A better person. Look how happy she looks.

Oh, how I have missed my loyal T/Sers! The truth is it’s hard being a reporter. Especially when a bunch of big stories hit at the same time.

I’m also going to miss True/Slant as it has been once the Forbes developments truly kick in. This has been a nice place to explore Native issues for an audience that might not not have always known they cared about Native issues.

It’s funny, I write on a daily basis for many really passionate Native American readers who are so keyed in on Native topics, as well as mainstream issues. They tend to know every little detail of tribal-federal policy, but also care about Justin Bieber’s hair just as much as the next red-blooded American.

I wish more mainstream readers would take just a slight percentage of time to read and understand more about Native issues continue »

Parade magazine featured a brief Q&A over the weekend with Kim Teehee, the White House senior policy adviser for Native American affairs:

Why did President Obama create your position?
Indian Country suffers from so many socioeconomic challenges: the unemployment rate, infrastructure needs, health care, a high crime rate. Those things were not being addressed adequately. Tribal nations should have a voice at the table whenever policy decisions are made.

What are you working on now?
Job creation is a huge priority: Unemployment rates on some reservations are as high as 80%. We’re also working to modify and strengthen the criminal-justice system that operates in Indian territory. continue »

UPDATE: Cobell deadline extended again

It’s looking like Congress may miss what’s been billed as the final deadline in a $3.4 billlion settlement deal hashed out between the Obama administration and Indians suing the government: continue »

Chief Zee, unofficial Redskins mascot. Something wrong with this picture?

Many thoughts have been written about the ongoing lawsuit over the Redskins name and logo from Native Americans who note that the term is racist. Now, new research is showing that the psychology of the situation goes beyond Indians.

Before I get into the research, a disclaimer: Historians note that the word “redskins” was historically used by the U.S. government as a way to refer to bounties it placed on scalped Indian heads. continue »

The University of New Mexico School of Medicine has posted a scary warning on its Web site, indicating that its faculty and research assistants may have exposed dozens of people who received free blood tests to diseases, including HIV.

The situation stems from an April 24 diabetes screening event. The university is saying that students in a physician training program, under faculty supervision, may have improperly used a device that pricks fingers to draw blood. The implication is that blood was likely cross-contaminated.

The university is estimating that over 50 individuals were tested, although exact records were not kept, so a major public health crisis is a possibility. They say that their “best current estimate” is a .5 percent chance of infection. The full warning follows: continue »