Yes or No

In all honesty, what I am writing now might not make a difference. Furthermore, I’ve been told by sources far from being authorities that a person in my position should maintain some sort of neutrality in this matter. I didn’t agree with that months and years ago, and I don’t agree with it now.
I plan on voting “yes” for two of the amendments proposed right now. Admittedly I am somewhat split on how to vote for amendment “A”, as I can see both sides of the issue. But in regards to “B” and “C”, I will vote “yes” on both of them with little if any hesitation.
I have a confession to make here. Years ago, as far back as 2002, maybe even earlier, I could not have given a rip about this issue. A lot of the catchphrases that are being tossed around these days by people who oppose the amendments, and boy have I heard a lot of them, really summed up how I felt. You know “Ah, they just wanna enroll for the money!” or “They had sixteen years to get enrolled (1983-1999), where were they before the casino opened?” and on and on and on. To this day, I can see why people might actually by into that line of thinking, because from a cold-blooded, unfeeling objective point of view, some of those arguments kind of make sense. I can’t honestly say that there aren’t people who want to enroll for the benefits. On the other hand, it often seems that much of the opposition is grounded in similar sentiments, i.e. people oppose it because they fear a dip in their benefits.
What changed my own mind was getting to know a lot of the people who have been adversely affected by the 1999 amendments. Noticed I used the word “people”, because that is what they are. They are families, with children, in fact some of them are children, and what they really want is fairness. I am personally not affected by the proposed amendment. Unless I have a child with another Tribal member, the blood ends at my grandchildren, regardless of how this Constitutional election goes. But I am affected by the 1999 amendment because I have seen a lot of the heartache, division, and ultimately sadness that change had, especially among people who are now good friends.
There are times when I really believe that in order to understand a person’s perspective and feelings you really have to be them, or find some way to magically put yourself in their shoes (or should I say moccasins). Movies and books have been crafted about that subject and there have been many days I wish it were possible, if not for myself at least others. I’ve done my best to try and imagine what it must be like to be one of those parents who has the split siblings. How do they handle that situation, do they wait until the kids come of age and have “the talk”? Do they make them split the trust fund? How do they explain to these kids how this situation arose? I’ve tried my best to visualize myself being part of those families and the feeling, assuming it is close to the real thing, is hardly fun.
A Tribal member who spoke at the December General Council meeting provided what I think was one of the clearest explanations of the problem. He simply said that his Tribal ID card showed “x” amount of blood, and that his kids should have half of that. If their quantum is at least 1/16th, they should be Tribal members. It should be that simple. Unfortunately, under our present requirements, that is hardly the way things go.
I am not going to lie and say that the wording in the amendments is perfect and would solve every single injustice regarding Tribal enrollment. But it is a step in the right direction. Most importantly, I don’t know if or when we will ever have the opportunity to vote on this again. That is why I plan on making the most of it, and hoping for change that counts.

Winter Gathering

The Chinooks really like to do things up every January at their annual gathering. Today was the second straight year I've made my way up to Ridgefield, Washington to partake. Eventually, I hope we get the chance to have such a plankhouse. Although you can't really tell from the photos, it was darn cold, hence the fires.

The final shot is a basket of wapato, a traditional food that tastes rather starchy when cooked, like potatoes. The bulbs were available for anybody who wanted to take one home and plant it.

I Got a Name

I presently sit as the Tribe’s delegate to the Mid-Willamette Valley Council of Governments. In order to save some breath we generally refer to the body as COG, pronounced the way you would expect. The COG has been going strong for more than 50 years now. Its main function, really, is providing a chance for all the local governments—cities, towns, counties, school districts, tribes—to net work with one another. You never know what partnerships are out there. The COG also provides help to these bodies, like grants or consulting services, but those usually go to the governments that are more strapped for cash than others. The dues that each body pays depends on population. Grand Ronde’s is one of the lowest.
Not only am I the delegate but now my position includes that of Chair of the Executive Board. Last year I was Vice-Chair. Four of us rotate the position. Next year I will be a regular old board member.
Networking is important with so many disparate governments clustered together in the Willamette Valley. The various jurisdictions have a lot to offer one another, like help in projects, letters of support for eachother when asking for further funding, etc. Overall, I enjoy working with the COG, even though the Tribe probably doesn’t benefit from the Council the way it might have during the “poor” days, prior to Spirit Mountain Casino. The only thing I never really get used to is that there appears to be a visible age difference between not only me and the rest of the Executive Board, but the whole Council of Governments. I still get remarks about my “youth”, as if doing what I am doing at 32 is some sort of precedent. A couple of people still act as if they don’t quite know how to interact with me, the perceived generation gap possibly meaning I speak a different language.
At our last meeting in December, we had a guest speaker. He was from the League of Oregon Cities, and his topic was one that ended up being more fascinating as his presentation continued. That topic was recalls, and the focus was throughout Oregon over the years.
What I learned is that recalls are quite common within small communities. Willamina recalled its mayor a few years back. The city of Tualatin, if I remember correctly, recalled their own mayor two months ago. Carlton, a town only seven miles from where I live, just engaged in a failed recall effort on its mayor, a very smart woman who happens to be one of the other three people who sits on the COG Executive Board with me.
I asked our speaker about recalls in tribes. Everybody laughs as the only instant he can refer to was in Grand Ronde. Evidently he had been out at the Tribe some years ago and remembered a sign or booth being set up, might have been during pow wow. I chuckle because I am pretty sure I remember which one he is talking about.
Recalls, I learn, seldom succeed. A lot of that is because the rules for actually successfully making a recall happen are pretty tight. In addition, recalls cost money, and distract people. Ironically though, on some levels the recalls do succeed. Recalls are often one chapter of what is essentially political warfare being waged on an individual or group of people. Although I don’t remember the percentages off-hand, quite a few targets of recalls sometimes resign or don’t seek another term. The targets usually just get sick of the constant harassment, bullying, and/or bickering and give up entirely. The intent of the recall, to get rid of a public official, holds true.
I can remember when the recall effort was launched against my fellow COG Board member. It was emotionally draining for her, not to mention stressful. Above all it was personal, because there was nothing that I know of that she did within the course of her job which merited a recall. She is a person, with a name and life, same as anybody else.
When I think back on what happened during my swearing-in ceremony in September, and how much that angered me, questions start forming in my mind as to what else might be in store for me over the next three years. I often reflect on what Ed Pearsall had to endure his final 18 months. Not only did he have a recall effort launched against him, but there were a handful of Tribal members who looked to have made a hobby of harassing him, and heck that was just non-Council people. If ever there was a public effort to make somebody in Grand Ronde miserable, it was what was done to poor Ed back in 2002 and 2003. Often, this effort looked so scripted as well.
It takes a certain type to do this job. I would have a hard time giving up, as some people did according to the recall study. But there is no doubt that doing this job will age me somewhat.
Maybe if flecks of grey start appearing in my beard, and wrinkles upon my brow, the “young” comments will cease.

Other Tribes

There are a number of things that I've learned entering my fourth year on Council. One is that tribes are paradoxically, unique, but when you become familiar with some of the goings on in Indian country, there quite often are parallels. In other words, there are eerie similarities. I've included a link below from Wikipedia about what must really be darn close to a worst-case scenario in Tribal politics. The Cherokee website used to have a more in-depth file on all this, as I read it a couple of years ago. But Wikipedia here does a good job of summarizing what were probably the highlights of what appeared to be an all-out legal crisis that seemed to have resulted in a near-government shut down:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Byrd_(Cherokee_Chief)

I've also posted some results from the Umatilla Tribal elections down below:

Board of Trustees Chair
Gary Burke 237Antone Minthorn (I) 389
Board of Trustees Vice Chair
Alvina Huesties 144Leo Stewart (I) 486
Board of Trustees Treasurer
Les Minthorn (I) 343David Wolf, Jr. 293
Board of Trustees Secretary
Kathryn Brigham (I) 277Shawna Gavin 182Robert Shippentower 175
Board of Trustees Members at Large (4 positions)
Adele Guyer-Lynn 168Armand Minthorn (I) 352Jay Minthorn (I) 281Justin E. Quaempts 255William Quaempts (I) 339Jeanine Satterwhite 266Emmet Sheoships 138 Rosenda Shippentower (I) 417Jeff Van Pelt 194Write-in Alan Crawford 41
General Council Chair
John Barkley (I) 286Michael R. Johnson 321
General Council Vice-ChairAlthea Huesties-Wolf 433Write-in Woodrow Starr 34
General Council Secretaryno candidatesWrite-in Shawna Gavin 35
General Council Interpreterno candidatesWrite-in Fred Hill 116

Amendment A - Failed (224 For, 357 Against)Institutes Staggered Terms for Board Members, Changes the Length of Terms for Board Members and General Council Officers, and Returns to At-Large Election of All Board Members

Amendment B - Passed (312 For, 281 Against)Requires Tribal Elections to be by Secret Ballot, with Adequate Notice to All Voters and Providing Absentee Ballots

Amendment C - Passed (325 For, 275 Against)Removes Requirement that the Secretary of Interior Approve Constitutional Amendments Prior to their Taking Effect

Amendment D - Passed (350 For, 240 Against)Corrects Grammatical Errors and Inconsistencies in the Constitution

Amendment E - Failed (241 For, 344 Against)Explicitly Authorizes Closed Board Meetings to Address Confidential Matters

Amendment F - Passed (397 For, 189 Against)Preserves the Federal Government's Trust Obligations

I've often followed other Tribal elections with a slight interest. Umatilla's intrigued me because as you can see they too are looking at Constitutional amendments. One (Amendment C) is to remove BIA oversight in Constitutional amendments, the other Amendment E, and this is really fascinating with compared with how things are run in Grand Ronde right now, prohibits the Board/Council from closing their board meetings. A guy can dream, I suppose.