Tribes congratulate Dorgan for exemplary career of public service
Tribes congratulate Dorgan for exemplary career of public service
By MARVIN BAKER
EDITOR
Not only has the Three Affiliated Tribes said it publicly, but United Tribes of North Dakota has gone on record to say all tribes will lose a true friend when Sen. Byron Dorgan leaves office at the end of this year.
Dorgan, D-N.D., who has been chairman of the Indian Affairs Committee the past three years, announced several weeks ago that he has served in Congress long enough and intends to pursue other interests when his term expires.
Dorgan, who is from Regent in Hettinger County, has spent a considerable amount of time in Washington, D.C., bringing attention to issues affecting Mandan Hidatsa & Arikara, Sioux, Chippewa and Metis people in North Dakota, as well as tribes all across the nation.
For that, North Dakota tribal leaders are grateful.
“On behalf of the Three Affiliated Tribes Business Council and the people of the Mandan, Hidatsa & Arikara I would like to extend my congratulations to North Dakota Sen. Byron Dorgan on an exemplary career of public service to the people of North Dakota and all American citizens,” said Chairman Marcus D. Levings of the Three Affiliated Tribes.
Dorgan has been considered a champion of American Indian extending to the Fort Berthold Reservation and his track record proves it. In September 2008, he visited the Fort Berthold Reservation to address water issues, participate in a Fallen Soldiers Memorial Monument dedication, and also received a traditional Mandan name from tribal elder Edwin Benson, the single remaining fluent speaker of the Mandan language.
Dorgan’s traditional Mandan name is “Numak aki Kikute,” which translates to “Helps the People.” During this particular ceremony, Levings stated: “Senator Dorgan, your name Numak aki Kikute is a great honor to be held within the Mandan, Hidatsa & Arikara of the Three Affiliated Tribes. You are truly revered and respected and our prayers are with you in working towards the betterment of our people’s needs within the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation and throughout the United States.”
