Vermont Indian Commission Agenda - May 15, 2012 Posted: 5.13.0212
This meeting has been canceled for today
Governor Shumlin addresses crowd during Tribal Recognition Ceremony
St. Francis/Sokoki Abenaki
Written by Administrator
Tuesday, 08 May 2012
Governor Shumlin addresses crowd during Tribal Recognition Ceremony
Posted: 5.8.2012
Circle of Courage Youth Group performs at Tribal Recognition Ceremony
St. Francis/Sokoki Abenaki
Written by Administrator
Tuesday, 08 May 2012
Circle of Courage Youth Group performs at Tribal Recognition Ceremony
Posted 5.8.2012
Nulhegan Band drummers performs at Tribal Recognition Ceremony
Nulhegan Band of Abenaki
Written by Administrator
Tuesday, 08 May 2012
Nulhegan Band drummers performs at Tribal Recognition Ceremony
Posted 5.8.2012
Vermont Governor signs Tribal Recognition Bills
St. Francis/Sokoki Abenaki
Written by Administrator
Monday, 07 May 2012
Vermont Governor signs Tribal Recognition Bills Mark Mitchell Posted 5.7.2012
After six years since Vermont established an Indian Commission under Vermont statue, Governor Shumlin signed into law today State tribal recognition for two more Vermont tribes.
The St. Francis-Sokoki Band of the Abenaki Nation at Missisquoi in northwestern Vermont and the Koasek Band of the Koas Abenaki Nation from the Connecticut River Valley near Newbury.
The Elnu Abenaki in Windham County and the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki Nation in northeastern Vermont gained state recognition last year.
Widow of civil rights activist wants him home Friday, April 27, 2012 When civil rights activist Ray Robinson arrived at Wounded Knee in April 1973 to stand alongside Native Americans in their fight against social injustice, he excitedly called his wife back home and told her, "This could be the spark that lights the prairie fire."
By DIRK LAMMERS Associated Press
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — When civil rights activist Ray Robinson arrived at Wounded Knee in April 1973 to stand alongside Native Americans in their fight against social injustice, he excitedly called his wife back home and told her, "This could be the spark that lights the prairie fire."
"No, it's not. Come home. Please come home," his wife, Cheryl Buswell-Robinson, recalled begging of him.
The black activist and follower of Martin Luther King Jr. never made it home to Bogue Chitto, Ala. He was declared dead, but his body never was found and little is known about what happened. Not knowing has haunted Buswell-Robinson and the couple's three children for nearly 40 years.
Are beer firms to blame for Native American drink woe?
National News
Written by Administrator
Saturday, 28 April 2012
Are beer firms to blame for Native American drink woe? By Pia Gadkari BBC News, White Clay, Nebraska 4.27.2012
After years of failed efforts to address chronic alcoholism, can a $500m (£308m) dollar lawsuit against the beer supply-chain put an end to one tribe's deadly struggle with alcohol?
For generations, the dream of a sober society has eluded the largest tribe of Native Americans in the US.
Members of the Oglala Sioux tribe, living in South Dakota's Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, have long tried to shut down the beer stores just across the state line in White Clay, Nebraska.
The four beer shops in the tiny town of White Clay (population: a dozen) operate just steps from the reservation. Between them they sell more beer per head than almost anywhere else in the US - a total of about 13,000 12oz (350ml) servings each day.
"I'm 52 years old and I come up here because I'm an alcoholic," says one Pine Ridge resident, Bald Eagle. He is one of several people who spends his days on the street that runs through White Clay, drinking.
"And I love my alcohol," Bald Eagle says. "For me, it's my life-blood."
"I wake up with a hangover every morning. But you know what? I'm smart. I drink a gallon of water every morning. Sometimes I get lucky and I find a beer on the street. That's just the way it is."
Feds again considering Bridgeville casino plan By Victor Whitman Times Herald-Record 04/27/12
BRIDGEVILLE — Federal officials are reconsidering the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians' twice-rejected plan to build a casino in Sullivan County.
Interior Department officials recently notified local governments they have resumed the environmental review of the proposed Bridgeville casino, which was considered dead after rejections in 2008 and 2011.
In 2008, the Bush Administration squashed numerous off-reservation casino applications, including the Stockbridge proposal, by implementing a policy to only consider casinos within commuting distance of reservations. That, for all practical purposes, banned off-reservation casinos. The Stockbridge challenged the policy, claiming it broke federal law.
In summer 2011, the Obama Administration withdrew the Bush policy — meaning, theoretically, tribes can once again gain approval for off-reservation casinos. Shortly afterward, the feds notified the tribe they were beginning their review.
Mashpee tribe unveils casino plan By George Brennan
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April 27, 2012
TAUNTON — The Mashpee Wampanoag unveiled a casino proposal Thursday that would be about the half the size of Mohegan Sun, one of two Indian casino behemoths in nearby Connecticut.
More than 50 tribe members, including Chief Vernon Lopez, city leaders and dozens of reporters jammed into a meeting room at the temporary city hall in Taunton to see for the first time what the tribe's proposed $500 million casino complex would look like.
The tribe expects to build three hotels, with 150,000 square feet of gambling space, which would feature 3,000 slot machines, 150 table games and 40 poker tables. There would be as many as 10 restaurants and 10 to 15 upscale shops, according to the plans. Later phases would include a 15,000-seat entertainment venue and an indoor/outdoor water park to be located on a separate parcel at a neighboring site.
By comparison, Mohegan Sun has more than 300,000 square feet of gambling space, nearly 6,000 slot machines and more than 300 table games in its three casinos, according to its website. It features a 10,000-seat arena.
Seneca Niagara job fair fills 50 positions — attracts 500+ people April 19, 2012 By Timothy Chipp Niagara Gazette
NIAGARA FALLS — For 50 people, Wednesday was a great day at the Seneca Niagara Casino and Hotel.
The Niagara Falls business hired those 50 individuals on the spot during its sixth-annual spring job fair. And they had a record number of applicants — 532 this year — walk through the doors to the events center to fill approximately 100 openings for the upcoming busy, summer season.
“Through the winter months, as people leave, we don’t fill the positions,” Director of Recruitment Brandy Owens said. “So as we head into the busier summer months, we fill the positions that have been vacant.”
Wampanoag Tribe doubles down on Martha's Vineyard casino
North East News
Written by Administrator
Saturday, 21 April 2012
Wampanoag Tribe doubles down on Martha's Vineyard casino By Nelson Sigelman April 18, 2012
The Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) has again raised the prospect of a casino on tribal lands on Martha's Vineyard. The notion of a slot parlor overlooking the Gay Head Cliffs was tucked into a website the tribe unveiled last week to promote its mainland casino bid.
The prospect of a casino on Martha's Vineyard was enough to generate headlines. Although there are no plans as yet, town leaders said not so fast.
Ron Rappaport, longtime Aquinnah town counsel, said the Tribe is bound by town zoning laws and those laws do not allow the construction and operation of a casino. Mr. Rappaport told The Times in a telephone conversation Tuesday that Jim Newman, the chairman of the Aquinnah board of selectmen, has requested that he draft an opinion supporting that view.
After six years since Vermont established an Indian Commission under Vermont statue, Governor Shumlin signed into law today State tribal recognition for two more Vermont tribes. 
