From #MaineMorningStar: Governor, #Maine Democratic Party on Health Care, Immigration Enforcement, Housing, Energy, Taxes, #TribalSovereignty

"Tribal Sovereignty

What is your position on tribal sovereignty?

#ShennaBellows (D)
Shenna Bellows supports restoring full sovereignty to the #WabanakiNations.

#TroyJackson (D)
Troy Jackson supports restoring full sovereignty to the #WabanakiNations, a position reflected in his legislative record. Despite the setbacks, he said he is proud that Maine was able to pass laws to support economic development, improve access to clean drinking water, recognize the exclusive jurisdiction of tribal courts, and enshrine protections for Wabanaki children and their families into state law.

#AngusKingIII (D)
No response. [NO SURPRISE!]

#HannahPingree (D)
Hannah Pingree supports restoring full sovereignty to the Wabanaki Nations and believes the Wabanaki Nations deserve the same rights and opportunities as every other federally recognized tribe. She said she has partnered with Tribal leaders and governments on issues like climate resilience and clean energy, and she would work to expand collaboration on economic development, health care, infrastructure, natural resources, and environmental protection.

#NiravShah (D)
Nirav Shah supports restoring full sovereignty to the Wabanaki Nations. At the Maine CDC, Shah said he worked side by side with #WabanakiLeaders, including on #PFAS and #EnvironmentalThreats, and saw firsthand that our state does its best work when it listens first and #collaborates with the Tribes in good faith and in true partnership.

Read more:
https://mainemorningstar.com/voter-guides/contests/2026-gubernatorial-democratic-primary/#issue-tribal-sovereignty

#MaineGovernor #MainePol #Elections2026 #TribalRights #Wabanakik #WabanakiSovereignty
#LandBack #Dawnland #MaineSettlementAct #WaterIsLife #WabanakiConfederacy

Answer: "No."

Most #CriticalMinerals are on #IndigenousLands. Will miners respect #TribalSovereignty?

by Taylar Dawn Stagner, March 26, 2025

"#Mining — whether for #FossilFuels or, increasingly, the critical minerals in high demand today — has a long history of perpetuating violence against #IndigenousPeople. Forcibly removing tribal communities to get to natural resources tied to their homelands has been the rule, not the exception, for centuries.

"Today, more than half of the mineral deposits needed for a global energy transition — including #lithium, #cobalt, #copper, and #nickel to make things like #batteries and #SolarPanels — are found near or beneath Indigenous lands.

"In 2007, the United Nations adopted a resolution called the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples [#UNDRIP] that included the right to free, prior, and informed consent to the use of their lands, a concept known as #FPIC. This principle protects #IndigenousPeoples from being forcibly relocated, provides suitable avenues for redress of past injustices, and gives tribes and communities the right to consent to — and the right to refuse — #extractive industry projects like #mining.

"There’s a lot at stake: When followed, FPIC promises a process that gives Indigenous peoples a voice in how their homelands are used, as well as the right to say no to development altogether. And when it’s not, which is the vast majority of the time, #TribalCommunities are further #disenfranchised, facing #violence and #ForcedRelocation as their #sovereignty and rights are ignored.

"There are an estimated 5,000 tribal communities around the world, encompassing roughly 476 million people across 90 countries, according to the U.N. Different tribes have different opinions on mining, but rarely is their legal right to refuse extraction projects recognized, even under the 2007 declaration.

"Grist talked with five experts to better understand what free, prior, and informed consent should look like in this new era of mineral extraction. Their responses have been edited for length and clarity."

Read more:
https://ictnews.org/news/most-critical-minerals-are-on-indigenous-lands-will-miners-respect-tribal-sovereignty/

#CanPol #CanadaPol #BigOilAndGas #LandBack #IndigenousSovereignty #TribalSovereignty #LithiumMining #RecycleLithium #LithiumAlternatives #RecycleCopper

#WabanakiAlliance: Spring 2026 Update

by #MaulianBryant, #PenobscotNation Citizen
March 27, 2026

"We want to share some of the powerful stories highlighting our work since January. From the halls of the State House to #Maliseet homelands in #HoultonME, the movement for #Wabanaki #sovereignty is growing stronger every day.

Advocacy in Action
We recently held a Lobby Day focused on two critical pieces of legislation:

#LD785: Restoring tribal self-government.
#LD395: Ensuring #WabanakiNations have access to future federal laws.

The bills have since been amended and, while they do not represent the original form, the Chiefs agreed the amendment from the governor’s office provided for incremental but important movement forward.

[...]

We remain committed to ensuring that people across our homelands now called Maine understand why it is vital that Wabanaki Nations are no longer treated differently than the other 570+ federally recognized tribes."

Read more:
https://mailchi.mp/wabanakialliance/wabanaki-alliance-newsletter-11040921?e=7e7095a76c

#IndigenousSovereignty #Dawnland #MainePol #NativeAmericanNews #MaineLegislation #MaineSettlementAct #TribalSovereignty #LandBack

Documentary Review: “Hacking at Leaves” traces America’s journey from colonial past to present through the Navajo Nation

This is a film that brings together the hacker ethos of radical collaboration, America's colonial past, and COVID-19 to paint a portrait of a country still reckoning with what it has done and what it continues to do.

https://www.nwprogressive.org/weblog/2026/03/documentary-review-hacking-at-leaves-traces-americas-journey-from-colonial-past-to-present-through-the-navajo-nation.html

#CriticalInfrastructure #Film #IndigenousPeoples #TribalSovereignty

Well, well... It seems #JanetMills is feeling the heat since #GrahamPlatner has made it very clear that he supports #Maine's #FirstNations!

#WabanakiNations, Mills are finding common ground

In the final chapter of the governor’s administration, she and tribal leaders are making progress on tribal priorities

Reuben M. Schafir, February 19, 2026

AUGUSTA — "#Wabanaki tribal leaders, state lawmakers and Gov. Janet Mills might not be entirely on the same page. But they’re reading the same book.

"Lawmakers on the Judiciary Committee heard from tribal leaders and their allies Thursday during a hearing on two bills that address the applicability of #FederalIndianLaw in Maine.

"Statements made by tribal chiefs and Mills’ representative hint at a tone shift in the ongoing dialogue between the tribes and the governor.

"Both bills are sponsored by Sen. #RachelTalbotRoss, D-Portland, and would make federal Indian law broadly applicable to the Wabanaki Nations. #LD785 would also make other changes recommended in 2020 by a task force of lawmakers and tribal leaders, including repealing restrictions on tribal land acquisition and the expansion of tribal authority over hunting and fishing on their lands."

https://www.pressherald.com/2026/02/19/wabanaki-nations-mills-are-finding-common-ground/

Archived version:
https://archive.md/GVfKa

#MainePol #MaineTribes #LandBack #FederalRecognition #TribalSovereignty #NativeAmericanNews #Sovereignty

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜’𝗺 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴: "𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗪𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗺𝗮𝗻" 𝗯𝘆 𝗟𝗼𝘂𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗘𝗿𝗱𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵 -

I've never done anything but love my experiences with Erdrich's words and worlds. And somehow, this one slipped past me. Maybe, even, worth a 𝘓𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘕𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘴 podcast episode later this week?

#books #tbr #tbrpile #tbrlist #louiseerdrich #thenightwatchman #fiction #novel #indigenousliterature #IndianTerminationAct #TribalSovereignty #Dispossession #Assimilation #ojibwaliterature

#RedLakeAnishinaabe in #Minnesota Prohibit #ICE Without Court Order: 'Ashamed and Disgusted' with Violation of Rights

By #BrendaNorrell, #CensoredNews, Jan. 28, 2026

"The #RedLake Tribal Council passed a resolution prohibiting Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers from entering the Red Lake Nation unless they have a specific court order signed by a judge with jurisdiction to sign such an order.

"The resolution says the Tribal Council has been watching ICE actions in Minnesota and is 'ashamed and disgusted at the obvious violations of constitutional rights directed at United States citizens by ICE officers.'

"The Tribal Council members being made aware of a #LeechLake band member being apprehended in the Walker area. They suspect that it is just a matter of time before ICE officers attempt to enter the Red Lake Nation.

"The resolution also prohibits ICE's 'fishing expeditions' on its land."

Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2026/01/red-lake-anishinaabe-in-minnesota.html

#ICESucks #NativeAmericans
#NativeAmericanNews #ICEOut #KristiNoem #ICEOutForGood #FirstNations #IndigenousNews
#TribalSovereignty #NativeAmericansAreAmericans

#CheyenneRiver #LakotaNation Bans #ICE in #SouthDakota

By #CheyenneRiverLakota Chairman #RymanLeBeau, via #CensoredNews, Jan. 18, 2026

"Hau Relatives,

By resolution at the January 16, 2026 Special Session Council approved to ban ICE from entering the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation.

We will defend our #sovereignty and protect our community always. #Lakota #Oyate have always been here. #StayWarm, #StaySafe. Anpetu washte yuha po. Hechetu."

Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2026/01/cheyenne-river-lakota-nation-bans-ice.html

#ICESucks #NativeAmericans #ICEOut #KristiNoem #KrustiGnome #ICEOutForGood #FirstNations #IndigenousNews #TribalSovereignty #NativeAmericansAreAmericans