Political Quotes

“I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, since 1918, the United States has signed four migratory bird treaties with Canada, Mexico, Japan, and Russia. In 1997, the Canada and Mexico treaties were revised to allow Alaska Natives to harvest for subsistence use protected migratory birds during the so- called closed season. Unfortunately, when implementing the treaty language, Congress failed to clarify that the nonedible parts of the harvested migratory bird could be sold in commercial products. As a result, what we have today is a bizarre policy that allows Alaska Natives to hunt, kill, consume, and to also use nonedible parts in handicraft items, but prohibits them from selling those handicrafts. However, the Fish and Wildlife Service has now decided to cite Alaska Native artists who use migratory bird feathers in a variety of items, including hats, fans, and hunting arrows. It is not illegal to simply throw away these nonedible migratory bird parts. According to Ms. Jacqueline Pata, the vice chair of the Sealaska Corporation, there are less than 500 traditional artists and a much fewer number that use nonedible parts of migratory birds. In her testimony, she noted that this legislation parallels the existing exemption in the Marine Mammal Protection Act and that ``all we are asking is to be able to begin helping ourselves in a very small way by providing a modest income to severely impoverished communities through a traditional means.'' Mr.…”