The Biden administration is floating two ideas for how Western states and Native American tribes could reduce their water use from the dwindling Colorado River. In recent years, an imbalance between the river’s flows and how much water users are promised has forced federal officials to consider steps never taken before. A multi-decade drought worsened by climate change is adding to the urgency. The Interior Department’s analysis considers two different ways to force cuts to Arizona, Nevada and California. The two options mean varying impacts for cities, farms and people living in the Southwest.
A new report accuses past leaders of the University of Minnesota of committing genocide and ethnic cleansing of Indigenous people for financial gain. The document says the university’s founding Board of Regents “committed genocide and ethnic cleansing of Indigenous peoples for financial gain, using the institution as a shell corporation through which to launder lands and resources.” It calls on the university to hire more Native American faculty, offer students additional financial support and give back land to atone for its historic mistreatment of the state’s tribes. Shannon Geshick, executive director of the Minnesota Indian Affairs Council and a member of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa, said the report, which was a collaborative effort between the council and the university, marks the first time a major American university has critically examined its history with Native people.
Those are your headlines at this hour. I’m Colette Keith in the KIPI News center.
