Tribes as Sovereign Governments
in an Unstable Political Environment
Assessing Challenges and Exploring Ideas for Strengthening
the Role of Tribes as the Primary Governments in Indian Country
Once again, tribal governments, as well as all indigenous communities in the United States, find themselves in a volatile and unstable political environment. The courts appear to have become more determined to limit the fundamental powers of tribal self-government and seem indifferent to the impacts of their rulings on tribal governing authority within the boundaries of Indian Country. The newly-constituted House of Representatives recently adopted a spending measure that could cripple the ability of tribes to provide basic governmental services to their citizens by slashing federal funding and eliminating federal programs serving Indian Country. Although the Obama Administration has had much more contact with tribal leaders than past administrations, it remains to be seen whether the real needs and priorities of tribes will be addressed and whether anything will be done to assist tribal governments in controlling activities within their reservation boundaries and to grow tribal economies. Finally, there is the ongoing challenge of encouraging state governments to engage in meaningful cooperation with tribal governments and to honor inter-governmental comity and reciprocity.
This Native Leadership Forum is an opportunity for Native leaders from across the country to come together to explore approaches and strategies for addressing some of the key challenges facing Native communities, to discuss ideas that can bring about meaningful change, to identify possible initiatives and potential political fault lines, and to discuss the political climate and the 2012 election cycle.
