Indigenous Peoples’ Right to Vote 2024.Char-Koota NewsThe official newspaper of the Flathead Indian Reservation published an article on Thursday featuring audio recordings of Montana Senator Tim Sheehy making racist and derogatory comments about Native Americans.
In an audio clip recorded at a fundraiser on November 6, 2023, Sheehy brags about roping and branding with members of the Crow Nation, saying, “It’s a great way to bond with the Native Americans while they’re drunk at 8:00 in the morning.”
Audio – Tim Sheehy – Shelby Event
Four days later, speaking at a campaign event in Hamilton, Sheehy told the crowd that he had ridden in the Crow Fair parade. “They let you know if they like you or not when Coors Light cans fly past your head… They respect that,” he could be heard saying in another audio clip.
Audio – Tim Sheehy – Hamilton
Sheehy has a pattern of talking about the Crow, according to Char-Koosta. At other events, Sheehy has imitated members of the Crow tribe by calling him “white boy” and throwing Coors beer cans at his head when he missed a double-heel shot at their rodeo.
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Sheehy is in a neck-and-neck race against three-term U.S. Senator Tester (D-MT), a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. In an article published on Friday, August 30, 2024, Sheehy leads the race by 3.5 percentage points in an average of 13 polls, according to The hill.
In Montana, there are xx federally recognized tribes. And there are 74,130 Native Americans of voting age in the state, according to Four Directions Native Vote.
Native News Online reached out to the Sheehy for Montana campaign for comment. No response was received at the time of writing.
About the Author: “Levi “Calm Before the Storm” Rickert (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation) is the founder, publisher and editor of Native News Online. Rickert was awarded the 2021 Native Media Award for Best Column in the print/online category by the Native American Journalists Association. He serves on the advisory board of the Multicultural Media Correspondents Association. He can be reached at levi@nativenewsonline.net.”
Contact: levi@nativenewsonline.net
