Washington Indian Tribes Today - page 8

QUESTIONS ANSWERED
DOES THEUNITED STATES STILLMAKE
TREATIESWITH INDIAN TRIBES?
No. Therewere 370 treaties signedbetween theU.S.
government and Indian tribes between 1778 and
1871, when the treaty period ended.
DID TREATIESGRANTNATIVE
AMERICANS SPECIALRIGHTS?
Treaties represented an acknowledgement of
certain rights already held, and tobe retained, by
tribal governments andpeople. Tribes relinquished
some rights (like vast areas of land) in exchange for
retainingothers (like hunting and fishing including
outside reservations). Indian treaties have the same
status as treatieswith foreign nations, andbecause
they aremade under theU.S. Constitution they take
precedenceover any conflicting state law.
WHAT ISAFEDERAL INDIANRESERVATION?
A federal Indian reservation is an areaof land
reserved for a tribeor tribes under treaty or other
agreement with theU.S. as permanent tribal
homelands, andwhere the federal government
holds title to the land in trust onbehalf of the tribe.
HOWDO TRIBALMEMBERS
GOVERN THEMSELVES?
Most tribes aregovernedby anelectedbody –
usually a tribal council. The chief executive is usually
called the chairmanor chairwoman.
WHO IDENTIFIESASANAMERICAN
INDIANORALASKANATIVE?
Federally-recognized tribal governments set their
own enrollment eligibility requirements, generally
an applicantmust be able to verify a certainblood
quantum from an ancestor whowas an enrolled
tribal member.
DONATIVEAMERICANSPAY TAXES?
Yes, NativeAmericans paymost of the same
taxes as every other citizen. Nativepeoplepay
federal income taxes and state sales tax ongoods
purchasedoff the reservation. Property taxes are
paidby tribal citizenswhoown non-reservation
land. Thebig tax difference is on income an Indian
may receivedirectly from a treaty or trust resource
such as fishor timber. That income is not taxable.
Like stategovernments, tribal governments are not
subject to taxationby the federal government or
states.
IS ITDISRESPECTFUL TOCALLNATIVE
AMERICANS “INDIANS”?
No, the term “IndianTribe” actually appears in the
U.S. Constitution. So Indian is not aderogatory
term (likeRedskin).ManyNativeAmericans refer
to themselves andeachother as Indians. Different
words andword combinations havebeen used
over the years to identify peoplewho are native to
NorthAmerica. NativeAmerican, of course, is very
common. But so too isAmerican Indian. Sometimes
you hear the term First Americans. Some Indians
prefer tobe identifiedwith their tribe, i.e., Tulalip,
rather than thegeneric termNativeAmerican.
WHYDO TRIBESGET TOHAVECASINOS?
Tribal governments long asserted their sovereign
right to conduct gamblingon their reservations, and
U.S. SupremeCourt recognized in1832 (Worcester
vGeorgia) that states did not havegovernmental
power on Indian reservations. In1988, Congress
passed the IndianGamingRegulatoryAct toend
disputes between states and tribal governments
over gambling. Under the law, tribes canoffer the
same typeof gambling as is offeredby the state.
InWashington, thatmeans tribal governments
canoffer gaming that is legally and technically
structured like the State Lottery. All of the net
proceeds – theprofits – from tribal gaming is
government revenue that is used topay for
programs or tobenefit tribal members. Every tribal
government inWashington canbenefit from tribal
gamingoperations. Smaller tribes in rural areas that
don’t have casinos can lease their gaming rights to
tribeswith large casinos inurban areas.
WHAT ISAPOTLATCH?
Apotlatch is agift-giving feast or celebration
practicedby Indigenous peoples of thePacific
Northwest Coast of Canada and theUnited States.
Potlatches involve feasting, singing anddancing.
RESOURCES
Northwest IndianFisheriesCommission:
nwifc.org
National Congress of American Indians:
NationalMuseumof American Indians:
nmai.si.edu
WashingtonTribes: washingtontribes.org
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SUNDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2016 |
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