Indigenous Peoples: Voices from the White House
“I want everybody in this auditorium and all the folks back home in your respective communities to know that this whole time I’ve heard you. I have seen you. And I hope I’ve done right by you.” — President Obama
Today, the President hosted his the eighth and final Tribal Nations Conference. The event brought tribal leaders together to celebrate the Administration’s progress to build a more prosperous and resilient Indian Country, while identifying the challenges that still persist for Native Americans.
For those who made the journey from their tribal communities to serving in the White House, this progress is personal. Check out these stories from four Native American White House staffers to find out what life as a public servant has meant to them and their communities.
Rellani Ogumoro
Policy Advisor for the Domestic Policy Council
Tirow wóómi from the White House! This is Rellani Ogumoro, Policy Advisor for the Domestic Policy Council. Today is a special day here. We’re hosting the Tribal Nations Conference, an annual tradition started by President Obama honoring the first peoples of our country. As someone who comes from an indigenous community, I am deeply proud of the progress that we’ve made for peoples of Tribal Nations.
I grew up on the beautiful island of Saipan, a U.S. territory in the Pacific and I am part of the Refaluwasch people. I learned quickly that for my people, government works differently. As a U.S. citizen from the territories, I can’t vote for the President of the United States.
We don’t have a voting member of Congress. But through working in this Administration, I’ve seen the work that President Obama has prioritized when it comes to protecting sacred sites and natural resources.
And I’ve seen what his Administration has accomplished to better the lives of indigenous peoples and communities. Being in Washington, I am far from my family and the ocean. But I have found a home, serving alongside people dedicated to real change on behalf of the communities that I care about. I am humbled by the once in a lifetime opportunity to be part of that commitment to indigenous peoples under this President. Ghilisou (thank you), Obama.
Gina Jackson
Community Solutions Team, Office of Management and Budget
Seven years ago, an Elder from the Meskwaki Tribe told me something profound and encouraging… She said ‘Gina, you’re an Indian Momma, you can do anything, you can make something amazing out of nothing. It may be because as an Indian Momma you had to, but that’s who you are!’
Working with the White House Community Solutions team has been a great fit for me. I’ve been a social worker for over 16 years, and always wanted to help people, especially children, both on and off the reservation. Our team is all about working with communities and places in a different way, with communities leading the way. My focus is Native youth and right now, under this President, under Generation Indigenous (Gen-I) is the greatest opportunity we’ve ever seen for their voices to be lifted across the nation.
I never would have dreamed I’d be here today. Growing up in Reno, Nevada, a member of the Te-Moak Western Shoshone Tribe, youth didn’t have the same voice, the same opportunities. For youth today, there’s no limit to what they can accomplish, and the solutions they are finding for their own communities make me so proud! This Administration has empowered them like none before. We are seeing things change every day.
My grandfather, a member of the Oglala Lakota Tribe, used to tell me about a prophesy that the 7th generation would turn the tide and bring new hope and healing to our people. I’m watching it happen right now. This generation, the teens of today, they have vision and strength, they are collaborating with their communities and leading solutions. I am just here to support them. The generation after them will be unstoppable.
I gave up my whole life to come to D.C. and I will return home knowing that did something that was worthwhile.
Tracy Goodluck
Senior Associate Director of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs
I grew up with a more urban tribal experience — but my family, members of the Oneida and Mvskoke Creek Nations, instilled in me a strong sense of belonging, a sense of pride in who I am and connection to my people. I’ve always known I’d spend my life giving back to tribal communities.
I started as a teacher, working on the Navajo, Hopi, and Tulalip reservations, and co-founded the Native American Community Academy (NACA) — one of only a few charter schools focused on Indigenous philosophy and curriculum in the country at that time. Those challenges inspired me to want to work for youth on the national level — to see the bigger picture. Now, being a part of this administration, helping to launch Generation Indigenous and to hold the first-ever White House Tribal Youth Gatherings — it’s a way to continue creating opportunities for youth. It’s incredible to see so many native youth in one room — networking, collaborating, sharing their hopes and dreams for the future.
You can’t help but have the sense that this is happening. I’m so proud to be a part of that — I feel like I have a responsibility to my family, to our youth, to our ancestors to get things across the finish line. It is phenomenal what’s been accomplished during this presidency for Indian Country.
The President and First Lady have really embraced our youth — and made them feel stronger. They’ve set a precedent for the future that will be hard to undo.
My grandmother and grandfather both worked in service of Native American affairs here in D.C. They met here and my father was born here before they moved out west where I was born. Being here in D.C., it feels like life has come full circle, to be walking the same hallways, the same streets as my grandparents, and to be serving the public and the Native community with the values they instilled in me.
Karen Diver
Special Assistant to the President for Native American Affairs
I was a ‘relocation kid’ — my family was relocated from our native reservation to Cleveland, Ohio. I worked hard to find my place in the urban Indian community and eventually made my way back to working with the reservation and was elected the first female leader of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, which was a tremendous honor. But I made the hard decision to leave that position when offered the opportunity to have a wider impact on Indian Country under President Obama because he is the best president we’ve ever had on Native issues, the most supportive of tribal self-determination and the most progressive in building a strong Nation-to-Nation relationship.
I was lucky enough to hear ‘Candidate’ Obama speak on the Crow Indian Reservation in 2008 during his first campaign. That was the day he was adopted as Barack Black Eagle, into the Whistling Water Clan of the Crow Nation. He made a lot of promises that day — to improve health care and educational opportunities, to tackle Native American veterans issues, to increase the visibility of our challenges, and to restore the federal government’s trust responsibility to protect tribal treaty rights and lands.
Obama, as President, has fulfilled all those promises. He has turned more land into trust than any other president since Nixon. He created the first White House Council of Native American Affairs, hired Native staffers, and issued a Memorandum mandating Tribal Consultations, elevating our challenges and ensuring we had a Cabinet-level voice in the White House.
I’m so proud to spend the rest of his administration working on what he truly sees as a partnership with the tribal nations.
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