It's a preposterous title: "The Last Great Battle of the Indian Wars." How can that be? Well, there were two great battles in our era: The defeat of termination and the campaign for self-determination. First, a terrible, disastrous policy had to be rejected - and then it had to be replaced by a new progressive policy course for American Indians and Alaska Natives. This is the context for this story about Henry "Scoop" Jackson and Forrest Gerard. Team Jackson and Gerard so changed the landscape of Indian Affairs that virtually every member of the body politic today agrees with the premise that American Indians and Alaska Natives have the right to govern themselves. This last great battle redefined the nature of Indian wars in America. Scoop's legacy is already well known and etched in the nation's memory. He was a champion of America's international reputation and the legislative architect of many environmental policies. Gerard was the first American Indian to design, write, shepherd and do whatever was required to move American Indian legislation through Congress. The Indian Financing Act, the Indian Self-Determination Act, the Indian Health Care Improvement Act, are all in the string of Jackson-Gerard legislative hits that remains unmatched in modern times.
I am an independent journalist and author. My most recent work is The Last Great Battle of the Indian Wars. It's about the relationship between Sen. Henry M. Jackson and Forrest Gerard, that produced a remarkable era of legislation to improve the lot for American Indians and Alaska Natives. I am also a Twitter poet ... every day I write a news poem in under 140 characters. You can find my work @newsrimes4lines. I live on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in southeastern Idaho. My official biography is at my web site, www.marktrahant.com
