Independent news from the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance
April 29, 2024
Environment

NPR: Diane Rehm discusses $3.4 billion settlement of Indian trust fund suit

Jodi Rave Spotted Bear
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jodi@imfreedomalliance.org https://twitter.com/JodiRave
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Opponents of the Dakota Access Pipeline gather Nov. 1, 2023, in Bismarck ahead of a public meeting on an environmental impact statement. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe opposes the pipeline, citing concerns for its water supply. (Kyle Martin/For the North Dakota Monitor)

 

In an interview (on air right now) with NPR’s Diane Rehm, Elouise Cobell is one of the guests to discuss the $3.4 billion settlement of the Indian trust fund suit. Cobell, of the Blackfeet Nation, talked about the settlement. And she described the outcome like this: “It’s like riding into the Cavalry and coming out alive.” Cobell is back in Montana after being in Washington, D.C. for the settlement announcement this week.

Other guests on the Diane Rehm show include Dennis Gingold, lead attorney in the suit that was first filed in 1996. Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma also a guest, as well as Interior Department representative Dan Hayes. The Indian trust funds have been mismanaged since 1887.

Congress still has to approve the settlement. Cobell is optimistic that Congress will do so because many people are now working together to end the suit. Cobell credits a new presidential administration for finally addressing the issue. More information on the settlement can be found at the Cobell Settlement Web site.


Jodi Rave

Posted in EnvironmentTagged
Jodi Rave Spotted Bear
jodi@imfreedomalliance.org https://twitter.com/JodiRave

Jodi Rave Spotted Bear is the founder and director of the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance, a 501-C-3 nonprofit organization with offices in Bismarck, N.D. and the Fort Berthold Reservation. Jodi spent 15 years reporting for the mainstream press. She's been awarded prestigious Nieman and John S. Knight journalism fellowships at Harvard and Stanford, respectively. She also an MIT Knight Science Journalism Project fellow. Her writing is featured in "The Authentic Voice: The Best Reporting on Race and Ethnicity," published by Columbia University Press. Jodi currently serves as a Society of Professional Journalists at-large board member, an SPJ Foundation board member, and she chairs the SPJ Freedom of Information Committee. Jodi has won top journalism awards from mainstream and Native press organizations. She earned her journalism degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

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