By LOLITA C. BALDOR and TARA COPP, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Every day over the past few weeks, the Pentagon has faced questions from angry lawmakers, local leaders and citizens over the removal of military heroes and historic mentions from Defense Department websites and social media pages after it purged online content that promoted women or minorities. In response,…
By TERRY TANG, Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — The Pentagon restored some webpages highlighting the crucial wartime contributions of Navajo Code Talkers and other Native American veterans on March 19, days after tribes condemned the action. The initial removal was part of a sweep of any military content that promoted diversity, equity and inclusion, or commonly referred to as DEI.…
MISSION – The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) Tribal Employment Rights Office (TERO) is helping people enhance their job skills after receiving two grants from the state’s Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC). TERO Apprenticeship Training Coordinator Michelle Bratlie said one grant is for service-learning education, while the other is for on-the-job training. Together the grants total $52,500…
By CORA LEWIS, Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The Trump administration’s recent changes to student loans are causing frustration and confusion for some borrowers. In response to a February court ruling that blocked some Biden-era programs, the Education Department has taken down online and paper applications for income-driven repayment plans. “This especially hurts anyone who’s lost their jobs, including…
By SARAH RAZA, Associated Press SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — A 24-year-old airman has been charged with killing a Native American woman who went missing in South Dakota about seven months ago. Quinterius Chappelle, 24, made his first court appearance March 17 on one count of second-degree murder in the killing of Sahela Sangrait, 21. The court documents in the…
Moves target programs that are already underfunded and understaffed, tribal leaders tell Congress By MELANIE HENSHAW, Investigate West A cascade of actions from the Trump administration represents a “grave threat” to health care, social, educational and other critical services in Indian Country, including for Native American communities in the Northwest, tribal leaders say. In the past two weeks, the Trump…
By STEPHEN GROVES and LEAH ASKARINAM, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, a champion of environmental protections and progressive ideals who took on principled but often futile causes during a two-decade career in Congress, died March 13. Grijalva, who was 77, had risen to chair the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee during his 12 terms representing…
The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) is deeply saddened by the passing of Arizona Democratic Rep. Raúl Grijalva, who died March 13 at age 77 from cancer complications. “Rep. Grijalva was a true public servant, advocating 22 years in Congress for his constituents and Native American nations. He was a champion of the environment and an active…
By GRAHAM LEE BREWER, Associated Press NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — In tribal nations across the United States, leaders are scrambling to respond to a directive from President Donald Trump and Elon Musk to close more than a quarter of Bureau of Indian Affairs offices, which provide vital services to Indigenous communities. Trump and Musk are calling on the General Services…
By GRAHAM LEE BREWER, Associated Press NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Three tribal nations and five Native American students say in a lawsuit that the Trump administration has failed its legal obligations to tribes when it cut jobs at Bureau of Indian Education schools. Firings at two colleges as part of the administration’s cuts to federal agencies, with the help of…