Elizabeth Warren confronts the treatment of claims of Native American ancestry



[ad_1]

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is resolutely trying to put an end to the controversy over the treatment of her claims to Native American ancestry. At an event that took place Monday in Sioux City, Iowa, she last apologized on the subject, before continuing with an in-depth discussion of community policies. Native American.

"I know I've made mistakes. … I'm sorry for the harm I caused. I have listened and I have learned a lot, and I am grateful for the many conversations we have had together, "she said, not explicitly mentioning her widespread use of a DNA test to prove his Native American ancestry. Last week, Warren presented a detailed proposal on the problems of the Amerindians. The message suggests a major attempt to calm the rollback about the DNA test.

"It is a great honor to be able to work with Indian Country and that's what I tried to do as a senator and that's what I promise to do as President of the United States of America Added Warren at the Iowa Forum, which was led by Four Directions' advocacy group.

She then focused on a broad plan she introduced that would address the lack of federal funding that tribal nations have always received. His proposal would also allow tribes to enforce laws against non-tribal members and to permanently establish a position in the Cabinet focused on the policies of Native Americans.

The proposal responds directly to a report released in 2018 by the US Civil Rights Commission that the federal government was "downgraded in its treatment of Native Americans" and continued to underfund the core services tribal nations rely on. Support, including: health care.

"The story of the federal government with the tribal nations is that of broken promises," said Warren, echoing a dominant theme of his campaign. "It's going to take a big structural change [to fix]. "

Warren's Monday's statements and his latest action plan show how determined she is to overcome past difficulties related to her Native American ancestry. Reactions to his DNA test were largely fueled by attacks from the president and others to the right, but Morning Consult polls showed that his use of the test could affect his chances of becoming an independent voter.

If the announcement of the 9000 words policy is an indication, it is clear that Warren wants to neutralize this vulnerability by claiming that it is the best equipped candidate to defeat President Donald Trump.

Elizabeth Warren's plan for tribal nations and indigenous peoples, briefly explains

Warren first presented his plan to address Native American issues last week in a Medium article and, as Politico's Alex Thompson notes, this is more than double any other proposal presented by it.

The plan aims to address an important set of policy areas, including infrastructure, health care and the environment. One of its main objectives is to ensure that the federal government allocates much-needed funding to tribal nations for everything from assistance to nutrition to the Internet. in a large band.

"Congress acts regularly as if programs for Indian countries could be left to the discretion of the annual decision-making process or reduced to gain ground elsewhere in the budget," notes the plan. "Funding for these programs is not optional. This is necessary to fulfill US confidence and treaty obligations. This fundraising campaign is part of the bill Warren presented along with Representative Deb Haaland (D-NM), one of the first Native American women elected to Congress.

Warren would modify the current funding system by ensuring that funds for Indian countries are part of the mandatory funding process, in the same way as programs such as Social Security, or are treated as part of a multi-year funding program.

In addition, it would make a permanent White House Council on Native American affairs, created originally by former President Barack Obama, little active under Trump. The head of the Council would occupy a cabinet-level post, helping to raise the concerns of tribal nations.

Warren's plan also deals extensively with criminal justice and the possibility for tribal nations to have jurisdiction over their own territories. Due to a 1978 Supreme Court decision Oliphant c. Suquamish In this case, tribal governments have limited criminal jurisdiction over the actions of "non-indigenous tribal lands". Warren tries to remedy this situation by proposing a complete "Oliphant patch" so that tribal leaders can fully prosecute the perpetrators. She also plans to set up a federal database and warning system to track the number of missing indigenous women – more than 5,000.

Warren's plan would also cancel permits for Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines, two projects that provoked violent reactions among the Amerindian community for the destruction of their environment and their potential impact on the quality of drinking water on tribal lands. .

Former US Housing Secretary Julian Castro and Senator Bernie Sanders also unveiled policies on Indigenous issues, although Warren's plan is seen as the most ambitious approach to date.

His proposal joins many of the claims made by Amerindian activists for some time, including the Oliphant Dina Gilio-Whitaker, a lecturer in Indian Studies at California State University in San Marco, says Dina Gilio-Whitaker.

"[It’s] quite comprehensive with respect to indigenous aboriginal nations across a wide range of bureaucratic concerns … but there is nothing new about it, "she told vox." Structure of Federal Government Relations and the tribes are not disputed by any of these people. "

A survey revealed that Warren's use of the DNA test had injured her

Warren has good reason to try to reverse the controversy surrounding his DNA test, which was perceived as an attempt to appropriate tribal affiliation and an effort validating Trump's attacks.

Since his announcement on the DNA test – and the criticism that followed – Warren has apologized several times, including to a prominent leader of the Cherokee Nation, pointing out that the test did not reflect any tribal affiliation.

The saga has undermined his favor among a small portion of Democratic voters, according to May's poll by Morning Consult, and could affect his chances of being elected among some independents. His willingness to tackle the problem head-on could, however, help to solve these problems.

Less than a fifth of Democrats said his decision had a negative impact on their perception of it. Only 12% of them say that they are less likely to support it in the primaries. Independent voters were a little tougher: 34% said it made them less favorable and 20% said it would make them less likely to vote for her at the primary level.

Trump also announced his intention to pursue racist attacks against Warren's legacy in the general election. "For example, Elizabeth Warren – I did the business of Pocahontas," said Trump at a rally in August in New Hampshire. "I hit her very hard and it looked like she was down, but it was too long ago." I should have waited. But do not worry, we will revive it. "

Participants in the Iowa event paid tribute to Warren's overall management of the fallout. "One must admit mistakes and move on," said Manny Iron Hawk, a resident of Cheyenne River Sioux Reserve, Washington Post.

"She tries to humiliate, she deserves credit," says Gilio-Whitaker. "I'm ready to give her some slack if she has a chance to defeat Donald Trump."

[ad_2]

Source link