Judy Harrison wrote an article, “Indians Sue Officials at State Prison, Religious rights sought” published on Feb. 13, 2007.

The article was very informative and even interesting, but deep concern was raised when the writer zeroed in on the lead plaintiff for the apparent purpose of informing the public of his crimes. The article was about religious rights in prison, but it suddenly became a tirade about the plaintiff’s conviction. It appeared as if Ms. Harrison went into details of the crime in order to poison anyone who read the article against this American Indian prisoner wanting to practice his religion.

It was inferred that because this person was an Indian and because he had committed such a heinous crime, he had no business even filing suit. It would seem to us that if you discuss one prisoner’s crimes, then you must be fair and write about the crimes of the other inmates. Isn’t it true that convicted murderers and felons are presently enjoying their religious services at the cost of taxpayers’ dollars?

Judy Harrison and the Bangor Daily News should focus on the real issue at hand. It is not that the Indian inmate committed a horrible crime. The real issue is that the Indian prisoner has the right to practice his religion in prison as any other inmate. It seems to us that thousands of troops have died and are still dying to protect the freedoms of this country. One of those freedoms happens to be “freedom of religion.”

Don’t think for one second that American Indians have not paid dearly for that right. We have a long and honorable history of sending our men and women to war for this country. Rep. Loring’s father served in the 10th Mountain Division, and her uncles all served in the Army and Marine Corps. She served in Vietnam with the Women’s Army Corps. It is a historical fact that Indian people have sent a higher percentage of their own people to defend this country than any other race. How is it that we are not allowed to practice our own religion while others are practicing theirs? People have turned their lives around when returning to their spirituality. Why shouldn’t Indian inmates have that same opportunity? Why is it that instead of the issue at hand it always comes down to denigrating the “Indians.”

Ms. Harrison’s story was picked up by The Associated Press and was printed in the Portland Press Herald on Feb. 14. We read the story online. People were asked to comment on the article, and comment they did. We have never seen such racist comments. It speaks to the underlying and overt racism that exists in Maine. Stories such as these and the way they are written perpetuate the hatred and, even worse, take the focus off the real and important issues. Maine Indian people are Maine citizens in every sense of the word. We have paid our dues. Now treat us with dignity and respect.

Maine legislators soon will be reviewing a bill that we sponsored. This bill will allow Indian inmates the right to their religious freedom. The bill will be heard by the Judiciary Committee in the weeks to come.

Donna Loring is the Penobscot Nation representative, and Donald Soctomah is the Passamaquoddy representative to the Maine Legislature.