This Week at First Nations: December 29, 2023
Thank You for Your Interest and Support!
It has been an honor to bring you “This Week at First Nations” this year, and we value your readership. Thank you for taking the time to stay connected with First Nations and for your support of the important work of our community partners. We look forward to continuing to provide weekly updates and stories about First Nations’ programs and initiatives, as well as serve as a resource for news and happenings throughout Indian Country. We appreciate you!
Watch for the December 2023 Newsletter
The final issue of the year of our quarterly newsletter will hit inboxes soon. In it are highlights from community partners Sherwood Valley Tribal Youth Program, Hōlani Hāna, and Organized Village of Kake, plus a profile of 2023 Luce Indigenous Knowledge Fellow Sara Merrick.
As we wrap up the year, we look back at a few of the impact stories of 2023:
· What the Aleut Community is Doing to Restore Health to the Bering Sea
· Strengthening Native Communities Through the Native Fundraisers Community of Practice
· Growing the Cahuilla Language One Fluent Speaker at a Time
5 Key Takeaways for ‘Being a Good Relative’
Rounding out our month of insights from our new guide “Being a Good Relative,” developed in partnership with Melvin Consulting, a Hopi-founded and -led firm, this week we recap five takeaways on how individuals and organizations can support Native-led initiatives:
· Invest in Native organizations that are committed to training and “growing their own” for positions in their organizations.
· Remember that while supporting intermediaries or re-granters is important, directly supporting small and medium nonprofits is equally critical.
· Let communities tell their stories of success in ways that are meaningful to them.
· Follow Native news to better understand Native issues through publications.
· Deepen your understanding of Tribal Sovereignty.
Download the publication to learn more.
The U.S. Promised to Return Stolen Lands to Native Hawaiians a Century Ago. Most are Still Waiting.
In 1921, Congress passed the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, which placed 200,000 acres of land that belonged to the Hawaiian Kingdom into a trust. According to this act, anyone 18 years or older with at least 50% Native Hawaiian lineage would be eligible to obtain a 99-year land lease for $1 a year. But the state agency charged with distributing the homesteads to Native Hawaiians has not lived up to that responsibility, awarding lots to only 10,000 beneficiaries when more than double that number – 29,000 people – are still on the waitlist. According to The Guardian, 50% of the unhoused population in Hawaii are Native Hawaiians. Read how the Maui fires have exposed this escalating housing crisis.
Photo credit The Guardian, Lindsey Wasson/AP
Four Michigan Tribes Appeal Line 5 Tunnel Permit
The Michigan Public Service Commission approved a permit for a Canadian oil company to build the Line 5 tunnel beneath the Straits of Mackinac. According to Native News Online, four tribes will fight back through an appeal: The Bay Mills Indian Community, Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians, and Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi. Whitney Gravelle, president of Bay Mills Indian Community, says, “Line 5 remains a threat to not only the tribes, but anyone and everyone who utilizes the Great Lakes. The question is not if the pipeline will leak, it is when.” Read more.
Photo credit Levi Rickert for Native News Online
