Former Oglala Sioux Tribal President To Challenge Impeachment Over Proposed Abortion Clinic Donations Allegation

Former Oglala Sioux Tribal President Cecelia Fire Thunder on Friday said she plans to challenge her impeachment by the Tribal Council for allegedly soliciting donations on behalf of the tribe for a proposed abortion clinic without the council's approval next week in the tribe's Supreme Court, the Rapid City Journal reports (Steen, Rapid City Journal, 7/28). Fire Thunder in March in response to the approval of the South Dakota law (HB 1215) that bans abortion except to save a woman's life said, "I will personally establish a Planned Parenthood clinic on my own land, which is within the boundaries of the Pine Ridge Reservation where the state of South Dakota has absolutely no jurisdiction." However, Fire Thunder in June said she had not intended to open a clinic that would perform the procedure but rather one that would provide family planning information, emergency contraception and other contraceptives. The tribal council last month voted 9-5 to replace Fire Thunder for allegedly soliciting donations without the council's approval for the proposed clinic. Tribal Judge Lisa Adams reinstated Fire Thunder last month, arguing that her removal violated tribal procedure. However, she retracted her decision after receiving a motion that said she did not have the authority to issue an injunction against the tribe or a tribal official and later recused herself from the case (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 7/20). Fire Thunder said she has not received due process in the lower court and is appealing the decision on procedural grounds. When Adams recused herself from Fire Thunder's case, proceedings were put on hold to allow the tribal council to appoint a new judge. Tribal council attorney Tom Blanco on Friday filed a motion to dismiss Fire Thunder's case (Rapid City Journal, 7/28).

Tribe's View of Abortion
Tribe members officially have not been surveyed, but many said they support exceptions to an abortion ban in the case of rape, incest or to protect the health of the pregnant woman, the Chicago Tribune reports. According to Department of Justice statistics, American Indian women are three times more likely to be sexually assaulted than white women, and rape and incest are more common on reservations than in the rest of the U.S. Regardless of people's views on abortion, "people on both sides seem to agree" that "abortion is women's business, not suitable for men to be discussing in the chambers of the tribal council or anywhere else," according to the Tribune. The Oglala Tribal Council has passed an ordinance that prohibits abortion procedures on the reservation, the Tribune reports (Peres, Chicago Tribune, 7/30).

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