National Congress of American Indians President Mark Macarro testifies on Feb. 27 in the House Committee on Appropriations as part of a coalition of tribal leaders and organizations demanding the U.S. meet its trust and treaty obligation. NCAI | COURTESY

Tribal nations concerned Trump cuts have potential to violate trust responsibilities

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…

Haskell Indian Nations University in Kansas lost more than one-quarter of its staff, including “the Dean of Students, instructors, property management specialists, coaches, tutors, residential advisors, academic advisors, custodians, and food services employees” as well as its only bus driver, the lawsuit states.

Tribes and Native American students sue over Bureau of Indian Education firings

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…

Tracy Lawrence, Rodney Atkins to Headline 2025 Round-Up & Happy Canyon Kick-Off Concert. PENDLETON ROUND-UP | COURTESY

Tracy Lawrence, Rodney Atkins to headline Round-Up & Happy Canyon kick-off concert

PENDLETON – Chart-topping country stars Tracy Lawrence and Rodney Atkins will headline the Pendleton Round-Up and Happy Canyon Kick-Off Concert at the Happy Canyon Arena on Saturday, September 6th. Tickets go on sale March 14th. Lawrence, whose 13 million albums sold and 18 No. 1 singles have racked up numerous American Country Music (ACM) and Country Music Association (CMA) awards…

Members of the Nixyaawii boys basketball team pose with sweatshirts they received from the school’s booster club at a sendoff on March 6, 2025, shortly before they boarded the bus for the 1A state basketball championships in Baker. KATHY ANEY | THE CUJ

Nixyáawii ready for another run at state

By ANNIE FOWLER, THE CUJ BAKER CITY — Nixyáawii has been a fixture at the 1A state basketball tournament for years.  The Golden Eagles are making a return trip this week and will face Country Christian at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 6, in the quarterfinals. The Golden Eagles and Cougars met at the 1A preview in December, with Nixyáawii coming…

The second annual Two Cultures -One Community Powwow welcomed competing drum Red Hawk Express (pictured) and the return of host drum Wild Rose along with eight other drums who competed for prizes. KATHY ANEY | THE CUJ

TCOC Powwow introduces unique new contests

WIL PHINNEYTCOC Committee PENDLETON – More than 500 dancers and drummers competed over three days at the Two Cultures – One Community Powwow (TCOC) in Pendleton Feb. 28 – March 2. Dancers and drummers came mostly from the Western states – Oregon, Washington, California, Idaho and Montana, but also from as far away as Regina, Saskatchewan in Canada and Window…

Executive Director letter to tribal members

Dear CTUIR Members, Since President Donald J. Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, we at the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) – along with our lobbyist teams in Oregon, Washington State and Washington, D.C. – have been keeping an eye on the executive orders emanating from the White House and their impacts. Many executive orders are Trump’s attempts…

In this photo released by NDN Collective, Native American activist Leonard Peltier poses for pictures as he was released from a Florida prison on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025, weeks after then-President Joe Biden angered law enforcement officials by commuting his life sentence to home confinement in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents. (Angel White Eyes, NDN Collective via AP)

Leonard Peltier remains defiant in AP interview, maintaining innocence and vowing continued activism

By GRAHAM LEE BREWER, Associated Press BELCOURT, N.D. (AP) — More than 50 years after a shootout on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation landed him in federal prison, Leonard Peltier remains defiant. Despite being convicted and sentenced to life in prison, he maintains his innocence in the killings of two FBI agents in 1975 and sees his newfound freedom —…

Title VI Coordinator Wynema Thurman, left, and Kendall Rosario show off a tribal nations map that will be displayed in one of the several schools in the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation’s education service area. LISA SNELL | THE CUJ

Title VI more than just Indian Education

LISA SNELLThe CUJ MISSION – Youth Services Manager Kendall Rosario needs you to understand what she does and why it is important.She manages the Title VI Indian Education program for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR).“When I first started, there was a really negative idea of what Title VI was, why we were here,” she said. “Parents…