Distinctly Montana Magazine

W W W. D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA NA . C O M 69 INTERVIEW WITH WALTER FLEMING PROFESSOR NATIVE STUDIES MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY AMERICANS pow wow dancing styles has become largely gen- eralized to the point that being able to identify a dancer by tribe is not possible. Most Native people speak only English. at's not to say that tribal differences will disappear; they will prob- ably be less evident. NATIVE AMERICANS' ECONOMY IS CLOSELY IDENTI- FIED BY MOST PEOPLE WITH BOTH CASINOS AND LAND-HOLDINGS. MIGHT WE EXPECT THIS TO CHANGE OVER THE NEXT 30 YEARS? Casinos have never contributed much to Montana's tribal economies. e federal regula- tion of Indian gaming allows tribes to conduct Class II gaming (bingo or poker machines, for example), but if a tribe wishes to conduct Class III gaming (Vegas-style casino gaming), a Tribal- State compact must be negotiated. In Montana, the reservations are too remote to attract many patrons and so gaming has never contributed much to tribal economies. It is not likely that, in 30 years, circumstances will change to make gaming profitable. Montana tribes are, for the most part, located on federal reservations, some of which contain non-renewable fossil fuels as well as timber and grazing lands. Tribes do derive some income from royalties generated by natural resource development. Tribes vary in their beliefs con- cerning the development of their natu- ral resources, e.g. mining. Some tribes believe that mining is sacrilegious while others are eager to lease tribal lands for natural resource exploitation. As the United States exhausts its fossil fuels, reservation coal, gas and oil will command higher prices, however, it is a finite resource. Tribes will continue to explore more renewable energy resources, such as solar and wind power generation. Montana reservations are located in areas where the use of such technology could prove profitable by the year 2047. One of the challenges that tribes in Mon- tana face is the mixed status of reservation land. Some is Fee (fee simple or fee patent) land, deeded and taxable, some is allotted trust that cannot be leased, sold or otherwise encum- bered without approval of the Secretary of the Interior. Allotted trust land can be held either by an individual Indian or the tribe. One challenge is that this land is often held by many heirs, the re- sult of generations of individuals passing intestate (without a will). In that case, the land is passed to eligible heirs. Over time, an individual's interest in the original allotted land becomes so fraction- ated that the person derives no benefit from the land, either in rent or by its production. As we look 30 years into the future, tribes will have concluded their Land Buy-Back for Tribal Nations programs, a product of the Cobell Set- tlement which provided $1.9 billion to purchase fractional interests in trust land. A result of this will be that there will be virtually no individual- ly-owned land on any Montana reservations. However, tribes will have added to their land base by purchasing lands from tribal members and purchasing lands from non- Indians who own fee simple land on the various reservations. WHAT MORE CAN BE DONE TO CELEBRATE AND PRESERVE THE NATIVE AMERICAN CULTURE AND IDENTITY AS WE MOVE FORWARD TO MID-CENTURY? Montana is fortunate that there are in place mechanisms that encourages schools to include "information specific to the cultural heritage and contemporary contribu- tions of American Indians;" Montana celebrates Native American Heritage Day, and many communities are adopting Indigenous People Day as an alternative to Columbus Day. Tribes themselves recognize the fragility of their languages and cultures and are more actively taking steps to insure their continuity. ese efforts should not be in isola- tion. Montana's aboriginal com- munities and their non-Indian allies need to work together to preserve what makes Montana unique, that is, vibrant and diverse traditional communities. WALTER C. FLEMING is the department head and professor in the Native American Studies Department at Montana State University, Bozeman. He has taught at MSU for 37 years and is a specialist in Native cultures and history. Fleming is the author and co-editor of three books and numerous book chapters. He is a past recipient of the Montana Governor's Humanities Award and was named twice-Indian Educator of the Year by the Montana Indian Education Association. He is a twice-member of the Montana Committee for the Humanities (now Humanities Montana) and past vice-president of the Montana Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Fleming is an enrolled member of the Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas. He was born at Crow Agency and raised in Lame Deer, Montana. Fashion design by Montana native Bethany Yellowtail

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