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Fighting for Recognition Salem man advocating for American Indian heritage day
By FLYNN ESPE
The East Oregonian
Frank Suniga from Salem attributes his determined nature to his Apache heritage.
"My ancestors were Cochise and Geronimo," he said. "That's built into me. Those guys were real warriors."
While attending the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians conference at Wildhorse Resort & Casino, Suniga had reason to celebrate this week - followed by a bit of disappointment.
A cause for which he has long been an advocate made some promising headway in Washington, D.C.
While not quite making the major headlines, the U.S. Senate on Monday passed an item called the Native American Heritage Day Act. The House of Representatives had passed a similar version last November, at which point it went to the Senate's Committee on Indian Affairs.
If finalized, the legislation would set aside the Friday after Thanksgiving as a day to honor the many achievements of American Indians.
"Native Americans have made distinct and significant contributions to the United States and the rest of the world in many fields, including agriculture, medicine, music, and art," reads one portion of the bill as posted on www.govtrack.us.
For Suniga, the bill had very special significance.
It was more than seven years ago at a similar ATNI convention in Lincoln City that Suniga had passed a similar resolution, which evolved into the federal legislation passed Monday.
"I started thinking about it two years before I put that resolution together," Suniga said. "And from that point it went through a series of changes."
Suniga, for example, had wanted to establish a national holiday in September. After consulting with others in the political arena, however, he was advised that would be too difficult, facing at least 10 years of resistance to become law.
"So they convinced me to change it to a recognition day," Suniga said, adding they also changed the day to fit in with Thanksgiving.
For a time, Suniga said he focused his efforts on meeting with regional politicians like Oregon Senators Gordon Smith and Ron Wyden, as well as Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell.
Still, it seemed he was hitting some walls.
"They didn't work fast enough to suit me," Suniga said.
It wasn't until attending a conference of the National Congress of American Indians, where Suniga passed his information on to former President Tex Hall, that the project gained some momentum.
According to Suniga, both Hall and Ernie Stevens, chairman of the National Indian Gaming Association, took the idea from Suniga's hands and ran with it.
Suniga credited Hawaii Sen. Daniel Inoue with later jumping on board. Rep. Joe Baca from Californian eventually sponsored the idea as House Resolution 3585.
Even from a distance, Suniga has continued to follow the bill's progress, advocating for its passage and educating people wherever possible. On Monday, the same day the Senate approved the bill, Suniga gave a speech to the ATNI general assembly.
"Our ancestors helped Christopher Columbus and other Europeans survive in harsh winters with food such as corn, beans, squash, tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, etc," Suniga said, citing other historic examples of American Indians' contributions.
Unfortunately for Suniga, his idea might still have a way to go before it sees the light of day, because the House needs to approve the bill yet again.
"The House and Senate versions differ," said Jason Giles, legal counsel for NIGA.
Whereas the House version says the heritage day will occur the Friday after Thanksgiving, Giles said the Senate changed the bill to specify Nov. 28, 2008. That likely would change the heritage day from an annual event to a one-time affair.
"I think they were a little worried it would entail public money," Giles said. "So that small discrepancy is what needs to be fixed."
Easier said than done, Giles said the House instigated a rule years ago to no longer designate specific days for celebration - something they would need to amend in order to accept the bill.
Giles said NIGA lobbyists will have to put considerable pressure on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to get the bill back on the floor. Only two days remain in this legislative session.
"It'd be a great thing but there are a lot of national crises going on now," Giles said. "Congress is distracted."
Suniga heard the sobering news Wednesday and - in trying to process the clarification - described it as "somewhat disappointing."
"It seems like we're fighting all the time," he said.
With reservation populations depleting, Suniga stressed a sense of urgency.
"This whole thing is geared for society, the future - educating our children on the history of the American Indian," Suniga said. "We've just got to stay on top of it to get it done." http://www.eastoregonian.info/main.asp?SectionID=13&SubSectionID=48&ArticleID=83176&TM=5021.729 |
