Alaskans call Obama tribal conference a beginning

Published on November 5th, 2009

By ALEX DEMARBAN

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Alaska Natives who attended a historic tribal meeting punctuated by speeches from President Barack Obama said they were overjoyed at the administration's promises to help tribes.

Tom Tilden, representing the Curyung tribal government in Dillingham, said he left encouraged by Obama's closing statement.

"That this is not the end but this is the beginning of a relationship between tribes and the nation," said Tilden, a strong supporter of Obama during the presidential race last year.

"Never in my mind did I know that some day I'd be in the capital listening to him in person," he said. "It just blows my mind."

The White House Tribal Nations Conference on Thursday was the "largest and most widely attended gathering of tribal leaders in our history," Obama said during his opening remarks.

In attendance were representatives from most of the nation's 564 federally recognized tribes, including dozens of people representing the 229 tribes in Alaska.

Because of the conference's large size, it was held not in the White House but in a chamber at the Interior Department's headquarters in Washington, D.C.

The conference included opening and closing statements by Obama.

Following the president's opening remarks, he sat a table on stage and signed a presidential memorandum promising that executive departments and agencies must have "regular and meaningful consultation and collaboration" with federal tribes when making decisions that affect their lives.

Federal agencies will have 90 days to report back on how they'll implement the policy, Obama said.

As soon as he signed it, a voice in the audience shouted, "Come to Alaska!"

"So, hold on, no shouting now. But I would love to come to Alaska," he said.

Only in the summer though, he added later.

During his opening speech, Obama said the nation's history was littered with broken promises and treaties.

"You were told your land, your religion, your culture and language were not yours to keep," he said.

He tallied some of the gloomy problems facing tribal communities, including high rates of poverty and up to 80 percent employment in some reservations.

Recounting figures from an Amnesty International study, the fact that more than one in three Native American women will be raped in our lifetime is an "assault on our national conscience that we can no longer ignore."

He said his administration had increased budgets and poured hundreds of millions of dollars of new money into fighting problems on reservations and in Alaska Native communities.

After his speech, Obama called on audience members from the podium.

Bill Martin, president of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, was the first Alaskan called on.

He asked Obama to strengthen and support "our sovereignty by supporting our fishing and subsistence rights."

Rural communities need modern roads and water and sewer services, and the federal government should create federally backed institutions that can finance economic ventures in tribal communities.

"Many Indians and Alaska Natives live in third-world countries," he said.

Caroline Cannon, from the Native Village of Point Hope, also got to address Obama.

She said she wanted him to prevent offshore drilling in the Chukchi Sea.

She asked for help with climate change too, and let him know that Red Dog Mine plans to have a "discharge pipeline" into the ocean where Point Hope residents hunt for food.

She also said her 7-year-old son wanted her to give Obama a hug, though she didn't think that was an option at the moment.

Maybe after the Q and A, he joked.

Cannon got that hug, she said later.

The all-day event, moderated by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, featured audience interaction with top officials who sat on panels that covered topics ranging from economic development to public safety and housing.'

Other cabinet secretaries appearing were Energy's Steven Chu, Commerce's Gary Locke, Agriculture's Tom Vilsack, Labor's Hilda Solis, Health and Human Services' Sebelius and Education's Arne Duncan. They described increases in their budgets and new efforts that are boosting funding and support for Native issues. They promised to work closely with tribal communities.

Jerry Isaac, president of the Tanana Chiefs Conference in Interior Alaska, said he was hopeful.

"For the first time in a long time I feel like it's a bright sunny day and we have the chance to prove that cooperation can work," he said.

Despite the gravity of many of the topics, a festive atmosphere dominated much of the hearing.

Some wore traditional regalia, including feathered headdresses and beaded gowns. Outside the building, activists pounded on skin drums and carried banners asking for the release of Leonard Peltier.

Tim Towarak, Alaska Federation of Natives co-chair, said the meeting provided a chance for tribal leaders to meet and share ideas.

Commitments from agency officials to keep tribal concerns at the top of their agendas were important, he said.

"The Native community in Alaska and the rest of the nation should be real proud of what President Obama is doing for the whole nation," he said at the end of the day. "Everyone here is leaving real optimistic about what this administration is going to do in the coming years."