Kim Kalliber, Author at Tulalip News

Veteran NASA Climate Scientist James Hansen Leaves Government to Fight Climate Change and Keystone XL

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

The Keystone XL pipeline is in James Hansen’s sights as the famed climate scientist retires from NASA, where he has worked for more than 40 years, in order to spread the message about climate change full-time.

The veteran scientist, who has been arrested at least four times at rallies against the Keystone XL oil pipeline project, will step down this week, NASA said in a statement on April 1. For the past 46 years Hansen has worked at the agency’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York City, from which perch he has spread the word about the changing climate and its effect on future generations. He has headed the institute since 1981.

“His departure … will deprive federally sponsored climate research of its best-known public figure,” The New York Times reported, but added, “At 72, he said, he feels a moral obligation to step up his activism in his remaining years.”

He has already done plenty during his years at NASA, including testifying before Congress and predicting many of the changes that are taking place today. In fact, as The Washington Post reports, he was among the first to warn Congress, back in 1988, that greenhouse gases threatened to cook the Earth, in testimony that “was one of the first and clearest public statements on global warming.”

“It is time to stop waffling so much and say that the evidence is pretty strong that the greenhouse effect is here,” he told Congress then, according to The Washington Post. He also predicted ice melt, cautioned that the risks of sea-level rise were being underestimated by science, and said that the international community is not adequately addressing climate change. Most recently he has been extremely outspoken against further development in the Alberta oil sands of Canada, particularly the Keystone XL pipeline that is under review by the U.S. government and opposed by many tribes.

To do this he “plans to take a more active role in lawsuits challenging the federal and state governments” for not issuing stricter emissions standards and for the governments’ support of extracting sludgy bituminous crude from the Alberta oil sands in Canada, The New York Times said.

“If we burn even a substantial fraction of the fossil fuels, we guarantee there’s going to be unstoppable changes,” Hansen told The New York Times, warning of a tipping point for Earth. “We’re going to leave a situation for young people and future generations that they may have no way to deal with.”

Aboriginal Language Gets Official Status in Nunavut, Canada

Source: Indian Country today Media Network

As of April 1, Inuktitut became an official language of Nunavut, putting it on par with English and French in the territory.

“This level of statutory protection for an aboriginal language is unprecedented in Canada,” said the Government of Nunavut’s Department of Culture and Heritage in an April 2 news release.

The passage of the Official Languages Act has been five years in the making. This act takes the place of the Northwest Territories Official Languages Act, which recognized only English and French as official languages. The older act did give “a lesser set of rights to seven aboriginal languages, including Inuktitut,” according to Uqausivut, a comprehensive language plan. But, as the plan points out, “This does not reflect the realities of Nunavut, where a majority of people speak neither English nor French as their first language, but a single Aboriginal language.”

To help support public agencies in becoming compliant with the new act, the Department of Culture and Heritage will provide $5 million for Inuit language initiatives.

“I am proud that Inuit in Nunavut now have a clear statement of their inherent right to the use of the Inuit language in full equality with English and French,” said James Arreak, Minister of Languages, in the press release.

Marysville/Tulalip Relay events kick off April 6

By Kirk Boxleitner, The Marysville Globe

MARYSVILLE — Before the Marysville/Tulalip Relay For Life returns to Asbery Field on June 29-30, Relay teams and organizers are offering the community a cavalcade of activities and opportunities to contribute, starting with the “Team Captain Experience” event on Saturday, April 6, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Stillaguamish Senior Center.

“The American Cancer Society is passionate about giving tools and information to our Relay teams to help them be successful,” said Stephani Earling, community relationship manager for the Great West Division of the ACS. “This event is designed specifically for Relay team captains, and will include powerful information about the latest in the fight against cancer, tips to make the biggest personal impact you can, networking opportunities, food, fun and more.”

Marysville/Tulalip Relay team captains will be joined at the event by those from Arlington, Stanwood, Granite Falls, Lake Stevens and Camano Island who will be treated to a speakers’ panel on the best practices for getting their teams and communities motivated. Earling advised the team captains to RSVP at least a couple of days before the event by logging onto www.relayrumble.org/westernwa.

Earling explained that such measures, to provide an additional push to get folks interested and involved, tie into this year’s Relay theme of “Relay Big,” which is likewise reflected in the Marysville/Tulalip Relay organizers’ goals of recruiting 80 teams to raise $200,000 this year.

“The ACS does a great job of furnishing participants with the tools and resources to conduct successful Relays, but I’ve already seen great energy from Marysville and Tulalip,” Earling said. “These communities’ levels of awareness about cancer research, and the steps that are being taken to fight back, gives me a lot of hope. They’re on an awesome trajectory.”

The Relay activities on Saturday, May 18, aim to keep that momentum going with “Bark For Life,” “Paint the Town Purple” and “Brewin’ Up the Cure.” For the third year, “Bark For Life” will also return to Asbery Field, from 9 a.m. to noon, for a fee of $20 per dog.

“We’re anticipating a great turnout,” Earling said. “Last year, we had about 35 dogs and their owners attend, and we raised more than $4,000.”

Those who are interested in attending the event, starting a team or making a donation can go to http://relay.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/BFLFY12GW?fr_id=46074&pg=entry, or go to www.relayforlife.org and search for “Marysville.”

Earling expressed equal optimism about “Paint the Town Purple,” which gives businesses in the downtown Marysville area the opportunity to decorate their storefronts, in the week leading up to “Bark For Life,” to show support for the Bark and Relay For Life.

“These events are an awesome way for these area businesses to come together for the common cause of bringing awareness to finding a cure for cancer,” said Earling, who elaborated that “Brewin’ Up the Cure” is the coffee stand-specific part of “Paint the Town Purple.” “Each coffee stand will be able not only to decorate their stands, but also to sell little paper stars and moons to their customers, which will be displayed in their windows. All the money raised will go toward the Marysville/Tulalip Relay.”

Earling encouraged participants in both “Paint the Town Purple” and “Brewin’ Up the Cure” to come up with fun and wild decorations and displays, since Relay organizers are framing it as a friendly competition and will be recognizing the businesses who raise the most money and have the best decorations.

In the meantime, Marysville/Tulalip Relay Committee meetings start at 6:30 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month, and Relay team captains meet at 7 p.m. on the second Wednesday of each month, at the Marysville Holiday Inn Express’ banquet room, across the parking lot from the hotel itself.

Everything comes together at Anacortes Salmon Derby

The seventh running of the Anacortes Salmon Derby over the weekend was the best in the event’s history by almost any measure, and arguably one of the top state fishing tournaments, period, in recent memory.

Great weather, no wind, plenty of fish, heavyweight winners, well over a thousand anglers on the water — and always with that incomparable San Juan Island scenery as a backdrop. Very good stuff.

Those who believe that to fish a derby seriously you gotta put herring over the stern had their particular prejudice reinforced by first-place winner (21.52 pounds) Scott Fowler of Burlington. As he accepted his check for $15,000, Fowler said, “We fish bait, and it takes bait to catch big fish.” The herring was plug cut, according to derby board chairman Jay Field, and the fish was caught at Point Lawrence on the derby’s first day.

Second place and $5,000 went to Rich Olson of Everett, whose salmon weighed 19.42 pounds. Jay Murphy of Puyallup was third, winning $2,500 for his 19.1-pound salmon.

Last year’s first-place fish was slightly larger than Fowler’s, at 21.7 pounds, but the 256 total fish weighed was a record for the event and far outclassed 2012’s total of 211 chinook.

Jennifer Payne of Friday Harbor won the Women’s Division, with a 14.69-pound blackmouth, while Seth Baumgarten of Mercer Island nailed the Youth Division, at 16.52 pounds. Field said every youngster entered took home a prize.

There seemed to be no particular hot spot Saturday or Sunday. The catch was pretty well scattered over most of the productive spots, Field said, and even those who managed to camp on the banks before the early-morning ebb took fish.

A new addition to the derby was enthusiastically received, Field said. “GAFFF,” the Great Anacortes Fishing Film Festival, made its debut with home video fishing footage to entertain the 500-plus in attendance.

Winner of the Pro Division was charter owner and radio show host Rob Endsley of Gig Harbor, Wash., and Craig, Alaska. Winner of the Amateur Division was Jim Ramos of Sedro-Woolley, while Steve Chamberlin was voted by the audience as the Silver Horde Anglers’ Choice winner for his geat action footage and sound track.

The derby — a sellout every year — is sponsored by the Fidalgo-San Juan Islands Chapter of Puget Sound Anglers, and proceeds fund scholarships to benefit young adults pursuing careers in fishery management or a related field. The derby has disbursed more than $163,000 in scholarships and grants during the past six years.

Kids’ spring fishing

Put a kid and a fishing rod together and you create a great thing. Toward that end, the Everett Steelhead and Salmon Club, Puget Sound Anglers, has announced its spring schedule of free or low-cost trout fishing events for youth in the Everett area. The events are co-sponsored with other state and local organizations.

First up, April 17, is a kids’ trout fishing class at Silver Lake’s Sullivan Park in south Everett, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The $5 class covers all the basics novice anglers should know to fish trout successfully in our local lakes. For pre-registration call Everett Parks and Recreation at 425-257-8300, ext. 2.

Next is a free kids’ trout pond, April 27-28, at the Evergreen Recreation and Sportsmen’s Expo at Evergreen Fairgrounds in Monroe. Trout left from the event, sponsored by Les Schwab and the Everett Steelhead and Salmon Youth Organization, will be placed in Lake Tye.

May 4 brings the popular kids’ fishing event at Jennings Pond in Marysville’s Jennings Park. It will run from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. Open to youth 5 to 12 years old, fishing is free but sponsors ask that a can of food be donated at the event for a local food bank. There will be a one-fish limit until noon, when it opens to all kids and has a 5-trout limit. The event is co-sponsored by John’s Sporting Goods, Marysville Parks, Kiwanis and others.

May 11 is the Silver Lake kids’ fish-in at Sullivan Park. It runs 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for children ages 4 to 14 years. The event is free this year, but pre-registration with EvParks is required by calling 425-257-8300, ext. 2. There’s a 600-kid limit, and ESSC spokesman Jim Brauch said it will fill up.

On May 18 is the kids’ fishing event at north Gissberg Pond, Twin Lakes County Park, adjacent to the west side of I-5 at Smokey Point, north of Marysville. It’s free, open to ages 5-14, and there’s no registration required. Hours are 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. The Everett Club stocks this one heavily and usually includes a nice scattering of big ‘bows in the 2- to 5-pound class. The North Pond is, by law, open to juveniles only.

Fishing seminars

Cabela’s Tulalip greets the 2013 spring fishing season with a selection of free fishing seminars, presented by local experts. Dates are April 13-14 and times are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Highlights include: Finding fish with Lowrance (Nick Kester); getting into trout fishing (Ryan Bigley); lingcod 101 (Gary Krein); targeting early season kings (Nick Kester); preparing for summer steelhead (Jim and Jennifer Stahl); reading trout water and fly casting for all ages (Federation of Fly Fishers); tuna fishing for the advanced angler; and a fly casting walk-in clinic with the FFF.

While there, check out the 2013 Northwest Salmon Derby Series grand-prize boat/trailer package.

For a full schedule of seminars and other Fishing Classic events, visit www.cabelas.com/tulalip or call 360-474-4880.

Cowlitz River

The fishery for late-run winter steelhead on the Cowlitz has produced pretty well recently. A state creel check last week tallied 45 boat fishermen with 17 steelhead. Bank anglers didn’t fare as well, and only a sprinkling of spring chinook was recorded.

Columbia Basin trout

A bunch of lakes in the Columbia Basin opened to early trout fishing on April 1, and state biologist Chad Jackson in Moses Lake gives a rundown on a few of them:

The Pillar-Widgeon chain, in the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge, should be fair to good for rainbow. North and South Teal, among the “seep lakes” south of Potholes Reservooir were rehabilitated in 2010 and restocked each year since with rainbow fry. Many of those fish will be in the 12-inch range this year and fishing on both lakes should be good.

Dry Falls Lake near Coulee City is a selective-gear “quality” lake which should offer some of the best early-season action in the area, especially for catch and release anglers. It’s a one-fish limit water, but anglers average close to 10 trout per trip when catching and releasing, Jackson said. Most are 12 to 14 inches, but the lake carries a fair percentage of larger trout to 20 inches or better, plus a few brown and tiger trout to spice the mix.

Jackson said Upper and Lower Hampton are always popular, but are suffering from an infestation of nuisance fish and scheduled for rehab this fall. They hold a few large trout for those with the patience to work for them, Jackson said.

County districts will wait and see on charter schools

By Jerry Cornfield, The Herald

We’re getting a clearer idea this week of where Washington’s first charter schools may open, and it’s not likely to be Snohomish County.

A dozen school districts from Sequim to Spokane and Tacoma to Port Townsend told the state Board of Education they’re want to be able to authorize and oversee these publicly funded, privately managed schools.

Though each must still turn in applications, these 12 districts are signaling a desire to get in on the ground floor of this newest venture in education.

None of them is in Snohomish County where 53 percent of the voters backed Initiative 1240 last November even as it seemed like 100 percent of teachers and school board directors did not.

In the county’s larger districts, school leaders are taking a wait-and-see attitude knowing full well they can apply later to become an authorizer. There is concern about time and energy required for overseeing a charter school and the possibility a legal challenge will be filed to delay or derail the law.

“As a board, we discussed charter schools during the election season, and post election, and decided to hold off putting in an application to become an authorizer this year,” said Ann McMurray, president of the Edmonds school board. “We’ll watch to see the experience of other districts in the state.”

Marysville School Board publicly opposed the initiative, and its directors haven’t softened their stand in the five months since the election.

Board president Chris Nation said there are innovative schools in the district, such as the Tenth Street Middle School, which offers a music-based curriculum to 180 students in the sixth, seventh and eighth grades.

“It is not something we pursued or are interested in at this particular time,” he said.

Directors of the Everett Public Schools had not discussed the matter before Monday’s deadline for getting into the initial round.

“We have not had that conversation. We don’t intend to have that conversation in the near future,” said board president Jeff Russell, adding it could come up during planning sessions in August.

All three presidents said administrators and teachers are consumed with mandates to deploy evaluation processes for teachers and principals and implementing new standards in English and math known as Common Core.

“These have a huge and immediate impact on our school community,” McMurray said.

But, Nation said, if somebody did launch a charter school in the district “we would wholeheartedly support them.”

The nine people who could make that happen are on the state Charter School Commission, which meets for the first time today in Olympia.

These are political appointees — three each from the governor, speaker of the House and Senate president — who embrace charter schools and are empowered to authorize them anywhere in the state.

The commission will be competing for business with the school districts as the law only allows up to eight schools a year and a maximum of 40 over five years.

Even if school districts in Snohomish County aren’t rushing to ride the first wave, commissioners might be so inclined if the right charter comes its way.

Coal train traffic to be studied

By Bill Sheets, The Herald

People who oppose a plan that would bring more trains carrying coal through Snohomish County might have one more firearm in their arsenal by next year.

The Puget Sound Regional Council, a regional transportation planning group, has decided to spend up to $100,000 to study the economic effect — particularly with regard to traffic — of more trains running through the central Puget Sound region.

The planning group, headed by a board of 32 elected officials from Snohomish, King, Pierce and Kitsap counties, studies trends and sets priorities for spending of federal transportation dollars in those areas.

The $650 million Gateway Pacific terminal would be built at Cherry Point north of downtown Bellingham. It would generate 4,400 temporary, construction related jobs and 1,200 long-term positions, according to SSA Marine of Seattle, the company proposing the plan.

Those jobs, however, would likely be concentrated in Whatcom County, meaning that if the study focuses on the economic effect of more traffic backups at rail crossings in the affected counties without the benefit of more nearby employment, it’s not likely to paint a pretty picture of the plan.

Everett Mayor Ray Stephanson, a member of the regional council board, said the study would give local officials some hard numbers to bring to the table. A draft environmental study on the plan is expected to begin sometime in 2014. That study is expected to include economic issues.

“An economic analysis on Whatcom County is one thing,” Stephanson said. “This will do an economic analysis for the Puget Sound region, per se.”

Rick Olson, a spokesman for the regional council, acknowledged that the study applies to a proposal outside the regional council’s jurisdiction.

Still, “there are hundreds of at-grade rail crossings in our region,” he said. “We have communities up and down our four county region who are interested in this study.”

The regional council board members’ vote March 28 to approve money for the study was unanimous, Olson said.

This includes the four Snohomish County board members who were present: Stephanson, Snohomish County Councilman Dave Somers, Mukilteo Mayor Joe Marine and Mukilteo City Councilwoman Emily Vanderwielen.

Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon is also on the board but was not present at the meeting, Olson said. In February, Reardon announced his intention to resign as county executive at the end of May. He has yet to submit a resignation letter, however.

The Gateway Pacific terminal would serve as a place to send coal, grain, potash and scrap wood for biofuels to Asia. Trains would bring coal from Montana and Wyoming across Washington state to Seattle and north to Bellingham.

The terminal is expected to generate up to 18 more train trips through Snohomish County per day — nine full and nine empty.

Proponents, including U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, point to job creation. Opponents say the plan could mean long traffic delays at railroad crossings and pollution from coal dust.

Craig Cole, a spokesman for SSA Marine, offered a brief comment on the regional council study.

“Rail is one of the underpinnings of our economy,” along with ports, airports and roads, he said.

Several conservation groups on Tuesday announced plans to sue Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway and several top U.S. coal producers, claiming they spill coal into Washington state waterways in violation of federal law.

Railroad spokeswoman Courtney Wallace, in a written statement, said the lawsuit was without merit.

“BNSF is committed to preventing coal dust from escaping while in transit,” she said.

The approval process for the terminal is expected to take at least a couple of more years. Three different agencies are involved in reviewing the terminal plan: the state Department of Ecology, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Whatcom County.

About 14,000 people registered comments on the proposal at hearings and in writing from September through January. More comments will be taken after the draft environmental study is done and before the final study begins.

Meanwhile, the Puget Sound Regional Council expects to finish its study by next February.

“Our study will help jurisdictions up and down the corridor and individuals in the region communicate on that draft,” Olson said.

The regional council plans to advertise in May for a consultant to do the economic study.

Herald writer Noah Haglund and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Toothtastic Dental Camp at Tulalip

Join the Society of American Indian Dentists, UW School of Dentistry and the Tulalip Tribes for a dental career exploration day for middle and high school students

Saturday, June 1, 2013 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., Tulalip Tribes Gymnasium

Pechanga.net To Host First iGaming Conference

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

Native news site Pechanga.net is hosting its first conference dedicated to iGaming for Indian tribes. “Indian Country Online: The 2013 Congress” will take place June 3-4 at Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, California. Live registration is now available at www.indiancountryonline.net, and Pechanga.net is encouraging tribal leaders and gaming professionals to sign up now for “what is sure to be a transformative event in the history of tribal gaming.”

The conference will be co-presented by Pechanga.net and Spectrum Gaming Group, a gaming research and analysis firm. The one-day event, themed “No Tribe Left Behind,” will take a comprehensive look at the next wave of business opportunities that technology, e-commerce, and iGaming will create for the tribes and entrepreneurs of Indian country, states Pechanga.net. Industry experts will detail how to navigate the technological, financial and regulatory challenges facing tribes as they go online.

“I felt there was an urgent need for us to look beyond the current debate on online gaming and focus on the entire industry, including the myriad of business opportunities that will be created by iGaming and e-commerce,” said Victor Rocha, owner of Pechanga.net. “Creating this conference is my way of pulling back the curtains and demonstrating that every tribe in the country can have a role and an opportunity to benefit in some real and direct way. No tribe should be left behind!”

“With the prospect of online wagering, tribal councils face a combination of opportunities and challenges, along with a cacophony of opinions, interpretations, and legislative issues,” said Michael Pollock, managing director of Spectrum Gaming Group. “This conference has been structured to cut through the noise, identify the opportunities and chart some realistic pathways.”

A complete conference agenda and sponsorship opportunities will be available in coming weeks.

Feature Film About Life of a Pow Wow Fancy Dancer Begins Filming This Summer

By Scott Barta, Indian Country Today Media Network

The first of its kind Hollywood film about American Indian life on the pow wow circuit is tentatively set to begin filming this July. The story will follow the life of a young men’s fancy dance contestant who travels and competes at pow wows held in Native communities across the Plains and Southwest. The production entitled, Dance Hard, is a behind-the-scenes look at pow-wow life and will take approximately four weeks to film. The film project will be employing local tradespeople and casting and lead actors and extras from among fresh, new local talent from many states, including New Mexico, South Dakota, and Montana, as well as Canada.

The writer, producer, and director of the project is Megan Clare Johnson, owner of the film production company Mama Simba Films, based in Los Angeles. She recently finished directing and producing a feature film she wrote called Stealing Roses, a comedy/drama about a couple struggling in a health care crisis. The film stars actors John Heard and Cindy Williams and is to be released ilater this year. Joining Johnson is producer Steve Beswick of POV Pictures, also based in Los Angeles.. Beswick is known for his work on the films The Hole, Starship Troopers 3, and Legion.

“We are extremely pleased to be the first filmmakers to cover such an amazing and thrilling American Indian art form and bring it into the living rooms and theaters of the American people.” said Beswick. “We will be employing local talent and featuring new faces on the big screen who are from the reservations in and near the states of New Mexico, South Dakota and Montana.”

The fancy dance is a most vibrant and crowd-pleasing category, featuring remarkably athletic and agile dancers who not only keep perfect beat but also can stop with the drum at anytime the singers decide to stop the beat. Three or more consecutive songs, lasting four minutes in length, are often sung for the fancy dancers so that selected judges can decide which order to place the winners based upon their talent, performance and overall dance aura.

In the film, an indigenous young man and his adopted non-Indian, Caucasian brother leave their Indian reservation and travel the country trying to make money for college as they compete in the summer pow wow dance competitions. On the road they confront relationships, bigotry, love and the different paths each must take.The film will also highlight reservation basketball (“rez ball”), as the two play and attend various games during their travels.

The producers are excited to be working with an expert and primary consultant on pow wows, Norman Roach, who hails from the Cheyenne River Reservation in South Dakota.

Roach was a fancy dance champion as a junior boy (ages 7-12), a teen (ages 13-17), and as an adult. He was a dancer and choreographer for years with the American Indian Dance Theater group that traveled the United States and numerous foreign countries sharing the various dances of Native nations. Roach was featured in the PBS Dance in America series and also in the American Indian Dance Theater production of Finding the Circle.

“I am honored to provide consultation for the making of this important film that will reveal to the citizens of the United States what magnificent talent and culture exists just outside their doors upon this Great Turtle Island.” said Roach, who is also an accomplished flute player and hoop dancer.

Norman Roach

Roach is also known for his successful three-year direction of the only major pow wow to be held within the sacred Black Hills, the heart and center of the Lakota Nation and peoples. The NAHA Pow Wow brought in many champion dancers and drums to gorunds just south of Rapid City, South Dakota. Roach was also instrumental in the founding of the Gathering of Nations Pow Wow, the largest in North America held each year in April in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Roach is joined as a consultant by Robert “Tree” Cody, an enrolled member of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community from Arizona, currently residing in Big Bear, California. Tree, given the name due to his 6′ 10” frame, is an expert flute player, winning Grammy award nominations and Native American Music Awards during his career. Cody has been a pow wow dancer since 1958 in fancy (believed to be the world’s tallest fancy dancer) and other categories.

Robert “Tree” Cody, master Native American flute player

Cody was featured playing his flute in an episode of the PBS series Reading Rainbow, entitled “The Gift of the Sacred Dog,” which was based on the book by Paul Goble. It was filmed at Montana’s Crow Reservation on June 17, 1983. He has released many albums with Canyon Records and has toured throughout the Americas, Europe, and East Asia. He performed the traditional carved wooden flute on several tracks of The Rippingtons’s 1999 album Topaz. His resume also includes a performance with Xavier Quijas Yxayotl, a master of Mayan and Aztec music, for the 2000 album Crossroads. Cody is also an excellent singer and pow-wow drummer. Both he and Roach have been on the pow wow “trail” since the late 1950s.

“Mr. Roach and Mr. Cody are essential for the success of this production.” said Johnson. “With their knowledge and expertise the story to be portrayed will undoubtedly be most authentic and appropriate, sharing on the screen such a rich and beautiful way of life.”

To learn more about the Dance Hard film project, click here.

Judge: Urban Outfitters Case Can Continue

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

A couple of the products Urban Outfitters sold using the Navajo name.

A federal judge has ruled that the Navajo Nation’s lawsuit against Urban Outfitters can proceed.

Senior U.S. District Judge LeRoy Hansen filed an order on March 26 stating that the court is still considering allegations by the Navajo Nation against the retailer. However, as a report from the Farmington Daily-Times has noted, the court has dismissed some elements of the lawsuit.

The lawsuit stems from Urban Outfitters’ use of the terms Navajo and Navaho in referring to products not made by the Navajo Nation. Court documents said that “The Navajo Nation alleges in its Amended Complaint that it and its members have been known by the name ‘Navajo’ since at least 1849, have continuously used the NAVAJO trademark in commerce, and have made the NAVAJO name and trademarks famous with numerous products.”

The claims dismissed by the court were those that condemned the merchandise itself as “derogatory, scandalous, and contrary to the Navajo Nation’s principles” and labeled the alternate spelling “Navaho” as “scandalous.” The products that precipitated the lawsuit, which were re-labeled or pulled from stores altogether, included the “Navajo Hipster Panty” and the “Navajo Print Fabric Wrapped Flask.”

The Daily-Times adds that the Navajo Nation has until the end of the week to file a revised amended complaint.