Post by blackcrowheart on May 2, 2006 13:09:44 GMT -5
VERMONT VOTES TO EXTEND RECOGNITION TO ABENAKI
by Ross Sned
Montpelier, VT (AP
Descendants of some of Vermont's original settlers moved closer April 5
to winning official recognition form state government.
The House voted to extend formal recognition on the various Abenaki
tribes that exist in Vermont, a status that members of the Abenaki have
sought for many years.
The voice vote in the House, after a sometimes emotional presentation,
is the closest state government has come to honoring the centuries-long
presence of Abenaki in the territory now known as Vermont.
"I'm elated," said Debbie Bezio of Benson, a member of the Abenaki's
Clan of the Hawk based in Orleans. "(Abenaki) will be able to have a
sense of pride back. Their sense of self respect ha been taken from
them. We'll have a chance to have our rights."
State government has been reluctant to recognize the Abenaki over the
years because lawmakers and several different governors did not want to
give weight to some Abenaki's bids to win federal recognition.
Washington's recognition could have broader ramifications, opponents
have argued over the years, including the ability by a tribe to claim
ancestral land or to introduce gambling into the state.
Many of those concerns lifted, however, when the federal Bureau of
Indian Affairs in November recommended against federal recognition.
The bureau said at the time that the Abenaki had failed to meet four of
seven criteria required for federal recognition.
Members of the House took pains to point out that their bill would
neither grant special rights nor be a basis for a land claim.
Several said the bill was a matter of justice.
"Today we take a group of people who have lived here for years, no, for
centuries and this organization called the sate of Vermont will
hopefully recognize them, " said Rep. Francis Brooks, D-Montpelier, his
voice at times filling with emotion.
He recited the lyrics of the state song, "These Green Mountains," and
said he hoped the symbolism behind the words would be fulfilled by
recognizing the Abenaki.
"These green hills and silver waters, Are my home - they belong to me,
And to all her sons and daughters, May they be strong and forever
free." #####
by Ross Sned
Montpelier, VT (AP
Descendants of some of Vermont's original settlers moved closer April 5
to winning official recognition form state government.
The House voted to extend formal recognition on the various Abenaki
tribes that exist in Vermont, a status that members of the Abenaki have
sought for many years.
The voice vote in the House, after a sometimes emotional presentation,
is the closest state government has come to honoring the centuries-long
presence of Abenaki in the territory now known as Vermont.
"I'm elated," said Debbie Bezio of Benson, a member of the Abenaki's
Clan of the Hawk based in Orleans. "(Abenaki) will be able to have a
sense of pride back. Their sense of self respect ha been taken from
them. We'll have a chance to have our rights."
State government has been reluctant to recognize the Abenaki over the
years because lawmakers and several different governors did not want to
give weight to some Abenaki's bids to win federal recognition.
Washington's recognition could have broader ramifications, opponents
have argued over the years, including the ability by a tribe to claim
ancestral land or to introduce gambling into the state.
Many of those concerns lifted, however, when the federal Bureau of
Indian Affairs in November recommended against federal recognition.
The bureau said at the time that the Abenaki had failed to meet four of
seven criteria required for federal recognition.
Members of the House took pains to point out that their bill would
neither grant special rights nor be a basis for a land claim.
Several said the bill was a matter of justice.
"Today we take a group of people who have lived here for years, no, for
centuries and this organization called the sate of Vermont will
hopefully recognize them, " said Rep. Francis Brooks, D-Montpelier, his
voice at times filling with emotion.
He recited the lyrics of the state song, "These Green Mountains," and
said he hoped the symbolism behind the words would be fulfilled by
recognizing the Abenaki.
"These green hills and silver waters, Are my home - they belong to me,
And to all her sons and daughters, May they be strong and forever
free." #####