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Onondaga Nation Chief Sidney Hill, left, and Faithkeeper Oren Lyons hold up the historic wampum belt commissioned by George Washington to mark the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua. The two displayed the belt in Washington, D.C., on April 15, 2014, to mark the Onondaga Nation claim that the U.S. failed to honor the treaty's guarantee to the Six Nations of the Iroquois for "the free use and enjoyment" of their land.
(Mark Weiner | mweiner@syracuse.com)
WASHINGTON, D.C. - A year after New York Indian tribes turned down millions of dollars in U.S. aid, federal officials are trying again to give taxpayer money to Indian nations that have no intention of accepting the cash.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said last week it would send more than $6 million to eight Native American tribes in New York to help support affordable housing for low-income families.
There was only one problem: At least three of the Indian nations say they never accept money from the federal government.
A fourth - the Oneida Indian Nation - will likely turn down most of the $824,219 offered from U.S. taxpayers. Last year, the Oneidas accepted only a portion of the money, about $200,000, to help maintain its Village of the White Pines housing development south of Oneida.
The Onondaga Nation south of Syracuse, and Tonawanda and Tuscarora nations in Western New York, say they don't seek or accept any aid from the U.S. government because it would threaten their sovereignty.
The Onondaga Nation, Tonawanda Band of Seneca Indians of New York, and Tuscarora Nation each were granted identical sums of $50,282 for 2016, HUD officials said.
Joe Heath, general counsel for the Onondaga Nation, said money from U.S. taxpayers has never been accepted by the Onondagas because it's seen as counter to the nation's sovereignty.
He said the federal financial aid is inconsistent with the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua between the United States and the six nations of the Iroquois Confederacy that recognized Native American sovereignty.
The money could come attached with control and laws imposed by another government, in the view of Onondaga Nation leaders.
"This seems to be the federal government's interpretation of 'self-determination' and sovereignty -- to push money at Indian nations, without consultation or respect for their views," Heath said.
"Then they attempt to use the funding streams to control the nations," Heath said. "The (Onondaga) Nation would strongly prefer that the federal government engage in a meaningful and respectful government-to-government relationship, as mandated by the three treaties that it made with the Six Nations."
In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld dismissal of a 2005 land claim filed by the Onondaga Nation.
In turn, the Onondagas filed a claim of human rights violations against the United States in 2014. A petition filed with the Organization of American States said the U.S. violated Onondaga rights by taking land, and then creating discriminatory laws to prevent the property's return.
Charles McNally, a HUD spokesman in New York City, said the federal financial aid was not intended to cause any threat to Native American sovereignty, but rather to help the Indian nations provide affordable housing for their people.
"We respect the sovereignty of all Native American tribes and the decision of the...nations not to participate in this program," McNally said.
He said HUD routinely makes the money available each year to the New York Indian nations. Any money declined through the program is reallocated in the next fiscal year.
Congress decided to offer the federal money to all Indian nations when it passed the Native American Housing Assistance and Self Determination Act of 1996.
In its fiscal 2017 budget request, HUD asked for $700 million for Native American Housing Block Grants, about $50 million more than this fiscal year.
The other New York Indian nations granted money by HUD last week were the Seneca Nation of Indians ($2,514,162), St. Regis Band of Mohawk Indians of New York ($2,039,575), Cayuga Nation ($386,052) and Shinnecock Indian Tribe of New York ($229,245).
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