OKMULGEE, Okla. – O.K., let’s start from the top down. The President of the United States has made his presence known in his latest actions regarding Native governments.
During the recent national “Tribal Nations Summit” President Joe Biden signed an executive order to make it easier for tribal governments to access federal funds. According to several Native and national news sources, the order would establish a central ‘clearinghouse’ where tribes could search for the exact funding they need. Let us hope the White House increases the amount of bucks in the pot. There are supposed to be almost 200 additional agreements to make it easier for tribal governments to manage federal lands and other resources.
In good news for east coast tribal lacrosse players, the President has expressed his support for the Haudenosaunee Confederacy to compete under their own flag in the 2028 Olympics, something they have been after for decades. Why not? They invented the sport. It would be way cool to see a tribal player carrying their flag during the opening ceremonies.
The fate of Bacone College is still looking pretty grim but it got a last-minute reprieve. The oldest college in Oklahoma was scheduled to go on the auction block mid-December, but as of early December that sale had not taken place. A contractor had been renovating the campus, but a mix-up in the payment plans kept that from happening. But on the day before the sale, the sheriff’s sale was stopped, no reason given.
Did you get one of the Wilma Mankiller dolls? Word has it that the popular Mattel doll has sold out of the toy version of the former female Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation.
Some liked it, some did not. That is an old story, critics say it did not look like her, others said the Cherokee printing on the box says, “Chicken” instead of Cherokee. Price? One listing on eBay had the doll re-selling for $598. Cha-Ching!
In case you were not invited to Governor Kevin Stitt’s “Native American Family Day”, neither were any other Native leaders. (Neither was I) The Tulsa World reported that about 60 people with “tribal backgrounds” were in attendance. A Stitt spokesperson said “we invited people from the tribal communities who don’t get the opportunity to do that all the time.”
The guy whose court case got the sovereignty court battles rolling has pleaded guilty. The Tulsa World reported Jimcy McGirt entered a guilty plea six days before a re-trial of the case. McGirt’s attorney said the man could be sentenced to time served.
The City of Tulsa and some of the local tribal governments are butting heads. The last one to make any headlines was over a traffic ticket jurisdictional situation. The guy who got the ticket will have to pay up, but the fine is going to be split between Tulsa and the Mvskoke Nation. That’s a situation that is going to require a lot of legalese wrangling and some sort of mutual agreement to be worked out. In November the tribe filed suit against the City of Tulsa. In the meantime, according to local news reports, a federal judge has ruled that the city can’t enforce those laws. Only a tribal court can do that. By the way, the feds called us “Indian inhabitants”. Still, it’s probably not a good idea to get a ticket in Tulsa.
Give YvNvSv a break. In the past decades, buffalo that wandered out of Yellowstone Park were eligible to be harvested, and over the last season, a high number of bison were taken for food. That number is too high according to a local Montana wildlife preservation group. They are calling for a pause in the hunt to allow the wild-roaming herds a chance to recover their numbers. That’s not the only time buffalo have made the headlines. Several news reports cover incidents of the animals tossing unwary (or just playing stupid) tourists into the air when they try to take selfie photos next to the animals. Maybe the yvnvsv are trying to even the score!
The lead actress for “Killers of the Flower Moon” has been garnering tons of awards and recognition. The Piegan/Blackfeet woman, Lily Gladstone has been nominated for a Golden Globe Entertainer of the Year award and been named as one the Associated Press’ Breakthrough Entertainers of 2023. On top of that Gladstone has been a cast member of “Reservation Dogs”. She has a long list of productions in which she has appeared. Golden Globes winners will be announced January 7, 2024.
Almost missed this one, on Sunday, Dec. 17 Cherokee Actor, Wes Studi turned 76. Congrats!
And finally, Native News Online reports “Reservation Dogs” is one of two TV series named as Best Television Shows of 2023. Yea!
O.K. the leadership of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation has been chosen and set to perform for the benefit of our Nation and citizens. We wish them the best and hope that 2024 will see our Nation continue to progress and stand up for our people. Mvto!
Hvtvm cerecares!
Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation or Mvskoke Media.