Tulalip News

Robert Miles fills the stat sheet in Hawks 62-47 win over Lopez Island

by Micheal Rios, Tulalip News

The Tulalip Heritage Hawks (6-2) hosted the Lopez Island Lobos (0-6) on Tuesday January 6, 2015. These two teams last played December 17, 2014 at Lopez Island, where the Hawks won 63-35 in a convincing fashion. The Hawks were on a 4 game winning streak until losing 53-57 at Three Rivers Christian on Saturday January 3, and wanted to get back to their winning ways in a hurry.

The Hawks came out looking to make an early statement by playing a full-court defense and making sure every Lobos shot was contested. Their defense forced the Lobos into committing six turnovers on their first nine possessions. The Hawks turned those Lobos turnovers into transition buckets, going on an 11-2 run to open the game. The 3-ball was falling early as center Robert Miles, point guard Jesse Louie and guard Ayrik Miranda each made a 3-pointer during the run. The Lobos were able to successfully break the Hawks’ press a couple times in their next two possessions that led to them scoring easily at the rim. The Hawks responded by moving the ball on the offensive end and finding the open shooters. When the Lobos called timeout with 1:52 remaining in the first the Hawks led 18-8. The Hawks ended the quarter missing their last five shot attempts, but led by their stellar defense, including 4 steals by Robert Miles, the Hawks led 18-10 after the 1^st quarter.

Guard Ayrik Miranda hit his second 3-pointer to open the 2^nd quarter. The Lobos answered with a jumper of their own. Forward Willy Enick collected two offensive rebounds on the next possession and scored a bucket of his own. The Lobos again answered with a bucket. When the Lobos called their 2^nd timeout at the 5:00 mark of the quarter, the Hawks were leading 23-14. The rest of the 2^nd quarter continued to be a back and forth affair with both teams seemingly trading buckets until the quarter ended. Going into halftime the Hawks led 31-22.

“Offensively we are lackadaisical. You guys need to move the ball, pass more. Defensively quit reaching, slide your feet and get into position. You guys have to will yourself to work harder. You have to work hard. Stop the ball. Every time we pressure the ball something good happens,” coach Cyrus “Bubba” Fryberg stated as he urged his team to not play down to the level of their opponent.

In the 3^rd quarter both teams continued to trade baskets. The score was 40-28, following Ayrik’s third 3-pointer, when the Hawks called a timeout to give their starters a quick rest. On the very next play following their timeout Robert stole a Lobos inbounds pass and found Jesse wide open in the corner who hit his second 3-pointer of the game. The Hawks had their largest lead of the game 43-28 with 3:45 to go in the quarter. Moments later Ayrik displayed the defensive hustle his coach had asked for at halftime when he sacrificed his body and took a charge. For the next several offensive possessions the Hawks got 3-point happy and went 0-5 from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the Lobos capitalized on their free throw opportunities by sinking four from the charity stripe. Robert finally ended the Hawks drought by scoring on a putback layup to put the Hawks up 45-32 with one more quarter to play.

The 4^th quarter saw Robert Miles attack the hoop and come away with four quick points and Trevor Fryberg hit his first 3-pointer of the game. Following a pair of Lobos free throws the Hawks had pushed their lead to 16 points, 52-36 with 5:33 to play. The teams again took turns trading baskets with both Robert and Ayrik countering Lobos baskets with 3-pointers. In the closing moments Robert collected his 8^th steal of the game to go along with his game high 22 points and 14 rebounds for a near triple-double. The final score was 62-47 in favor of the now 7-2 Hawks.

Micheal Rios, mrios@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov

After School Girls Group Offers Fun Activities and Cultural Teachings

Artist to Harper: I Will Tweet One Portrait of a Missing/Murdered Woman Each Day

Portrait by Evan Munday.'Elaine Frieda Alook was 35 when she disappeared on May 11 outside Fort McMurray, Alberta,' writes artist Evan Munday. Portrait by Evan Munday. — Portrait by Evan Munday.
‘Elaine Frieda Alook was 35 when she disappeared on May 11 outside Fort McMurray, Alberta,’ writes artist Evan Munday. Portrait by Evan Munday.

Indian Country Today Media Network

Toronto-based cartoonist and illustrator Evan Munday is applying his talents to a campaign to raise consciousness about Canada’s missing or murdered Indigenous women (often referred to as MMIW). Actually, the consciousness he’s interested in raising is that of a specific person: Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Munday has pledged to tweet one portrait of a missing or murdered woman to Harper every day. Here’s how his announcement unfolded on his @idontlikemundayTwitter feed:

Over 1186 indigenous women have gone missing / been murdered in Canada since 1980. There have been outcries for public inquiry. #MMIW (1/3)

Our PM said an inquiry into the missing women ‘isn’t really high on our radar.’ So I’m trying a small thing to make it higher. #MMIW (2/3)

Starting on Jan 5, I’ll tweet @pmharperan illustration of a missing or murdered indigenous woman daily. To adjust his radar. #MMIW (3/3)

Earlier today, as promised, he sent out his first portrait, with the text:

@pmharperElaine Frieda Alook was 35 when she disappeared on May 11 outside Fort McMurray, Alberta. #MMIW

Here’s the image:

‘Elaine Frieda Alook was 35 when she disappeared on May 11 outside Fort McMurray, Alberta,’ writes artist Evan Munday. Portrait by Evan Munday.

This endeavor, which could conceivably go on for over three years, bears some resemblance to a project Munday tweeted in December and has archived on his blog as “December 6, 1989: in Illustrations,”a tribute to the 14 women killed at Montreal’s Ecole Polytechnique 25 years ago.

Lummi Nation asks Army Corps to reject Cherry Point coal terminal

Then-Lummi Nation Chairman Clifford Cultee, left, and Hereditary Chief Bill James speak at a 2012 protest against a proposed coal export terminal at Cherry Point. The tribe sent a letter on Monday, Jan. 5, 2015 to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, asking the agency to reject a permit application for the coal terminal because it would interfere with tribal fishing grounds. PHILIP A. DWYER — THE BELLINGHAM HERALD

BY RALPH SCHWARTZ, The Bellingham Herald

Lummi Nation sent a letter on Monday, Jan. 5, to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, asking the agency to immediately reject a permit application for a coal terminal at Cherry Point because it would interfere with tribal fishing grounds.

An environmental group in Bellingham called the action “historic.”

Lummi Nation cited its rights under a treaty with the United States to fish in its “usual and accustomed” areas, which include the waters around Cherry Point. A court decision in 2000 clarified the Lummi fishing territory, first established in 1855, to include northern Puget Sound from the Fraser River to Seattle, with the exception of the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Hood Canal.

“The Lummi have harvested at this location since time immemorial and plan to continue into the future,” said the Lummi letter, signed by Chairman Tim Ballew. “The proposed project will impact this significant treaty harvesting location and will significantly limit the ability of tribal members to exercise their treaty rights.”

The letter was authorized by the Lummi Indian Business Council on Wednesday, Dec. 31.

A manager at RE Sources for Sustainable Communities in Bellingham said in a message to members that the Lummis had made “an historic announcement.”

“This is a critical development in the fight to block the Cherry Point coal terminal,” wrote Matt Petryni, clean energy program manager at RE Sources.

Past case law suggests Gateway Pacific Terminal could be in trouble. The corps rejected a permit in 1992 for a salmon farm in Rosario Strait on the grounds that the farm, though no larger on the surface than 1.41 acres, would interfere with Lummi fishing. The decision withstood a challenge in U.S. District Court.

“There’s a precedent for a threshold of impact on treaty rights,” Ballew said. “I trust that the Corps will uphold its constitutional responsibility.”

Officials for Gateway Pacific Terminal said they could not comment before the deadline for this story.

The coal terminal, if approved by federal and state agencies, and Whatcom County, would ship up to 48 million metric tons of coal annually to Asian ports, starting as early as 2019.

While environmentalists who have actively opposed the coal terminal for years celebrated, they didn’t declare victory.

“One of the things I’m sure of is that the Corps will respond to the gravity of this statement,” said Crina Hoyer, RE Sources’ executive director. “What the ultimate end result will be, it may be decided in the court.”

Corps officials said they will review the 97-page document submitted to them on Monday by the tribe. If the Corps finds that treaty-protected fishing would be disrupted to any significant degree, it will pass the information along to project applicant SSA Marine of Seattle for review.

“We generally ask the applicant to coordinate with the relevant tribes and to resolve the issue,” the Corps said in a statement on Monday.

Lummi Nation consistently has opposed the coal terminal publicly. Tribal members in 2012 burned a symbolic check representing a presumed buy-out from the coal industry. Last year, the tribe toured the western U.S. and Canada with a totem pole to raise awareness of their opposition to fossil-fuel transport. The tribe also has criticized Gateway Pacific Terminal in written comments to permitting agencies.

“This is the strongest statement that we’ve seen from the Lummi Nation,” Hoyer said.

A report released last month provided preliminary evidence that the terminal would impede tribal fishing. The vessel traffic study, developed by SSA Marine and Lummi Nation with oversight by the state Department of Ecology, indicated that cargo ships and other traffic for Gateway Pacific Terminal would increase the number of vessels in north Puget Sound by 15 percent. Vessel traffic in the vicinity of Cherry Point would increase 33 percent. The risk of oil spills also would increase.

Those results, released on Dec. 18, were not taken to be final. Ecology officials emphasized that further study of vessel traffic would be included in a draft of the environmental impact statement on the coal terminal, expected in early 2016.

Even so, the Lummis mentioned the vessel traffic study in their letter to the Corps.

“Review of the impacts associated with this project, including … (the vessel traffic study) lead to the inescapable conclusion that the proposed project will directly result in the substantial impairment of the treaty rights of the Lummi Nation,” the letter said.

Read more here: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2015/01/05/4061757_lummi-nation-asks-army-corps-to.html?rh=1#storylink=cpy

“Being Frank” Attention, Action Needed For Salmon Recovery

By Lorraine Loomis, Chair, Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission

Why have salmon been pouring back into the Columbia River in record numbers recently while returns to the Washington coast and Puget Sound continue to drop? One big reason is that for the past decade someone in a position of authority has been in charge of protecting and restoring Columbia River salmon.

That person has been U.S. District Court Judge James Redden. Three times during the past 10 years he has rejected plans to operate hydroelectric dams in the Columbia River basin that would have jeopardized salmon listed under the Endangered Species Act. He ordered more water spilled over the dams to aid fish passage, even though that meant less water to generate power. He has also insisted on specific habitat improvements to aid in the recovery of salmon. Redden recently stepped down from the case, but has been replaced by federal court Judge Michael Simon.

That kind of attention and bold, targeted actions are exactly what we need to turn around salmon recovery in western Washington. Salmon recovery is failing because federal and state governments allow salmon habitat to be destroyed faster than it can be restored. This trend shows no sign of improvement despite drastic harvest reductions, careful use of hatcheries and extensive habitat restoration projects.

The ongoing loss of the salmon resource affects entire tribal communities in western Washington. Salmon is one of our most important traditional foods and a foundation of our cultures. Every year we try to set aside salmon to feed our families in the winter and to put fish on the table for ceremonies and funerals, but every year it is becoming more difficult. As the salmon disappear, our treaty-reserved harvest rights are threatened more every day.

That is why our late chairman, Billy Frank Jr., and other tribal leaders created the Treaty Rights at Risk initiative three and a half years ago and took it to the White House. Our goal is to have the protection of treaty-reserved rights institutionalized in the federal government through the White House Council on Native American Affairs. President Obama created the council nearly two years ago. Addressing tribal natural resources concerns was one of five main foundations of the council, but the Council has yet to address this charge. As President Obama prepares to leave the White House in 2017, our need becomes greater every day.

The failure of salmon recovery in western Washington is the failure of the federal government to meet its trust responsibility to protect salmon and the treaty-reserved rights of tribes. Treaty Rights at Risk calls for the federal government to assume control and responsibility for a more coordinated salmon recovery effort in western Washington. But so far, the federal government’s lack of progress has been disappointing. There has been plenty of discussion, but little action to reverse the negative trend in the condition of salmon habitat in this region. That needs to change.

We shouldn’t need a federal court judge to provide the proper attention, protection and targeted actions to restore salmon. We would prefer to work together with our state and federal co-managers through the White House Council on Native American Affairs. Together, we could take effective action to recover salmon runs.

We have already developed recovery plans and identified barriers to salmon recovery in western Washington’s watersheds. Now we need a commitment from the White House to tackle the most pressing obstacles in each watershed and provide the leadership necessary to put those salmon recovery plans into action.

If salmon are to be in the future of this region we must act now before it is too late.

Stormwater fixes could cost billions

Pollution from stormwater has been called one of the greatest threats to Puget Sound. How much will it cost to hold back the rain? A new EPA-funded study says the price could reach billions per year, a figure that dwarfs current state and federal allocations.

Raindrops on a cafe window. Photo: Jim Culp (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Source: Encyclopedia of Puget Sound

Key takeaways

Runoff—or stormwater—from roads, parking lots, and roofs is one of the largest sources of contaminants flowing into Puget Sound.
An EPA-funded report projects costs of up to $14 billion dollars per year over 30 years to fully address stormwater pollution in the region.
A longer time frame for fixing the problem may be more practical. Costs fall to $650 million dollars per year if work is done over a 100-year period.
Stormwater pollution is made worse by urban development that prevents rain and snow from being absorbed by plants and soil.
Among the innovations grabbing the attention of scientists and engineers is low impact development, which use a place’s natural hydrology to control stormwater runoff.

The figure is staggering: Close to half a trillion dollars over the next 30 years. That’s what it could cost to completely address Puget Sound’s growing stormwater problem, according to an EPA-funded study presented last spring at the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference.

The study, prepared by researchers at the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks, projects the capital and maintenance costs of the stormwater treatment facilities that would be needed to fully comply with the Clean Water Act. A 30-year time frame could mean capital outlays of as much as $14 billion dollars per year. Jim Simmonds, the report’s lead author, acknowledges that, given the huge expense, a 30-year fix appears unlikely. But the report also looks at potential stormwater retrofits over the next 100 years. Costs over that time frame would average about $650 million dollars yearly. “That is far more realistic,” he says, and would help undo a century-old problem.

“It took us 100 years to create the problem, and it’s going to take a long time to fix it.”

—Jim Simmonds, Environmental Programs Managing Supervisor, King County Natural Resources and Parks

The figures far exceed last year’s state allocation of $100 million dollars, but Simmonds says the study is not meant to suggest that the legislature suddenly come up with an additional $14 billion dollars annually to deal with stormwater. Instead, he says, it tells a story of where we are and where we still have to go. Runoff—or stormwater—from roads, parking lots, and roofs is one of the largest sources of contaminants flowing into Puget Sound. “One of the questions that has come up repeatedly is ‘how much will it take to fix this problem?'” he says. “This report puts that in context.”

How we got here

Sandwiched between the Olympic and Cascade mountain ranges, Puget Sound’s urban areas receive up to 40 inches of rain each year. Historically, most of this water soaked into the ground or was taken up by plants. In forested areas in the Pacific Northwest, evergreen trees transport about 40% of rainfall back to the atmosphere through their needles. The remaining water filters through other plants and the soil. The ecosystem is driven by this water cycle, but over the past 100 years, human development has drastically altered this natural pattern.

Soggy Crosswalk. Photo: sea turtle (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) https://www.flickr.com/photos/sea-turtle/8200857497

Urban areas were originally designed to move stormwater quickly and efficiently downstream through a series of drains, pipes, and sewers. Flood prevention was the main reason for getting stormwater out of the city fast, but over the years municipalities have come to realize that speedy water removal is actually detrimental to the health of Puget Sound.

Without the filtering effect of plants and soil, surface runoff increases and stream flows become “flashier”—surges in runoff are more frequent and more intense. This means greater flooding, and more polluted water flowing into Puget Sound.

In Seattle, one acre of pavement can generate as much as a million gallons of stormwater each year. Water from downpours picks up all kinds of pollutants—from motor oil to dog waste—as it makes its way down the drains. Carcinogens, heavy metals, and harmful bacteria can all be counted in this mix. One study estimates that rainfall runoff events can transport up to 8 times the amount of copper and 6 times the amount of mercury compared to baseline conditions. That’s bad news for wildlife and humans alike.

Dump no waste. Drains to lake. Photo: Steve Mohundro (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) https://www.flickr.com/photos/smohundro/3836007632

The Clean Water Act

The Clean Water Act of 1972 was one of the first rigorous national laws dealing with water contamination, with the first concentration-based limits for pollution. The original goal was to eliminate the direct discharge of pollutants by 1985. Amendments to deal with stormwater weren’t introduced until 1987, which required permits for all new development projects. In the 1980s and 1990s a slew of new legislation introduced more criteria for stormwater management. Currently all development and redevelopment projects require approved stormwater treatment, and that requires facilities and infrastructure.

So what about those billion dollar figures? Simmonds says the potentially high costs outlined in the King County report highlight the need for creative solutions. The report outlines a worst-case scenario that assumes all retrofit approaches will stay the same. New technologies and other innovations will almost certainly lower costs, he says, but the report does not focus on the how—just the how much. And whether the costs are in the hundreds of millions or the billions, Simmonds argues that we risk more if we ignore the problem. “Yes, this is a huge investment. But I don’t think it has to be dismissed as too expensive,’” he says. “The [state and federal agencies] have all declared that stormwater is the biggest threat to Puget Sound. We have to decide how we’re going to deal with that.” The bottom line, he says: “It took us 100 years to create the problem, and it’s going to take a long time to fix it.”

The big impact of low impact development

Among the innovations grabbing the attention of scientists and engineers are low impact development approaches to stormwater treatment, which use a place’s natural hydrology to control stormwater runoff.

At the 2014 Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference, Mindy Fohn, a stormwater manager with Kitsap County, described one low impact development approach where managers are planting trees in notoriously impervious surfaces like parking lots to trap stormwater. In the past, these trees might have been planted on raised islands. Now planners are putting them in lower areas that draw the water between parking spots. These interventions are small, local, and often quite beautiful.

Kids explore a newly installed rain garden. Photo: JBLM PAO (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) https://www.flickr.com/photos/jblmpao/6215109375

So far, bioretention from low impact development has shown promising results. A natural filtration system of soils and plants was recently demonstrated by NOAA to effectively eliminate some of the deadly effects of stormwater on coho salmon.

Another area of interest involves citizens themselves, in a more grass roots approach, installing rain gardens on their own properties. Rain gardens are simply landscaped areas that collect, absorb and filter stormwater runoff from rooftops, decks and other hard surfaces. The idea is to prevent stormwater from washing off individual properties which, if done in sufficient numbers, will have a large positive effect on watershed and basins. The Washington State University and Stewardship Partners are working together towards the goal of ‘12,000 Rain Gardens‘ by the year 2016.

‘World’s Greatest Athlete’ Jim Thorpe

n this historical images of Jim Thorpe,the athlete sports a Canton Bulldogs uniform.

BY CHARLES PULLIAM (ALASKAN ALEUT), NATIVE PEOPLES MAGAZINE

His stories usually start and end with head-shaking disbelief.

More or less at the same time in the early 1900s, Jim Thorpe (Sac and Fox) was the world’s best college football player, professional football player, hurdler, short-distance runner, shot-putter and discus thrower. He played professional baseball and basketball as well and even was recognized for his dancing ability.

Before Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders, Thorpe was the original multi-sport athlete. But he didn’t just play, he dominated.

His Olympic feats in 1912 are asterisked because it was uncovered that he was paid to play baseball during his time at Carlisle Indian School. However, the Stockholm Summer Games gave Thorpe international recognition and legendary status as he won gold medals in the pentathlon and decathlon in record fashion. Thorpe competed in 15 events and won eight of them, all while wearing mismatched shoes.

Take that in for a moment. His shoes didn’t match.

Thorpe still won four of the five events in the pentathlon and finished third in the other.

A true testament to his glory is Thorpe’s time in the 1,500-meter run—he finished in 4 minutes, 40.1 seconds in the decathlon event at the Stockholm Games in his second time running the event in two days. The time wasn’t beaten by another decathlete until 1972, and even with all of the technology, specialty (and matching) shoes and training available to athletes today, 100 years later, American silver medalist Trey Hardee ran the same event in 4:40.94 at the 2012 London Games.

Even the simple stories surrounding Thorpe carry a legendary, schoolyard prowess.

His Olympic roommate, Abel Kiviat, recalled one instance where Thorpe ended an elementary competition of trying to touch a hanging chandelier in the grand ballroom of the S.S. Finland—the ship that transported the Americans to the Games and served as the boarding house in Stockholm. It was a simple feat, but in a room full of athletes, no one came close until Thorpe leaped and grabbed the chandelier.

Kiviat said Thorpe only had to watch someone do something once and he’d try it and do it better.

Thorpe was born on May 28, 1888, near Prague, Oklahoma, on Sac and Fox Indian land. When Thorpe was 11, he was sent to Haskell Institute in Lawrence, Kansas, and in 1904, he entered the nation’s other Indian school set up by the government and military in Pennsylvania: Carlisle.

This is where Thorpe began his track-and-field career in 1907, and just like the chandelier on the S.S. Finland years later, Thorpe turned heads by clearing a high-jump bar on his first attempt with ease when others were failing.

Carlisle also launched Thorpe’s football career. Books are dedicated to single games, like when the Thorpe-led Indian school toppled defending-champion Harvard 18-15 in 1911, or the famous game a year later when Thorpe scored two touchdowns and drilled three field goals to lead Carlisle to a 27-6 dismantling of Army at West Point.

“It was like trying to clutch a shadow,” wrote The New York Times on Thorpe’s running against Army. Carlisle won the college national championship in 1912, led by Thorpe’s 25 touchdowns. He was named an All-American for the second straight year.

In 1913, he signed to play professional baseball with the New York Giants.

Thorpe’s fame from his college days at Carlisle carried over onto the football field as well, where he helped lay the foundation for the league that became today’s mighty National Football League while playing for the Canton Bulldogs. Canton happens to be where the NFL Hall of Fame is located.

Thorpe was recognized as the greatest athlete of the first half of the century by the Associated Press in 1950 and in 1999, with the AP ranking only Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan ahead of him.

Thorpe died of a heart attack at the age of 64 on March 28, 1953, and yet his story continues both in history books and in the news.

Just in October, a federal appeals court ruled that Thorpe’s remains would stay in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, a town named after the legendary athlete, despite the objections of two of his sons. They had wanted Thorpe’s remains to be returned to Sac and Fox tribal lands in Oklahoma.

Native American populations ‘hugely at risk’ to sex trafficking

Sadie Young Bird, the director of the Ft. Berthold Coalition of Domestic Violence, listens during a breakout session during the 2014 statewide summit on human trafficking put on by North Dakota FUSE at the Bismarck Civic Center in Bismarck, N.D. on Thursday, November 13, 2014. Carrie Snyder / The Forum

By Amy Dalrymple and Katherine Lymn, Forum News Service, Bismarck Tribune

NEW TOWN, N.D. – As the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation reels from the impacts of producing a third of North Dakota’s oil, the reservation must add human trafficking to its list of increasing hazards.

“We’re in crisis mode, all the time, trying to figure out these new ways, these new crises that are coming to us that we never thought we’d have to worry about,” said Sadie Young Bird, director of the Fort Berthold Coalition Against Violence. “No one was prepared for any of this.”

The Three Affiliated Tribes are implementing a new tribal law designed to combat human trafficking at Fort Berthold.

“I’m really hoping to send a message that we are not tolerating this on our reservation,” said Chalsey Snyder, a tribal member who helped draft the law.

Meanwhile, victim advocates and leaders of tribal nations in neighboring Minnesota and South Dakota worry about reports of American Indian women and girls being trafficked to the Bakken.

Suzanne Koepplinger, former executive director for the Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center, said she started to hear anecdotal stories in 2010 and 2011 about a boyfriend or friend telling women and girls, “Let’s go to North Dakota over the weekend and make some money.”

“Because of poverty and high rates of mobility with Native people, it’s not unusual for them to go up to White Earth for a party and then say, ‘Let’s just buzz over to North Dakota and see a friend of mine,’ and then she’s gang-raped over there,” Koepplinger said.

Since 2010, Indian girls in Minnesota have reported to service providers that family members or friends have tried to talk them into going to North Dakota.

“Their girls go missing and then show up in the North Dakota child protection system, or are picked up by law enforcement in Williston, Minot,” Koepplinger said.

Erma Vizenor, chairman of the White Earth reservation in western Minnesota, said sex trafficking of women and girls has been a concern there for a long time, and the proximity of North Dakota’s oil boom adds to that concern.

The White Earth DOVE Program (Down On Violence Everyday) has identified 17 adult victims of sex trafficking last year, said Jodie Sunderland, community advocacy coordinator.

The DOVE program received funding through the Minnesota Safe Harbor law and is connecting Indian youth who are victims of sexual exploitation with services. The efforts will include collaborations with Red Lake and Leech Lake reservations in northwest Minnesota.

The vulnerability of Indian populations to become victims of sex trafficking, particularly at Fort Berthold with the impacts of the oil boom, is a major concern, U.S. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., said.

“The grooming of the candidate for trafficking tends to go to lower income, tends to go to kids who’ve been victimized in the past, so automatically that puts them in a category that is hugely at risk,” Heitkamp said during a discussion hosted by the McCain Institute for International Leadership and moderated by Cindy McCain.

Mark Fox, recently elected chairman of the Three Affiliated Tribes, said he hears concerns about human trafficking at Fort Berthold from law enforcement and social services. He’s also noticed it himself.

“You can’t help but sometimes, walking around the casino, you see individuals who would be highly suspect,” Fox said.

Young Bird, whose program has seen a significant increase in domestic violence victims, has assisted some sex trafficking victims, although the women and girls don’t usually identify themselves as victims. Some have returned to South Dakota reservations, she said.

“We see that most of the human trafficking victims want to leave, they just want to get out, they want to go back to where they came from, they want to go back somewhere safe,” Young Bird said.

The domestic violence program, which has a new shelter in Mandaree and a new safe house elsewhere in the Bakken, primarily serves Indian women, but also will serve non-tribal members.

A meth epidemic on the reservation contributes to the violence Young Bird sees, including more severe sexual assaults.

“You can tell when there’s no meth around and you can tell when there’s a new shipment of meth around. The severity is worse when the meth is gone,” Young Bird said. “When the new shipment comes, it’s more that they head out and they leave and they leave their family with nothing. They spend all the money. Then when the wife is asking for money, that’s when the violence occurs.”

Heroin is a major problem for the reservation, too, she said. In one sex trafficking case, the pimp kept the woman compliant using heroin, Young Bird said. The woman did not want to press charges.

“They all want to leave. They don’t want to stay around. And we can’t force them. We’re the advocates; we’re not law enforcement. We’re there to support people,” she said.

A recent law change will allow the tribal court to prosecute human trafficking cases that don’t rise to the level of being charged in U.S. District Court.

“This law allows our reservation to take back ownership and take back the prosecution and penalties,” Snyder said.

The law is called Loren’s Law in memory of Loren White Horne, a behavioral health specialist from Fort Berthold who used to deal with sexual abuse and sexual assault cases on the reservation. White Horne was a driving force behind raising awareness about trafficking and working toward a new law before she died in a vehicle accident in 2013, said Snyder, who continued her work.

The law also requires defendants to pay for any expenses incurred by the victim, such as drug abuse treatment.

“These victims can seek help and they can get help without having to worry about any financial obligations,” Snyder said, if the convicted trafficker has resources or such resources were seized.

Statistics show that minorities represent a disproportionate amount of sex trafficking victims.

That has been true in South Dakota, where the U.S. Attorney’s Office has prosecuted sex trafficking cases involving several dozen victims. About half of those victims were American Indian women and girls.

In most cases, the victimization did not occur on the reservations, but in Sioux Falls and other larger cities.

“Most often, it is girls and some women who come from the reservation to Sioux Falls,” said. U.S. Attorney Brendan Johnson. “When they are here, if they’re coming without a lot of resources, they’re often targeted by these guys.”

Lushootseed 101 offered at Northwest Indian College

Lushootseed 101 offered at Northwest Indian College through Winter, January 7 through March 27.

Classes are Monday-Thursday (with an online lesson on Fridays) at the Tulalip Administration Building Room 263 – 3:30-4:20

This is a great opportunity for anyone working with our youth to become familiar with the language and help expose our youth to the hearing it spoken within the community!

Exercising Can Help Mental Health

By Kara Briggs Campbell, Tulalip News

The Mayo Clinic, a nationally known medical facility with clinics in Minnesota, Arizona and Florida, published on its website this list of benefits and protocols for starting an exercise program. This is the time of year when many people will make exercise a New Year’s Resolution. But in this time, as many in the Tulalip community are trying to cope with trauma, grief and loss, mental health professionals say exercise can help almost everyone to relieve stress and begin to feel better.

Exercise for stress management

It pumps up your endorphins: Physical activity helps to bump up the production of your brain’s feel-good neurotransmitters, called endorphins. Although this function is often referred to as a runner’s high, a rousing game of tennis or a nature hike also can contribute to this same feeling.
It’s meditation in motion: After a fast-paced game of racquetball or several laps in the pool, you’ll often find that you’ve forgotten the day’s irritations and concentrated only on your body’s movements. As you begin to regularly shed your daily tensions through movement and physical activity, you may find that this focus on a single task, and the resulting energy and optimism, can help you remain calm and clear in everything that you do.
It improves your mood: Regular exercise can increase self-confidence and lower the symptoms associated with mild depression and anxiety. Exercise also can improve your sleep, which is often disrupted by stress, depression and anxiety. All this can ease your stress levels and give you a sense of command over your body and your life.

A successful exercise program begins with a few simple steps.

Consult with your doctor: If you haven’t exercised for some time and you have health concerns, you may want to talk to your doctor before starting a new exercise routine.
Walk before you run: Build up your fitness level gradually. Excitement about a new program can lead to overdoing it and possibly even injury. If you’re new to exercise, start at the moderate level and then add vigorous activity as your fitness improves.
Do what you love: Virtually any form of exercise or movement can increase your fitness level while decreasing your stress. The most important thing is to pick an activity that you enjoy. Examples include walking, stair climbing, jogging, bicycling, yoga, tai chi, gardening, weightlifting and swimming.
Pencil it in: Although your schedule may necessitate a morning workout one day and an evening activity the next, carving out some time to move every day helps you make your exercise program an ongoing priority.

Where can I call for help?

To report an emergency dial 911
National Suicide Prevention Line: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
Snohomish County Crisis Line: 1-800-584-3578
Crisis TEXT Line: Text “Listen” to 741-741
24 Hour Crisis Line: 1-866-427-4747
TEENLINK: 1-866-833-6546
Tulalip Tribes Behavioral Health Family Services: 360-716-4400