said that everyone who has expressed concern about the process, including Native people, will be included in the do-over. New standards are released every seven years. The governor’s plan calls for a new workgroup of people from across the state to develop the standards. Members of the previous working group — appointed by the Department of Education — said in August they were caught by surprise on Friday when the department released a document with significant changes that cut references to Native history and culture.
Assembly of First Nations (AFN) National Chief RoseAnne Archibald has petitioned Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland “to vacate the previous administration’s wolf delisting rule and start the process anew.” Former President Donald Trump’s administration stripped the gray wolf of Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections, permitting states to launch what the AFN and Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) both describe as “culls.” In the AFN’s letter to Secretary Haaland, National Chief RoseAnne Archibald (Taykwa Tagamou Nation) urges Haaland to “work closely with the Tribal Nations signatory to The Wolf: A Treaty of Cultural and Environmental Survival.” The UBCIC adds, “As the Wolf Treaty has been described as the ‘blueprint for wolf management,’ we hope Secretary Haaland will honour and implement the immense wisdom contained in the treaty.”
The Yurok reservation sits on a remote strip of land that snakes shoulder to shoulder with the final 44 miles of the Klamath River along the northern California coast. In 2001, drought descended on the Klamath Basin, the watershed that feeds the river. Due to a history of water mismanagement in the basin, combined with a historic drought, the river is sick – and the Yurok are too. The salmon they have long depended on as a dietary staple and cultural cornerstone have become scarce. Combined with the lack of food sovereignty, that scarcity has prompted the need to fight for their main sources of nutrition and for their very way of life, they say. Yurok women, traditionally their tribe’s caregivers and food providers, bear the brunt of the food and health crisis while leading the fight for cultural preservation.
Keep reading for a full news update.
Boarding School:
Army To Begin Returning The ‘Unknowns’ At Carlisle Indian Industrial School
Native News Online, Jenna Kunze, October 2
Mary Kininnook (Tlingit) was one of nearly 200 children who died and were buried while students at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, the nation’s first off-reservation Indian Boarding School. But you wouldn’t know it by scouring the graveyard at the former school grounds. Despite historic records noting Mary’s death at age 14—caused by pulmonary tuberculosis —and details about her Dec. 28, 1908 funeral service, none of the 173 headstones at Carlisle bear Mary’s name. That’s because of Carlisle school administrators’ failure to mark and maintain all of the graves promptly and consistently, Carlisle Indian School Digital Research Center archivist Jim Gerencse said. Headstone markings were either washed away over time, or never there to begin with, he said. So when the Army, which took over Carlisle in 1918, moved the cemetery nine years later, they were left with 14 children without known identities. Now, nearly a century later, the Army says it will begin to identify and return those “lost” children buried beneath the ‘unknown’ headstones, beginning with Mary Kininnook.
MMIW:
Arizonans Hopeful That Focus On Missing Indigenous Persons May Pay Off
Cronkite News, Diannie Chavez, October 1
Duane Garvais-Lawrence pulled into Washington, D.C., Friday, ending his second annual coast-to-coast trip to bring attention to the problem of missing and murdered Indigenous women – a trip he hopes he does not have to make again. Garvais-Lawrence left Washington state on July 18 and has spent the months since driving from reservation to reservation as part of his MMIW Bike Run USA. At each stop along the way, he and others who joined him on the trek would bike, run and pray to raise awareness of the issue – and at each stop, they would add names of victims to the side of the motor home in red ink. More than 80% of Native women, or more than 1.5 million people, have experienced violence in their lifetimes and 56% suffered sexual violence, the report said. One in three had experienced violence in the past three years.
Other:
‘No Fish Means No Food’: How Yurok Women Are Fighting For Their Tribe’s Nutritional Health
The Guardian, October 4
The Yurok reservation sits on a remote strip of land that snakes shoulder to shoulder with the final 44 miles of the Klamath River along the misty northern California coast. In 2001, drought descended on the Klamath Basin, the watershed that feeds the river. Due to a history of water mismanagement in the basin, combined with a historic drought, the river is sick – and the Yurok are too. The salmon they have long depended on as a dietary staple and cultural cornerstone have become scarce. Combined with the lack of food sovereignty, that scarcity has prompted the need to fight for their main sources of nutrition and for their very way of life, they say. Yurok women, traditionally their tribe’s caregivers and food providers, bear the brunt of the food and health crisis while leading the fight for cultural preservation.
Gov. Noem Relaunches Social Study Standards Review
AP News, October 1
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem said Friday that she will relaunch the state’s review of social study standards after it was bogged in controversy. Noem said she has “set aside” the standards proposed by the Department of Education and told the department to restart the process. The Republican governor said that everyone who has expressed concern about the process, including Native people, will be included in the do-over. New standards are released every seven years. The governor’s plan calls for a new workgroup of people from across the state to develop the standards. Members of the previous working group — appointed by the Department of Education — said in August they were caught by surprise on Friday when the department released a document with significant changes that cut references to Native history and culture.
The Assembly Of First Nations Joins The Union Of BC Indian Chiefs In Petitioning Secretary Haaland To Stop Wolf Culls
Native News Online, Arianna Amehae, October 1
Comprised of 634 chiefs, representing all First Nations across the country, Assembly of First Nations (AFN) National Chief RoseAnne Archibald has petitioned US Secretary of the Interior, Deb Haaland, “to vacate the previous administration’s wolf delisting rule and start the process anew.” Two days before the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol, former President Donald Trump’s administration stripped the gray wolf of Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections, permitting states to launch what the AFN and Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) both describe as “culls.” In the AFN’s letter to Haaland, National Chief RoseAnne Archibald (Taykwa Tagamou Nation) urges Haaland to “work closely with the Tribal Nations signatory to The Wolf: A Treaty of Cultural and Environmental Survival.” The UBCIC adds, “As the Wolf Treaty has been described as the ‘blueprint for wolf management,’ we hope Secretary Haaland will honour and implement the immense wisdom contained in the treaty.”
Marathon Paying Tribute To Indigenous Champion
AP News, William J. Kole, October 1
Organizers of the Boston Marathon publicly apologized for running the 125th edition of the planet’s most celebrated footrace on Indigenous Peoples Day. Now they’re seeking to make amends by throwing the spotlight on a citizen of Rhode Island’s Narragansett tribe who won the race twice in the 1930s and inspired the name “Heartbreak Hill” to describe the most iconic — and dreaded — section of the course. The Boston Athletic Association, which administers the marathon, said it will honor the legacy of the late Ellison “Tarzan” Brown, Boston’s champion in 1936 and 1939, in the run-up to the race’s pandemic-altered Oct. 11 staging. The Boston Marathon traditionally is held in mid-April on Massachusetts’ unique Patriots’ Day holiday. In 2020, it was canceled in its traditional format for the first time because of the coronavirus pandemic, and because of a resurgence of COVID-19 cases, it’s being run this year in the autumn rather than the spring. The running falls on Indigenous Peoples Day — observed in some places as an alternative to Columbus Day — and that rankled enough people for the BAA in August to issue “sincere apologies to all Indigenous people who have felt unheard or feared the importance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day would be erased.”
State Renames Park At Request Of Yurok Tribe
AP News, October 1
California parks authorities voted Thursday to rename a popular park in Northern California to include its traditional Yurok name after a request from the state’s largest tribe. The state Parks and Recreation Commission voted unanimously to change the name from Patrick’s Point State Park to Sue-meg State Park after hearing testimony from tribal leaders about the cultural importance of the site. Until the pandemic struck, Yurok families held brush dances at Sue-meg Village, a site within the current park boundaries, every year that was attended by hundreds of tribal citizens, Chairman Joseph L. James told the commission.
Peguis First Nation Descendant Turning Heads In D1 Volleyball
Indian Country Today, Dan Ninham, October 1
The Maryland Terrapins volleyball team started the 2021 season with an impressive win streak, which included arguably the program’s biggest win against No. 2 Wisconsin. One of the key reasons the Division I program rolled early and head into conference play with only one loss is the dominant play of senior middle blocker Rainelle Jones,(Peguis First Nation descendent). Jones, 21, set season highs with 11 kills against Temple and 11 blocks against Wisconsin. The 6-foot-3-inch star leads the nation with 1.9 blocks/set and was recently named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week.
Navajo Company Takes Over Operation Of Coal Mine It Owns
AP News, October 1
A Navajo Nation company is taking over the operation of a coal mine it owns in northwestern New Mexico. The Navajo Transitional Energy Co. has owned the Navajo Mine since 2013 but had contracted with a subsidiary of the North American Coal Corp. to run it. Clark Moseley, the company’s chief executive, said the Navajo company will take over on Friday. The mine that feeds the adjacent Four Corners Power Plant has nearly 400 employees — 85% of whom are Native. Moseley said the Navajo Transitional Energy Co. will retain the workforce. The company is one of the largest coal producers in the United States as the resource increasingly is falling out of favor. The company owns three coal mines in Montana and Wyoming, and a share of the Four Corners Power Plant near Farmington, New Mexico.