总统乔·拜登星期三宣布了对美洲土著民族“早该”的承诺。
“在我的观察下，我们正在迎来一个新时代，并推动联邦政府与部落民族合作的方式，”拜登在六年来首次亲自出席白宫部落民族峰会时说道，抨击他的前任没有举办任何这样的论坛。
拜登宣布拨款1.35亿美元帮助受海啸影响的部落社区气候变化。根据内政部的说法，11个“受到严重影响的部落”将获得资金，其中3个正计划完全搬迁到新的地区:阿拉斯加州的纽托克村、阿拉斯加州的纳帕基亚克原住民村和华盛顿的奎诺特印第安人部落。
拜登周三表示，“有部落社区面临被冲走的风险，被超级风暴、海平面上升和野火肆虐冲走，”他称损失是“毁灭性的”
拜登还吹捧通过美国救援计划、两党基础设施法案和通货膨胀削减法案向部落民族提供的数十亿美元。拜登说，这些投资帮助印度农村居民接种疫苗、重建道路、提供清洁饮用水等等。
拜登说:“我的整个政府正在共同推进经济议程，并在印度进行历史性的投资，我可以补充说，这些投资早就应该进行了。”
预计300多名部落代表将参加在内政部举行的为期两天的峰会。拜登首先感谢内政部长德布·哈兰的领导，指出她是第一位担任内阁秘书的美国土著人。
哈兰德在介绍拜登上台时说，拜登政府所做的投资“已经改善了许多人的生活。”
她说:“你和我都有第一手的资料，当地人在白宫并不总是有朋友。”。
President Joe Biden greets Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland during the 2022 White House Tribal Nations Summit at the Department of the Interior on Nov. 30, 2022, in Washington, D.C.
皮特·马罗维奇/盖蒂图片社
在白宫宣布的加强部落民族的新投资和变化中，有一份总统备忘录，规范了联邦机构与部落的咨询方式，要求联邦机构在研究和决策中承认“土著知识”，还有一份振兴土著语言的十年计划草案。联邦机构还将从部落购买更多的电力和能源产品，并宣布一项在部落土地上建设电动汽车充电站的新举措。
周三，拜登还承诺保护内华达州的精神山和周围的荒野地区。
“我致力于保护这个神圣的地方，它是今天在这里的许多部落创造故事的核心，”拜登说，并补充说，“我们将做更多的事情来保护宝贵的部落土地。
拜登在结束讲话时说:“每个人都有权得到尊重和尊严，这种尊严来自于你是谁。”。“对于部落民族来说尤其如此。美国欠下一份庄严的信任和条约义务，但我们并没有始终履行这些义务。”
Biden announces 'long overdue' investments in Indian Country
PresidentJoe Bidenon Wednesday announced "long overdue" commitments to Native American nations.
"On my watch, we're ushering in a new era and advancing a way for the federal government to work with tribal nations," Biden said as he spoke at the first in-person White House Tribal Nations Summit in six years, knocking his predecessor for not hosting any such forum.
Biden announced $135 million to help tribal communities impacted byclimate change. Eleven "severely impacted tribes" will receive funds, according to the Interior Department, and three are planning on relocating entirely to new areas: the Newtok Village in Alaska, the Native Village of Napakiak in Alaska, and the Quinault Indian Nation in Washington.
"There are tribal communities at risk of being washed away, washed away by superstorms, rising sea levels and wildfires raging," Biden said Wednesday, calling the damage "devastating."
Biden also touted the billions of dollars made available to tribal nations through the American Rescue Plan, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act and the Inflation Reduction Act. Those investments, Biden said, helped Indian Country vaccinate residents, rebuild roads, provide clean drinking water and more.
"Together, my entire administration is advancing the economic agenda and making historic investments in Indian country and, I might add, that are long overdue," Biden said.
Over 300 tribal representatives are expected to attend the two-day summit held at the Interior Department. Biden began his remarks by thanking Interior Secretary Deb Haaland for her leadership, noting she's the first Native American to serve as a Cabinet secretary.
Haaland, introducing Biden to the podium, said the investments made by the Biden administration are "already improving the lives of so many."
"You and I know firsthand that native people have not always had friends in the White House," she said.
Among the new investments and changes announced by the White House to strengthen tribal nations are a presidential memo standardizing how federal agencies consult with tribes, requiring federal agencies to recognize "Indigenous Knowledge" in research and decision-making, and a draft of a 10-year plan to revitalize native languages. Federal agencies will also buy more electricity and energy products from tribes, and announce a new initiative to build electric vehicle charges on tribal lands.
On Wednesday, Biden also pledged to protect Nevada's Spirit Mountain and the surrounding wilderness area.
"I'm committed to protecting this sacred place that is central to the creation story of so many tribes that are here today," Biden said, adding there's "so much more that we're going to do to protect the treasured tribal lands.
"Everyone's entitled to be treated with respect and dignity, the dignity that comes from just being who you are," Biden said as he closed his remarks. "This is especially true for tribal nations. The United States owes a solemn trust and treaty obligations that we haven't always lived up to."
