[nativestudies-l] Fwd: Sovereignty issues for the Wabanaki Tribes of Maine .

Tue Apr 8 09:28:23 EDT 2008

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: 	Fwd: Sovereignty issues for the Wabanaki Tribes of Maine .
Date: 	Mon, 7 Apr 2008 17:40:08 -0400
From: 	RickPouliot at gedakina.org <rickpouliot at gedakina.org>
References: 	<002401c89003$f12f7520$2f01a8c0 at D31QCC21>

Begin forwarded message:

> *From: *"Reuben Phillips" <alnabe at verizon.net <mailto:alnabe at verizon.net>>
> *Date: *March 27, 2008 8:13:17 AM EDT
> *
> *
> *Subject: **Sovereignty issues for the Wabanaki Tribes of Maine .*
>
>  
> Native People, friends and supporters,
> For the 28 years following the 1980 Maine land claims settlement , the 
> Maine tribes' sovereignty has been undermined by narrow 
> interpretations of the settlement agreement by the state courts. At 
> the center of court disputes was a Freedom of Access Act (FOAA) suit 
> brought against the Penobscot  Nation by Great Northern Paper Co. The 
> courts ruled that the law applies to the tribes, ruling that FOAA is 
> not an "internal tribal matter" because the tribes are basically 
> municipalities. The tribes have maintained that they are not 
> municipalities and that internal tribal matters are the basic 
> inherent  rights of tribal sovereignty. 
>    Two years ago Governor Baldacci signed an executive order 
> creating a Tribal/State Work Group consisting of representatives from 
> the tribes and members of the Maine Legislature. Their task was to 
> study the court cases and the land claims agreement and make 
> recommendations to the legislature to strengthen the strained 
> Tribal/State relations by correcting  ambiguities in the settlement act. 
>   Three months ago, the tribes submitted a proposal to rewrite the 
> settlement act that would recognize and strenghten tribal 
> self-governance and eliminate the references to "municipality and 
> internal tribal matters".   The to present bill LD 2221 making its way 
> through the legislature. The main soveriegnty issue remaining in the 
> bill is an exemption of the FOAA for the tribes.
>   Yesterday, the Judiciary Committee voted to approve the language 
> exempting the tribes from Maine's Freedom of Access Act  and to accept 
> language that differentiates the tribes from municipalities. The bill 
> must be further discussed to iron out problems with three other  
> issues: Jurisdiction equally for the Houlton band of Maliseets, 
> Mediation by Maine Tribal/State Commission and Consultation by State 
> Agencies with the Tribes. Although the final bill must pass the 
> legislature,  this is a big step towards changing the effects of  the 
> court decision and validation of the tribes' assertion that this 
> ruling is contrary to the intent of the settlement act. This also is a 
> big step towards the state recognizing the tribal governments as 
> distinct and unique and further strengthens the government to 
> government relationship between the state and the tribes.
>   The tribes are asking for your help.  We are asking all the Maine 
> voters to contact your State Legislator and urging them to recognize 
> tribal self- governance and support LD 2221, "An Act To Implement the 
> Recommendations of the Tribal/State Work Group".
> You can follow the bill's progress at h 
> <http://janus.state.me.us/legis/lawmakerweb/search.asp>ttp://janus.state.me.us/legis/lawmaker 
> <http://janus.state.me.us/legis/lawmaker>web/search.asp
>  
> To listen on line to the scheduled work sessions of the Judiciary 
> Committee:   (none are scheduled at this time)
> http://janus.state.me.us/legis/audio/judiciary_cmte.html
>  Thank you,
> Butch Phillips, Jim Sappeir,Tribal/State Work Group, (representing 
> Penobscot Nation)
> alnabe at verizon.net <mailto:alnabe at verizon.net>

*Maine's Obama moment*
/Opinion at TimesRecord.Com/ <mailto:Opinion at TimesRecord.Com> 04/01/2008  
(Times Record,  Brunswick Maine)

LD 2221, An Act to Implement the Recommendations of the Tribal-State 
Work Group, presents Maine with an opportunity to make a transcendent 
statement on race, similar to what presidential candidate Barack Obama 
did with his March 18 speech.

The bill seeks to clarify issues left vague or unfinished when the Maine 
Indian Claims Settlement Act was signed in 1980. More importantly, it 
holds potential to draw state and tribal leaders out of their deeply dug 
trenches to engage in serious conversations about unresolved differences 
that have lurked in the shadows since long before the 1980 agreement was 
signed.

Passing LD 2221 would redefine the dialogue between state government and 
Maine's indigenous peoples. In addition to taking a first step toward 
rebuilding trust between tribal and state leaders, it would push both 
parties beyond age-old impasses based on stereotypes and discussions 
that focus inordinately on gambling. Enacting LD 2221 would create an 
environment designed to foster collaborative consideration of the 
cultural factors that have long divided the state's rule-makers from its 
native population.

Conversely, rejecting or delaying LD 2221 would do lasting damage to an 
already frayed relationship. The tribes would perceive a "no" vote as 
yet another disrespectful act of "white paternalism," a polite term for 
oppression based on race.

Opponents' chief complaint against LD 2221 is that it affirms the 
tribes' exemption from the Maine Freedom of Access Act. During 
legislative hearings on that aspect of the legislation, the bill's 
detractors — including the Maine Press Association, of which this 
newspaper is a member — argued, persuasively, that the Freedom of Access 
Act protects the public's interest by ensuring accountability and honest 
government.

Therein lies the problem. History brims with evidence that state and 
federal governments have been far less than honest in past dealings with 
Maine's tribes. State access laws have been used in previous 
negotiations to undermine Passamaquoddy and Penobscot bargaining 
positions. That historical context cannot be discounted based on the 
hope that trying to force Native American nations to comply with state 
laws will somehow promote future accountability or open governance.

Likewise, legislators must acknowledge the tribes' long-held claim to 
"inherent sovereignty," which spurs Native American leaders to insist 
that the state's freedom-of-information law applies to internal tribal 
deliberations no more so than it opens the books of Canada to Mainers. 
The same sovereignty rationale buttresses the tribes' opposition to 
Maine court decisions that equate tribal governments to municipalities.

As legislators consider LD 2221 later this week, they will hear 
arguments that the bill would "limit existing law as to transparency in 
government," as Sen. David Hastings, R-Fryeburg, argued during a 
Judiciary Committee hearing last week. Such arguments, however 
well-intentioned they might be, ignore the tribal perspective.

A "yes" vote will foster trust, honesty and respect between the tribes 
and state government. In the long run, a renewal of good faith between 
those two entities represents a far greater public benefit than could be 
derived by attempting to compel Maine's Native American nations to 
comply with a state law that they don't recognize.
Butch
alnabe at verizon.net <mailto:alnabe at verizon.net>

>  
>     If we listen to the songs of the water and
>     the whispers on the wind,  we will feel the
>     heart beat of Mother Earth and all creation
>     will continue to breathe.
>  

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mailman.yale.edu/pipermail/nativestudies-l/attachments/20080408/0f47050b/attachment-0001.html 
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: 2008-2-13 State Senators.List-1.qpw
Type: application/octet-stream
Size: 13414 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : http://mailman.yale.edu/pipermail/nativestudies-l/attachments/20080408/0f47050b/attachment-0002.obj 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mailman.yale.edu/pipermail/nativestudies-l/attachments/20080408/0f47050b/attachment-0002.htm 
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: 1-2008-Maine House of Representatives.wpd
Type: application/octet-stream
Size: 131389 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : http://mailman.yale.edu/pipermail/nativestudies-l/attachments/20080408/0f47050b/attachment-0003.obj 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mailman.yale.edu/pipermail/nativestudies-l/attachments/20080408/0f47050b/attachment-0003.htm 