Latest news with #RunningWolf
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
House approves Indigenous Peoples' Day
The Montana State Flag and tribal flags fly in front of the Montana State Capitol in Helena on Wednesday, April 26, 2023. (Photo by Mike Clark for the Daily Montanan) Montana will soon have a new holiday on the books, after the House approved of Senate Bill 224 to add Indigenous Peoples' Day to the list of legal state holidays. The House on Wednesday passed the bill 87-12, establishing the holiday to be celebrated on the second Monday of October, in addition to recognizing Columbus Day the same day. 'The day has morphed into something to recognize everyone. Always going to be a strong presence of Montana Indians, but this effort is trying to incorporate and include everyone,' said Rep. Tyson Running Wolf, D-Browning, who carried the bill in the House. 'It's a day that celebrates the ancestral lineage of all Montanans, again, all Montanans. 'And it's a day that is shaped and molded by each community and how that community wants to celebrate each other. So this bill gets away from eliminating a holiday and simply gives Montanans the option to celebrate what they prefer on the second Monday in October.' Attempts to recognize Indigenous Peoples' Day in previous sessions were unsuccessful, partially due to some versions of legislation eliminating Columbus Day completely. The current version of the bill passed the Senate in February with just three opponents. The co-celebration of the two holidays in October is done in Rhode Island, Nebraska and Alabama, while four states and Washington, D.C., have established Indigenous Peoples' Day as a standalone state holiday. Running Wolf said in the committee hearing many Montanans came and shared stories about their backgrounds — some Native, some from other parts of the world. One man with Irish heritage came in and spoke the Irish language, sharing its meaning to his own history. 'And it was beautiful. And we celebrated it all together,' Running Wolf said. '… What we heard in the hearing is that people want to learn about each other and the rich heritage that so many Montanans bring to Montana.' During floor debate, Rep. Ed Byrne, R-Bigfork, introduced an amendment to change the order of holidays in the bill, to make Columbus Day listed first to maintain 'its precedence of establishment.' Running Wolf said his biggest concern was that it would delay the process by sending the bill back to the Senate and cost more taxpayer money. The amendment failed to pass 27-70. 'Indigenous Peoples' Day is a testament to our shared history values as Montanans, it celebrates the collaborative efforts to the stewards of our land, educates us about the profound knowledge and contributions of all Montana communities, and highlights our shared strength and responsibility,' Running Wolf said. 'By honoring this day we take pride in our past, foster a deep understanding of all Indigenous entities and work together protect our cherish holiday heritage for future generations.' The bill made one additional change to recognized state holidays by updating 'Lincoln's and Washington's Birthdays' to 'Presidents' Day.'
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Effort to let nontribal property owners hunt on Flathead Indian Reservation fails
Feb. 18—The House Committe on Fish, Wildlife and Parks last week tabled a bill allowing some nontribal members to hunt deer and elk on the Flathead Indian Reservation. Under House Bill 216, residents of Flathead Indian Reservation would have been able to obtain a license to hunt deer and elk on their own land, regardless of their tribal affiliation. The bill challenged a long-standing agreement between the state and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes that allows nontribal members to hunt birds and fish on the reservation while preserving the exclusive right of tribal members to hunt big game. Rep. Tracy Sharp, R-Polson, introduced the bill under the argument that the restriction on nontribal hunters violates private property rights and the Montana Right to Harvest Act. "There's no asterisk here that says, 'Except for you guys. You don't get to hunt,'" said Sharp as he lofted a copy of the Montana Code Annotated at a Feb. 13 committee meeting. Rep. Tyson Running Wolf, D-Browning, disputed Sharp's argument and asserted that passing the bill would result in legal challenges for the state. "This is one of those times where we need to be educated on Indian Law so that we're not making determinations that can affect the state of Montana in a negative way," Running Wolf said. State and tribal wildlife officials echoed Running Wolf's concerns at a Jan. 28 hearing on the bill, during which several opponents referenced a 1990 lawsuit regarding nontribal fishing licenses. That lawsuit was eventually settled out of court when the state and tribes entered into their current fishing and hunting agreement. Opponents argued that HB 216 would have led to another arduous court case. Representatives from other Montana reservations also expressed concerns about the legal precedent the bill would set. While many other tribes permit big game hunting within reservation boundaries, tribal authorities said the bill threatened tribes' status as sovereign nations. "You know they start off with just taking a little tiny crumb, which ends up to be a big, big crumb," said Rep. Sidney "Chip" Fitzpatrick, D-Crow Agency. Fitzpatrick confirmed in the Feb. 13 hearing that his elders had urged him to vote against the bill because they worried it would lead to similar actions on their own reservation. The committee voted to table the bill after it failed to pass in a 9-11 vote. The head of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes' National Resources Department Rich Janssen Jr. said the vote was good news, but he doubts the bill's failure will quell the conflict between some nontribal residents and tribal wildlife officials. "It's the same few that want to try to impede tribal sovereignty and hunting rights on the reservation," said Janssen. "I fully expect they'll try to find another way to try to bring this to the forefront." The 2025 bill was preceded by a 2023 ballot initiative and a 2021 bill. Both failed to gain traction during the early stages of development, a fact Janssen partly attributes to the tribes' successful collaboration with state wildlife officials. "The bottom line is, we work well with the state of Montana," said Janssen. Reporter Hailey Smalley can be reached at hsmalley@ or at 758-4433.
