Melvin B. Miller
Editor & Publisher

The wrong side of history

Before the English, the Africans, the French, the Germans, the Irish, the Italians and others came to these shores, there were the Native Americans. By trick and military might, the immigrants and their descendants gained control of this great nation from the Native American custodians of the land.

By treaty and federal concession, various areas across the country have been designated Indian reservations or federal trusts. These areas are then granted partial sovereignty, a status that, among other things, permits tribes to establish gambling casinos.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs of the U.S. Department of Interior also has the responsibility of managing Indian trust funds from these lands. This agency is supposed to assure that oil, gas, timber and other royalties from non-Indian sources are paid into the trust. However, Blackfoot Indians and others have alleged in federal court that $100 billion in royalties have disappeared. Last week, U.S. District Judge James Robertson ruled that the Department of Interior “unreasonably delayed” accounting of the money and scheduled a hearing to discuss remedies for “the department’s unrepaired, and irreparable, breach of its fiduciary duty over the last century.”

Some citizens seem to believe that Native Americans have no special rights that others need to respect. Salvatore F. DiMasi, the speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, seems to believe that his disdain for gambling casinos trumps the sovereign right of the Wampanoag Indians to establish one.

DiMasi is wrong. This is an argument that DiMasi will lose, and his recalcitrance will cost the state millions of dollars in lost fees from casinos. Legislators in Connecticut found that it made more sense to come to terms with the Mashantucket Pequots and the Mohicans than to spend huge legal fees to delay the inevitable. Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida was forced last month to permit the Seminoles to institute Las Vegas-type gambling in their casinos. The Florida Legislature objected, but federal courts granted the Indians’ petition.

The Wampanoags will be able to establish a casino. The only question is when. Gov. Deval Patrick would like to negotiate a satisfactory agreement with the Wampanoags, but he can do so only with the support of the Legislature. If DiMasi is willing to create a major financial risk for the Commonwealth, it is time for other legislators to stand up and object.

Patrick’s tactics of delaying the casino approval process will not last forever. DiMasi and the Legislature must get in the game.

Obama’s appeal

For years, African American parents have told their children, “You can be anything you put your mind to, even president of the United States.” This was a loving way to encourage their children to work hard in school. Everyone always thought that the statement was a gross exaggeration, but clever children got the idea.

The success of Barack Obama’s campaign has caused many African Americans to conclude that perhaps the time has come. Super Tuesday established that Obama is not on a quixotic quest.

The fundamental question was whether whites would vote for a black to be president. It is now clear that Iowa was not just an aberration. Obama won in Iowa, which has a black population of only 2.3 percent. On Super Tuesday, Obama won in Idaho, Utah and North Dakota — all of which have black populations of less than 1 percent — in a two-candidate race, and he won in Alaska, Kansas and Minnesota, none of which has a black population of greater than 5.6 percent. Last Saturday, he also won in Nebraska and the state of Washington, two places with miniscule black populations. On Sunday, he won in predominantly white Maine’s caucuses.

Obama’s campaign is making it clear that the White House is no longer the exclusive domain of those of primarily European heritage.

“So much for the argument that Obama can’t get the white vote.”