Under the Dome: Abenaki-recognition bill

[blackcrowheart]

Burlington Free Press
January 16, 2006

Burlington Free Press
January 16, 2006

Under the Dome: Passion runs strong on Abenaki-recognition bill

By Terri Hallenbeck
Staff Writer

MONTPELIER -- For the past two weeks, Francis Brooks has heard a string of passionate pleas from the witness chair in his committee room, tucked away in the corner of the third floor of the Statehouse.

The issue is whether the state should grant official recognition to the Abenaki tribe of American Indians. Passion runs particularly strong on the topic, starting with tribal members who share stories of discrimination and exclusion, and extending to a cast of legislators who've given some of their most heart-felt speeches on the subject.

Few feel stronger than the man sitting at the head of the table, presiding over this year's testimony.

"I think that I am sensitive to the issue of people being put down," said Brooks, who is chairman of the House General, Housing and Military Affairs Committee and the only black man among Vermont's 180 legislators. "It certainly pushed buttons and had similarities that I think I can relate to."

Although Brooks said his race gives him insight into the discrimination minorities such as the Abenaki endure, he thinks the tribe has suffered another kind of injustice by having its heritage go unrecognized.

"I can walk into a community setting and one knows that in my ancestry there is some African-American -- by my appearance. That's not necessarily the case by Native Americans," he said. "The Abenaki people have not been officially welcomed to the community."

For him, no other argument supersedes extending that overdue welcome. "It's insidious what can happen to an individual who's constantly told and given examples of how little they're worth," Brooks said.

This week, his committee will continue discussing an Abenaki-recognition bill (S.117) that passed the Senate last year. Brooks, a Democrat from Montpelier, said he thinks it will pass the nine-member committee, then go to the House Judiciary Committee before the full House takes a vote.

The Abenaki have fought for recognition for years, but last year was the first time such a bill passed one of the chambers. This year, its prospects for making it into law are greater than ever.

The state Attorney General's Office had opposed state recognition on the grounds that it could lead to federal recognition, which in turn could lead to land claims and casinos. Late last year, however, the federal government turned down the Missisquoi Abenakis' bid for federal recognition, and Assistant Attorney General William Griffin has withdrawn his opposition to state recognition.

State recognition -- beyond granting the Abenaki long-sought acknowledgement of their heritage -- would open the door to college scholarships, grants and the right to market American Indian crafts.

Brooks, a soft-spoken retired science teacher, points out that he is hardly the only one with a passion for the issue. Last year's thrust in the Senate was in large part to honor Sen. Julius Canns, R-Caledonia, as he was dying. Canns, who was part-Cherokee, had long fought for Abenaki rights. The lead sponsor of the bill was Sen. Dianne Snelling, R-Chittenden, who said the American Indian tradition of respecting the land is what being a real Vermonter is all about.

Last week, Rep. Carolyn Branagan, R-Georgia, delivered an impassioned appeal to Brooks' committee to pass the legislation. "No other group of people in Vermont history have been denied their existence," she said.

Snelling said she considers the bill in good hands with Brooks. "I think he understands the whole issue. I think he's a good steward for it."
Free Press Staff Writer Nancy Remsen contributed to this report. Contact Terri Hallenbeck at 229-9141 or [e-mail].
Coming this week HEALTH CARE: The Senate and the House have committees working on health care reform legislation. The Senate Health and Welfare Committee is working on a package of changes, known as the "consensus package" because lawmakers and the Douglas administration agree on the concepts underlying the proposals. Senate Health Chairman James Leddy, D-Chittenden, said his panel will look this week at how to simplify insurance and other forms. The House Health Committee is adding Monday afternoons to its schedule to have additional time to work on the more complicated pieces of the reform package -- how to transform chronic care and how to cover the uninsured.
BUDGET: The Senate Appropriations Committee officially takes up a bill that would make changes in the current budget for state government. The House has approved the bill, which makes about $21 million in spending adjustments and fund transfers. The bill covers the extra dollars needed to help low-income Vermonters heat their homes and the money the state is chipping in to cover drugs for elderly until the federal government straightens out problems with its new Medicare drug program. Senate Appropriations Chairwoman Susan Bartlett, D-Lamoille, said House and Senate leaders have agreed that the midyear budget bill should deal only with unexpected financial issues rather than initiate policy changes. She expects her committee to act quickly, perhaps voting the bill out by the end of this week.
DRUG REGISTRY: House Speaker Gaye Symington, D-Jericho, will decide this week which committee -- House Human Services or Judiciary -- will review a Senate-passed bill that would set up a statewide electronic data base and monitoring system for certain prescription medications. Sen. James Leddy, D-Chittenden, said the system is intended to help officials identify potential abuse of medications. People sometimes fraudulently fill multiple prescriptions for a drug at different pharmacies. "The goal is to catch people who are doctor shopping and to get folks some help," Leddy said. Symington expected to base her decision on each committee's workload.
-- Nancy Remsen,
Free Press staff writer

[Okwes]

The role of self-identification in Abenaki recognition
Written by Hal Bill

www.thecountycourier.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=2579&Itemid=

Thursday, 26 January 2006

Genealogy is not a science. Yet if someone follows certain protocols and strictly adheres to research rules, genealogy can produce clear facts. In short, it provides abbreviated answers to the questions “Who am I?” and “Where did I come from?” It is a process of winnowing information - the further back you go, the more you leave out.
A person has two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents, and 16 great-great-grandparents. I happen to be a descendant, 11 generations removed, of one of the Mayflower settlers. That is nine “greats” before grandfather, with 2,048 ancestors at that generational level. I know nothing of the other 2,047 ancestors. That’s some serious winnowing to reduce a bag of grain to the one kernel you want.
Some of my readers are asking, “Where is this going?” I’m giving you this information because I and most other Americans can self-identify ourselves, leaving out what we wish and calling ourselves what we choose.
Native Americans are not allowed this control over identifying their ancestry and history. To “be” an Indian, a federal or state government must recognize you. Governments bestow this recognition on tribes. Individuals, when seeking tribal membership, must submit genealogical records and other documentation to the tribe. Indian people who belong to unrecognized tribes face discrimination and marginalization. This certainly has been the situation here in Vermont, yet we now are on the threshold of change and have the opportunity to end our denial of the existence of our state’s first inhabitants.
Bill S.117 proposes to recognize the Abenaki people of Vermont. The bill had bipartisan support and overwhelmingly passed in the Senate. It is now in the House, where the Housing and General Affairs Committee has held hearings over the last three weeks.
In Section 851 of the bill, findings state that 1,700 Vermonters claim to be direct descendants of the Native American people known as the Western Abenaki. The findings go on to state that there is ample archaeological evidence of farming in the floodplains of many of Vermont’s rivers. S.117 makes it clear the Western Abenaki were here long before European settlement, and their continued presence is evident.
What happens if the Legislature passes S.117 and the Abenaki are recognized? 1) S.117 places in statute a Native American commission to advise the Governor and assist Native Americans, their tribal councils, and other organizations. 2) Recognition opens educational opportunities, such as scholarships designated for Native Americans recognized by a state or federal government. 3) Abenaki crafts made by native artisans can be sold as Indian or Native American-made if the tribe is recognized and the artisan is a member of the tribe. (In order to protect Native American artisans, federal law requires that all crafts sold as Indian be made by Native Americans recognized by the federal government or state government.)
What does S.117 not do? The recognition it provides does not grant “special rights or privileges that the state does not confer on or grant to other state residents.” 2) And it does not provide a basis for land claims. It specifically states, “This chapter shall not be construed to confer upon the Abenaki people any claims to Vermont lands or any other rights other than those specifically described herein.”
We have an opportunity to do the right thing. Bill S.117 can be passed without our worrying about how to define who is an Abenaki. The bill provides for a process so that recognition will work that out. The Abenaki people will be able to join the rest of society and self-identify. It is then that the Abenaki can tell their story and say this is who we are and this is where we came from.
When someone asks, “Who are the Abenaki?” the answer is they are our neighbors, our friends, and our first Vermonters.

Hal Bill self identifies himself as a columnist for the County Courier who lives in Enosburg. You can contact him at [e-mail].
Last Updated ( Thursday, 26 January 2006 )

[Okwes]

Make-up of Native American advisory commission focus of House testimony
Written by Jedd Kettler

www.thecountycourier.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=2564&Itemid=

Thursday, 26 January 2006

MONTPELIER: Now in its fourth week of testimony in front of the House Committee on General, Housing and Military Affairs, prospects for official Abenaki recognition by the state of Vermont appear as good as they have ever been.
That is unless disagreements over the precise make-up of S.117’s codification of the Vermont Commission on Native American Affairs get in the way.


The committee’s chairman, Rep. Francis Brooks (D, Montpelier, Montpelier-5), seems determined not to let that happen, at least not on his watch.
Brooks and other members of the committee, including Fairfield’s Richard Howrigan (D, Fairfield, St. Albans Town, Franklin-3), have heard a good deal about who should and should not be recognized under S.117 and just how expansive the Native Affairs commission should be, since they began taking testimony at the beginning of the new year.
“I think we’ve gotten a fair appraisal of what various groups think,” Brooks said this week.
Vermont’s Attorney Gen-eral and others have called for inclusion of all Native Americans in the bill. Recently established Abenaki bands have asked for a larger, regional approach on the commission. Franklin Coun-ty’s long-established St. Francis/Sokoki Band has asked to keep the commission close to how it has been for the past 15 years.
Brooks said this week that it is unlikely his committee will expand S.117 to include tribes other than Vermont’s own Abenaki. He would like to see state recognition remain specific to Vermont and its only existing native tribe.
“I think the purpose of (S.117) is that it’s recognition of the Abenaki people,” Brooks said.
Other tribes and groups that have been mentioned in testimony are already recognized either by their home-states or the federal government, Brooks said, and individuals can seek recognition through those sources.
The make-up of the commission is less certain at this point. There have been suggestions that the commission be expanded.
In its current make-up, the Governor’s Advisory Com-mission on Native American Affairs, the Swanton-based Abenaki Tribal Council is the only group represented, nominating members for three of its seats.
The current language of S.117, which, in part, codifies that commission, would retain those three seats from nominations by the Swanton tribe.
Some who have testified before Brooks’ committee asked that such representation be expanded to include other Abenaki groups.
“That’s what I’m here to talk about: the equality. I would really, really like to be represented on that commission,” said Luke Willard, a member of the recently re-established Nulhegan band of the Coosuck Abenaki in the Northeast Kingdom. Willard testified in Montpelier on Jan. 12, along with a handful of others, including John Churchhill, who spoke on behalf of the Abenaki Tribal Council in Swanton, the base of the St. Francis/Sokoki Band.
Suggestions that the commission be expanded to include other Abenaki bands were met with resistance from members of the Abenaki Tribal Council in Swanton, who have long been the standard-bearers for Abenaki recognition and other causes.
“We’d like to see it get through with the language that’s in there now, with those checks and balances,” said John Churchill, a member of the Abenaki Tribal Council in Swanton, this week. The Swanton band has been active since the 1970s and has long led the fight for recognition and other causes.
Jeff Benay, a long-time Abenaki advocate, educator and 15-year chairman of the current Native American Affairs commission, also testified on Jan. 12 and cautioned against expanding the commission in the pending bill.
“It is the newly formed commission that would be able to come up with the definition (of who the stable bands in the state are),” Benay said.
Brooks made it clear to all that in the end someone is likely to be disappointed with how S.117 comes out if it makes it into law.
“We have several forces pulling at us,” Brooks said.
“I don’t question the veracity of some people that have come before you,” Benay said. “(Expanding the board) does dilute the membership of the most important representative at the table.”
One former advocate of expanding the commission has changed his position on the topic.
Charles Delaney, a one-time member of the St. Francis/Sokoki band, currently part of the Mazipskwik Abenaki group, originally testified that the board should include groups from around the state, but changed his position to keep the process moving.
“In order to get through the bill, I concur with Jeff Benay,” Delaney said after Benay’s Jan. 12 testimony. “I’m going along with his assumption... that the commission will answer this question fairly in the future. What matters is this whole bill becoming law.”
Brooks reiterated this week that he hopes, regardless of what form the commission ultimately takes, that all sides remember the importance of recognition in a larger sense. It may be necessary to pass an “imperfect” bill in order to ensure the overriding goal of Abenaki state recognition is achieved.
“Whatever we do, it is my thought that it is extremely important that the state recognize the Abenaki people, and I would be very sad if people were not happy with how we recognize them,” Brooks said.


Last Updated ( Thursday, 26 January 2006 )