Native Americans Lose, Again
Portland Oregonian
By: Editorial
February 23, 2002
The Interior Department is trying to account for the missing Indian trust fund accounts that make up for $500 million-a-year royalties from Indian-owned land (“Tribes blast Norton’s plan to fix bungled trust funds,” Feb. 15). Many relevant documents have been destroyed.
A lot of it parallels what happened at Enron: a bunch of bigwigs defrauding people who have trusted them with their money. But this is of far more concern than the Enron scandal. In this case, our very own government, not a corporation, either lost, stole or misappropriated billions of dollars.
It continues the long, weary relationship between the United States and many of the 300 tribes, which because of a federal law in 1887, put the land they owned in trust funds, so it wouldn’t be taxed or sold or leased without the government’s approval.
But nearly 120 years later, with a complete bureaucratic mess made by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the results have been billions of dollars that can’t be accounted for.
Where is the outrage? Where is the call for a huge congressional investigation? Obviously not many Americans seem to care when it comes to Native American issues. It’s like a dirty, guilty feeling swept under the rug.
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