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| Volume XXV, Number 9 | July 2, 2004 |
By Iretta Tiger
HOLLYWOOD — Native Americans representing tribes from the southern and eastern states gathered at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino for their 2004 Semi-Annual United Southern and Eastern Tribes (USET) meeting. From June 14–17, USET discussed issues that affect their tribes.
USET is headed by the board of directors, which is comprised of tribal leaders and sometimes tribal attorneys. There are ten committees, such as the social services committee and the culture and heritage committee, which, along with the board, constitute USET.
The meeting began with Jimmy O’Toole giving the invocation. Junior Miss Seminole Brittany Smith and Chairman Mitchell Cypress welcomed everyone at the conference.
After the opening activities the committees broke off to begin their meetings. This article covers the meeting of the board of directors.
The first day of the meeting started with briefings. At lunch, the USET board and committees attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the new youth facility for the Boys & Girls Club of The Seminole Tribe of Florida.
The conference then continued with several updates including an update on Leonard Peltier’s legal case. Peltier’s attorney, Barry Bachrach of Bowditch & Dewey, spoke for Peltier. Bachrach presented the board with a drum that Peltier had made especially for USET.
Peltier wrote a seven page statement which was handed out to the board. The statement details his legal struggle. In it, he confronts the rumors that his artwork is being sold for thousands of dollars and asks for help, not just from USET, but from anyone who can help.
To learn more about Leonard Peltier’s case, or to donate money, please visit www.freepeltier.org. To see a copy of the full statement, please stop by the communications department in the Hollywood headquarters, or call (954) 967-3416.
Another interesting presentation was The Virtual Interpretive Classroom, created by Conrod Associates Communications, L.L.C. Conrod worked with the Ahfachkee students and the late Billy Cypress to create this program.
The program itself is a virtual tour of artifacts and also offers commentary from Native Americans about the artifact and its meaning. The Ahfachkee students were taught about how a virtual tour is created and they participated in the process.
This program will be used in Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian as an interactive exhibit.
The morning session of day two began with a presentation by Navajo race car driver Cory Witherill and Team Diabetes. The Seminole Tribe hosted a visit from Witherill and Team Diabetes in December 2003.
Witherill explained the program to the USET board and shared details of upcoming events. He also brought his actual race car which was parked at the Seminole Hard Rock entrance for the day.
Another interesting item on the agenda was the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Tower Construction Notification System. In February 2004, USET and the FCC signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in regards to the construction of cell towers on tribal land. The MOU was created to protect sacred sites and to create an understanding between tower companies and Native American tribes. The Notification System is a website where tribes can register to be notified of proposed tower constructions. The website address is http://wireless.fcc.gov/outreach/notification/.
A presentation by Preserve America started the afternoon session. Preserve America is a government created program that recognizes and offers financial assistance to communities who maintain their cultural and natural heritage. As part of the program, Preserve America works with the History Channel’s Save Our History to create an educational brochure specifically for teachers and volunteers to motivate the youth to become involved.
This program has been utilized in 26 states. The White Mountain Apache Tribe is the most recent recipient of Preserve America.
The meeting for the day ended with a tour of the Seminole Hollywood reservation. That evening, The Seminole Tribe hosted a reception for USET at the hotel.
Day three started on a somewhat confrontational note. During the update from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), an issue was brought to their attention. It seems that when HHS issued bio-terrorism preparedness grants to each state, they did not allocate funds for Native American tribes.
These grants assist in preparing for a biological threat. A biological attack is the deliberate release of germs or other biological substances that can make someone sick. Some Biological agents, such as anthrax, do not cause contagious diseases. Others, like the smallpox virus, can result in diseases you can catch from other people. For more information, please visit www.ready.gov. Though the issue was not resolved, it was established that the tribes should contact the state to receive funding against bio-terrorism.
After the HHS briefing, Indian Health Service gave update from the regional and national perspective. The morning session ended with a presentation by Suzanne Davis about the Seminole Diabetes Program. Davis described the various events the tribe sponsors, such as the Rez Rally, bikes for seniors and the Mitchell Cypress Trail of Fitness. She then introduced Chairman Cypress, who spoke candidly about his battle to control diabetes and weight control.
The presentation concluded with a five minute film titled Health Heroes, which was a mixture of diabetes and health information and had photographs of several tribal citizens.
“ I’d like to thank communications for all the work they do for the program,” said Davis. “I’d also like to thank information systems and broadcasting.”
Starting the afternoon session was a briefing from the National Indian Child Welfare Association. Following the briefing was a presentation of the Four Winds program at the Jackson Academy.
The Four Winds program is an “inter-tribal treatment program” for Native American males between the ages of 8 and 18. This program is specifically for Native Americans because it offers several traditional activities, such as sweat lodge, dance ceremonies, bead work and regalia making.
The Jackson Academy is located in Dickson, Tenn., their web address is www.jacksonacademy.com and their phone number is (615) 446-3900.
The final subject for the day was the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). Conducted by the U.S. Department of the Interior and National Park Service, the meeting was initially considered a consultation on 43 CFR 10.7 of NAGPRA.
The consultation was stopped when several board members voiced their discontent. They felt that Native American voices were left out of the drafting process and they also felt they were being bombarded with the consultation.
After much discussion the board voted to continue the presentation on the understanding that the meeting is for informational purposes and not an official consultation. The board requested for NAGPRA to schedule a consultation with the Culture and Heritage Committee for the USET meeting in October.
The last day of the conference began with the committees briefing the board on the outcome of the conference.
During the Health Committee report, Porch Creek Chairman Eddie Tullis complimented the Seminole Health Department.
“ The Seminole diabetes program was on the most outstanding presentations the board has seen throughout this conference” said Tullis.
Eric Wilcox, of the Transportation Committee said, “I wish to personally thank the [Seminole] tribe, especially Susie Kippenberger of the Utilities Department and Billie Swamp Safari. They did a wonderful job.”
Following the committee reports the board then voted on several resolutions.
Board President Keller George then presented Roger Paul and the Healing Our Nations Through Our Youth program with a check for $10,000 from Native Education Health Incentive (NEHI). The Cherokee tribe also made a matching donation.
The conference concluded with USET President George’s following statement.
“ Thank you to The Seminole Tribe of Florida for the transportation they’ve provided throughout the conference. I was just such a great week. Thank you to Jim Shore and to Chairman Cypress, give them a big round of applause.”
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