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Article: American Indians want religious freedom law. (Column)
- Article from:
- National Catholic Reporter
- Article date:
- January 21, 1994
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1994 National Catholic Reporter. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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In Reno, Nev., last month, more than 1,500 representatives of about 300 tribal governments were brought together by the National Congress of American Indians. A startling as well as politically revealing moment occurred when a unanimous resolution was passed stating the group's top legislative priority.
For some of America's sickest, poorest and most dispossessed people, it wasn't health-care reform, not a call for more food assistance or job-training programs, nor demands for land-rights fairness. The priority was spiritual: passage of federal legislation to protect tribal religious freedom.
Constitutionally, it would appear that the religion clause of ...