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Navajo Nation Washington Office
Wááshindoon Weekly
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Executive Director's Corner | |
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Yá’át’ééh
Well the primary elections are over and the Navajo People have spoken. Over the next couple of weeks, we will learn more about the top contenders.
Last week, we welcomed the Navajo-Hopi Land Commission Office and Commission members to advocate for the Office of Navajo-Hopi Indian Relocation (ONHIR). Many Navajos are still impacted by the 1974 Navajo-Hopi Settlement Act and the Navajo Nation is supporting legislation to ensure that adequate housing and related community facilities and services, such as utilities, roads, schools, and healthcare facilities, are available at relocation sites.
We note the incident that happened at the 100th annual Gallup Inter-tribal Ceremonial parade in Gallup. We are grateful that nobody was hurt.
Lastly, the U.S. Senate passed the PACT Act which expands health coverage to Veterans. The Navajo Nation has been in support of these expanded health benefits. American Indians/Alaskan Natives serve in the US Armed Forces five times greater than the national average.
Enjoy this week's Wááshindoon Weekly!
Ahéhee'
Lashawna R. Tso
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Advocacy for Office of Navajo-Hopi Indian Relocation | Delegate Otto Tso and Executive Director Robert Black (L) and Delegate Otto Tso (R) speak with Staffer James Green at Congresswoman Leger-Fernandez’s Office. Photo courtesy of NNWO. | |
This week Council Delegates Otto Tso and Raymond Smith, Jr. joined Executive Directors Robert Black of the Navajo Hopi Land Office, and Lashawna Tso of the Navajo Nation Washington Office, in meetings with Congressional Offices and the White House regarding issues surrounding the Office of Navajo-Hopi Indian Relocation (ONHIR) Program.
Delegate Tso serves as the Chairman of the Navajo-Hopi Land Commission and Delegate Smith serves as the Vice Chair, engaged in dialogue with key Congressional offices including Congressman Tom O’Halleran (D-AZ), Congresswoman Teresa Leger Fernández (D-NM), Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ), and staff members from the Chair and Ranking members of the House Natural Resource Committee Subcommittee on Indigenous Peoples. Chairman Tso, Vice Chair Smith, Executive Director Black, and Executive Director Tso met with Daron Carreiro, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Policy Advisor for Native Affairs, Domestic Policy Council, and PaaWee Rivera, Senior Advisor to the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and Director of Tribal Affairs for the Biden-Harris Administration.
Chairman Tso, Vice Chair Smith, Executive Director Black, and Executive Director Tso highlighted several issues raised by Navajo constituents regarding their experience with the ONHIR program. The delegation requested support for H.R. 6141 – The Navajo Technical Amendments which would:
- Restore Federal obligations from the original relocation act;
- Authorize the Department of the Interior to conduct a study to understand the social, economic, cultural, infrastructure and other impacts of relocation and development freezes;
- Expand the authority of the OHNIR to those affected by the Former Bennett Freeze;
- Reauthorize the Navajo Rehabilitation Trust Fund; and
- Advance Navajo Sovereignty.
President Jonathan Nez previously met with the White House requesting the appointment of an OHNIR Commissioner. The Commissioner oversees the program and is tasked with fulfilling the scope of the program which has gone unappointed for over 30 years. The current responsibilities of the OHNIR program have been delegated to a Federal employee. The delegation followed up and raised concerns over the lack of authority a Federal employee has to engage in government-to-government consultations, call on the assistance of other Federal agencies, where only political appointees are granted such powers.
The 16,000 Navajo people who were forcibly removed from their ancestral lands pursuant to a Federal order continue to struggle, as do the 12,000 Navajos who were subject to Former Bennett Freeze that lasted for generations. Unfortunately, because of the stress of being uprooted from ancestral lands, separated from sacred landscapes, environmental concerns, and housing and employment shortages at the new locations, the relocation not only had a negative impact on the relocatees themselves but also on their descendants.
The Navajo Nation has urged the White House to appoint an ONHIR Commissioner, whose direct appointment by the President of the United States is not subject to confirmation by the U.S. Senate. During President Biden's visit to New Mexico, President Nez made the request directly to President Biden highlighting the impact the vacancy has had on the Navajo people.
The delegation urged Arizona Congressional members to not only support the appointment of a Commissioner but to also host Congressional field hearings on the Navajo Nation so that members can see first-hand the detrimental impact relocation has had on Navajos as well as families that were affected by the Former Bennett Freeze.
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PACT Act Passes Senate on Second Try | | |
The Department of Defense has estimated nearly 3.5 million troops from recent wars may have suffered enough exposure to the smoke to cause health problems. Photo courtesy of the US Department of Veterans Affairs | |
On Tuesday night, the U.S. Senate passed S. 3373 - the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act of 2022, a.k.a. the PACT Act. The PACT Act significantly expands the number of presumptive conditions and locations for veterans to receive VA health benefits, including 24 cancers and illnesses associated with exposure to burn pits during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and additional presumptive conditions for exposure to Agent Orange and radiation for other veterans.
The bill had wide bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate but hit a snag along the way that threatened its passage. An earlier version of the bill passed the Senate in June in an 84-14 vote, but due to a technical error a new version had to be run through the House and Senate a second time. While easily passing the House, this version initially failed to pass the Senate last week due to Republican opposition, leading to immediate shock and anger from veterans groups across the country.
Republicans pointed to budgetary concerns as their justification, but most commentators thought the real reason for the opposition was an attempt by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to express his anger at Democrats for having come up with a reconciliation deal in the Inflation Reduction Act that the Senate was expected to vote on this past Saturday. When it was clear that holding the veterans bill hostage was untenable, a second vote was scheduled, this time passing the Senate 86-11. Among those who still opposed the bill were two senators representing part of the Navajo Nation, Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Mike Lee (R-UT). Sen. Romney cited budgetary concerns and Sen. Lee said he wanted stronger provisions to prevent misuse of the funds.
Though supporting veterans health is popular across the country, budgetary concerns are real. A wide misconception for those who didn’t serve in the military is that the VA provides health care to all veterans. That’s not entirely true and hasn’t been since significant budget cuts in 2003. The reality is the VA can’t afford to provide all veterans with health benefits, so a system of priorities has been set in place, with those falling into the lowest priority category not receiving any benefits at all. A study in 2016 found that only about 60% of veterans qualify for any care, and only 30% took advantage of the service. Most veterans only qualify for VA health benefits because of extreme poverty or because they can show that they have a disability, or an enduring injury or chronic illness, directly connected to their service. Proving that an illness is a result of service is sometimes difficult. There is an assumption that an illness is unrelated to military service unless the veteran can present compelling evidence that the connection exists. Failure to demonstrate a relationship between one’s service and disability may result in no benefits at all.
This is where the PACT Act comes in. The PACT Act greatly expands the number of diseases and illnesses that might be related to one’s service depending on when and where a veteran served, greatly expanding the eligibility of veterans to receive medical care through the VA without costly tests to prove a relationship to service. Given the high rates at which Navajo and other Native Americans serve in the military, this is expected to help people across Indian Country.
For more information about what conditions qualify for enrollment under the PACT Act, click here.
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Primary Elections Narrow Choices in
States and Tribes
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Navajo voters not only made election selections for their respective states, the primaries narrowed choices for the general election in November for Navajo Nation candidates too. Photo courtesy of Diné College | |
Tuesday was an important day in the 2022 election cycle, as voters across the country cast votes in several key primary elections including those for both the Navajo Nation and the state of Arizona.
General Races
The highlights from the day focused on the role reproductive rights and former president Donald Trump are already playing in the midterms. In Kansas, a referendum on whether or not to change the state constitution was defeated, leaving in place a provision that the state’s supreme court has interpreted as protecting a woman’s right to an abortion. The victory gave Democrats hope that abortion rights will motivate voters in November to turn out and prevent a Republican takeover of Congress. Many pollsters expect a strong Republican showing in November.
In Kansas for example, the Democratic governor faces a tough reelection campaign that is currently rated as a toss-up, and Representative Sharice Davids (D-KS), Kansas’ only Democratic member of Congress, faces a tough battle, representing a district that became more right-leaning by including several conservative rural communities during redistricting. Representative Davids is a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation and one of only four Native American members of Congress. She played a large role in the efforts to protect a woman’s right to choose during the referendum campaign.
In other states, Trump’s ongoing influence in the Republican Party was reflected. Representative Peter Meijer (R-MI), one of ten Republicans who voted to impeach President Trump after January 6th, lost his primary to a far-right challenger with Trump’s endorsement. Two of the other Republicans who voted to impeach Trump faced their primaries on Tuesday in Washington state. They will likely move on to the general election in November, but at WW publication time, they were still too close to call because of the large number of absentee ballots that have yet to be processed. Of the remaining seven, four retired, one lost his primary to a candidate endorsed by Trump, one barely survived a close race that didn’t have a Trump endorsed candidate, and the final one, Representative Liz Cheney (R-WY) is projected to lose her primary in a couple weeks.
Arizona
Trump-supported candidates also did well in Arizona’s primary, which may have been the most consequential of the day. His endorsed candidates include Blake Masters, a venture capitalist who will now face off against Mark Kelly for the U.S. Senate seat, and Eli Crane, a Navy veteran who will face off against Representative Tom O’Halleran to represent Arizona’s second district, including the entire Arizona portion of the Navajo Nation. The senate race is currently leaning slightly toward Kelly, but Arizona is now a swing state, and the race could still go in either direction. Arizona’s second district leans more heavily Republican after the 2020 Census redistricting and Republicans are counting on flipping O’Halleran’s seat as part of their bid to take control on the House in the mid-terms. The one advantage Kelly and O’Halleran both share in this particular race is that neither of them faced a challenger in the primary, allowing them to save all of their campaign funds for the general election. As of July 13th, O’Halleran had $2,049,188 on hand compared to Crane’s $217,291. Likewise, Kelly had $24,788,709 on hand compared to Masters’ $1,550,287. Now that the primary is over, it is largely expected that Republican donors will begin pouring money into these two races to improve their chances over the next three months.
There are other statewide offices in Arizona to note. Mark Finchem took the Republican nomination for Arizona Secretary of State. He is known for his belief that voting fraud is rampant and that Trump would have likely won Arizona if not for widespread fraud enabled by early voting. Katie Hobbs, the current Arizona Secretary of State, took the Democratic nomination for Arizona Governor. The Republican nominee for governor will be the Trump-endorsed Kari Lake, who won a close race against Karin Taylor Robson, who was endorsed by the current Arizona Governor, Doug Ducey, highlighting differences in the Republican Party over their attitudes toward the results of the 2020 election and the policies of Donald Trump.
Navajo Nation
Back on the Navajo Nation, the unofficial results have President Jonathan Nez in the lead with 17,073 votes followed by Buu Nygren who received 12,878, ensuring that both will both advance to the general election in November. But with over a third of votes cast for one of the other 15 candidates who will not move on to the general election in November, the race is still very much open.
In the Navajo Nation Council, four Delegates failed to make it into the top two spots in the open primary, barring them from the November ballot. Three other Council Delegates chose not to run for reelection, meaning at least seven will not be rejoining the Council next year. It is worth noting that the results are still unofficial. Several of the races were very close and the results will not be finalized until the candidates have been given a chance to challenge them.
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International Day of the World’s Indigenous
Peoples to be Observed Virtually
| If you'd like to participate in the dialogue about the role of indigenous women around the world, click on the picture. | |
Tuesday, August 9, 2022 is the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. The observance stems from the inaugural session of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations in 1982. The theme of this year’s observance is “The Role of Indigenous Women in the Preservation and Transmission of Traditional Knowledge.”
As the UN Human Rights Council will hold its 51st session in September, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples will devote his thematic report to “Indigenous Women and the Development, Application, Preservation and Transmission of Scientific Knowledge.” The report will focus on the role of indigenous women as scientific and technical knowledge keepers in the context of international human rights law. He will also outline the current challenges faced by indigenous women in and out of their own communities along with recommendations provided by indigenous female stakeholders.
Indigenous women play a vital role as conveyors traditional scientific and technical knowledge related to medicines and foods, conservation and the preservation of language, culture, and Tribal histories. Their knowledge is critical to combating climate change, solving conflicts, achieving sustainable development, and building resilience when communities are faced with natural disasters—including pandemics.
What is termed “scientific and technical knowledge” is another term for traditional knowledge, which like Western science is dynamic and while time honored, is not necessarily rooted in time and of no less value than the scientific contributions of non-Natives.
In many places around the world, women are the provocateurs of efforts to protect lands, sacred sites, traditional medicines, and sovereignty. But they are disproportionally affected by the loss of territory due to climate change, mega development, and political status of their lands. They often fight men in their own communities as colonialism has shifted their traditional roles from egalitarian to second class. Some of the major issues encountered by indigenous women, include high levels of poverty, low levels of education and illiteracy, limitations in access to healthcare, basic sanitation, credit and employment, limited participation in political life, and the prevalence of domestic and sexual violence.
This year the UN will observe the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples with a virtual interactive dialogue with invited speakers who will share their expertise and experience from their indigenous communities in preserving, reviving, retaining, and transmitting the traditional ancestral knowledge in various fields of communal activities, including but not limited to effective and sustainable climate solutions, use of natural resources, protection of biodiversity, ensuring food security, promoting indigenous languages and culture, and managing indigenous science and medicine. The program takes place from 9:00 A.M. – 11:00 A.M. EST on Tuesday, August 9, 2022 and will be available for later viewing. To join the conversation click here.
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The Bureau of Indian Education is hosting a Tribal webinar regarding an Overview of ESSA Formula and Discretionary Grant Programs
August 9, 2022 at 11:00am
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The Office of Head Start will host a Tribal Consultation regarding meeting the needs of American Indian and Alaska Native Children and their Families.
August 15, 2022 at 1:00pm EST
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The White House is holding a Tribal Consultation regarding Nature-Based Solutions
August 15, 2022 at 4:00pm EST
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Health and Human Services is holding their Annual Regional Tribal Consultation Session for Region 6: New Mexico
August 16, 2022 at 1:00m EST
August 17, 2022 at 1:00m EST
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TheEnvironmental Protection Agency is holding a Tribal Leader Information Webinar regarding the Revision and Reissuance of the EPA Environmental Information Quality Management Plan Standard.
August 16, 2022 at 1:00pm EST
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The Department of in the Interior is holding a series of Listening Sessions regarding Reforming Hardrock Mining Laws
August 10, 2022 at 3:00pm
August 15, 2022 at 11:00am
Additionally, the Department of the Interior will hold formal Tribal Consultations
August 25, 2022 at 1:00pm AKDT
August 26, 2022 at 12:00pm EST
*August 29, 2022 at 11:30am MDT
August 30, 2022 at 11:00am PDT
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OVW Fiscal Year 2022 Grants to Tribal Domestic Violence and
Sexual Assault Coalitions
Supports the development and operation of nonprofit, nongovernmental tribal domestic violence and sexual assault coalitions, with each recognized coalition receiving an equal amount of base funding, sexual assault and dual coalitions receiving additional amount for sexual assault-focused activities. Deadline: August 29, 2022
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Community Wildfire Defense Grant 2022 Tribes
Assist at-risk local communities and Indian Tribes with planning and mitigating against the risk created by Wildfire. It prioritizes at-risk communities in an area identified as having high or very high wildfire hazard potential, are low-income, and/or have been impacted by severe disaster. Deadline: October 7, 2022
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Indian Houding Block Grant Competitive Grant Program
Under the program, eligible Indian Tribes and tribally designated housing entities receive grants to carry out a range of affordable housing activities. Grant funds may be used to develop, maintain, and operate affordable housing in safe and healthy environments on Indian reservations and in other Indian areas and carry out other affordable housing activities. Grant funds must be used to primarily benefit low-income Indian families. Deadline: November 17, 2022
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Additional News and Updates | |
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VA Advisory Committee on Tribal and Indian Affairs, Notice of Meetings
The department of VA gives notice that the Advisory Committee on Tribal and Indian Affairs will meet on August 15, 16, and 17, 2022.
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Call for Nominations for the
Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group Federal Advisory Committee
The US Department of the Interior proposes to appoint members to the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group. The Secretary of the Interior is soliciting nominations for qualified persons to serve as members. Nominations must be postmarked by August 15, 2022.
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Agency Information Collection Activities; Tribal Education Department Grant Program
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Bureau of Indian Education are proposing to renew an information collection. Written Comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent by August 19, 2022.
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Tribal Self-Governance Planning Cooperative Agreement Program
IHS is accepting applications for Planning Cooperative Agreements for the Tribal Self-Governance Program. Through this program Tribes negotiate with the IHS to assume Programs, Services, Functions, and Activities, or portions thereof, which gives Tribes the authority to manage and tailor health care programs in. a manner that best fits the needs of their communities. Deadline to submit application is August 31, 2022.
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Agency Information Collection Activities; Tribal Enrollment Count
The BIA are proposing to reinstate a previously approved information collection. Interested persons are invited to submit comments before September 12, 2022.
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Agency Information Collection Activities; Request for Comment on FY2023 Expirations Under the Paperwork Reduction Act
The BIA, BIE and Office of the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs (AS-IS) are proposing to renew (11) information collections. Interested persons are invited to submit comments before September 20, 2022.
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Youth in Action:
Indigenizing Hip-Hop
August 12, 2022
How are Indigenous youth asserting their sovereignty and dismantling stereotypes through hip-hop? Join us for an online conversation with Native youth who meld hip-hop and Indigenous beats and rhymes to construct their own narratives and create social change.
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National Tribal Health Equity Summit
August 16, 2022
This summit will convene leaders and stakeholders in Tribal health equity to build a path forward for health equity in Indian Country. This summit will examine important questions about how to advance health equity in a meaningful way, including discussions around the appropriate role of federal government agencies in supporting Tribal health equity, with a special focus on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
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Santa Fe Native Cinema Showcase 2022
August 18-21, 2022
The in-person Santa Fe Native Cinema Showcase is annual celebration of the best in Native film. By embracing oral histories, knowledge, and ancestral lands, Indigenous peoples are creating films to better understand the past and imagine a new way. of thinking for the future. The showcase provides a unique forum for engagement with Native filmmakers from Indigenous communities throughout the Western Hemisphere and Arctic.
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National Tribal Health Conference
September 25 - 29, 2022
Join NIHB and explore the topics of health equity, health policy, Tribal advances in health and many more. The National Tribal Health Conference serves as a forum to discuss policy and political work in the arenas of Tribal health care, public and behavioral, and environmental health. Tribal leaders, Tribal health directors, administrators, policy analysts advocates, Native youth and early career professionals are invited.
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For more information on the information provided in this newsletter, please contact NNWO at info@nnwo.org. | | | | | |
