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Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: US-Native American Summit
HEADLINE: Biden Clears Path for Tribal Nations to Access Federal Funds
TEASER: Biden seeks to write “a new and better chapter of history” for native people, as they note history repeating across the planet
PUBLISHED: 12/6/2023 at
BYLINE: Anita Powell
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: U.S. Department of the Interior
VIDEOGRAPHER: Rob Parsell
VIDEO EDITOR:
SCRIPT EDITORS: Jepsen, Sharon Shahid
VIDEO SOURCE (S): Wires ,Original, youtube feed
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO __
TRT:
VID APPROVED BY:
TYPE:
EDITOR NOTES: all original files here: https://app.frame.io/projects/ae30dd8f-b6c4-418a-b02d-530603115a58/862a64d6-1001-43df-8008-1083204e4cd2))
((INTRO:))
[[President Joe Biden said Wednesday that his administration is committed to writing “a new and better chapter of history” for more than 570 native communities in the U.S. by — among other things — making it easier for them to access federal funding. A leader of one of the largest communities spoke to VOA about those efforts and how some of the themes of native history continue to play out halfway across the planet. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from the Department of the Interior.
((Establish Biden MRT please pull from event))
((NARRATOR))
President Joe Biden doesn’t deny that the native people of this country have suffered and the federal government has work to do.
((SOT, English, MRT please pull from the VERY END of his remarks))
((President Joe Biden))
“It's hard work to heal the wrongs of the past and change the course and move forward. But the actions we're taking today are key steps into that new era of tribal sovereignty and self-determination. A new era grounded in dignity and respect, that recognizes your fundamental rights to govern and grow on your own terms. That's what this summit is all about.”
((Establish DOI exterior, https://app.frame.io/player/151ce36f-ea50-47de-a8c5-5773364d137c))
((NARRATOR))
Biden, speaking here on the ancestral land of the Nacotchtank (nah-cahch-tank) people, announced more than 190 agreements during a summit with about 300 tribal leaders ((Wednesday)).
((Biden signing EO, MRT please pull))
((NARRATOR))
They include an executive order that will make it easier to access federal funding, plus efforts to clean up nuclear sites, support clean energy transitions and work toward the repatriation of native remains and sacred objects. The administration will also release a progress report on its efforts to date.
((Establish event by pulling some of livefeed of entrance to event: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFt05hXvXtM))
((NARRATOR))
The leader of one of the largest groups told VOA that the government’s efforts have been “very, very positive,” and said he hoped to see more.
((Radio: Chuck Hoskin Jr. is principal chief of the Cherokee Nation))
((SOT, English, original, from 1:21 in interview, file here: https://app.frame.io/player/81b6a1d7-fffd-47bc-9177-7c93a4ab2fa8))
((Chuck Hoskin Jr., Cherokee Nation Principal Chief))
“The most important thing for the Cherokee Nation, I think — and all tribes — is the efficient deployment of resources, and then allowing tribes to decide how to use those resources.”
((Continue with him talking through this transition, from file https://app.frame.io/player/81b6a1d7-fffd-47bc-9177-7c93a4ab2fa8))
((NARRATOR))
But, he said, as his people well know, land dispossession and conflict are not ancient history. Here’s his advice to Biden and Middle Eastern leaders as war rages in Gaza.
((SOT, English, original, from 4:46 in interview, file here: https://app.frame.io/player/81b6a1d7-fffd-47bc-9177-7c93a4ab2fa8))
((Chuck Hoskin Jr., Cherokee Nation Principal Chief))
“We have a history of being dispossessed from our land. And so, I would just say, remind people, that there's a way to balance rights. I think we're trying to do that in the United States in terms of Indian Country versus the rest of the country. We haven't perfected it, but I think we're making some progress. So, all I would say is the respect and dignity that every human being deserves ought to be on display.”
((Establish Sareya from original footage, https://app.frame.io/player/9c6358cb-770d-496e-aabc-c0da342fad33))
((NARRATOR))
Younger tribal citizens say they have high expectations.
((Radio: Sareya Taylor was the inaugural Youth Poet Laureate of Phoenix and is a member of the White Mountain Apache and Navajo communities))
((SOT, English, from 0:44 in interview, file here, https://app.frame.io/player/9c6358cb-770d-496e-aabc-c0da342fad33))
((Sareya Taylor, Poet))
“I voted for Biden in 2020. And I believe there's so much more that can be done, especially in terms of climate and how we look at food sovereignty.”
((Continue with her talking through this transition, from file https://app.frame.io/player/81b6a1d7-fffd-47bc-9177-7c93a4ab2fa8))
((NARRATOR))
But if she could ask the president for anything, she said, it would be for a cease-fire in Gaza.
((SOT, English, from 6:23 in interview, file here, https://app.frame.io/player/9c6358cb-770d-496e-aabc-c0da342fad33))
((Sareya Taylor, poet))
“If that were happening to us, I'd like to believe that it would be stopped immediately. But you know, considering President Biden won't even call for a cease-fire, I don't know about that.”
((show her showing off her outfit; start with close shot of her earrings, then go to outfit and then end with close of her moccasins https://app.frame.io/player/1c705627-fe47-490f-bcaa-27c8d7b9bf5b))
((NARRATOR))
Taylor says she works through this generational trauma with poetry — but also by covering herself, head to toe, in reminders of the artistry and persistence of her people.
((Anita Powell, VOA News, U.S. Department of the Interior))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateDecember 6, 2023 21:38 EST
Byline
Anita Powell
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
