We track local, state, and national news coverage and editorials about issues important to the tribes in Maine and share select articles on our website. Find excerpts from 2025 media coverage highlights below. For more news from the Wabanaki Alliance, visit Latest News on our homepage, our Archive, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
Question 1 would limit access for Indigenous voters in Maine, Wabanaki advocates say
Portland Press Herald
October 30, 2025
The Wabanaki Alliance has joined the coalition against Question 1 on the November ballot, arguing the measure would make it harder for Indigenous people in Maine to vote. Architects of the citizen’s initiative considered including tribal identification cards on the list of credentials that could be used to vote if the referendum passes, according to lead petitioner Alex Titcomb. But the authors ultimately narrowed the scope to “just the most common” government-issued IDs, he said. “It feels discriminatory to us, it feels wrong,” said Maulian Bryant, executive director of the Wabanaki Alliance, a nonprofit advocacy organization working in Maine to advance tribal sovereignty.
Question 1 could make it harder for Wabanaki citizens to vote
Maine Public
October 23, 2025
The Wabanaki Alliance has come out in opposition to Question 1 on November’s ballot. The referendum would include a requirement that voters show a photo ID at the polls. Tribal IDs would not be included as an acceptable form of identification. “That is just unacceptable to us at the Wabanaki Alliance, and we find it, frankly, offensive,” said Maulian Bryant, executive director of the Wabanaki Alliance.
The case for Wabanaki land return in Maine outlined in new report
Portland Press Herald
October 15, 2025
A new report from a left-leaning think tank suggests the state should return land — including Acadia National Park, Baxter State Park, and Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument — to the Wabanaki Nations. To do so, the Maine Center for Economic Policy suggests deploying a statewide property tax targeted at large landowners, a sales tax on tourists or issuing bonds. The center’s new report says there is a need for a dramatic restructuring in state-tribal relations to facilitate the return of stolen land and compensation for lost revenue to the Wabanaki Nations because a 1980 settlement has failed to make the tribes whole.
Indigenous Peoples Day is about honor, healing and survival
Bangor Daily News
October 13, 2025
From an editorial by Maulian Bryant, Execute Director of the Wabanaki Alliance and a citizen of the Penobscot Nation
One of the first things I worked on as the Penobscot Nation tribal ambassador was the bill to change Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day in Wabanaki homelands now called Maine. Former state Rep. Ben Collings sponsored this legislation and when it was signed into law in April 2019 it was the result of years of activism, education, and organizing by Wabanaki people and our supporters. Making this change was a necessary step in the healing of the tribal state relationship marred by a lack of respect for Wabanaki self determination and the lasting oppressive legacy of the 1980 Maine Indian Land Claims Settlement and Implementing acts. While some see this as symbolic or just a name, we know that names, words, and symbols carry heaving meaning and affect how we treat one another.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day event highlights importance of sea-run fish to Wabanaki
Bangor Daily News
October 13, 2025
The Indigenous Peoples’ Day event held at the Veazie Salmon Club aimed to spread awareness for the “Sea Run” report, which was released on audiobook Monday, and shared how the Maine Indian Tribal-State Commission is using grant funding to push for the report’s recommendations, including the Wabanaki Nations being included in sea-run fisheries policy conversations, to be implemented.
Clean drinking water might be coming to Passamaquoddy reservation. There’s still trust to be built
Kennebec Journal/Morning Sentinel
October 12, 2025
For decades, the water flowing into the 230 homes on the Passamaquoddy Reservation at Pleasant Point (Sipayik) was rarely safe to drink. That has fluctuated over the years. These days, contaminants only surpass recommended levels once or twice each year. Still, that history and inconsistency means few trust the water, and efforts to develop a reliable new source have progressed slowly.
Honoring Christopher Columbus reinforces myths of discovery and the erasure of truth
Bangor Daily News
October 11, 2025
From an editorial by Donna Loring, a Penobscot Nation Tribal elder, Vietnam War veteran, and former Tribal representative to the Maine Legislature, is an author, playwright, and nationally award-winning radio host.
Every October, America renews its faith in a myth — the myth of “discovery.” This year, President Donald Trump issued proclamations praising Christopher Columbus and Leif Erikson, calling them heroes who advanced civilization and “changed the course of history.” But those words are not history. They are mythology — and mythology is the weapon that made colonization possible. The myth says that this continent was empty and waiting to be found. The truth is that our Nations were here for thousands of years, with governments, laws, spiritual traditions, and trade networks long before Europeans knew these lands existed.
Bar Harbor’s Abbe Museum to repatriate 16 Wabanaki cultural artifacts
Maine Public
September 15, 2025
The Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor has begun the process of returning 16 cultural items in its collection to the Wabanaki tribes. According to a notice under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the museum said the items are burial offerings — including tools, fabric, and animal hide — likely excavated sometime in the late 1800s from sites in Orland Blue Hill.
Penobscot Nation to reclaim 1,700 acres in rural Maine as tribe grows land holdings
Portland Press Herald
September 16, 2025
The Appalachian Mountain Club is repatriating the parcel to its former Indigenous stewards as part of a larger acquisition finalized Tuesday.
PUC staff sides with Passamaquoddy Tribe in rooftop solar dispute
Maine Public
September 9, 2025
Investigators from the Maine Public Utilities Commission have found the Passamaquoddy Tribe’s plans to install solar panels on more than 200 homes in the Indian Township community will not violate state rules on the size of certain renewable energy developments.
Houlton Band of Maliseets celebrate thousands of years of traditions
Portland Press Herald
September 8, 2025
Over 500 people attended the Wabanaki tribe’s 45th annual community days in Littleton. “There was a sense in the community, and even with tribal leadership, that we wanted to do something that honored us as a people, versus when someone told us that we were a tribe,” said Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians Chief Clarissa Sabattis. “And that means thousands of years of traditions.”
In Far Northeastern Maine, a Native Community Fights to Adapt to Climate Change
Inside Climate News
August 30, 2025
Sea level rise, dwindling fisheries and Trump budget cuts make the Passamaquoddy Nation’s resiliency quest a test of smart planning and stubborn will.
Maine Public Film Series: Salmon Restoration on the Penobscot River
Maine Public
August 21, 2025
In this documentary by Sunlight Media Collective, the citizens of the Penobscot Nation share their perspectives on the importance of Atlantic Salmon to their Tribe and their efforts to restore this native species, which is endangered in the United States and found only in a few rivers in Maine in concerningly small numbers. This short film follows salmon restoration efforts on the release of adult egg-bearing salmon into the Penobscot River.
Candidates’ support signals tribal rights may be a top issue for Maine’s next governor
Maine Morning Star
August 27, 2025
While the election for Maine’s next governor is still more than a year out, several candidates have already made day one pledges to support a cause that’s been stalled by the current governor: tribal sovereignty. Seven of the 16 candidates running for governor in 2026, when Gov. Janet Mills will term out, have vowed to back sweeping reform. Most are Democrats, but not all.
The Democrats trying to replace Janet Mills run away from her on tribal rights
Bangor Daily News
August 26, 2025
Gov. Janet Mills has repeatedly clashed with legislative Democrats on tribal rights. The party’s 2026 gubernatorial candidates are also breaking with her on the issue. The split on the sensitive topic shows clear differences between the 77-year-old Mills and younger crop of politicians looking to replace her.
Gov. Mills pledged to revive Maine’s tribal relations board. Most state seats are empty.
Portland Press Herald
August 26, 2025
Every time the Maine Indian Tribal-State Commission meets, four seats at the table are empty. Formed in 1980, the board is supposed to report to the Legislature on state-tribal affairs and provide feedback on issues that concern the Wabanaki Nations. It is also charged with regulating fishing in certain waters and approving additions to reservations.
Wabanaki tribe reclaims seat in Maine House as relations improve
Portland Press Herald
May 14, 2025
The Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians has returned a representative to the Maine House of Representatives for the first time since 2018, a sign of a improved relations between the state and the Wabanaki tribes. Brian Reynolds, the tribal administrator for nearly two decades, was sworn into office on Wednesday by Gov. Janet Mills for a term that will end on Oct. 31, 2026, filling the second of three House seats reserved for tribal members.
Sabattis re-elected as Maliseet Tribal Chief, councilors elected to positions
The County
May 2, 2025
The Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians held its general election on April 26, to fill several positions in Tribal Government. A total of 190 individuals cast ballots, either in person at the Community Center or via absentee ballots. Tribal Chief Clarissa Sabattis was re-elected to another four-year term with 160 votes. She ran unopposed for the seat that she has held since 2017 and will be embarking on her third term as tribal chief.
Committee advances bill that would prohibit the state from seizing Wabanaki land
Maine Morning Star
May 1, 2025
The Judiciary Committee advanced legislation on Wednesday to prevent the state from being able to seize Wabanki land for public use without consultation. The committee voted 10-4 in favor of an amended version of LD 958, incorporating a proposed amendment from the Maine State Chamber of Commerce that the prohibition would only apply to current reservation and trust lands, meaning land for which the federal government holds the legal title of on behalf of a tribe, and not land that may be put into trust in the future.
DEI should not be confused with sovereignty for tribal nations
Bangor Daily News
April 28, 2025
From an guest editorial by Donna Loring, Penobscot Nation elder and vice president of the Wabanaki Alliance.
In recent years, many institutions have embraced Diversity, Equity and Inclusion as a framework for addressing historical and systemic inequities. These efforts can foster meaningful dialogue and create space for underrepresented voices. They have value. But for tribal nations, and especially for the Wabanaki, DEI should not be confused with sovereignty.
Lawmakers consider bill to strengthen Wabanaki studies in schools statewide
Maine Public
April 23, 2025
Educators and advocates from across Maine are urging state lawmakers to strengthen Wabanaki studies in K-12 schools in Maine. At a public hearing before the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs yesterday, proponents testified that although Maine has required Wabanaki studies instruction for more than 20 years, it has not been enforced.
Bipartisan lawmakers, Wabanaki leaders propose next change to Settlement Act
Maine Morning Star
April 4, 2025
A bipartisan group of lawmakers presented legislation on Friday to prevent the state from being able to seize Wabanki land for public use without consultation. Sponsored by House Minority leader Billy Bob Faulkingham (R-Winter Harbor) and bipartisan co-sponsors, LD 958 would amend the Settlement Act and the 2023 Mi’kmaq Nation Restoration Act — as the Mi’kmaq Nation hadn’t been included in the earlier act — to prohibit eminent domain, a protection already afforded to almost all other federally recognized tribes.
Wabanaki leaders say proposed state recognition process could hinder sovereignty fight
Maine Morning Star
March 13, 2025
As the Wabanaki Nations continue to push for the sovereignty afforded to other federally recognized tribes, some of their leaders are concerned that a separate, longstanding effort to establish a state recognition process could undermine that work.
Opinion: Return of land to Penobscot Nation will make history
Portland Press Herald
February 2, 2025
From a guest editorial by John Ambler, director at Pollination, a climate and nature investment and advisory firm.
Last year, the nonprofit Trust for Public Land (TPL) announced that it would acquire 30,000 acres of land and return it to the Penobscot tribe. The TPL claims it will be the largest return of land from a nonprofit to a tribe in U.S. history, providing a blueprint for other states to follow after years of political gridlock over tribal rights and First Nations land ownership.
Birthright citizenship battle ignites questions about Wabanaki rights
Maine Morning Star
January 31, 2025
The Penobscot Nation is encouraging its citizens to carry their tribal identification as a precaution in light of reports of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement questioning the citizenship of Indigenous people in other states. These reports come after the Trump administration also openly questioned the U.S. citizenship of Indigenous people as part of its defense of President Donald Trump’s executive order to suspend birthright citizenship in the U.S. This line of questioning raises alarm for Maulian Bryant, executive director of the Wabanaki Alliance, because of possible implications for the rights of individual Native Americans as well as for the long standing relationship between tribes and the federal government.
Maine Calling: Maulian Bryant
Maine Public
January 27, 2025
This episode of Maine Calling featured Maulian Bryant, executive director of the Wabanaki Alliance and former Penobscot Nation ambassador to the state of Maine. The host discussed her background, priorities, and her philosophy that advocacy and outreach require “leading with love and making progress by finding shared humanity.”
New leader of Wabanaki Alliance outlines priorities
Times Record
January 16, 2025
In an interview with The Times Record, Maulian Bryant outlines plans for the Wabanaki Alliance — “the time for reclamation is now,” and “as the tribal communities rise, we all rise.”
