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March 15th, 2012
10:33 PM ET
Feds grant Native American tribe permit to kill bald eagles for religious purposesBy Eric Fiegel, CNN Washington (CNN) - It's the symbol of America, and for the first time, the U.S. government has granted a Native American tribe a permit to kill two bald eagles for religious purposes. The permit application was filed in 2008 by the Northern Arapaho Tribe in Wyoming and, after years of review, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued it on March 9.
"They did make a case for why the take of a bird from the wild was necessary," Matt Hogan, Denver regional director for the Fish and Wildlife Service, told CNN. Last year, the tribe filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the federal government for denying the application, saying it "unreasonably burdens the religious rights of tribal members," court documents stated. The case is pending. Hogan, who was in charge of granting the permit, says the lawsuit was not the reason the permit got approved when it did. He says it took time to make sure all the criteria were met and that the permit was in accordance with the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, which allows bald eagles to be used by Native Americans in religious ceremonies. The eagle "flies higher then any other creature. It sees many things. It's closer to the Creator," said Robert Holden, deputy director of the National Congress of American Indians. Holden said he was bothered by the comments he was hearing: that this permit would lead to a mass killing of bald eagles. "How stupid can that be?" he said. "It's a religion. It's what we do. We're more concerned about the eagle population than any culture in this Western Hemisphere. Why would we want to kill all the eagles?" Hogan said the permit's issuance will have little effect on the powerful raptor. Taking two eagles from the wild "will not in any way jeopardize the status of the eagle population, either in the state of Wyoming or nationwide," he said, "and the good news is bald eagles are doing quite well." That wasn't the case some 70 years ago, when the species was threatened with extinction, leading Congress to pass a law prohibiting the killing, selling or possession of the bird. In 2007, the bald eagle was removed from the threatened and endangered species list. Hogan said applications for a permit to kill or capture a bald eagle are rare. Native Americans often have to get bald eagle feathers for their ceremonies from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife national feather repository in Denver. Hogan said it can take years for the tribes to get the feathers this way, because demand often exceeds supply. Holden, who is part Choetaw/Shickasaw, sought to put some perspective on the situation: "If someone ordered a Bible or some religious artifact and they had to wait for a long time, how fair is that?" The permit is good until February 2013, and Hogan said he knows of no other applications being filed. As part of permit, the tribe has to notify the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service within 24 hours once the bald eagles are killed or captured. Hogan said he is still waiting for that word. soundoff (1,883 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 Next »
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The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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It sounds to me that they want to do this just to upset a bunch of white americans. Seems to be working.
These tribes have been doing this since before white Americans existed.
They are just practicing ceremonies and customs that have been in their culture for thousands of years. Anyone who gets offended by that is an idiot.
I don't see how killing anything would be a good thing unless the purpose is to feed oneself or family. As for a religious right...I think giving in to every religions whim is detrimental to our society.
It doesn't matter if they get the blessing from the feds. They kill whatever animals they want to kill on their reservations. They'll dress themselves up in eagle parts for the ceremony, then sell it all for bourbon.
If they want to, they should be allowed. It's their country.
Sell it for bourbon? We're you trying to be funny or racist? Ghost Town?....hm, as in sheets over your head?
This should not be allowed – the eagle is a symbol of our freedom. No more sacifice of any animal. They should still be listed as endangered – again our govt. making a bad decision
Our government also forced upon the Native Americans the Trail of Tears. If you've never heard of it, then you're uneducated. If you've heard of it, then you're plain, old evil
like the freedom of the Indians we controlled when we arrived? intelligent debate. lol
A species shouldn't be listed as endangered if it's abundant, or else the endangered species list loses all meaning.
TheForager - what about endangered people? (native americans) Humans killed them off pretty well... people don't complain.
Jokesters – Yes, European colonists and later Americans committed genocide against many Native American tribes. But since all humans are the same species, humans aren't close to being an endangered species.
Yea, let's complain about Native Americans (who we slaughtered) killing animals from their native land. As far as I'm concerned, that's acceptable. People are too soon to forget that when America was established, the majority of Native Americans were killed. But then again, I don't expect much from posters on here... America as a whole is pretty dumb.
I agree completely
Ok, so does this mean if I do enough paperwork, and wait a few years, that I can kill those infamous 72 virgins?
Americans killed off so many American Indians, and then tried to convert them to Christianity. It's not like thousands of American bald eagles are going to be killed. They have come off the endangered species list and are now abundant. I doubt the killing of 2 of them a year is going to make any difference. It's bad enough we tried to take American Indian's spiritual beliefs away before. They should be allowed to kill 2 eagles a year for religious purposes. They use the feathers for their cermonies. If you want your religion of choice to be respected, you need to respect others choice of religion.
rachbell, yes, many native Americans were exterminated by other Americans, but it works both ways. I bet that tobacco and syphilis (both are native to North America and unknown in Europe before Columbus) have killed more people than Europeans killed native Americans.
And don't over sympathize with native Americans, whose main hobby was raiding other tribes, massacring the adult males, and enslaving the women and children.
But let's not forget the greatest exterminators of them all, the Spanish, in their centuries of conquest of the natives in South and Central America. mostly in the name of Catholicism and greed.
Anyone against Native Americans' right to practice their ceremonies should be deported back to whatever country their ancestors came from. Native Americans have a right to religious freedom, just like Christians, Hindu's, and Buddhists.
Kill baby kill in the name of religion.
Sorry, this is wrong. All birds including eagles lose feathers naturally all the time so I think they should have to hunting for them on the ground, if they need feathers that badly. I don't like the idea of something so beautiful being killed for no other reason than the claim they require these feathers for their religion. What if their religion required a fresh human heart? Would it be ok to randomly kill two humans per year so they could practice it? Or they needed dead two children per year? Is anything excusable if it's in the name of some religion? If you have to kill something to practice a religion then I say find another religion. Or forego religion altogether.
I love your comment. So true. So very true.
You can sit here and play the "what if" game for however long you want. They are doing it for a religious purpose, and those purposes are never going to evolve into something more dramatic and drastic (not that you were suggesting it would). But the fact of the matter is, they are killing two eagles a year for a purpose, religious or not. People go hunting year-round for all sorts of animals... bears, deer, elk, duck, etc., just to skin them, stuff them, behead them and place them on their walls or make a nice bear rug. Personally, I've never heard of anyone killing a bear so they could eat it... just so they could use it for the previously stated purpose. So, what is the harm in killing two birds a year for religious purposes? I am all for animal rights and everything and love all animals, but your argument is flawed.
Holden, who is part Choetaw/Shickasaw, sought to put some perspective on the situation: "If someone ordered a Bible or some religious artifact and they had to wait for a long time, how fair is that?"
I don't get religion at all, especially one that takes the life of an animal just for ceremonial purposes and to his analogy, a bible isn't attached to a living, breathing creature.
But the Bible has caused all kinds of cruelty. Have you forgotten about the Spanish Inquisition?
This should be condemned. Absolute cruelty and make no sense of killing two eagles!
Ok then worship of the Christian God should be condemned for the countless lives lost from wars and crusades in the name of Christianity.
Can the scientist clone a velociraptor then the Indians can have a battle with him and shoot the velociraptor with arrows, or they can befriend the velociraptor and give him some mescaline and tell him to attack the white man lol!
Just for you marginwalker!! http://www.centerfirstamericans.com/who.php
I don't see what you're getting at Henry. I am well aware that Native Americans came to North America from Asia, through the Bering Strait. What I was saying is that they were here long before the European settlers who colonized North America in the 1500's-1600's.
Why not? They've killed everything else America stands for. I think the flag ought to be toilet paper and the White House painted purple and red.
What about the hundreds of thousands of unarmed citizens that America has slaughtered? The Native Americans are plagued by an archaic repressive system (see: 75% unemployment rate) that they had no choice but to follow.
okay so lets start a new religion that says we need to sacrifice 2 Northern Arapaho Indians for every bald eagle sacrificed by them cause my creator says that will make it happy – losers
oh and SB killing something for food is VERY different than killing something for no reason!
Did you just use the L word? Really? How old are you?
You have the IQ of a donut. These Native Americans have more of a connection with the Eagle and all other living things than idiots like you would ever have.
they are not killing the eagles for no reason. they are killing them as part of a religious ceremony, one that has probably been around for hundreds, if not thousands of years. Like Christians, Buddhists, and Muslims, we need to respect the religions of Native Americans.
Reason #76453 to be disgusted with religion.
Personally I only need 1-none of them make any sense.
I wonder if it's better baked or kfc original style. I mean if all they want is the feathers...
I think it's yummy. Taste a lot like Loon.
Cant they just use a pigeon feather?????? Or parakeet!
If you want to have your traditional pot roasts for lunch or dinner, do you want the Gov't to tell you otherwise?
Your logic has NO intellectual merits. You feel me?
CHE
Superst'ition has no intellectual merits.
Absolutely unacceptable for any reason!!
Nobody mention the word HOLOCAUST what happen to the native Americans.
True but there were several holocaust including the deaths of millions of Africans who were brought to the new world as slaves and died in passage from the brutal trip...not to mention the Spanish destroying south Americas indigenous population.. Fact of the matter is....Those that outwit you destroy you!!! and that is how we live today as it has been in the past....