Language Bills

[Andre Cramblit]

United Tribes News
www.uttc.edu
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
27 July 2006

Action sought on Native language bills

BISMARCK (UTN) – Members of Congress should take action on pending  
legislation that addresses the loss of Native languages across the  
country.

That’s the hope of Ryan Wilson (Oglala Lakota), president of the  
National Indian Education Association (NIEA), Tex G. Hall, chairman  
of the Mandan-Hidatsa-Arikara Nation, and David M. Gipp, president of  
United Tribes Technical College.

The three leaders believe that tribal languages are in jeopardy and  
will not survive without a concerted effort, which includes help from  
the Congress.

“Not only are these dying languages sacred to Native people, they’re  
part of America’s heritage,” said Wilson on July 27 at United Tribes  
Technical College.

As use of tribal languages declines, NIEA’s Language Revitalization  
Initiative is the organization’s number one education priority.

An estimated 500 distinct Native languages were spoken in North  
America prior to European contact. Fewer than 100 have survived;  
today only 20 different languages are spoken by Native children.

“If we don’t act now, these languages will go away,” said Hall, who’s  
Three Affiliate tribal education system in North Dakota requires  
native language training in the early grades. “Our best hope of  
reviving them is by getting Congress to pass amendments to the Native  
American Languages Act.”

Two bills contain elements that update the act and invigorate the  
preservation of indigenous languages. Both call for creation of a  
competitive grant program in the Department of Education to support  
Native American language immersion programs in Native communities.  
The grants would create pilot programs for “language nests” and  
“language survival schools.”

“The goal is to provide a strong early foundation in the languages,”  
said Wilson. “We know from the few immersion programs in existence  
now that youngsters acquire the language rapidly and retain it later  
on.”

A 2004 Executive Order signed by President Bush promised assistance  
for American Indian students in meeting the academic standards of the  
No Child Left Behind Act “in a manner consistent with tribal  
traditions, languages and cultures.” According to the NIEA, their  
language initiative is an important step toward refining the act so  
it works for Native students in a manner that supports Native culture.

“Saving the language and saving Indian people is what’s at the heart  
of this,” said Gipp. “The research is beginning to show that  
effectively taught language programs enhance the overall academic  
strength of students. And that plays directly into the goals of No  
Child Left Behind.”

Hall called on North Dakota U. S. Senator Byron Dorgan to “champion  
the cause” for passage of a bill.

A member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, Dorgan co-sponsored  
Senate Bill 2674, Native American Languages Act Amendments. The other  
bill, H.R.4766, Native American Languages Preservation Act of 2006,  
was introduced by Representative Heather Wilson of New Mexico.

Originally passed in 1990, the Native American Languages Act reversed  
long-standing government policies of eliminating Native languages.  
The act sought to protect and promote the use and development of  
Native languages.

Electing to learn a tribal language is just as valuable for American  
Indian students as learning a foreign language is for mainstream  
students, said Wilson.

For more information please contact Ryan Wilson at (206) 265-3473.
  
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/ilat/attachments/20060728/22a13940/attachment.htm>