While the vestiges of hurricane Hanna whipped rain onto the Aquinnah Circle and sucked at the canvas tent covering Saturday’s annual youth powwow,
Bureaucratic black holes, poor communication and a lack of tact that borders on comedic are to blame for a series of recent misunderstandings between the Aquinnah town government and the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah).
The first fiasco began in late July when building inspector Jerry Wiener sent a letter tribal chairman Cheryl Andrews-Maltais citing the tribe for violating town zoning laws and the state building code on three building projects.
Follow the drumbeats to the Circle at the Aquinnah Cliffs on Saturday, Sept. 6, from noon to 6 p.m. for the annual powwow with the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah).
There will be traditional dancing and drumming, Native American exhibits, arts, crafts and food, all sponsored by the Tribal Youth Program.
Gates open at 10 a.m. Grand entry is at noon. Follow the signs; parking is free, with a free shuttle to and from the Cliffs.
Nearly four years after the landmark sovereignty case was decided by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) has yet to secure a town building permit for the small shed and pier that were at the center of the dispute.
Aquinnah building inspector Jerry A. Weiner sent a letter to tribal chairman Cheryl Andrews-Maltais late last month formally notifying her that the tribe is in violation of town zoning laws and the state building code on three projects, including the shed and pier. The tribe has not responded to the letter.
Aquinnah’s young people are a renewable tribal energy source, the annual spring social potluck showed last Sunday.
Cheryl Andrews-Maltais believes she has been elected to run a troubled nation.
