by
Elaine Willman
CERA Chairperson
The 2003 CERA Conference included local organizational leaders and elected officials from 10 states this year. The group included tribal members and others of Native American heritage. The first two days of our conference generated a national updated picture of serious federal Indian policies exploding across the country. The most common theme reported was the overwhelming influence of Indian casino revenue upon elected officials, with little to no reports of gambling revenue directly improving the quality of life of tribal members.
The next major issue to surface was the increasing propensity of federal agencies to authorize and implement tribal programs that would allow tribal governance over citizens and property owners that are not tribal members.
CERA was pleased to have with us, Senior Deputy Attorney General of Nevada, C.Wayne Howle. Mr. Howle briefed the conference about the major holdings of Nevada v. Hicks, legal implications and recent actions associated with Atkinson and Hicks cases. Coincidentally, while the CERA Conference was in session, the U.S. Supreme Court also ruled on the Bishop Paiute v. Inyo County case. So while Day 1 of the conference produced a wonderful national “snapshot” of problems with federal Indian policies, Day 2 was a very productive discussion of current legislation, U.S. Supreme Court and other appellate court rulings.
The week that CERA spends in Washington D.C. includes a marvelous strategy of providing time for mutual reports and educational communication exchanges, prior to spending three solid days of pre-arranged meetings with senators, congressmen and national organizations. CERA members broke into effective teams and within a three-day period, accomplished more than 50 individual meetings with Washington D.C. elected officials, and other major organizations and associations. We don't waste a single minute.
Each of us attends CERA at our own personal expense. Many of us take a week away from work, and incur substantial travel expenses to come to Washington D.C. to be sure the voices of citizens impacted by federal Indian policy are not entirely ignored.
In contrast, the Agua Caliente Band in California, now engages 14 well-paid, full-time lobbyists to focus political influence every single day upon lawmakers in D.C. for ONE single tribe! One can only imagine that there are hundreds, if not thousands of NCAI and tribal government lobbyists daily ensuring that special interests of federally recognized tribes keep increasing, even as their congressionally mandated gambling monopoly generates as much revenue as their continuing annual federal subsidies.
CERA is undaunted. We cannot out-money paid Indian lobbyists. We currently cannot hire herds of lawyers and lobbyists to inundate Congress. We can, however, educate each other and outreach to every single voter we can find. Our grassroots leaders are doing this job exceptionally well every single day, across the country. We can also generate instant response to moving legislation. We can make it crystal clear, beginning at our local levels, and up the food chain to the national levels, – that Indian casino “coin-operated” elected officials will not be tolerated any longer. The Indian “loophole” in Campaign Finance Reform has truly taken its toll.
We CAN out-vote. We WILL vote OUT – those elected officials who would keep both hands in tribal coffers while generating legislation that dares to remove traditional American government from citizens by substituting, spreading and forcing tribalism on an unwilling America across this country.
If we were to look at the daily efforts and results of each of the organizational leaders who attended CERA this year, and multiply their daily tasks by 16 states and 50 to 250 persons per organization, and then add the results of the same mathematical formula to another powerful national alliance, United Property Owners. Well, the end numbers are pretty substantial. Nope, we can't hire the big gun lawyers and lobbyists. But we've drawn a clear line in the sand that best not be crossed.
That line is: We continue to wish all tribal governments and their members every success in self-determination programs that improve the quality of life for tribal members on Indian reservations. We will never, ever tolerate any expansion of tribal self-determination to include determination, governance, regulation or taxation of “others”. We ARE the others, and “that dog won't hunt”.
The sooner that federal administrators and coin-operated elected officials in congress, governor's mansions and state legislatures snap to the growing movement to preserve traditional American government for citizens residing within boundaries of Indian reservations – the sooner we can all get back to being good neighbors again.
I am very pleased to serve as CERA's Chair for the coming year, extend deep appreciation to our departing Board members, and a warm welcome to our newest Board members. It's a profound pleasure to stand among some of the finest people I've ever met, who care so much about the well-being of every single tribal member in this country, as well as the well-being of every other American on Indian reservations.