"Tribal council outlaws abortion: President suspended for alleged donations"
I'm sure many of you remember Cecelia Fire Thunder, President of the Oglala Sioux tribe (Pine Ridge). She made news shortly after the SD ban passed by stating she wanted to build a women's health clinic on the reservation:
"Tribal President Proposes Clinic". She received thousands of dollars in donations for this clinic - albeit unsolicited.
Just today, the tribal council banned all abortions on the reservation and has suspended Fire Thunder for 20 days, after which they will vote on impeachment:
Fire Thunder, in Iowa for an annual test of the cochlear implants that restored her hearing four years ago, said the people who brought the complaint were the same people who have been opposing her presidency since she was elected in November 2004.
"It got crazy," Fire Thunder said. "On Friday they were passing around a flyer that said 'Wilma Mankiller - Cecelia Babykiller.' "
Mankiller was the first female principal chief of the Cherokee Nation; Fire Thunder is the first female president of the Oglala Sioux.
I am certainly no expert in tribal politics, but having an all male council vote to suspend and possibly impeach the first women president doesn't sit right with me. I think this says it all, though:
But "she is a hard gal to look after," Peters said. "I just believe that she has fallen out of touch with the people she was elected to represent."
This is interesting news the day after enough signatures were turned in to get the ban on the ballot in SoDak so it can be voted down (I will be going to the polls in SoDak to vote the ban down). Of course, tribal laws are different. It will be interesting to see if Fire Thunder is indeed impeached. She is often praised for her strong leadership and has been suspended before, for different reasons. She was not impeached that time, however. Fire Thunder reinstated as Oglala Sioux president
In any case, it's a happy and sad day for those of us in South Dakota...