Hobbled by vacancies, political clashes and structural limitations, the future of the Maine Indian Tribal-State Commission is hazy.
Reuben M. Schafir
Staff Writer
Reuben, a Bowdoin College graduate and former Press Herald intern, returned to our newsroom in July 2025 to cover Indigenous communities in Maine as part of a Report for America partnership. Reuben was most recently working in Southwest Colorado, where he covered county government, the environment, public health and politics.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Pilot of small plane killed in crash at Bangor International Airport
Airport officials offered new details on the plane Saturday, including that it was a single-engine Cessna 185 arriving from Canada. The pilot’s identity hasn’t been released.
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Posted inLocal & State, News
Passamaquoddy leaders move to exempt tribal members from vehicle registration tax
The Tribal Council at Sipayik voted last week not to collect automobile excise tax, but it’s not clear whether it actually has the authority to take such action.
Posted inFeature Obituary, Local & State, News
Penobscot elder ‘Butch’ Phillips dies at 85
A celebrated culture-bearer and artist, Reuben Elliot ‘Butch’ Phillips also was part of the team that negotiated the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1980.
Posted inLife & Culture, Local & State, News
Paddlers in birch bark canoes honor Wabanaki culture on Moosehead Lake
Over a dozen feather-light boats, built in the traditional Wabanaki style and known for their nimbleness, gathered at the Thoreau-Wabanaki Trail Festival.
Posted inLocal & State
Wabanaki leaders offer perspective on America’s 250th at Bar Harbor festival
The history of Indigenous communities in the region dates back long before the nation’s founding, as highlighted by an art exhibit at the Abbe Museum.