Director Larry Wright News Today

Washington, DC, Nov. 01, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- To mark the start of Native American Heritage Month, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI),...

Washington, DC, Nov. 01, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- To mark the start of Native American Heritage Month, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the oldest, largest, and most representative

The U.S. Department of Commerce, through the United States Patent and Trademark Office, on Tuesday announced it seeks tribal input on tribal intellectual property issues. The notice was published a notice in the Federal Register on Formal Tribal Consultation on World Intellectual Property Organization Intergovernmental Committee Negotiations. In the upcoming consultation, the USPTO wants tribal input on how to best protect genetic resources, traditional knowledge, and traditional cultural expr...

President Biden has expressed his intention to put forth Sara Hill (Cherokee) as a nominee for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of

Former Cherokee Nation Attorney General Sara E. Hill was nominated on Wednesday  to become a federal district judge for the Northern District of Oklahoma. If confirmed, Hill would be the fourth active Native American federal district court judge in the country, the seventh in the history of the federal judiciary, and the first Native American woman federal judge in the state of Oklahoma.

If confirmed, Sara Hill would be the first Native American woman to serve as a federal judge in Oklahoma. Former federal prosecutor John D. Russell also was nominated.

The bicameral Indigenous Peoples’ Day Act to replace Columbus Day as a federal holiday and designate the second Monday of October as Indigenous Peoples’ Day has been reintroduced in Congress. The legislation was reintroduced by Representatives Sharice Davids (KS-03), Norma J. Torres (CA-35), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), and Suzan DelBene (WA-01), along with Senators Martin Heinrich (D-NM) and Ben Ray Luján (D-NM). The Indigenous Peoples’ Day Act has garnered 56 cosponsor...

The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) named Geoffrey Blackwell (Chickasaw, Choctaw, Omaha, and Muscogee Creek) as the organization’s new general counsel and chief of staff. In this dual role, Blackwell will lead NCAI’s legal strategies and oversee the efficient operation of NCAI.

Over the past few weeks, legislation that is important to Indian Country passed the U.S. Senate, which is controlled by Democrats who have a slight majority. Two of the bills deal with housing for Native Americans, who often are homeless or live in overcrowded conditions both on and off reservations. In 2019, Native Americans represented about 1.5% of the general population of the United States, yet they make up more than 10% of the homeless population nationally according to a Department of H...

New York state education officials voted unanimously this week to prohibit public schools from using or displaying Indigenous team names, logos, or mascots to represent the school.