[Foundation-l] Native language preservation bill becomes law

[Jeff V. Merkey]

Native language preservation bill becomes law
Friday, December 15, 2006

A bill that will help tribes preserve their languages was signed into 
law by President Bush on Thursday.

H.R.4766, the Esther Martinez Native American Languages Preservation 
Act, authorizes funding for new programs that tribes will use to prevent 
the loss of their heritage and culture. "These languages will be 
preserved with attention and effort. Once lost, they will never be 
recovered," said Ryan Wilson, the president of the National Indian 
Education Association.

The act took on significance this fall following the death of Esther 
Martinez, a Native language teacher and storyteller from New Mexico. She 
was killed in a car accident on September 16, just days after receiving 
a National Heritage Fellowship award for her efforts to preserve the 
Tewa language.

"The Native languages were precious to Esther Martinez, and this bill is 
designed to help preserve them," said Wilson. "It is a fitting tribute 
to her life's work."

New Mexico's Congressional delegation worked to pass the bill in the 
closing weeks of the 109th Congress. It had passed the House in 
September but was held up in the Senate and failed to gain approval 
before the November elections.

After some feverish lobbying by the National Alliance to Save Native 
Languages, a coalition that includes the NIEA and other organizations, 
the measure passed the Senate earlier this month. Tribes then turned 
their attention to the White House to get it signed before the end of 
the year.

"The urgent need to protect and preserve Native American languages is 
clear," said Rep. Tom Udall (D-New Mexico), whose district includes 
Ohkay Owingeh, the pueblo where Martinez taught her language for 
decades. "We must invest in their preservation by implementing immersion 
programs."

By authorizing funding for language nests, language survival schools and 
language restoration programs, supporters hope to prevent the loss of 
additional languages. Of the more than 300 languages spoken in the U.S. 
at the time of European contact, only 175 remain, according to the 
Indigenous Language Institute.

By 2050, only 20 will be spoken with regular use, the organization says, 
unless efforts are taken to teach the languages to new generations.

The United States played a major role in the loss of Native languages. 
Students at government boarding schools were prohibited from using their 
languages. The Bureau of Indian Affairs at one point outlawed 
ceremonies, a critical method of preserving languages and history.

Through the government policies of termination, relocation and 
assimilation, the efforts continued through the 1950s and 1960s even as 
the U.S military enlisted Native soldiers to create unbreakable codes 
using their languages. In 2000, President Bush honored Navajo Code 
Talkers who served in World War II.

"For many years, tribes were discouraged from speaking their native 
languages and now many languages have disappeared. This legislation will 
help ensure native languages are preserved, and passed on to future 
generation," said Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-New Mexico).

The grants for the new programs will be distributed by the 
Administration for Native Americans within the Department of Health and 
Human Services. Wilson said tribes must work to ensure Congress and the 
White House provide adequate funds to carry out the bill.

Native Languages Bill: http://thomas.loc.gov/ 
<http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:h.r.04766>