[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 17875-17876]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH

  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I rise to join my fellow 
Coloradans, my colleagues in the United States Congress and others 
across the country in celebration of Native American Heritage Month.
  Throughout this month we acknowledge the many accomplishments and 
contributions of the American Indian community in the United States. In 
Colorado, from the windswept plains in the east to mountains and 
plateaus in the west, Native American history has formed a strong part 
of our shared history. Today Colorado's native communities play an 
equally strong role in preserving our shared cultural heritage.
  Just this month, as the chairman of the National Parks Subcommittee 
of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, I held a hearing at Mesa 
Verde National Park that highlighted the importance of how this 
cultural landmark and others in the region can be better protected 
through cooperative efforts of our National Parks System and the 
region's tribes. Improved collaboration and consultation can be a 
positive step in achieving the goal of protecting these invaluable 
resources. Tribes have also worked independently to conserve and 
protect cultural resources that are important to our shared past. A 
strong example of these efforts has taken shape over many years in 
Southwestern Colorado where the Ute Mountain Ute tribe has worked to 
protect acres of sacred and historically important sites that are 
connected to the cultural resources that exist within Mesa Verde 
National Park.
  The Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Park, situated on the Ute Mountain 
reservation, serves not only as a means to protect important resources, 
but also as a means to educate and develop an economic base for the 
tribe and the region as a whole. Also in Southwestern Colorado, the 
Southern Ute Indian Tribe has worked to protect important cultural 
resources. Just this year, the tribe opened a state-of-the-art cultural 
center that is dedicated to telling the story of the Ute people, 
providing another cultural draw to Southwestern Colorado.
  These are examples of how shared goals of cultural preservation can 
work symbiotically, and I believe that through close collaboration, the 
federal government and tribes throughout the country can better protect 
cultural resources while developing other opportunities in economic 
development and education.
  This relationship will be crucial in creating new jobs both on and 
off tribal lands while building opportunities for the next generation. 
For example, the Ute Mountain Ute and the Southern Ute are among the 
region's largest employers, each employing more than 1,000 workers and 
generating millions of dollars in economic activity that benefit the 
entire Southwest region of Colorado. Their success is a reminder that 
Indian Country is a strong economic driver that can play a critical 
role in our economic recovery.
  Of course respect for government-to-government relations between 
tribes and the federal government extends to other issues. As we 
celebrate Native American Heritage month, we must remind ourselves of 
this relationship and the trust responsibility that exists between our 
Federal government and tribal nations. This is especially important 
when addressing issues that have hit the Indian country especially 
hard, such as unemployment, access to health care, education and 
housing, reliable law enforcement and access to justice. The federal 
government's trust responsibility is a call to work together to address 
these issues. Upholding this responsibility is vital to respecting 
tribal sovereignty and protecting tribes' ability to determine what is 
in the best interest of their communities. Cooperation and 
collaboration are paramount in maintaining a strong government-to-
government relationship, and it is in our shared interest to advance 
the goal of empowering America's Native communities.
  Mr. President, to close, I want to highlight a prominent figure in 
Colorado who we lost earlier this year named Ernest House, Sr. He was a 
stalwart defender of American Indian sovereignty and a champion of 
cultural preservation. Mr. House was a former Chairman of the Ute 
Mountain Ute Tribe and he represented the tribe before national, state-
wide, and private organizations for more than 50 years. Chairman 
House's passing was a great loss for the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Indian 
Country and for Colorado. I would like to recognize his contributions 
as part of Native American Heritage Month. I have no doubt that his

[[Page 17876]]

legacy will be a strong part of our lives in Colorado and my thoughts 
continue to be with his family.
  I am proud to join my fellow Coloradans in celebration of Native 
American Heritage Month. As we celebrate the many contributions of 
Colorado's American Indian community, I hope that we will call to mind 
the long history of America's Native Americans and their continued 
contributions to Colorado and our Nation.
  Thank you, Mr. President.

                          ____________________