NIGA Hosts Panel Discussion on Presidential Policy

March 6, 2013 - PRLog -- In cooperation with the National Museum of the American Indian, the National Indian Gaming Association hosted a dialogue on presidential policy statements, special messages to Congress, and Executive Orders on Indian affairs.

NIGA Chairman Ernest L. Stevens, Jr. opened the dialogue and pointed to President Richard M. Nixon as a strong leader and proponent of the Indian Self-Determination Policy, who made a decisive break with the 1950s “Termination Policy.”  Stevens said, “President Nixon is known for returning Blue Lake to Taos Pueblo, Yakama Forest to the Yakama Nation, and the Indian Self-Determination Policy.  Nixon gave a Special Message to Congress on Indian Self-Determination, without Termination,” ushering in the modern era of Indian policy.  My Dad, Ernest Stevens, Sr. worked as a Deputy Commissioner of Indian Affairs under Nixon, and under Nixon’s leadership they fought for Indian rights.”

Holly Cook Macarro, a former White House Special Assistant under President Clinton, moderated the panel and she too, reminisced about her Uncle Lee Cook’s tenure under Nixon, when they were referred to as the “Katzenjammer Kids.”  She also pointed out that President Clinton’s Executive Order on Collaboration and Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments was a milestone of Indian policy that promoted Indian sovereignty.

Michael Anderson, who served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs under Clinton, talked about historical Presidential policies.  Anderson said, “Kennedy and Johnson sowed the seeds of the Indian Self-Determination Policy, and Johnson opened the door to direct funding of tribal governments under the War on Poverty.  He established the National Council on Indian Policy, which was chaired by the Vice President and provided a forum on Indian sovereignty and economic development.”

Suzanne Harjo, Morning Star Institute, and former Executive Director of the National Congress of American Indians, said, “No Presidential Policy can be complete without recognition of Indian language and culture, whether it’s a policy statement or special message to Congress.  Harjo noted that, “Presidential policies are important for the protection of Indian sovereignty.”

Kim Teehee, Domestic Policy Council staff under Obama’s first term, said “President Obama has done a great job on Indian issues and he is personally engaged in Indian issues, including the Violence Against Women Act Indian provisions.  The work of the Obama Administration would be strongly supported by a Native Nations Policy and Executive Order.  It would put a cap on the work they are already doing.”

Mark Van Norman, former Director of the Office of Tribal Justice, under Clinton said, “President George Washington started the tradition of Nation-to-Nation relations when he invited the Creek Nation to the Executive Mansion in New York in 1790 to sign the first Indian treaty under the new Constitution of the United States.  The Constitution is based upon Nation-to-Nation relations and mutual recognition, mutual respect, and mutual consent between the United States and Indian nations.  That’s the policy that we should have in the 21st Century.”

Great Plains Tribal Chairman’s Association, Coalition of Large Tribes, Midwest Alliance of Sovereign Tribes, United Tribes of North Dakota, California Nations Indian Gaming Association, and the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community passed resolutions supporting the call for a new Presidential Native Sovereign Nations Policy Statement by the President Obama.  Chairman Ernest L. Stevens said, “President Obama did a great job in his first term, and we hope he will take the Native Nations policy to the next level in his second term.”