ALASKA NATIVES COMMISSION
JOINT FEDERAL-STATE COMMISSION
ON
POLICIES AND PROGRAMS AFFECTING
ALASKA NATIVES
4000 Old Seward Highway, Suite 100
Anchorage,
Alaska 99503
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Witness List | Exhibit
List
| PDF Version
Native Social and Cultural Issues
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: Do I chair this one?
COMMISSIONER BOYKO: Yes.
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON: Keep going.
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: Okay
COMMISSIONER BOYKO: You're doing good.
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: I would just like to make one observation. When we as
a commission were called together, one of the points
that was brought to us by Julie Kitka from AFN was the fact that
there were four very critical areas, which I think have been
continually identified; and they were: suicide, and alcoholism,
violence, and teenage pregnancy. And the question was to us as
Commissioners to go to the people and find out what might be
effective solutions. And I don't think that there needs to be
proving to us, or to the senators and Governor that they are
very serious issues. They have been proven. And what we're looking
for is your very sincere ideas on solutions to these things,
innovative approaches, things that might be more efficient, and
things that might be working. And I would very much appreciate
maybe the comments being directed toward those areas; and I know
we're moving on to the social and cultural issues; and I think
that those items that I mentioned may come up there also.
The
first person who is on the list is Susie Sam; and, Susie, would
you like to identify yourself and --
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON: I
think she needs that white mike. The others ones don't work.
MS. SAM: I don't like to speak with my back toward
most of the people, so I'll turn my back this way, and have only
four people
behind me, to keep everybody from whispering in the back; and
if you see anybody whispering back there, please let me know.
(Laughing.) I'm not a good public speaker. I am, for a lot of
Alaska Natives, I really would encourage this Commission to actually
go out to the villages. I think it's very important, I think
we have a lot of people speaking here today that are for organizations;
and I see I'm representing one; but I think if you talk to individual
Alaska Natives, I think it would be more effective.
Another thing
is that I would really appreciate the whole Commission members,
if they're going to set up a meeting, they should all
be here. I mean, we all sacrificed our Saturdays. I mean, we
have a lot of other things that we want to do. I have a two-year-old
boy. This morning when I was getting ready, he goes:
"Mom, you
not have to work today. It's Saturday."
And that kind of thing
just makes me want to stay home instead of coming up here. To
people that are supposed to be interested
but are not all here, that just kinds of tells us that our testimonies
and stuff is not important. I think that it is; and I think it
should be portrayed that way for future --
COMMISSIONER BOYKO:
Do you give extra credit to those of us who are here?
MS. SAM:
But you're getting paid, you said today.
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA:
Some.
MS. SAM: Okay, some of you are getting paid. I
just want to go back to what Peter John was saying this morning
that it
is really
important for us to listen to our elders and be proud of who
we are. I think that there is a lot of kind of misconceptions
that I think that are out there. People are always saying:
"Get an education. Get an education,"
Yet,
when we do work our way through school, get a four-year degree,
there's not a lot out there for us. And we have to take
one route or the other. It's just tearing the younger people
apart. I feel sorry for the people that are younger than I am
that are making that decision right now. They're listening to
their elders, and getting all their traditional values in score;
but yet, people are telling them:
"Get an education."
That's a
pretty tough decision. I chink that's where a lot of the confusion
of the younger people are trying
to make that choice right now. And I just have a lot of gripes.
I just want to let you know that I did apply for this Commission.
I wasn't accepted. I don't know why. They didn't give me any
reason; they just wrote me a one sentence, saying I wasn't accepted.
But I think it's very important for the younger people to get
involved, state what they have to say, even though sometimes
they're not listened to. I think, if you talk it out and get
it out of your system, you'll be feeling a lot better about yourself.
And I think a lot of the trouble that we experienced today about
running overtime is a lot of the testimony was put into other
words by the Commission members. And maybe our words should just
be taken for what it's worth, instead of being edited; and if
they have any personal questions, I'd be glad to answer them
over the phone, instead of taking all these people's time all
through their Saturday. And in order for this Commission to work,
it has to be very committed people on there to make it work.
That's the only way it's going to pull through. And that was
just my major gripes on the Commission with how it's being handled
today. I know it's their first meeting, and I was very excited
when I heard they were going to be formed, and I thought that
was a big seep for the Alaska Natives, but I was kind of disappointed
today.
I was encouraged by the two younger girls that
came up here today. You know, very well spoken, stating right
to the
point what they
had to say. I think their comments, as well as their eldersf,
should really be taken seriously.
I think there's a lot of things
that this Commission can do, especially on the subsistence parts;
and one of the questions
asked was:
"Well, what can we as Alaska Natives do
to convince non-Natives, or non-subsistence users that we need
subsistence?"
And
one suggestion was that we can scratch all the politicians' backs
down there, and maybe they might scratch ours' after.
The education,
I had one real concern; and one of the Commission members asked
the question:
"Well, what can we do with the people that"--
not in these words, but if one of the panel members
had any suggestions on -- what is that word? -- incentives for
letting our younger
people go to school? And I am one of the people who had to sacrifice
four years of my life away from my family, to get an education,
and it's going on six years, and I still haven't paid my student
loan off; so that's ten years of my life sacrificed for that
formal education; which, to my knowledge, it hasn't done me too
much good yet. They keep telling me it will. But I just wanted
to say that I did that because my grandfather and my mother always
told me to do that. You know, they said:
"We're always going to be Native wherever
you live. You can always go back to the village, and you
can always adapt to that village
lifestyle.''
And I think that's true. So they don't think ten
years of living in the city will change me in any way, because
every time I go
back, I adapt to their ways just as quickly. And that's all I
had to say.
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: Okay, Susie, thank you very
much. I think that your comments, particularly about the Commissioners
going
to the villages, is heard very well. And of the whole Commission
also. I think that, of the fourteen members of the Commission,
I think they're all very dedicated, and they're very conscientious
and interested. I'd like to move on to Benedict Jones.
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON: May I just follow up real briefly, Susie? Just so you
also know, all 14 were not invited here today. And
the reason was to hold the cost down; and so we can have more
hearings, rather than just a few hearings with 15 people sitting
up here, and four people -- or 20 people in the audience. So,
it was by design; and the people that are not here, it's not
that they don’t want to be here, and please understand
that; it's just that it was set up so that we would have a few
people taking testimony, so we can go to more places.
MS. SAM:
That should have been stated right off in the beginning.
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON: Maybe it should have been, and it was a good suggestion.
Thank you.
MR. JONES: I'm Benedict Jones from Koyukuk. I just
recently got elected as an, Denakkanaaga Elders Chief and I'm
on the Board
of Directors of Dennakkanaaga. I just recently retired from the
State of Alaska, Department of Transportation, 20 years' service
for the public; and I'm presently Second Chief of my Traditional
Village. I have limited education due to world War II interruption
on my education. Because of the BIA’s school in Koyukuk,
and during the war, they took all the teachers out of the village,
so we didn't have no teachers during the war; and then I think
the BIA forgot about Koyukuk, where it existed in the map of
Alaska; so for about four years, we didn't get no teachers back
into Koyukuk at that time. Somewhere in I48 or '49, we finally
got our teachers back, and I came back to school again; but,
at that time, the BIA and the Territorial Alaska had regulation
that if you turned 16, you automatically had to get out of school,
so that stopped my education there.
As for Denakkanaaga, we've
been pushing with State of Alaska -- maybe, we can ask the
Commission, too, with your help to try
to get more elders' home with the Tanana Chiefs Region. We have
one in Tanana, but we would like to have another one in Galena
or Fort Yukon area where these elders have to move away from
their villages. It's hard for the relatives -- say for the Tanana,
it's hard for the expense. The transportation is so expensive
to travel from their village to visit the elders. And also for
up here in Fairbanks. So we would like to see more elders' home
within our region, or within the state of Alaska. I know the
other elders throughout Alaska is pushing for the same thing,
too.
I listen to a lot of statement that Peter John
made that for Native culture. As a Chief, or a Elder's Chief
now, as a
youth,
I used to listen to the elders, because we didn't have no radio
or anything in those days. The only education that we were getting,
at that time, was going around to the elders. Maybe one elder
would tell us a story from the time the earth was formed; and
we'd listen to about how the animals was created, and:he stars,
and the moon, and all that. So that's mostly my culture education
is from the elders. And I respect them for that.
As for preserving
the Native language, I know Georgianna Lincoln's felt (indiscernible)
and the legislation, but I would like to
see it maybe put more wording, and so the other legislators could
understand what our Native language is all about. Because preserving
our language, it comes to help. For me anyway, when I was going
to school and trying to learn how to speak English, it kind of
helped educate me to understand the two language, my language
and the English language. So it'll be more helpful for the youths
to understand our culture, our Native way of life, and so on.
As for fishing, as Pat Madros stated earlier, I'm
a subsistence user; but he said a game biologist doesn't understand
our subsistence
way of life. As for this past two years since I moved back, the
best time of our salmon run is the first run, and they limit
our fishing to coincide with commercial fishing. So we could
not preserve our king salmon. They're bad when they just come
off the coast; but if you go back -- we're still catching king
right now, but they're not as high quality as the first run,
so we're only limited; but if they shut us off for three, four
days during the commercial, to make up their mind -- this past
fishing season, we back in the villages from the -- oh, say,
from Ruby down to Holy Cross area, we didn't know from day to
day
when is the fishing, even for subsistence. We didn't know from
day to day. We asked and called the Fish and Game, but we don't
get no response from them. They didn't know themselves when the
next fishing season's going to be opened another 24-hour period
or what. So, when they closed it three or four days, by chat
time, the high-quality fish has already gone by.
And another
thing about drug trafficking into the villages. This is real
critical in our area anyway. I know that the federal
and state agencies watch only the big airlines and other drug
traffic, but they don't pay attention to villages, where there
is the drug traffic, so I'd like to see the state and federal
drug agency to check priority with air taxi terminals. Maybe
dogs sniffing. I know several drug dealers in the villages, but
as for one of the State Troopers in the past, he was a drug dealer,
too; so we couldn't do anything about it. So I'd like to see
the federal and state agencies do it. Watch the village. This
would help cut down on suicide and all that.
And another thing,
too, on alcohol, there's been a lot of accidents due to alcohol.
Not only in the summertime, but in the wintertime;
and I would like to see us -- I asked the State legislators,
but I don't know what's become of it to -- or the Alcohol Board
to
limit or enforce like they do here in the city. If the guy's
intoxicated, he could not buy another bottle of liquor or a
case of beer from the liquor store. But out in the Bush, there's
no control. A person is half-intoxicated can still buy a case
of whiskey, and takes off, and he falls off a river boat or something.
So this is something that you need to enforce in the rural area
liquor stores.
I've been trapping all my life as a subsistence
user. I use most of my -- this is since I've retired, I use most
of my fur trapping
as for my own subsistence use. And there's a lot of anti-trappers
that's going out, and maybe the Congress or somebody can stop
the anti-trappers that -- anti-trappers are coming up with new
traps that we could not afford to buy -- what they call leg-hold
trap; and I saw it in a magazine advertised; and just for one
trap was $80, and we could not afford to buy that. So, as long
as I'm able to trap, I want to continue using these traps that
we presently have.
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: Okay, Benedict,
thank you very much.
MR. JONES: I think that's all I got to tell you.
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: Okay, thank you very much.
Let's see, the next person on the list is Don Shircel.
MR. SHIRCEL: Thank you. My name is Don Shircel, and for the past nine years,
I've been the Director of Family Services for the
Tanana Chiefs conference. As a social worker, I've come to know
two key elements: family and tribe, as the most important issues
in viewing Native social concerns, and in developing culturally-appropriate
services to effectively approach the myriad of social problems
which exist in Alaska's villages today.
Ten years ago, the late
Gerald Wilkenson (ph.), a Cherokee elder and social worker, wrote
an article in the Journal of Contemporary
Social Work about the relationship of families and tribe. This
is what he said:
"Indian people are a family. Family is really
what a tribe is all about. A tribe is a collection of families
in which everyone
has accepted duties and obligations to each other. In a tribe,
everyone has an important function, a purpose, and a role
to play."
He went on in the same article to say this:
"The Indian family is in a lot of trouble,
and that means chat Indian people as a whole are in a lot
of trouble, because a tribe
simply cannot withstand the disintegration of its families.
The family is the tribe, and it is that type of relationship
that
keeps people going. The family is the tribe. Native tribes
are a family."
Social services, which assist to empower Native
families, strengthen Native tribes. Programs and policies which
assist to empower
Native tribes, strengthen Native families. You don't have
to be a social worker to realize that fully functioning strong
and healthy families produce strong, healthy, and happy children,
who feel good about themselves, who feel they have an important
purpose, and who have a most important role to play in the
future
of their tribe.
Unfortunately, the converse is also true.
We all know of families, even ourselves, who, at one time or
another, have
experienced
problems. As this Commission has stated, the statistics
alone indicate that many problems are just as great, and even
greater,
in Alaska's villages as in other places. Family violence,
child neglect and abuse, alcoholism and drugs, problem
youth, the
slow deterioration of respect for elders, unfortunately,
have all
become part of village life for a growing number of some
village families. Many of these problems are not new. Problems
such as these develop over
a long period
of time. No one is drawing attention to anything that people
haven't known or seen coming. Although the problems are
really nothing new, perhaps the way people work to help
to find
the solutions of these family and village problems will
have to
be new. Well-meaning attempts at addressing the problems
that village
families have had, have often been ineffective. Many of
these old solutions have concentrated on help coming from
outside
the village. It was thought that experts, professionals,
might have
the answers to solve the problems experienced by village
families. It was thought that money applied directly to
the family might
somehow buy the solution. Both methods have been tried
in different ways at different times. Both methods have
and do help in some ways. But the problems continue, and they
continue
to
get worse. And, in some cases, new problems are created
by the very methods tried to eliminate other problems.
Experts coming from outside the village keep villagers
dependent on the skills from someone else, so that local
skills and
leadership are not developed. Money given directly to
a family can keep
families dependent on someone else for their livelihood,
or can be used to exacerbate other problems. The Athabascan
value
of
self-sufficiency can easily become lost in the good intentions
of people outside the village trying to help. At times,
help is needed. Professional expertise is needed, and
it does
take money for many important services. But perhaps the
focus of
these services must be realized.
As a social worker,
I strongly believe that dollars and services must be committed
where the problems are experienced
-- in
the village. Dollars and social workers in the village.
Training dollars to train village tribal members to
become para-professionals
and to become social workers. Social workers from the
village helping their tribal members and families working
together,
watching
out for and caring for their families. Villages making
their own decisions for the care and best interests
of their families
and children; empowering tribes, empowering families.
This Commission will have little difficulty in
finding someone with some number someplace to put on just about
every problem
related to the status of social conditions in Alaska's
villages. But there are a number of reports, such
as
the Governor's
Interim Commission on Children and Youth of 1988
that also focused
on the issue of where the services need to be. Pulled
from the 1988
Governor's Interim Commission:
"A major shift from categorical
funding to more block grant structure, must be designed within
and across state agency boundaries. State
dollars and human resources must be committed to the belief
that the true source of healing lies in the ability of rural
communities
to do it themselves."
I would also like to submit to this
Commission, "Into the
90's, the Strategic Plan for service to Alaska Families and Children." This
plan recognizes that neither the Division of Family or Youth,
or any agency or organization can truly serve children and their
families without the help and support of other agencies, organizations,
families, and tribes.
It focuses on the special need to work
cooperatively and in creative partnerships with Alaska Native
village councils and tribal courts.
It call for changes in the ways in which the state relates to
Alaska Native tribes. Changes that are necessary to fully implement
the Indian Child Welfare Act. It calls attention to the disproportionate
number of Alaska Native children who continue to be placed outside
their extended families, their tribes, and their cultures in
non-Native foster homes. It calls for the State to take a close
look at tribal certification of foster homes, to work with tribal
courts, to work with the village, and put the services where
they're needed -- in the village. I thank you for this opportunity
to speak.
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: Go ahead.
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON:
We've had a request, and I wonder if you'd help us honor it?
We've had -- and I know everyone's waited,
but we do have a couple of elders who have waited all day; and
we'd like if you -- and I know you would allow us to allow Neal
Charlie to testify, and then we'll come directly to you if that's
okay. Neal? And then Marjorie Maya also wanted to know if she
could go ahead. And if you wouldn't mind, we'll put Neal, who
is from Minto; and, Neal, we welcome you; and we'd ask if we
could move Marjorie Minto up if she's still here? Okay. At this
time, Neal, we welcome you to the Commission here.
MR. CHARLIE: Thank you. I want to thank this board for letting me talk before
them. I don't have too much to say. All I have
to say is that I think we need jobs in our villages. There is
a lot of jobs -- paying jobs -- that could be done in the villages,
that's been done from way back a long time as volunteer jobs.
These boys they're
still
volunteer jobs today.
Tribal court is one of them. We've got
tribal court system set up in our village, and this is just a
volunteer from the village.
Like everywhere else, they pay everybody for doing things. I
think it's about time that these people should start getting
paid for a job that they do like that, because that’s one
of the most important things in the villages -- tribal court.
I know in our village, we depend on it a lot. And these people
they have put in a lot of their own time on it.
Another thing
that I keep thinking about is that we should have our own place
to keep our people and our own village. And that
should be paying job there, to take care of our own people. We
have five or six old people in our village who could get -- the
government can pay people to take care of them, so (indiscernible
- coughing). That kind of things.
I think that there's a lot of
jobs that can be found in the villages for younger people. Pretty
near every day we have young people
with education, go through high school and everything, we hear
it repeated over and over say:
"It's boring; nothing to do."
Heck, me,
with not one grade in my life, I keep myself busy. Here, these
educated kids, they say they got nothing to do. They're
bored, and I think that if you educate these poor kids, they
should have something to look forward to, instead of just left
out on the street.
What I think that I would ask that whoever
can should go out there and take a survey of what we're talking
about. We're talking
from the village right now. We're not talking about Fairbanks
or Anchorage. We'd like to have somebody out there survey on
these things and see what we're talking about. Try to get some
job paid for these boys in the villages. That’s all I got
to say. Thank you.
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON: Thank you, Neal.
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: Thank you very much, Neal.
(Applause)
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: And Marjorie Mayo? Is she
still here?
UNIDENTIFIED VOICE: Yes.
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA:
Would you come forward, Marjorie?
UNIDENTIFIED VOICE: She left.
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON:
I think she left.
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: Oh, she left? Okay. Then,
Joe, thank you very much for yielding to the elders. Would you
like to give your testimony?
MR. HICKS: Yes, I will. My name
is Joe Neal Hicks. I am an employee of Ahtna, Inc. I have been
working there since -- well, on and
off since approximately 1981 after my term in the military. I
agree with the lady that was here, Susie Sam, when she said she
wanted to talk to the audience. You know, I agree with her, too;
because, basically, my report has to do with all Alaska as a
whole, basically. My report is intended to give you an insight
on issues regarding HUD-funded housing within the Ahtna Region.
I see that my cause was put on Native Social and Cultural Issues.
I think it should have been up further -- higher. But anyway,
though my report is not conclusive, it gives you a general overview
of the situation as it exists today in our region.
The housing
program began in the Ahtna Region in the late Seventies, as a
result of inadequate need of homes, poverty, poor health
standards, and the need for better Ahtna Native living. Through
the CCAH (ph.) Corporation, the Native village corporation for
the village of Copper Center, was the first applicant tor HUD-funded
home. Attended at the time was to provide low-income housing
for the Native elderly. Wit-h assistance from the Copper River
Native Association, HUE responded by appointing the housing authority,
now commonly known as the Copper River Basin Regional Housing
Authority. Through the CCAH's (ph.) request, was based on the
understanding that the moneys used would come from Indian housing
moneys. Thus, it was understood that the benefit was theirs.
Within six years after this request, five villages would have
applied for and received these types of housing.
But first, before
HUD moneys could be spent, there was a need for a land base.
Discussions and meetings abounded; and, in short,
the Ahtna Regional Corporation was held to provide the needed
land base. This approach, as was the understanding between the
parties, would provide low-- income housing to Natives in need.
It meant better living, and economic self-sufficiency. The agreements
reached was that, once the home was paid for, the land and house
would revert to the home buyer. Housing would be exclusively
for Native use and occupancy,
as Indian moneys were used. It is this scenario that would later
become a major problem. Because a land base was vital to the
upsurge in housing requests, ANCSA corporate lands was but one
solutions. Repeatedly, the Copper River Basin Regional Housing
Authority elaborated
on a clause known as ANCSA Section 14(c)(3). As it obligated
villages to reconvey lands, have not incorporated out of the
city to the state in trust. The avenue of lease, sale, or other
agreements were discarded, since 14(c)(3) was the law. It could
be done expeditiously; it lacked paperwork, meetings, and was
less costly. Agreements were signed and executed; and the end
result of providing 14(c)(3) lands by Ahtna totaled 79.6 acres
plus as it stands today.
Today, Ahtna no longer provides the
needed land base, due to the legal implications involved that
have arisen. The Ahtna Native
home buyers have long bpen told that the land and home would
revert to them after a period of 20 years, or when the home is
paid for. They understood that these homes were built for their
use and occupancy; that it was theirs to keep. It is the result
of policies, or lack of, that Ahtna no longer provides needed
lands for HUD housing.
I have outlined four basic problem areas,
explaining why this decision was reached. The land base. Questions
regarding whether
the Native home buyer will ever receive these lands remain uncertain.
Lands conveyed under 14(c)(3) are for future city governments,
basically as a source of revenue. Given this, as was understood,
the Native home buyer could never gain title, unless the city
opts to do so. The question of becoming a city within our region
is far, farfetched; at least a hundred years.
Non-Native occupancy.
The Copper River Basin Regional Housing Authority asserts that
moneys used to build the homes are public
moneys. Therefore, providing homes to only Natives is discriminating.
Today, there is approximately 6 0 percent Native occupancy; forty
percent of those homes -- the other forty percent are either
vacant, occupied by others, or in a state of disrepair. Given
this, the
question of land, and who will actually own the home remains
to be answered.
Three, low-income. There is approximately 57
HUD-funded homes and apartments, etcetera, within the Ahtna Region.
Approximately
48 of these homes are on lands belonging to Ahtna, Inc., the
rest situated on Native allotments, or on townsites. Each home
cost us approximately $100,000 apiece; and, depending on individual
income received, which is from your job, fire fighting, whatever
the case may be, your monthly payments is derived at -- at about
50 percent plus. That's a floating monthly payment. There is
no fix. The Copper River Basin Regional Housing Authority requires
a person to report any kind of salary increases. They want you
to verify it, call up your boss, whatever it is in order to get
that verification.
Your monthly payments do not include electricity
or telephone. The home buyer is charged for any repairs, improvements,
and/or
maintenance as is necessary and deemed appropriate by the housing
authority. This leaves no money for other necessities, such as
groceries; and the Native home buyer is in no better position
than he or she were before, Many receive Welfare and food stamps
as a supplement.
Four, other HUD or Copper Basin Regional Housing
Authority requirements. They impose on the home buyer, at their
cost, that each home
be maintained, repaired, and kept up to par at standards that
they come up with. If not, the home buyer is subject to eviction,
or put on notice that penalties could be assessed. Again, an
individual home buyer must report all income, whether it be winnings
in bingo, and/or trapping.
In conclusion, the end result of all
the above is many unhappy home buyers who feel infringed upon.
Many have moved out; others
try to make ends meet; others take it day to day. Most have approached
Ahtna, requesting assistance. Encroachment by non-Natives in
predominantly Native villages is on an uprise, increasing awareness
and dissatisfaction toward the housing authority. Given this,
it is very unlikely that 100 percent Native occupancy is ever
to be achieved again, The laws of land is certainly a question
that remains unanswered. Twenty years or more to pay off a home
is a long Lime for a home to remain in good condition. Priced
at 100 Gs, some homes are yet without electricity, lack running
water, require enormous amount of money for fuel and heat, and
are inadequately insulated. Overall, it is more of a burden on
the Native than an achievement.
Adequate housing is needed in
the Ahtna Region, but with current policy and procedural requirements,
which do not allow the Native
land base through Ahtna, it is basically useless, unless changes
are made. There may be a settlement that may be reached through
Ahtna. I have recently been appointed to the Copper River Basin
Regional Housing Board; and, who, for your information, has denied
my request to attend this meeting. Basically, I asked them to
fund me, and they said: "No." And what is disappointing
is the likelihood that changes can be made. It is my position
that a review of all policies, procedures, and guidelines be
discussed, elaborated, and addressed. I seek changes for the
betterment of the Native people of Alaska. I thank you for allowing
me to speak and give this report.
(Applause)
COMMISSIONER SEBESTA: Thank you,
Neal. I think your comments about HUD housing are something that
have to be
seriously
considered,
and I appreciate your testimony. I think what we should do
right now is take a we have three -- four more people that would
like
to testify; but I think that we need about a three-minute restroom
break. If we can do that and be back here in three minutes.
It's 21 after now, let's say about 25 after.
(Off record)
This document was ocr scanned. We have made every
attempt to keep the online document the same as the original,
including the recorder's original misspellings or typos. .
