The Department of Justice will host tribal nations listening conferences as part of an initiative to address crime in Indian Country. Attorney General Eric Holder will meet with tribes in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on October 28-29. “The Listening Conference is part of an ongoing Justice Department initiative to increase engagement, coordination and action on tribal justice [...]

National Indian Gaming Commission Chairman Phil Hogen says the agency is not trying to rush new regulations without consulting tribes. Hogen says the NIGC is only in the early stages of a regulation affecting Minimum Internal Controls Standards, or MICS. He says it will be months before a formal proposal is made. “I am eagerly [...]

The Meskwaki Tribe of Iowa opened a new high school. Classes at the $23 million Meskwaki High School started on August 19. The 108,000-square-foot school has room for up to 500 students. The tribe provided $19 million for the project. The rest came from the federal government. Meskwaki school unveils new wing for high school [...]

A group that opposes federal Indian policies claims it is not anti-Indian. The Citizens Equal Rights Alliance has fought the federal government and tribes on land-into-trust, treaty rights, fishing rights, sovereignty, Indian child welfare, and other issues. “We are not anti-Indian,” board member Scott Seaborne says. “What we are is we’re a group of people [...]

The New York Times reports on a new style of tourism in Indian Country. Get the full story. Blazing New Trails in Native American Lands (The New York Times 8/23) The story states in part: “The stereotypes of glitzy casinos and kitschy cowboys-and-Indians past have long dominated popular notions about visiting American Indian lands. . [...]

The Pawnee Nation College in Oklahoma has teamed up with the National Indian Gaming Association to offer a tribal gaming program. It is probably the first program of its kind at a tribal college. The program will provide tribal gaming instruction and education to tribal citizens and employees at the college. “I am an educator [...]

Sylvia Spears, a citizen of the Narragansett Tribe of Rhode Island, has been appointed acting dean of Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. Spears will serve in the position for two years. She has worked for her tribe and comes to Dartmouth from the University of Rhode Island. Meet Sylvia Spears (DartBlog 8/25) AMP review will [...]

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts swore in the justices for its first court. Henry Sockbeson, a citizen of the Penobscot Nation of Maine, will serve as chief justice. Rochelle Ducheneaux, a citizen of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe of South Dakota, and Robert Mills, who is Mashpee, are also on the court. The court [...]

Todd Goodman, a citizen of the Caddo Nation, is the first American Indian to serve as chair of the Oklahoma Democratic Party. Goodman, who was elected to the post on July 11, hopes to unite Oklahoma Democrats. “In my speech at the state convention, I said from African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanic, rural and urban [...]

Alaska Senator Albert Kookesh (D) is preparing for a major fight over Native subsistence fishing rights. Kookesh and three others were cited by a state wildlife officer for exceeding catch limits. But he says the state has no jurisdiction over Native subsistence activities on federal land. “We need to challenge the state of Alaska coming [...]