NCAI Commends Leadership of FedEx in Taking Stand Against the Washington NFL Team’s Racial Slur Mascot, Calls on League’s Other Sponsors and Retailers to Join Movement

WASHINGTON, D.C. | The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) commends this evening’s 

 by FedEx asking the Washington NFL team to “change the team name.” FedEx’s announcement is particularly noteworthy given that the company is the stadium sponsor of the Washington NFL team, and FedEx CEO Fred Smith owns a minority ownership stake in the team.

“Tonight’s action by FedEx is a wake-up call to all of those who choose to remain in business with the National Football League. In this historic moment and global movement for racial justice, they can no longer sit idly by as the league’s Washington franchise clings to a dictionary-defined racial slur as its mascot. The R-word is destined for the dustbin of history – it’s not a question of if, but when, and that time is now,” said NCAI President Fawn Sharp. “Our nation faces a day of reckoning – we can choose to perpetuate racial inequality and the marginalization of peoples of color, or we can choose to pursue a new path towards a just, righteous, and inclusive society. Removing racist and harmful words, symbols, and imagery like the Washington team’s R-word mascot is a necessary and non-negotiable first step in taking that path.”

NCAI calls upon the major corporate sponsors of the National Football League to join FedEx in calling for the immediate retirement of the Washington team’s name and mascot. It also calls upon the top retailers of NFL merchandise to discontinue selling any and all apparel and related products bearing the team’s name and mascot.

The oldest, largest, and most representative national organization serving tribal nations and citizens, NCAI has been 

 to eradicate offensive Native “themed” mascots from sports and popular culture for more than 50 years.

About the National Congress of American Indians:


Founded in 1944, the National Congress of American Indians is the oldest, largest and most representative American Indian and Alaska Native organization in the country. NCAI advocates on behalf of tribal governments and communities, promoting strong tribal-federal government-to-government policies, and promoting a better understanding among the general public regarding American Indian and Alaska Native governments, people and rights. For more information, visit 

We’re here for you. The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) stands with you in these uncertain and difficult times. We’re here to help. We’re here to listen. We’re here to work. We’re here to heal.

We simply want you to know that we are working every day to help bring positive change to your nations, communities, and citizens. We’ve had the honor and responsibility to carry out this sacred charge for more than 75 years and we won’t ever stop. Please know that you are not alone.

Despite what some proclaim, America’s greatness depends not on the degree to which this nation advances policies of racial and economic inequality that privilege one group of people at the expense of all others. To the contrary, America’s greatness has always risen and fallen on the degree to which this nation embraces its incredible diversity and provides equal footing to all Americans to seize opportunities, enabling them to realize their full potential. As the first peoples of this land, Native people are an integral part of the American mosaic, and we will not rest until we secure our rightful place in this country’s future and equal opportunities to thrive.

NCAI has an unwavering commitment to continue supporting Indian Country, no matter the challenges that stand in our way. Even during the coronavirus pandemic, we are advancing policies and protections that will serve us beyond the pandemic. In addition, we want to provide financial assistance where it’s needed the most. If you haven’t already, please visit our COVID-19 website at 

. On the site under the “Get Involved” tab, you’ll find a link to apply for COVID-19 relief funding. This funding can be used as you see fit, to ensure you can respond to and recover from this pandemic. If your tribal nation or a non-profit organization in your community needs assistance, we encourage you to apply. This website also serves as a resource hub to stay informed on all legislative matters, news, events, and reliable health-related information, including COVID-19 statistics specific to Indian Country.

In addition, NCAI encourages tribal nations to remain active in the fight for racial equity. We frequently express our commitment by consistently partnering with a number of national partners, such as with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, on the issues that matter most to communities of color. We also believe that public education and personal wellness are two additional components to consider. We encourage you to consider developing a 

 so that we can have a unified voice in our cries for justice. We also encourage you all to take a moment and check in with yourselves, your families, and your communities to create spaces for prayer and healing. 

 has an ongoing series of workshops, activities, and resources to get you started.

I call on you as leaders to come together and rise to the occasion. We must turn this crisis into an opportunity to shape the future for the next seven generations. We can do this together.

NCAI is here for you



This year’s Pride Month has been unlike any other, as a social justice movement more powerful, diverse, and widespread than any seen in decades has swept across the United States. As the country grapples with the issues of racism, police brutality, and confronting its history through monuments and statues, we are also marking the 51st anniversary of the Stonewall uprising – the catalyst for the modern fight for LGBTQ2S rights in the United States, and an incredible demonstration of a marginalized group standing up and demanding the respect they deserve.

In the early hours of the morning on June 28, 1969, the police raided on the Stonewall Inn in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. The Stonewall Inn was a popular location among the gay and lesbian communities, and was known to cater to their most marginalized members such as drag queens and transgender people. The LGBTQ2S community faced an anti-gay legal system in the 1950’s and 60’s, and as tensions escalated outside the Stonewall Inn, New York’s gay community broke out into riots that lasted for more than three days.

The Stonewall riots prompted organizations like the Gay Liberation Front and the Gay Activists Alliance to form, setting the foundation for a half century of activism and advocacy that would bring the LGBTQ2S community to where it is today.

Indian Country has long stood side by side with the LGBTQ2S community, and far back into time immemorable tribes from coast to coast recognized, respected, and 

accepted two-spirit brothers and sisters.

 Just as the Stonewall uprising impacted and inspired tribes across the country, the ongoing social justice movement gets to the heart of the centuries long struggle Indigenous peoples have had to endure.

This month, a story similar to Stonewall has played out across the country. The death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police spurred protests and unrest across the country, prompting an in depth national discourse on policing in the United States, and the figures that are memorialized as statues and monuments.

We are watching as people stand up and make sure their voices are heard and their lives respected today, condemning oppressive practices and institutions while demanding statues and monuments to confederate soldiers and colonizing oppressors are removed across the country.

The Stonewall uprising launched a half century of forward progress and hard fought battles for justice and equality, bringing the LGBTQ2S community greater and greater protection under the law, and an ever growing acceptance and love from within our culture and communities. Today’s movement for justice and equality demands that we stand together for our marginalized and oppressed communities, always pushing for what is right and protecting those who are vulnerable, all while bringing the same passion and commitment that those at the Stonewall Inn did a half century ago.

Pride 2020: Indian Country, Black Lives Matter, and the Struggle for Equality

NCAI Statement on the Negative Decision in Chehalis v. Mnuchin

WASHINGTON, D.C. | The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) is extremely disappointed in today’s decision by the D.C. District Court in Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation v. Mnuchin.

Although the Court acknowledged that Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs) “are not federally recognized Indian tribes but are for-profit corporations established by Congress under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act”, and explicitly limited its decision to “the status of ANCs under [the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act] and the [Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act]”, today’s decision would result in critical congressional funding intended for Indian tribal governments being diverted to state chartered corporate entities with no governance authority and no governmental duties to tribal citizens in Alaska.

NCAI continues to believe that Congress intended for Title V CARES Act funding to be distributed to Indian tribal governments.

NCAI Statement on the Negative Decision in Chehalis v. Mnuchin

MEDIA ADVISORY: NCAI to Convene Tribal Leaders to Discuss Tribal Lands andSacred Sites Issues and Threats across Indian Country

Cedric Cromwell – Chairman, Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe

Mark N. Fox – Chairman, Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation

Harold C. Frazier – Chairman, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe

Ned Norris, Jr. – Chairman, Tohono O’odham Nation

Terry Rambler – Chairman, San Carlos Apache Tribe

Fawn Sharp, President, National Congress of American Indians and President, Quinault Indian Nation


Join the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) and tribal leaders for our upcoming Forum: Protecting Tribal Lands and Sacred Places: Current Threats across Indian Country.

This Forum will share the stories of five tribal nations working to protect their tribal homelands in the face of baseless and arbitrary attacks by the federal government, and they will discuss how the federal government must recommit to its trust and treaty obligations to all tribal nations in this critical area.

Each participant has a unique perspective and experience with tribal land issues and its effects to their rights as sovereign nations: 

 experienced attempts from the Secretary of the Interior to disestablish their reservation and take their lands out of trust; the 

, also known as the Three Affiliated Tribes, are currently fighting the illegal confiscation of minerals beneath the Missouri River on the Fort Berthold Reservation; the 

 has faced several issues including a recent attempt by the governor of South Dakota to force the removal of COVID-19 checkpoints into their tribal nation without cause or jurisdiction; the 

 Nation has long opposed fortified walls on the border of their reservation, and despite a 2017 Executive Order, the Nation reiterates their stance on border walls; and the 

San Carlos Apache Tribe recently testified

 in front of the House Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of the United States to discuss the irreparable environmental and cultural impacts of the proposed copper mining operation.

https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/7395488239360720652

 Tuesday, June 23, 2020 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. EDT

MEDIA ADVISORY: NCAI to Convene Tribal Leaders to Discuss Tribal Lands and Sacred Sites Issues and Threats across Indian Country

WASHINGTON, D.C. | The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) commends the 

 of Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, who declared Friday in referring to the “R*dskins” name and mascot of the Washington NFL team that “it’s past time for the team to deal with what offends so many people.”

“Mayor Bowser’s statement represents a watershed development in Indian Country’s decades-long struggle to remove this and the many other offensive and degrading Native ‘themed’ mascots from sports and popular culture,” said NCAI President Fawn Sharp. “In this historic moment for racial justice, Mayor Bowser’s declaration reflects the growing tide among our nation’s leaders and all Americans to choose respect for Native people and all other people of color by ridding our country of the symbols of racism and intolerance that have long marginalized and dehumanized us.”

NCAI calls upon the leaders of professional sports leagues, school systems, state and local governments, and the business world across the country to condemn and abolish these mascots, which cause profound and well-documented harms to Native people, in particular Native youth.

NCAI is the oldest, largest, and most representative national organization serving American Indian and Alaska Native tribal nations and their citizens, and has been 

NCAI Commends DC Mayor Bowser’s Call for Washington NFL Team to Change Its Name and Mascot, Appeals to State and Local Officials and Corporations to Do the Same

NCAI Statement on the Removal of Christopher Columbus Statues

WASHINGTON, DC | The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the largest and most representative American Indian and Alaska Native organization in the country, does not acknowledge Christopher Columbus as a hero. To Indigenous peoples, he was the opposite:

[O]ut of timbers for the Santa Maria, . . . Columbus built a fort [on Hispaniola], the first European military base in the Western Hemisphere. . . . He took . . . Indian prisoners and put them aboard his two remaining ships. . . . [H]e got into a fight with Indians who refused to trade as many bows and arrows as he and his men wanted. Two were run through with swords and bled to death. Then the Nina and the Pinta set sail. . . . When the weather turned cold, the Indian prisoners began to die. . . .

In the year 1495, they went on a great slave raid, rounded up fifteen hundred Arawak men, women, and children, put them in pens guarded by Spaniards and dogs, then picked the five hundred best specimens to load onto ships. Of those five hundred, two hundred died en route. The rest arrived alive in Spain and were put up for sale. . . .

Howard Zinn, A People’s History of the United States, 3-4 (1980 Ed.).

“This growing movement across the country to rid our shared spaces of symbols that represent hate, genocide, and bigotry illustrates that it is past time for all cities to stand on the right side of history moving forward,” said NCAI President Fawn Sharp.

NCAI also strongly supports the recent actions taken by United States citizens and the international community calling for proper law enforcement reforms and the recognition of basic human rights for the African American community and all communities of color. We are humbled that these voices are including Indian Country’s perspectives. NCAI encourages local governments and their citizens to seek mutual understandings of their diverse perspectives and to develop peaceful solutions that are mindful of all human beings and our rich distinct and shared histories. Together we can build the tomorrow our children deserve to lead.

About The National Congress of American Indians:

Founded in 1944, the National Congress of American Indians is the oldest, largest and most representative American Indian and Alaska Native organization in the country. NCAI advocates on behalf of tribal governments and communities, promoting strong tribal-federal government-to-government policies, and promoting a better understanding among the general public regarding American Indian and Alaska Native governments, people and rights. For more information visit 

As the foremost national coalition of organizations dedicated to civil rights and racial justice, we are both heartbroken and outraged at the brutal and senseless murder of George Floyd by officers of the Minneapolis Police Department. George Floyd becomes the latest in a long and growing line of members of our communities who have needlessly died at the hands of police acting outside of the bounds of the law and their sworn duty to uphold and protect the public. This epidemic of racialized violence must stop, and it must stop now. Bringing it to an end will require the affirmative commitment, solidarity and sustained action of all Americans, from grassroots advocacy to the ballot box.

Our collaborative calls for swift, full, and impartial justice for George Floyd and his family. We call for justice for the many other Black, American Indian, Alaska Native, Latino, Asian, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander people of color who have suffered the same fate at the hands of law enforcement across this country. And we call for justice for the future victims from our communities, who no doubt will lose their lives unless all Americans come together to compel federal, state, and local governments to dismantle the deep-rooted power structures that allow these brutal acts of violence to occur, and then go unpunished. We call for:

the immediate arrest of all of the officers involved in George Floyd’s murder;

President Trump’s appointment of an independent special prosecutor to lead the federal government’s full and impartial investigation of the murder of George Floyd, specifically to determine whether violations of federal hate crimes statutes have occurred and to prosecute those violations accordingly to the full extent of the law;

the systematic reinstitution by the Department of Justice of consent decrees on police departments and municipal governments across this country that have demonstrated patterns of racism towards and mistreatment of people of color;

Congressional oversight hearings, at least annually, to review the status of the implementation of the Death in Custody Reporting Act to compel the collection, reporting and analysis of all deaths, by race and gender, that occur in law enforcement custody, including any while a person is detained or arrested;

federal, state, and local governments to issue states of emergency declaring racism a public health crisis, and to develop targeted policies to address this crisis; and

all Americans to commit to working with us to dismantle systemic racism that has enabled this scourge of race-based violence to grow unabated.

As the Bishop Desmond Tutu once declared, “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.”

Advancement Project National Office, Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum, Demos, Faith in Action, NAACP, National Congress of American Indians, National Urban League, Race Forward, and UnidosUS are a collaborative of nine leading national racial equity anchor organizations (the Anchors) supported by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Together, we work to promote racial equity, advance racial healing, and ensure that all children, families, and communities have opportunities to reach their full potential.

Leading National Civil Rights and Racial Justice Organizations Denounce Murder of George Floyd, Call for Impartial Investigation of Officers Involved

The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the oldest and largest national organization comprised of American Indian and Alaska Native tribal governments and their citizens, denounces the reprehensible conduct and fatal actions by the Minneapolis Police Department that caused the death of George Floyd.

Indian Country knows too well the terrible harm that racist and unaccountable police officers can inflict upon peaceful citizens. Police violence is occurring across the United States and is growing at alarming rates. The growth in unlawful and racially-motivated conduct by police officers demonstrates the prejudice that communities of color are continuing to endure, and our cries for equal rights and justice are being ignored. And far too often, these perpetrators in uniform are shielded from prosecution and other forms of warranted punishment by indifferent or enabling law enforcement leadership and police unions.

“As someone who served in law enforcement for a decade and took an oath to protect and serve all of my fellow citizens, I am sickened by what I’ve witnessed over the past several days, first with the murder of George Floyd, and the inadequate response since to apprehend and bring to justice all of those responsible. This latest unjustifiable tragedy is a stark reminder that people of color face disproportionate rates of police brutality, a situation that merits a comprehensive national policy response. No one should be harmed or murdered simply because of the color of their skin,”

 said Kevin Allis, Chief Executive Officer of the National Congress of American Indians.

Law enforcement officers who swear an oath to protect all citizens yet use violence as a tool to oppress and harm communities of color should be investigated and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. We stand in solidarity with the African American community and the organizations that serve the African American community, and are committed to working together to advance policies of racial equity, policies that must begin with creating a law enforcement system in this country that protects and serves all Americans. #BlackLivesMatter.

NCAI Condemns the Behavior of the Officers Involved in the Death of George Floyd

WASHINGTON – The Presidential Task Force on Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives announced four listening sessions to be conducted by teleconference in May and June. In response to the COVID-19 health emergency, previously scheduled in-person sessions have been postponed and will be rescheduled as soon as it is safe to do so.

American Indians and Alaska Natives experience disproportionately high rates of violence. President Trump has called the crisis of missing and murdered Native Americans “sobering and heartbreaking.” The task force, designated Operation Lady Justice, has been empowered to review Indian Country cold cases, to strengthen law enforcement protocols, and work with tribes to improve investigations, information sharing and a more seamless response to missing persons investigations.

Tribal Listening Session Webinars are open to Tribal Leaders and others. Sessions will include a short presentation about the current activities of the task force, followed by a listening session.

Registration information for the following listening sessions is available at 

Tribes in Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)’s Eastern Region (Tribal land located in Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and all states to the east coast)

Tribes in BIA’s Southern Plains, Southwest, Western and Rocky Mountain Regions (Tribal land located in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Montana and Wyoming)

Tribes in BIA’s Midwest and Great Plains Regions (Tribal land located in Minnesota, Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin, North Dakota, North Dakota and Nebraska)

Tribes in BIA’s Pacific, Northwestern and Alaska Regions (Tribal land located in California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Alaska)

Katharine (Katie) Sullivan, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Office of Justice Programs, designee for the Attorney General;

Tara Sweeney, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, designee for the Secretary of the Interior;

Terry Wade, Executive Assistant Director, Criminal, Cyber, Response and Services Branch, Federal Bureau of Investigation;

Laura Rogers, Acting Director, Office on Violence Against Women;

Charles (Charlie) Addington, Deputy Bureau Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Justice Services;

Trent Shores, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma and Chair of the Native American Issues Subcommittee of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee; and

Jean (Jeannie) Hovland, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Native American Affairs and Commissioner, Administration for Native Americans, Department of Health and Human Services.

Marcia Good, of the Department of Justice, serves as the Executive Director of the Task Force. The Task Force will present a progress report to the President by Nov. 26, 2020, and a final report detailing its activities and accomplishments by Nov. 26, 2021.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of the Department of Justice at 

. 2020 also marks 171st anniversary of the Department of the Interior. Learn more about the history of DOI at 

Presidential Task Force on Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives to Resume Remote Listening Sessions

 | Yesterday, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) released the much-anticipated 

 modernizing the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), a regulatory framework that features landmark provisions designed to incentivize increased access to capital and credit for tribal governments, communities, and citizens.

Leading up to the release of the Final Rule, NCAI, the Native American Finance Officers Association (NAFOA), and our partners had closely engaged the OCC and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for more than two years about how best to modernize the CRA so that it serves the unique challenges and needs of Indian Country. The CRA Final Rule – which the OCC explains “makes capital more accessible in Indian Country and rural and distressed areas” – addresses several major priorities outlined in NCAI’s April 2020 

 on the OCC’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, notably:

specific measures aimed at spurring investments in tribal public safety, housing, education, healthcare, and communications infrastructure, as well as other community and economic development projects on tribal lands;

providing banks with CRA credit for serving tribal communities even when Indian Country falls outside their CRA assessment areas; and

creating CRA scoring incentives for banks that choose to do business in Indian Country.

“We are both relieved and excited to see that the final rule governing the Community Reinvestment Act retains the landmark provisions for Indian Country that NCAI, NAFOA, and its partners fought so hard to get included,” said Kevin J. Allis, Chief Executive Officer of the National Congress of American Indians. “As we turn to implementing this new rule, NCAI plans to work closely with our Indian Country and federal partners to ensure that the CRA fully achieves its intended benefits for tribal nations and communities.”

For more information about the Final Rule, check out 

The CRA was signed into law in 1977 to encourage depository institutions to help serve the credit needs of the communities in which they operate, in particular low- and moderate-income areas and populations. The Act also sought to deter discriminatory credit and lending practices against those populations, a practice commonly known as “redlining.” With many Indian reservations located in the poorest regions of the country, and with a significant portion of the Native population considered to have low or moderate incomes, on paper the CRA should have discernably enhanced the ability of Native people to access capital and credit through CRA-qualifying financial institutions. However, as the CDFI Fund’s landmark 2016 “

Access to Capital and Credit in Native Communities

” report noted, while the CRA “was not intended to exclude Native Communities living on tribal lands...in practice it often does,” and banks under the Act’s current regulations can easily satisfy CRA requirements “without working with a Native Community located on Native lands (communities which otherwise meet CRA criteria)” if they so choose. The modernized regulations feature several measures to address these issues.

Final Rule for Community Reinvestment Act Features Landmark Provisions to Increase Access to Capital and Credit for Indian Country

 in 11 additional states (AZ*, CO, IN, IA, LA, NE, NV, NM*, NY*, RI, and WY) and Puerto Rico, including dropping census invitation packets at the front doors of rural households and households that don't normally receive mail at home (known as the Update/Leave operation). As a reminder, on May 6, 2020, the Census Bureau resumed the hand delivery of census packets in AK, AL, AR, ID, ME, MS, MT, ND, OK, TN, UT, VT, and WV. On May 13, the Census Bureau resumed operations in an additional 54 Area Census Offices across FL, GA, KS, KY, MO, NC, OR, PA, and WA.'

Census Bureau Resumes Update/ Leave Operation in Some States

U.S. Departments of Treasury and Interior Release Update on Distribution of Coronavirus Relief Fund Funding and Formula

Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Department of the Interior issued a 

 regarding the Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) dollars with updates on set-aside funding for tribal governments as follows:

“The Secretaries will:

Distribute 60 percent of the $8 billion to Tribes based on population data used in the distribution of the Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG), subject to a floor of $100,000. This data is based on U.S. Census figures and is already familiar to Tribal governments.

Distribute the remaining 40 percent of the $8 billion based on the total number of persons employed by the Indian Tribe and any tribally-owned entity, and further data to be collected related to the amount of higher expenses faced by the tribe in the fight against COVID-19.

Payment to Tribes will begin today based on the population allocation, and will take place over several banking days. Amounts calculated for Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act regional and village corporations will be held back until pending litigation relating to their eligibility is resolved.

Payments to Tribes based on employment and expenditure data will be made at a later date. Treasury will work with Tribes to confirm employment numbers and seek additional information regarding higher expenses due to the public health emergency.”

“Treasury notes that the pending litigation has introduced additional uncertainty into the process of implementing the allocation and making payments to the Tribes, but Treasury is endeavoring to make payments of the remaining amounts as promptly as possible consistent with the Department’s obligation to ensure that allocations are made in a fair and appropriate manner.”

Also today, the Treasury Department posted a document regarding its Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) methodology titled “Allocations to Tribal Governments.” The document can be found 

.

Further, on May 4, 2020, the Treasury Department updated its Frequently Asked Questions on use of CRF funds 

.

If you have questions about the CRF, please contact Fatima Abbas, NCAI Director of Policy and Legislative Counsel, at 

Collectively our ten organizations are leading conveners for business leaders in championship for diverse communities: Pan-Asians, Blacks, Hispanics, women, LGBTQ, Native Americans, persons with disabilities and employees of all and no faiths. We redouble on our mission of promoting inclusion and stand together in collaboration to address the adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. While low-wage earners are particularly vulnerable during this public health and economic crisis, the coronavirus outbreak has also claimed disproportionate numbers of lives in communities of color and has given rise to a surge of anti-Asian sentiment. We call on our members, partners and associates to join us along with the growing list of Supporting Companies in affirming the following 5-Point Action Agenda:

Promote Inclusion: Advocate for a diverse and inclusive workplace and society

Raise Awareness: Highlight the unique impacts of COVID-19 on vulnerable groups

Denounce Bias: Encourage individuals to report virus-linked discriminatory acts against Pan-Asians and other targeted groups and communities in the workplace and in public

Support Communities: Contribute time, knowledge and / or other resources to aid frontline workers, COVID-19 victims and families

Give Donations: Provide funds and / or other resources to support vulnerable populations of people and impacted businesses

Finding sustainable solutions to the current public health, social and economic challenges is a global imperative. Discrimination targeted at Pan-Asians in forms of shunning, harassment and assaults impedes our ability to stem the spread of the pandemic. About 20% of U.S. healthcare workers are immigrants; 17% of doctors in the U.S. are of Asian descent, while people of all backgrounds work to save lives on the frontline. Discriminatory threats against any first responders also put at risk the patients they serve and delay finding a cure for the disease. Pan-Asians and our diverse communities are an integral part of the solutions to this global crisis.

Heeding historical precedents for scapegoating marginalized groups for diseases and economic instability, our organizations are working together to combat anti-Asian stigma and all forms of bias based on age, color, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation and veteran status. We will continue to advance best practices to safeguard protections for Pan-Asians and other marginalized employee segments. These efforts also include working with key coalitions such as CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion to advance awareness and education of bias at the highest levels of the business community.

We recognize the fight against the current pandemic requires a whole-of-society approach. We urge supporters to engage in our programming, share widely our 5-Point Action Agenda and resource materials. Post-COVID-19 recovery will require the collective networks, capacities, knowledge and skills of our organizations. Almost 200 years ago, Alexis de Tocqueville observed that the success of America’s experiment is our exceptional belief in the "common good." We are all in this together; now more than ever, we need to ascend to the challenges before us and rebuild a whole post-crisis world. Together, our organizations and Supporting Companies will act to catalyze progress for our resilient future.

National Association of Black Accountants (NABA, Inc.)

National Congress of American Indians (NCAI)

100+ Corporations & Partner Organizations Support COVID-19 Action Agenda

 - The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) and the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) applaud the decision by the U.S. Census Bureau to request statutory authority from Congress to extend 2020 Census operations by 120 days.

The U.S. Census Bureau has requested that field data collection and self-response for the 2020 Census be extended until October 31, 2020 due to the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which has already resulted in a suspension of all census field operations. The Bureau further requested that apportionment counts be delivered to the President by April 30, 2021 and redistricting data be delivered to the states by July 31, 2021.

The U.S. Census Bureau’s in-person field operations are critical to getting a complete count of rural Indian Country and urban American Indians/Alaska Natives (AI/ANs). Although millions of Americans can respond to the census questionnaire through the Internet, by phone, or by mail, those options are largely unavailable to AIANs. Most AI/AN tribal areas and reservations are located in geographically isolated areas that lack access to broadband and reliable cellular coverage. AIANs living on reservations or in rural areas typically lack street addresses which prevents them from receiving census materials by mail. These barriers and others, such as language and illiteracy, are why the U.S. Census Bureau has designated many households in tribal areas to receive their 2020 Census questionnaire directly from Bureau staff visting their communities.

The impact of the U.S. Census Bureau’s suspension of field operations on Indian Country is profound. While the national response self-response rate is over 48 percent, the self-response rates in many tribal areas that depend on in-person enumeration are in the low single-digits

Fort Apache Reservation (Arizona) - self-response rate of 1.7 percent;

Crow Reservation (Montana) - self-response rate of 2.3 percent;

Pine Ridge Reservation (South Dakota) - self-response rate of 2.9 percent;

Acoma Pueblo (New Mexico) - self-response rate of 3.7 percent;

Pala Reservation (California) - self-response rate of 4.4 percent; and

Turtle Mountain Reservation (North Dakota) - self-response rate of 4.9 percent.

“The COVID-19 pandemic is having an unprecedented impact on efforts to get a complete count in Indian Country,” said Natalie Landreth, Senior Staff Attorney at NARF. “Native Americans living on tribal lands had an undercount of at least 4.9 percent in 2010, the highest of any population group. If Bureau staff and their national and tribal partners do not have sufficient time to complete the count of urban Natives and those living on reservations, entire tribal nations could virtually disappear. That will cost tribes and the State and local communities where they are located billions of dollars in lost federal funding, and deprive AI/ANs of their constitutional right to vote.”

“Following safety guidelines in the wake of COVID-19 and having a full and accurate count in the 2020 Census should not be mutually exclusive. We call on Congress to ensure tribal nations are not forgotten nor left behind,” said NCAI CEO Kevin Allis. “The data collected from the 2020 Census will inform the formulas used to determine funding and political representation that will be crucial to tribal communities moving forward as we recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. For too long, Indian Country has been undercounted, underfunded, and underrepresented. We hope that this extension will allow enough time for field operations to resume and safely provide the in-person enumeration that is essential to a full and accurate count of AI/ANs in this country.”

NCAI and NARF encourage Members of Congress to work with the U.S. Census Bureau and provide the Bureau with the legal authority to extend 2020 Census Operations by 120 days. In a time of crisis, we must all unite to ensure that all Americans, including AIANs, are counted.

Founded in 1970, NARF is the oldest and largest non-profit dedicated to asserting and defending the rights of Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and individual Indians nationwide. For the past 48 years, NARF has represented over 275 Tribes in 31 states in such areas as tribal jurisdiction, federal recognition, land claims, hunting and fishing rights, religious liberties, and voting rights. For more information, visit 

NCAI and NARF Joint Statement on Recent Census Announcement and Call for Congress to Extend Census Operations

 As national civil rights organizations, we know that everyone must be equitably included in the protections and support provided by the CARES Act if we are to slow the spread of coronavirus in our communities and revive our economy. Now more than ever, our fates are tied together. Unfortunately, the CARES Act passed one week ago fails to meet a simple moral test - that we protect the most vulnerable among us. In the United States, the most vulnerable disproportionately includes communities of color, yet this legislation fails to adequately safeguard communities of color. We are deeply disappointed and urge Congress and states to remedy this mistake in the next rounds of COVID-19 legislation.

The CARES Act passed by Congress fails to meet this test in part because it largely excludes immigrant and mixed-status families, including their U.S. citizen children, from Unemployment Insurance and direct stimulus payments. We believe that all workers must be eligible for rebates, including those who pay federal taxes with ITIN numbers provided by the IRS. We all have a stake in making sure immigrant workers who are on the front lines of producing and distributing food and caring for the sick, elderly, and disabled are able to stay safe.

We applaud the progress that was made last week to refocus the CARES Act on hospitals and working people, but our work is not finished until everyone is included. So we ask Congress to do the right and wise thing by enacting additional legislation to include all families, including those that happen to include an immigrant.

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Advancement Project, National Office, Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum, Demos, Faith in Action, NAACP, National Congress of American Indians, National Urban League, Race Forward, and Unidos US are a collaborative of nine leading national Racial Equity Anchor Organizations supported by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Together we work to promote racial equity, advance racial healing, and ensure that all children, families and communities have genuine opportunities to reach their full potential.

Civil Rights and Racial Justice Organizations Lament Absence of Full Inclusion of All People in CARES Act Coverage

On Friday, March 27, 2020, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) announced the passage and signing of H.R. 748, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. This bill includes $10 billion in funding set-asides for tribal nations. Advocates from across Indian Country worked tirelessly to ensure that the bill included these and other resources to enable tribal nations and communities to respond to and recover from the effects of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

NCAI expresses its sincere gratitude for the tireless efforts of our tribal partners and our Congressional champions on both sides of the aisle for ensuring Indian Country was included in the CARES Act. We look forward to our continued work with the Administration and both chambers of Congress to ensure tribal nations have the resources they need to protect their communities in the face of this pandemic. We would also like to thank all of the healthcare and service workers who are on the frontlines in response to COVID-19, especially those working in tribal clinics and Native communities.

Indian Country has long been greatly underfunded and during this current pandemic our tribal nations are feeling the impact. The resources in the CARES Act are welcome relief, but our work is not done. Now, more than ever, we call on all of our champions in the House, Senate, and Administration to uphold the federal treaty and trust obligations to tribal nations by ensuring legislation and federal policy provides ample resources and flexibility to Indian Country as soon as possible so that all can work to provide for the health, safety, and well-being of our communities.

To learn more about NCAI’s current efforts and the latest news and information around the COVID-19 pandemic, please visit 

Founded in 1944, the National Congress of American Indians is the oldest, largest and most representative American Indian and Alaska Native organization in the country. NCAI advocates on behalf of tribal governments and communities, promoting strong tribal-federal government-to-government policies, and promoting a better

understanding among the general public regarding American Indian and Alaska Native governments, people and rights. For more information, visit 

The National Congress of American Indians Message of Gratitude and Call to Action

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Threatened with Land Disestablishment, Tribal Leaders Step in to Address Ongoing Land Issues and Threats to Sovereignty

On Friday, March 27, 2020, the Secretary of the Interior notified the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe that he has ordered the disestablishment of the Tribe’s reservation, an act that would take Mashpee’s tribal homelands out of trust status. This action is being taken despite Interior’s prior commitment that no such action would be taken until litigation defending the status of the Tribe’s reservation is resolved. This surprise action is a devastating blow to not only the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe but all of Indian Country, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, and violates the federal government’s solemn trust responsibility to safeguard tribal nations and their lands.

“The steps being taken right now – in the middle of a nationwide pandemic – to disestablish our reservation and take our land out of trust has created a crisis on top of a crisis. Our land is sacred. It’s where our people receive health services. It’s where our children attend our language immersion school. It’s where we are building houses for our citizens. Taking our land is a direct attack on our culture and our way of living,” said Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Chairman Cedric Cromwell. “We now have no choice but to divert precious resources from COVID-19 to address this unwarranted attack on our sovereignty. This is an unconscionable act that’s ushered in a new termination era, and it is the latest evidence of the erosion of the Department’s willingness to act consistent with its trust duties to protect tribal lands.”

The land within the Mashpee Reservation has been Mashpee Wampanoag land since time immemorial, and was set aside in trust to serve as a permanent homeland for present and future generations of Mashpee citizens. Last week’s misguided decision undermines the Tribe’s ability to continue to self-govern, provide vital programs and services to its citizens, and protect its traditional lands and cultural resources.

Last year, through a strong bipartisan vote, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 375 (companion bill, S. 2808), commonly referred to as the “Clean 

 Fix,” which would have protected Mashpee’s and other tribal nations’ rights to permanent homelands by resolving the damage caused to Indian Country by the Supreme Court’s baseless 2009 opinion in 

 Unfortunately, the Senate has so far failed to consider or take any action on this legislation, which is intended to restore certainty and fairness to all tribal nations in the land-into-trust process. For a decade, Indian Country has advocated that Congress address the 

 problem and that this should be achieved by (1) restoring the Secretary of the Interior’s authority under the Indian Reorganization Act to take land into trust for all federally recognized tribal nations; and (2) reaffirming existing Indian trust lands, which NCAI noted in its 

“Removing the homelands of established communities and villages endangers the very existence of an entire nation of people. This is unacceptable, and such an action during this pandemic is an outrage,” said Kevin J. Allis, CEO of the National Congress of American Indians.

“At a time when tribal governments and their leaders are desperately working to protect the health of their citizens and the economic security of their communities in the face of the catastrophic COVID-19 pandemic, they shouldn’t also have to contend with attacks on their tribal homelands from the very trustee that is legally obligated to protect those homelands,” continued Allis. “Just like with the destruction of the sacred sites of the Tohono O’odham along the southern border, that of the Apache and Yavapai peoples at Oak Flat in Arizona, the endangerment of Bears Ears and Chaco Canyon, and the inability of our Native brothers and sisters in Alaska to take land into trust, this latest action illuminates a disturbing pattern: the federal government and this Administration’s brazen assault on the right and ability of all tribal nations to sustain their cultures, identities, and ways of life through deep and abiding connections to their time-honored places.”

“The action by this Administration in rendering such a decision is dishonorable and reprehensible on its face, but to do so when we are fighting a national pandemic is shameful. If there was any question before, it is clear that we are experiencing a crisis in Indian Country at this moment,” said President Kirk Francis of USET’s Sovereignty Protection Fund. “We must all come together, stand up, and fight to protect our inherent sovereign rights to and authorities on our own lands. Congress has had more than a decade to do the right thing. Baseless and nefarious challenges to our sovereign right to restore and rebuild our tribal nations, after decades and centuries of unjust actions that robbed of us of our lands and natural resources as the United States pursued its growth and expansion through a rationalization of manifest destiny, must come to an end. It is time that the United States Congress finally does the honorable thing and pass a clean 

NCAI and the USET Sovereignty Protection Fund exist to strengthen and support tribal sovereignty for tribal nations such as the Mashpee Wampanoag and the 574 federally recognized tribal nations in the United States. We call upon our champions in the United States Senate to advance the passage of H.R. 375/S. 2808 with all due haste. Its passage would represent a monumental victory for Indian Country, as tribal land bases are integral to tribal sovereignty and economic opportunity.

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, also known as the People of the First Light, has inhabited present day Massachusetts for more than 12,000 years. After an arduous process lasting more than three decades, the Mashpee Wampanoag were re-acknowledged as a federally recognized tribe in 2007. In 2015, the federal government declared 150 acres of land in Mashpee and 170 acres of land in Taunton as the Tribe’s initial reservation, on which the Tribe can exercise its full tribal sovereignty rights. The Mashpee tribe currently has approximately 2,700 enrolled citizens.

Founded in 1944, the National Congress of American Indians is the oldest, largest and most representative American Indian and Alaska Native organization in the country. NCAI advocates on behalf of tribal governments and communities, promoting strong tribal-federal government-to-government policies, and promoting a better understanding among the general public regarding American Indian and Alaska Native governments, people and rights. For more information, visit

About the USET Sovereignty Protection Fund (USET SPF):

Established in 2014, the USET Sovereignty Protection Fund (USET SPF) is a non-profit, inter-Tribal organization advocating on behalf of thirty (30) federally recognized Tribal Nations from the Northeastern Woodlands to the Everglades and across the Gulf of Mexico. USET SPF is dedicated to promoting, protecting, and advancing the inherent sovereign rights and authorities of Tribal Nations and in assisting its membership in dealing effectively with public policy issues.

This afternoon, President Trump issued an emergency declaration in the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic. NCAI is currently engaging key Administration officials to ensure that vital federal programs and funding continue to support the needs of Indian Country.

The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) is receiving a lot of questions from tribal nations and others about the current coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and requests for help with finding credible, factual information. NCAI has created a webpage featuring links to resources on COVID-19 from known and reliable sources.

http://www.ncai.org/initiatives/partnerships-initiatives/resources-for-indian-country-coronavirus

NCAI also recommends caution when viewing information on social media unless it comes from trusted sources. Most of the resources on our webpage use the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) webpage to develop their information.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

Thank you for all you are doing for our communities during this difficult time. We plan to send regular updates on this topic to ensure you have the latest information.

NCAI Update and Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resource Webpage

The Protect ICWA Campaign Urges Federal Appeals Court to Affirm ICWA’s Constitutionality Following Oral Arguments in Brackeen v. Bernhardt

(NEW ORLEANS, January 22, 2020)—Following today’s United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals oral arguments in the 

 case, the Protect ICWA Campaign, consisting of the National Indian Child Welfare Association, the National Congress of American Indians, the Association on American Indian Affairs, and the Native American Rights Fund, issued the following statements:

“We look forward to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision,” said Sarah Kastelic, Executive Director of the National Indian Child Welfare Association. “We are confident the Fifth Circuit will affirm ICWA’s strong constitutional grounding. ICWA protects children in state child welfare systems and helps them remain connected to their families, cultures, and communities.”

“NCAI applauds the strong advocacy of the intervening tribes and the federal government, as Indian Country’s trustee, in defending the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act before the entire Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals this morning,” said Kevin Allis, NCAI Chief Executive Officer. “We pray for relief that upholds ICWA in its entirety and continues to protect the best interests of Indian children and families.”

"There has been an overwhelming amount of resources coming forward to support the Indian Child Welfare Act. We should be spending our resources protecting Indian children and not fighting interest groups that seek to dismantle the government-to-government relationship between the United States and Tribes. The Fifth Circuit will be on the right side of history protecting Indian children, and by doing so strengthening the child welfare system for all children," said Shannon Keller O’Loughlin, Executive Director and Attorney for the Association on American Indian Affairs.

“We are confident the full Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals will again confirm the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act,” said John Echohawk, Executive Director of the Native American Rights Fund. “We will always stand with our children, families, and Tribes against any and all efforts to diminish our communities, well-being, and sovereignty.”

The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is a 41-year-old federal law protecting the well-being and best interests of Indian children and families by upholding family integrity and stability and keeping Indian children connected to their community and culture. ICWA also reaffirms the inherent rights of tribal nations to be involved in child welfare matters involving their citizens.

The law protects the best interests of American Indian and Alaska Native children by requiring agencies and courts take into account not just the immediate needs of Indian children, but also their long-term interests as they grow and move into adulthood.

A nationwide coalition of 495 tribal nations, more than 60 Native organizations, 26 states and the District of Columbia, 77 members of Congress, 31 leading child welfare organizations, and Indian and constitutional law professors agree ICWA is vital to the well-being of Indian children and the stability and integrity of Indian families today.

full text of the Indian Child Welfare Act

The following briefs were filed at the U.S. Court of Appeals in the Fifth Circuit in 

486 Tribes and 59 Indian Organizations Brief

Casey Family Programs and Child Welfare Organizations Brief

Administrative Law and Constitution Law Professors Brief

Native American Women, Indian Tribes, and Organizations Brief

The Protect ICWA Campaign (the Campaign) was established by four national Native organizations: the 

National Indian Child Welfare Association

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