Tribal concerns to gain U.S. attention
Obama to meet with Indian leaders

BY CHRIS CASTEEL Comments 0
Published: November 4, 2009

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s conference with American Indian leaders this week will be the first such gathering in 15 years and a "monumental step” toward better relations between Washington and tribal nations, administration officials said Tuesday.

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Interior Secretary Ken Salazar told reporters that more than 400 of the 564 federally recognized tribes had committed to sending representatives to the conference, scheduled for Thursday at the Department of Interior.

Many Oklahoma tribal leaders are expected to attend what may be the largest conference of its kind and the first since Bill Clinton was president.

Obama is scheduled to address the tribal leaders, and several cabinet officials also plan to make appearances.

Salazar said Obama wants the dialogue with the tribal leaders to be meaningful. And though he acknowledged that one conference is not going to solve complicated problems in Indian country, the secretary said the event would be "a monumental step in how we move forward together.”

Many aspects of the U.S. government’s history with American Indians have been "swept under the rug,” Salazar said.

The Obama administration is "about telling the truth and having an agenda that is proactive and positive,” he said.

Larry Echo Hawk, the head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, said, "The best way to address the past is to honor treaty priorities and respect sovereignty.”

Among the issues expected to be discussed are economic development, education, health care and law enforcement.

In June, Obama named Kimberly Teehee, a member of the Cherokee Nation, as his senior policy adviser for American Indian affairs.

Last week, he proclaimed November to be National Native American Heritage month and said his administration had already steered $3 billion in stimulus funding to Indian country and had asked for increases in programs that serve American Indians.