The Week That Was: The Big Stories in Indian Country, June 22, 2014

It's our weekly recap of the stories that mattered most in Indian country:

SIGN OF CHANGE:The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office hascanceled six Federal trademark registrations for the Washington Redskins. Though many observers see this as yet another sign that the writing is on the wall and the team will eventually have to change its name, a lawyer for the Redskins said publicly that there is"no momentum" among Native Americansto change the name, a demonstrably false statement.

THE FIRE THIS TIME:Firefighters aremaking headway against the Assayii Lake Fire, but not before it gobbled up acre upon acre of sacred land in the Chuska Mountains between Gallup and Shiprock. The Assayii fire on the Navajo Nation had been 20 percent contained by Thursday June 19, as the blaze reached 13,450 acres, and 867 personnel battled the flames, according to InciWeb. But the victory is destined to be bittersweet.

A BETTER PLACE:The Taos Town Council voted tore-name the park in the center of the communityfrom Kit Carson Park to Red Willow Park.

WRONG:Of a total of 1,322 Superfund sites as of June 5, 2014, nearly25 percent of them are in Indian country.

ABORIGINAL BALLER:When the San Antonio Spurs won the NBA Finals over the Miami Heat on Sunday night at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas, Patty Mills became thefirst Indigenous Australian player to win an NBA title.

NEW PLAN:In the wake of the visit by President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota,the White House released an action planto help strengthen and sustain at least two of Obama’s biggest initiatives in Indian country: Education and Economic Development.

MUST-SEE MOVIE:The Chickasaw Nation is planning to makea film of the life of the groundbreaking entertainer Te Ata, and is holding open casting calls actross the country.

SUE THE POLLUTERS:Hundreds of First Nations plan totake the Canadian government to court over its approval of the Northern Gateway pipelinefrom the Alberta oil sands through British Columbia to the Pacific Ocean.

PRAYERS FOR PROTECTION:Friday marked the beginning of three days of ceremonies and observances being held across Turtle Island for2014 National Days of Prayer to Protect Native American Sacred Places.

TEAM CHOSEN:The Iroquois Nationals willreturn to the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championshipsfor the first time in eight years with a line-up that looks like a Thompson family reunion.

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