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August 31, 2022
Chinook Indian Nation citizens rally for recognition
Scott Greenstone
KNKX/Associated Press
SEATTLE — Chinook Indian Nation citizens rallied Monday on the steps of a federal building in Seattle to raise awareness for their long fight to get federal recognition.
Chairman Tony Johnson, whose traditional name is Naschio, told KNKX Public Radio that his great-great-grandfather and other leaders first hired lawyers to sue for their lands back in the 1890s.
Federal recognition would mean access to federal dollars for healthcare and housing for this group of tribes, which are based in Southwestern Washington, particularly Pacific County. The rally was the start of a campaign by Chinook leadership, they said, to pressure U.S. Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, both Washington state Democrats, to use their influence in Congress to get the Chinook recognized.
For a brief time 20 years ago, the Clinton administration recognized the Chinook Indian Nation, but the Bush administration revoked that decision in 2002 after another Indigenous nation in Washington state, the Quinault, appealed to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Johnson said during a speech on Monday that the Chinook nation, which is made up of five tribes – the Cathlamet, Clatsop, Lower Chinook, Wahkaikum and Willapa, – refused to sign a treaty that would force them to lose their land, and therefore was never moved to a reservation.
“That place where I drove from this morning with my wife and two of my five kids is the place where our sovereignty springs from,” Johnson said. “We are a sovereign nation, regardless of the government’s confusion, and our sovereignty comes from the land and our ancestors.”
…more…
Chinook Indian Nation citizens rally for recognition
https://indiancountrytoday.com/news/chinook-indian-nation-citizens-rally-for-recognitionChinook Indian Nation citizens rally for recognition
Scott Greenstone
KNKX/Associated Press
SEATTLE — Chinook Indian Nation citizens rallied Monday on the steps of a federal building in Seattle to raise awareness for their long fight to get federal recognition.
Chairman Tony Johnson, whose traditional name is Naschio, told KNKX Public Radio that his great-great-grandfather and other leaders first hired lawyers to sue for their lands back in the 1890s.
Federal recognition would mean access to federal dollars for healthcare and housing for this group of tribes, which are based in Southwestern Washington, particularly Pacific County. The rally was the start of a campaign by Chinook leadership, they said, to pressure U.S. Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, both Washington state Democrats, to use their influence in Congress to get the Chinook recognized.
For a brief time 20 years ago, the Clinton administration recognized the Chinook Indian Nation, but the Bush administration revoked that decision in 2002 after another Indigenous nation in Washington state, the Quinault, appealed to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Johnson said during a speech on Monday that the Chinook nation, which is made up of five tribes – the Cathlamet, Clatsop, Lower Chinook, Wahkaikum and Willapa, – refused to sign a treaty that would force them to lose their land, and therefore was never moved to a reservation.
“That place where I drove from this morning with my wife and two of my five kids is the place where our sovereignty springs from,” Johnson said. “We are a sovereign nation, regardless of the government’s confusion, and our sovereignty comes from the land and our ancestors.”
…more…
August 27, 2022
'A True Danger to the Public Post Office': DeJoy Moves to Consolidate USPS Facilities
Postal union officials are sounding the alarm about the potentially damaging impacts of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's effort to consolidate post offices across the U.S. as part of his widely condemned 10-year plan to reshape the public mail agency.
Government Executive reported Friday that "more than 200 post offices and other U.S. Postal Service facilities are set to shed some of their operations as soon as this year as the mailing agency seeks to consolidate those functions at larger buildings, according to documents shared by management."
"The changes will mean letter carriers no longer go to their local facility to pick up mail for their route, instead traveling farther distances after starting at a consolidated location. The impacted post offices will still conduct their retail operations, but many of the back-end functions will be stripped away and relocated," the outlet noted. "The impacted sites are located in Georgia, New York, Texas, Florida, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, West Virginia, Kentucky, Washington, North Carolina, Indiana, and Arkansas. The initial consolidations are expected to begin as soon as next month."
Unions representing postal workers have accused USPS management of keeping them in the dark about the consolidation plan, an integral component of DeJoy's strategy for the next decade.
Charlie Cash, the industrial relations director at the 200,000-member American Postal Workers Union (APWU), wrote in a message to members on Thursday that "we do not know much more than what is already published in the public domain."
Cash said that he and other APWU leaders spoke with postal management last month "in what we thought was a meeting to discuss the 'mega-plants'" that DeJoy—a Trump donor and former logistics executive—is seeking to establish as alternatives to smaller postal facilities spread out across the nation.
"Instead we were ambushed with the [Sortation and Delivery Center] concept," Cash continued, referring to DeJoy's strategy. "We voiced various concerns, especially on the timeline and how we were not given an opportunity for input."
…more…
'A True Danger to the Public Post Office': DeJoy Moves to Consolidate USPS Facilities
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2022/08/27/true-danger-public-post-office-dejoy-moves-consolidate-usps-facilities'A True Danger to the Public Post Office': DeJoy Moves to Consolidate USPS Facilities
Postal union officials are sounding the alarm about the potentially damaging impacts of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's effort to consolidate post offices across the U.S. as part of his widely condemned 10-year plan to reshape the public mail agency.
Government Executive reported Friday that "more than 200 post offices and other U.S. Postal Service facilities are set to shed some of their operations as soon as this year as the mailing agency seeks to consolidate those functions at larger buildings, according to documents shared by management."
"The changes will mean letter carriers no longer go to their local facility to pick up mail for their route, instead traveling farther distances after starting at a consolidated location. The impacted post offices will still conduct their retail operations, but many of the back-end functions will be stripped away and relocated," the outlet noted. "The impacted sites are located in Georgia, New York, Texas, Florida, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, West Virginia, Kentucky, Washington, North Carolina, Indiana, and Arkansas. The initial consolidations are expected to begin as soon as next month."
Unions representing postal workers have accused USPS management of keeping them in the dark about the consolidation plan, an integral component of DeJoy's strategy for the next decade.
Charlie Cash, the industrial relations director at the 200,000-member American Postal Workers Union (APWU), wrote in a message to members on Thursday that "we do not know much more than what is already published in the public domain."
Cash said that he and other APWU leaders spoke with postal management last month "in what we thought was a meeting to discuss the 'mega-plants'" that DeJoy—a Trump donor and former logistics executive—is seeking to establish as alternatives to smaller postal facilities spread out across the nation.
"Instead we were ambushed with the [Sortation and Delivery Center] concept," Cash continued, referring to DeJoy's strategy. "We voiced various concerns, especially on the timeline and how we were not given an opportunity for input."
…more…
August 27, 2022
Nicole Mann says she is proud to be first Native American woman in space
Aug 26 (Reuters) - Nicole Aunapu Mann has waited nine long years for her chance to go into space.
And if all goes according to plan, that wait will end on Oct. 03, when she will lead NASA's Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station.
"It has been a long journey, but it's been so well worth it," Mann told Reuters on Friday.
…
Mann, a member of the Wailacki of the Round Valley Indian Tribes in Northern California, says that her upcoming mission has sparked excitement in her community.
…more…
Nicole Mann says she is proud to be first Native American woman in space
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/nicole-mann-says-she-is-proud-be-first-native-american-woman-space-2022-08-26/Nicole Mann says she is proud to be first Native American woman in space
Aug 26 (Reuters) - Nicole Aunapu Mann has waited nine long years for her chance to go into space.
And if all goes according to plan, that wait will end on Oct. 03, when she will lead NASA's Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station.
"It has been a long journey, but it's been so well worth it," Mann told Reuters on Friday.
…
Mann, a member of the Wailacki of the Round Valley Indian Tribes in Northern California, says that her upcoming mission has sparked excitement in her community.
…more…
August 26, 2022
Rhode Island students sued for the right to civics lessons. Now they will ensure others benefit
This article was originally published at Prism.
On June 15, 2022, Rhode Island’s Department of Education reached an agreement with the plaintiffs of a class action lawsuit filed by parents and students claiming the state’s public schools had violated their constitutional rights by failing to adequately prepare students to be active and productive civic participants in society.
Cook v. McKee made its way through state courts and eventually to the First Circuit Court of Appeals over four years before being dismissed on the basis that civics education was not considered a constitutional right. The agreement will enable the 14 students named in the lawsuit, most of whom are now adults, to work with education officials in creating a task force that will help implement a civics curriculum throughout the state.
Up until the resolution, Rhode Island was one of 11 states that did not require any kind of civics education. At its core, civics education aims to teach citizens about their rights and responsibilities within government and society. In a classroom setting, students learn how governments function, which rights are awarded to individuals under the law, and how to participate in civic processes like sitting on a jury or voting for political candidates. Now, the student plaintiffs hope others will benefit from their efforts to renew interest in a crucial but long-neglected subject.
In 2018, 14 minors living in Rhode Island, most of them students of color or from immigrant backgrounds who attended the state’s public schools and ranging in age from 6 months to late teens, sued the state’s governor, education commissioner, and other state officials.
…more…
Rhode Island students sued for the right to civics lessons. Now they will ensure others benefit
https://m.dailykos.com/stories/2022/8/20/2117036/-Rhode-Island-students-sued-for-the-right-to-civics-lessons-Now-they-will-ensure-others-benefit?detail=emaildkre&pm_source=DKRE&pm_medium=emailRhode Island students sued for the right to civics lessons. Now they will ensure others benefit
This article was originally published at Prism.
On June 15, 2022, Rhode Island’s Department of Education reached an agreement with the plaintiffs of a class action lawsuit filed by parents and students claiming the state’s public schools had violated their constitutional rights by failing to adequately prepare students to be active and productive civic participants in society.
Cook v. McKee made its way through state courts and eventually to the First Circuit Court of Appeals over four years before being dismissed on the basis that civics education was not considered a constitutional right. The agreement will enable the 14 students named in the lawsuit, most of whom are now adults, to work with education officials in creating a task force that will help implement a civics curriculum throughout the state.
Up until the resolution, Rhode Island was one of 11 states that did not require any kind of civics education. At its core, civics education aims to teach citizens about their rights and responsibilities within government and society. In a classroom setting, students learn how governments function, which rights are awarded to individuals under the law, and how to participate in civic processes like sitting on a jury or voting for political candidates. Now, the student plaintiffs hope others will benefit from their efforts to renew interest in a crucial but long-neglected subject.
In 2018, 14 minors living in Rhode Island, most of them students of color or from immigrant backgrounds who attended the state’s public schools and ranging in age from 6 months to late teens, sued the state’s governor, education commissioner, and other state officials.
…more…
August 26, 2022
He challenged his all-white city council in Alabama. Now he’s on it
Eric Calhoun, a Black resident who sued Pleasant Grove’s discriminatory voting system in 2018, was sworn in as council member on Monday
A few years ago, Eric Calhoun felt out of touch with his city council in Pleasant Grove, a small Alabama city of just under 10,000 people outside of Birmingham.
Calhoun, who is 71 and has lived in the city for nearly three decades, couldn’t find contact information for any of the five council members online. During the 2016 election, none of the white candidates running asked him for his vote. Voters in the city had never elected a Black person to the city council. Calhoun, like 61% of the city, is Black.
In 2018, Calhoun became a plaintiff in a federal lawsuit that argued the racial makeup of the city council in Pleasant Grove was not an accident. The way the city was choosing its city council candidates made nearly impossible for a Black candidate to get elected. Essentially, the city allowed city council candidates to run citywide, instead of in districts, allowing blocs of white voters in the city to come together and defeat candidates preferred by Black voters.
…
This fall, the US supreme court will hear a hugely consequential redistricting case involving Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act – the part of the law that Calhoun sued Pleasant Grove under. The provision prohibits racial discrimination in voting practices, but the 6-3 conservative majority on the court has signaled deep skepticism of the provision and appears poised to narrow it.
…more…
He challenged his all-white city council in Alabama. Now he's on it
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/aug/25/alabama-pleasant-grove-city-council-black-majorityHe challenged his all-white city council in Alabama. Now he’s on it
Eric Calhoun, a Black resident who sued Pleasant Grove’s discriminatory voting system in 2018, was sworn in as council member on Monday
A few years ago, Eric Calhoun felt out of touch with his city council in Pleasant Grove, a small Alabama city of just under 10,000 people outside of Birmingham.
Calhoun, who is 71 and has lived in the city for nearly three decades, couldn’t find contact information for any of the five council members online. During the 2016 election, none of the white candidates running asked him for his vote. Voters in the city had never elected a Black person to the city council. Calhoun, like 61% of the city, is Black.
In 2018, Calhoun became a plaintiff in a federal lawsuit that argued the racial makeup of the city council in Pleasant Grove was not an accident. The way the city was choosing its city council candidates made nearly impossible for a Black candidate to get elected. Essentially, the city allowed city council candidates to run citywide, instead of in districts, allowing blocs of white voters in the city to come together and defeat candidates preferred by Black voters.
…
This fall, the US supreme court will hear a hugely consequential redistricting case involving Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act – the part of the law that Calhoun sued Pleasant Grove under. The provision prohibits racial discrimination in voting practices, but the 6-3 conservative majority on the court has signaled deep skepticism of the provision and appears poised to narrow it.
…more…
August 24, 2022
Yes, slavery is on the ballot in some states
By Marsha Mercer
Stateline.org
More than 150 years after it was officially outlawed in the United States, slavery will be on the ballot in five states in November, as a new abolitionist movement seeks to reshape prison labor.
Voters in Alabama, Louisiana, Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont will decide on state constitutional amendments prohibiting slavery and involuntary servitude, in some cases except for work by incarcerated people. Advocates say the amendments are needed to strip antiquated language from state constitutions and to potentially transform the criminal justice system by making all work in prisons voluntary.
Three states — Colorado, Nebraska and Utah — have approved similar ballot initiatives since 2018.
“This is the crown jewel of criminal justice reform,” said Curtis Ray Davis II, who served 25 years for second-degree murder in the Louisiana State Penitentiary known as Angola and is campaigning for the amendment in Louisiana following his experiences in incarceration.
“Most people believed it was impossible to get the amendment on the ballot in Louisiana, but Louisiana and America should not be in the business of legalized slavery,” he said in an interview.
…more…
Yes, slavery is on the ballot in some states
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2022/aug/23/yes-slavery-is-on-the-ballot-in-some-states/Yes, slavery is on the ballot in some states
By Marsha Mercer
Stateline.org
More than 150 years after it was officially outlawed in the United States, slavery will be on the ballot in five states in November, as a new abolitionist movement seeks to reshape prison labor.
Voters in Alabama, Louisiana, Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont will decide on state constitutional amendments prohibiting slavery and involuntary servitude, in some cases except for work by incarcerated people. Advocates say the amendments are needed to strip antiquated language from state constitutions and to potentially transform the criminal justice system by making all work in prisons voluntary.
Three states — Colorado, Nebraska and Utah — have approved similar ballot initiatives since 2018.
“This is the crown jewel of criminal justice reform,” said Curtis Ray Davis II, who served 25 years for second-degree murder in the Louisiana State Penitentiary known as Angola and is campaigning for the amendment in Louisiana following his experiences in incarceration.
“Most people believed it was impossible to get the amendment on the ballot in Louisiana, but Louisiana and America should not be in the business of legalized slavery,” he said in an interview.
…more…
August 21, 2022
Meta/Facebook flees progressive conference after protests erupt over the company's conservatism
…
Attendees and 101.1 The Wiz radio station revealed that the Facebook Users Union organizers attacked the company's signs with their own, attacking them for collecting private and sensitive data from those seeking abortions.
…
At the same time, Facebook has allowed fake pharmaceutical producers to offer "abortion pill reversal" drugs, Media Matters reported.
…
A 2021 analysis by The Washington Post revealed that the site gives an advantage to conservatives on the platform. Facebook says that the right-wing is just better at stoking fears and responses than progressives. The reality is that Facebook has allowed false information to stand from conservative sources. While there are supposed to be protections in place to stop fake news, it typically takes so long for the review and removal that the story has already spread across the platform. As a result, the top 25 posts on Facebook are very rarely from Democratic sources.
Late last year, a Facebook whistleblower told Congress "she studied how the social network's algorithm amplified misinformation and was exploited by foreign adversaries."
…more…
Meta/Facebook flees progressive conference after protests erupt over the company's conservatism
https://www.rawstory.com/meta-facebook-flees-netroots-nation/Meta/Facebook flees progressive conference after protests erupt over the company's conservatism
…
Attendees and 101.1 The Wiz radio station revealed that the Facebook Users Union organizers attacked the company's signs with their own, attacking them for collecting private and sensitive data from those seeking abortions.
…
At the same time, Facebook has allowed fake pharmaceutical producers to offer "abortion pill reversal" drugs, Media Matters reported.
…
A 2021 analysis by The Washington Post revealed that the site gives an advantage to conservatives on the platform. Facebook says that the right-wing is just better at stoking fears and responses than progressives. The reality is that Facebook has allowed false information to stand from conservative sources. While there are supposed to be protections in place to stop fake news, it typically takes so long for the review and removal that the story has already spread across the platform. As a result, the top 25 posts on Facebook are very rarely from Democratic sources.
Late last year, a Facebook whistleblower told Congress "she studied how the social network's algorithm amplified misinformation and was exploited by foreign adversaries."
…more…
August 20, 2022
Nuclear waste ravaged their land. The Yakama Nation is on a quest to rescue it
A generation after it was decommissioned, tribal members are still working to clean up the Hanford nuclear site, one of the most contaminated spots in the US
by Hallie Golden
More than 500 sq miles large and ringed by rocky mountains, the decommissioned nuclear production site is considered one of the most contaminated places in North America.
It also sits on the ancestral lands of the Yakama Nation and other Indigenous peoples in Washington state. Here, precious wildlife, vision quest sites and burial grounds lie side-by-side with signs reading “warning hazardous area” and towering nuclear reactors, some of which date back to the second world war.
…
During its lifespan, hundreds of billions of gallons of liquid waste were dumped in underground storage tanks or simply straight into the ground. After the site’s nine nuclear reactors were shut down by 1987, about 56m gallons of radioactive waste were left behind in 177 large underground tanks – two of which are currently leaking – alongside a deeply scarred landscape.
…
In the past decade, it was also discovered that hundreds of gallons of highly radioactive waste have been leaking from two Hanford tanks, threatening the Columbia River.
…more…
Nuclear waste ravaged their land. The Yakama Nation is on a quest to rescue it
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/aug/20/yakama-nation-nuclear-waste-cleanupNuclear waste ravaged their land. The Yakama Nation is on a quest to rescue it
A generation after it was decommissioned, tribal members are still working to clean up the Hanford nuclear site, one of the most contaminated spots in the US
by Hallie Golden
More than 500 sq miles large and ringed by rocky mountains, the decommissioned nuclear production site is considered one of the most contaminated places in North America.
It also sits on the ancestral lands of the Yakama Nation and other Indigenous peoples in Washington state. Here, precious wildlife, vision quest sites and burial grounds lie side-by-side with signs reading “warning hazardous area” and towering nuclear reactors, some of which date back to the second world war.
…
During its lifespan, hundreds of billions of gallons of liquid waste were dumped in underground storage tanks or simply straight into the ground. After the site’s nine nuclear reactors were shut down by 1987, about 56m gallons of radioactive waste were left behind in 177 large underground tanks – two of which are currently leaking – alongside a deeply scarred landscape.
…
In the past decade, it was also discovered that hundreds of gallons of highly radioactive waste have been leaking from two Hanford tanks, threatening the Columbia River.
…more…
August 19, 2022
Seal breaks into New Zealand home, traumatises cat and hangs out on couch
A curious young seal has been returned to the sea after breaking into a New Zealand home, harassing the resident cat, hanging about in the hallway for a couple of hours while the children slept upstairs, and miraculously ruining nothing.
The Ross family of Mt Maunganui were more than a little surprised to find the New Zealand fur seal in their home, which is about 150m from the shore, on Wednesday morning.
Phil Ross, who happens to be a marine biologist, said it was unfortunate he was the only one not home at the time.
…more…
Seal breaks into New Zealand home, traumatises cat and hangs out on couch
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/aug/19/seal-breaks-into-new-zealand-home-traumatises-cat-and-hangs-out-on-couchSeal breaks into New Zealand home, traumatises cat and hangs out on couch
A curious young seal has been returned to the sea after breaking into a New Zealand home, harassing the resident cat, hanging about in the hallway for a couple of hours while the children slept upstairs, and miraculously ruining nothing.
The Ross family of Mt Maunganui were more than a little surprised to find the New Zealand fur seal in their home, which is about 150m from the shore, on Wednesday morning.
Phil Ross, who happens to be a marine biologist, said it was unfortunate he was the only one not home at the time.
…more…
August 19, 2022
Riley Williams, accused of stealing Nancy Pelosi's laptop, released ...
TodayPITTSBURGH (KDKA) — A judge agreed to allow the woman accused of stealing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's laptop to attend the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire in Manheim this weekend.
Pelosi laptop thief allowed to go to Renaissance fair
https://www.cbsnews.com › pittsburgh › news › riley-williams-nancy-pelosi-laptop-house-arrest-attend-pennsylvania-renaissance-faireRiley Williams, accused of stealing Nancy Pelosi's laptop, released ...
TodayPITTSBURGH (KDKA) — A judge agreed to allow the woman accused of stealing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's laptop to attend the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire in Manheim this weekend.
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