Native Issues

The Immigration Debate: Let's Try a Moral Approach

2010-06-08T12:55:00.000-07:00

by Phillip H. Duran
Rio Rancho, NM
June 7, 2010
Source: http://myweb.cableone.net/phil-duran/Immigration.pdf

Arizona Senate Bill 1070 has spawned a flood of reactions from people across the country. Once again, a governor follows the historical pattern and falls back on her vested authority by taking a legal approach. To the average citizen, she is only enforcing the law. But viewed from a moral and historical perspective, could this law more accurately be interpreted as a continuing act of conquest? When a government in power wants to keep a people subjugated, it simply passes laws. But in the eyes of the people, these actions are not solutions; they only postpone justice until the electoral process, which will bring change inevitably, installs officials who will pursue a different approach.

Scantly communicated in the media, if at all, are the relevant historical contexts in which immigration and related issues have arisen. Yet they are crucial to understanding the reactions to this law and the conditions most likely to promote justice, fairness, and peace.

As the pressure to develop a comprehensive federal immigration policy intensifies, we can expect anxiety—and hopefully relief—among people most likely to be affected by the final product. How will Americans react? Will its provisions be enforceable? These are political/legal questions. Will immigrants be treated justly and fairly? Will families be forced to suffer? These are moral questions.

A society that is guided primarily and culturally (i.e., as a way of life) by moral and practical concerns is more likely to see conciliatory and healing effects in dealing with conflicts. In such a scenario, everyone together examines the issues rationally through respectful dialogue, considering also the historical and contemporary context, instead of engaging in confrontational debate where each side argues against the other. There is a flow of meaning instead emotion, and moral concerns are central.

A conciliatory approach is not new among societies residing within the territorial boundaries of the United States. Many American Indian tribes have preserved their traditional values by which they have sustained their communities for untold generations, despite many attempts by government, church-operated schools, and mainstream society to eradicate them. Tribal nations have survived, in part, because of the principle that each generation must consider the welfare of future generations when making decisions. (By the same principle, gratitude is expressed to the ancestors who made sacrifices on behalf of the current generation.)

Perhaps the greatest challenge in considering this alternative approach is creating the right climate. On the other hand, Americans may be sufficiently tired and ready to turn away from the polarized politics, emotionally charged talk shows, anger, and blogger animosity.

Indigenous perspectives on many aspects of life, including conflict resolution, differ strikingly from those of Western societies. The primary objective is to restore wholeness and balance to every individual, regardless of who is right and who is wrong. Americans could learn from their example; unfortunately, many stereotypes have blurred and distorted the true image of the Indian who, today, also suffers from historical trauma and high (50 percent) unemployment.

Some of the perspectives expressed below are probably new to most readers. They derive from a long transformative journey after discovering my own tribal heritage almost two decades ago (I do not have Mexican ancestry). I offer them with the hope of helping create conditions that nurture common understandings, address everyone's needs, and influence future planning and public discourse.

I was a Catholic as a child and later became an active conservative evangelical for more than three decades. I spent 45 years in higher education as a physicist, computer specialist, information technologist, educator and administrator. Outside the campus, the study of American and tribal histories and issues, as well as works from many disciplines and viewpoints, is a continuous and life-long commitment of mine. Also, with my wife, I am personally acquainted with life in several tribal communities, where we spend much of our time. Our friendships extend to all people and we no longer belong to any church or denomination but we are Christians (a personal commitment, not institutional loyalty or ideology) and our spirituality is genuine and deep, respecting other traditions.

Click here to read the entire article.

Urgent Appeal: Black Mesa Trust (Hopi)

2008-09-12T14:46:00.000-07:00

PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Publication
Contact: Vernon Masayesva, 928/734-9255

Black Mesa Project
Environmental Impact Study Culturally Biased

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz., Sept. 10-Any Hopi, Tewa or Navajo who is knowledgeable about their traditions and worldview about humankind's relationship with nature will quickly note the conspicuous absence of that knowledge in the on-going Black Mesa Project environmental impact statement proceedings.

The Office of Surface Mining (OSM), the lead agency in the EIS process, is treating the Hopi, Tewa and Navajo worldview as if it does not exist-and even if it does, it is not science, but mythology.

Western science operates by taking things apart and analyzing the pieces. It has produced enormously important technological and medical advances. Because of this worldview, Western societies are generally able to control their environments and provide greater human comfort.

Traditional science operates by seeing the whole and studying the interaction of the parts. It has sustained Native peoples and cultures for millennia against near overwhelming odds. But, because of this worldview, traditional peoples often find themselves ill-prepared to protect their own best interests.

Western science looks at the world in which we live, separates the human from the environment, and then studies the parts-the air, the water, the land, the animals-as if they had little to do with one another. The world is one in which the human is separate from the rest of the nature. The world is mechanistic and the human runs it.

Traditional science looks at the world in which we live, recognizes the essential connection of all of the parts-the air, the water, the land, the other animals, and the human-and from it develops culture and a way of being. The world is sacred and the human is its steward.

In recognition of the disadvantage under which Native America operates in this regard, the federal government recognizes a special trust responsibility with regard to the indigenous peoples of the United States. It has promised to take special care, to be sure the peoples are not cheated or taken advantage of in their dealings with the dominant culture they find so foreign. More often than not, however, the government of the United States has failed to meet even the most fundamental fiduciary and social responsibilities one legitimately expects of a trustee.

Regrettably, this is now happening on Black Mesa in Northern Arizona, sacred homeland of the members of the Hopi Tribe and the Navajo Nation.

OSM, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and all the cooperating agencies involved in processing the Peabody application for Black Mesa Project life-of-mine permit have failed and are failing to analyze the Peabody mine plan from a trustee's point of view. Instead, they are focused on technicalities, as regulators should be.

This cultural imperialism has many negative implications. It violates Hopi and Navajo religious freedom, the first Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, the American Indian Religious Freedom Act, and human rights in general.

For this reason alone the Black Mesa Project EIS is fundamentally flawed and must be disapproved.

Such violation must not continue. The U.S. Office of Surface Mining, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Secretary of the Interior must be called to account, must be required to enforce the spirit and the letter of law intended to protect not only our natural resources but also our religious sites, our identity and authenticity as discrete peoples within a pluralistic state, and our inalienable right to self-preservation as unique individuals and cultures.

For more information visit Black Mesa Trust.

Sarah Palin's Record on Alaska Native and Tribal Issues

2008-09-12T09:51:00.000-07:00

Here's a link to an article by Susan Shown Harjo, posted by Joy Harjo, regarding Sarah Palin's tribal record in Alaska:
http://joyharjo.blogspot.com/2008/09/sarah-palins-record-on-alaska-native.html

Alaska Native speaks out on Palin, Oil, and Alaska

2008-09-12T09:46:00.000-07:00

An Alaska Native speaks out on Palin, Oil, and Alaska
By Evon Peter
evonpeter@mac.com
9/8/2008

My name is Evon Peter; I am a former Chief of the Neetsaii Gwich'in tribe from Arctic Village, Alaska and the current Executive Director of Native Movement. My organization provides culturally based leadership development through offices in Alaska and Arizona. My wife, who is Navajo, and I have been based out of Flagstaff, Arizona for the past few years, although I travel home to Alaska in support of our initiatives there as well. It is interesting to me that my wife and I find ourselves as Indigenous people from the two states where McCain and Palin originate in their leadership.

I am writing this letter to raise awareness about the ongoing colonization and violation of human rights being carried out against Alaska Native peoples in the name of unsustainable progress, with a particular emphasis on the role of Sarah Palin and the Republican leadership. My hope is that it helps to elevate truth about the nature of Alaskan politics in relation to Alaska Native peoples and that it lays a framework for our path to justice.

Ever since the Russian claim to Alaska and the subsequent sale to the United States through the Treaty of Cession in 1867, the attitude and treatment towards Alaska Native peoples has been fairly consistent. We were initially referred to as less than human "uncivilized tribes", so we were excluded from any dialogues and decisions regarding our lands, lives, and status. The dominating attitude within the Unites States at the time was called Manifest Destiny; that God had given Americans this great land to take from the Indians because they were non-Christian and incapable of self-government.

Over the years since that time, this framework for relating to Alaska Native peoples has become entrenched in the United States legislative and legal systems in an ongoing direct violation of our human rights. What does this mean? Allow me to share an analogy. If a group of people were to arrive in your city and tell you their people had made laws, among which were:

1. What were once your home and land now belong to them (although you could live in the garage or backyard)

2. Forced you to send your children to boarding schools to learn their language and be acculturated into their ways with leaders who touted "Kill the American, save the man" (based on the original statement made by US Captain Richard H. Pratt in regards to Native American education "Kill the Indian, save the man.")

3. Supported missionaries and government agents to forcefully (for example, with poisons placed on the tongues of your children and withheld vaccines) convince you that your Jesus, Buddha, Torah, or Mohammed was actually an agent of evil and that salvation in the afterlife could only be found through believing otherwise

4. Made it illegal for you to continue to do your job to support your family, except under strict oversight and through extensive regulation

5. Made it illegal for you to own any land or run a business as an individual and did not allow you to participate in any form of their government, which controlled your life (voting or otherwise) How would this make you feel? What if you also knew that if you were to retaliate, that you would be swiftly killed or incarcerated? How long do you think it would take for you to forget or would you be sure to share this history with your children with the hope that justice could one day prevail for your descendents? And most importantly to our conversation, how American does this sound to you?

To put this into perspective, my grandfather who helped to raise me in Arctic Village was born in 1904, just thirty-seven years after the United States laid claim to Alaska. If my grandfather had unjustly stolen your grandfathers home and I was still living in the house and watching you live outdoors, would you feel a change was in order? Congress unilaterally passed most of the major US legislation that affect our people in my grandfathers' lifetime. There has never been a Treaty between Alaska Native Peoples and the United States over these injustices. Each time that Alaska Native people stand up for our rights, the US responds with token shifts in its laws and policies to appease the building discontent, yet avoiding the underlying injustice that I believe can be resolved if leadership in the United States would be willing to acknowledge the underlying injustice of its control over Alaska Native peoples, our lands, and our ways of life.

United States legal history in relation to Alaska Natives has been based on one major platform - minimize the potential for Alaska Native people to regain control of their lives, lands, and resources and maximize benefit to the Unites States government and its corporations. While the rest of the world, following World War II, was seeking to return African and European Nations to their rightful owners, the United States pushed in the opposite direction by pulling the then Territory of Alaska out of the United Nations dialogues and pushing for Statehood into the Union. Why is it that Alaska Native Nations are still perceived as being incapable of governing our own lands, lives, and resources differently than African, Asian, and European nations?

Let me get specific about what is at stake and how this relates to Palin and the Republican leadership in Alaska and across this country. To this day, Alaska Native peoples are among the only Indigenous peoples in all of North America whose Indigenous Hunting and Fishing Rights have been extinguished by federal legislation and yet we are the most dependent people on this way of life. Most of our villages have no roads that connect them to cities; many live with poverty level incomes, and all rely to varying degrees on traditional hunting, fishing, and harvesting for survival. This has become known as the debate on Alaska Native Subsistence.

As Alaska Governor, Palin has continued the path of her predecessor Frank Murkowski in challenging attempts by Alaska Native people to regain their human right to their traditional way of life through subsistence. The same piece of unilateral federal legislation, known as the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) of 1971, that extinguished our hunting and fishing rights, also extinguished all federal Alaska Native land claims and my Tribe's reservation status. In the continental United States, this sort of legislation is referred to as 'termination legislation' because it takes the rights of self-government away from Tribes. It is based in the same age-old idea that we are not capable of governing our people, lands, and resources.

To justify these terminations, ANCSA also created Alaska Native led for profit corporations (which were provided the remaining lands not taken by the government and a one time payment the equivalent of about 1/20th of the annual profits made by corporations in Alaska each year) with a mission of exploiting the land in partnership with the US government and outside corporations. It was a brilliant piece of legislation for the legal termination and cultural assimilation of Alaska Natives under the guise of progress.

Since the passage of ANCSA, political leaders in Alaska, with a few exceptions, have maintained that, as stated by indicted Senator Ted Stevens, "Tribes have never existed in Alaska." They maintain this position out of fear that the real injustice being carried out upon Alaska Natives may break into mainstream awareness and lead to a re-opening of due treaty dialogues between Alaska Native leaders and the federal government. At the same time the federal government chose to list Alaska Native tribes in the list of federally recognized tribes in 1993.
Governor Palin maintains that tribes were federally recognized but that they do not have the same rights as the tribes in the continental United States to sovereignty and self-governance, even to the extent of legally challenging our Tribes rights pursuant to the Indian Child Welfare Act. What good are governments that can't make decisions concerning their own land and people?

The colonial mentality in and towards Alaska is to exploit the land and resources for profits and power, at the expense of Alaska Native people. Governor Palin reflects this attitude and perspective in her words and leadership. She comes from an area within Alaska that was settled by relocated agricultural families from the continental United States in the second half of the last century. It is striking that a leader from that particular area feels she has a right, considering all of the injustices to Alaska Native people, to offer Alaskan oil and resources in an attempt to solve the national energy crisis at the Republican Convention. Palin also chose not to mention the connection between oil development and global warming, which is wreaking havoc on Alaska Native villages, forcing some to begin the process of relocation at a cost sure to reach into the hundreds of millions.

Our tribes depend on healthy and abundant land and animals for our survival. For example, my people depend on the Porcupine Caribou herd, which migrates into the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge each spring to birth their young. Any disruption and contamination will directly impact the health and capacity for my people to continue to live in a homeland we have been blessed to live in for over 10,000 years.

This is the sacrifice Palin offered to the nation. The worst part of it is that there are viable alternatives to addressing the energy crisis in the United States, yet Palin chooses options that very well may result in the extinguishment of some of the last remaining intact ecosystems and original cultures in all of North America. Palin is also promoting off shore oil drilling and increased mining in sensitive areas of Alaska, all of which would have a lifespan of far fewer years than my grandfather walked on this earth and which would not even make a smidgen of an impact on national consumption rates or longer term sustainability.

McCain was once a champion of protecting the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and it is sad to see, that with Palin on board, he is no longer vocal and perhaps even giving up on what he believes in to satisfy Palin's position. While I have much more to say, this is my current offering to elevate the conversation about what is at stake in Alaska and for Alaska Native peoples.

Please share this offering with others and help us to make this an election that brings out honest dialogue. We have an opportunity to bring lasting change, but only if we can be open to hearing the truth about our situations and facing the challenges that arise.

Many thanks to all those who are taking stands for a just and sustainable future for all of our future generations.

*This essay is a personal reflection and should not be attributed to my tribe or organization.

What A Real Apology to the Native Peoples of Canada Would Look Like

2008-05-02T09:00:00.000-07:00

What A Real Apology Looks Like
Grand Chief Phil Fontaine - The Star News
May 2, 2008

Apology to native people must end 'denial of truth'

JOHN ULAN/THE CANADIAN PRESS FILE PHOTO

Assembly of First Nations National Chief Phil Fontaine, left, and Assembly of First Nations Regional Chief Wilton Littlechild honour Mary Moonias with a Pendleton blanket in Edmonton, October 4, 2007.

An open letter on residential schools to the Prime Minister from Chief Phil Fontaine

April 22, 2008

Phil Fontaine

In the Oct. 16, 2007, Throne Speech, your government promised to apologize for residential schooling for First Nations, Métis and Inuit children which led to profound harms. Every expression and word of the apology will be of great importance to our peoples and will be carefully studied, as will its timing and place. After 150 years of waiting, nothing less than a complete, unencumbered and honest apology for this dark period in our shared history will do.

An apology acceptable to survivors must be offered in the House of Commons where the Prime Minister will address Parliament, the nation and the world. It must be an event as significant and meaningful as the apology to our brothers and sisters of the Stolen Generations of Australia, and our fellow Japanese Canadians. It must incorporate the ceremony and dignity that such a symbolic and historic occasion requires. The galleries must be filled with survivors, their families, as well as church and government representatives who will bear witness.

The content of the apology must end denial of truth and history. It must raise the awareness about the residential school policy and its disastrous consequences, admit that it was wrong, accept responsibility and provide us with solemn assurances that it will never happen again.

At minimum, the apology will acknowledge that a succession of governments systematically attempted to "kill the Indian in the child" by enforcing policies which separated children from families, prohibited the use of our languages and cultures, and indoctrinated us to believe that who we were and where we came from was not good enough for Canadian citizenship. It must acknowledge that the policies caused profound harm, loss and grief to individuals, families, communities and subsequent generations and recognize the need for reconciliation and healing.

It should specify that several generations of children were deprived of day-to-day parental love and support; that mothers, fathers, grandparents, extended family members and communities were equally deprived of their children; that health care, nutrition and emotional needs of the children were neglected; that many lost the ability to speak our languages, practise our cultures; that thousands were scarred for life from deliberate physical, sexual and psychological abuse; and that some never returned home leaving their families to mourn their passing not even knowing where they were buried.

Canada must apologize for ignoring our treaty rights and our ancestors' pleas for a good education for their children, acknowledging they were provided inferior education which detrimentally affected employment opportunities and livelihoods for generations.

There must also be a clear and unequivocal recognition in the apology that the primary objective of the residential school policy was assimilation founded on racist premises – premises of inferiority, disrespect, discrimination and inequality – premises which were used to justify the attempted destruction of our very identity and that this was profoundly wrong.

Finally, the survivors will need assurances that the Government of Canada will never again try to denigrate or destroy our identity as distinct peoples, compromise our languages and cultures or undermine our families and communities. We will look for assurances that Canada respects our rights as peoples, now and in the future, while recognizing and appreciating our differences.

As National Chief and a residential school survivor, I sincerely hope that by Canada saying sorry for all of these wrongs, my residential school brothers and sisters will be able to move on with their lives. I hope they will be able to accept the apology and find it in their hearts to forgive. I hope that as a result of the apology, the residential school era may eventually be remembered by all of us without bitterness.

To achieve the reconciliatory goals of the apology and ensure it will have a lasting and beneficial effect, it will be necessary for us all – survivors, government and church representatives alike – to embrace attitudes of honesty, generosity, humility, commitment and courage.

The power of a sincere apology is in its satisfaction of a basic human need. It can heal wounds of those who have been hurt. It can help establish trust. It can restore human dignity and self-respect. It can take the first step toward reconciliation. A sincere and honest apology given can add to the sum of justice in the world.

I truly hope, Prime Minister, that your long awaited apology will meet these goals.

Sincerely,

Phil Fontaine
National Chief
Assembly of First Nations

Mass Graves of Residential School Children Found

2008-04-20T07:52:00.000-07:00

April 18, 2008

"At a public ceremony and press conference held today outside the colonial 'Indian Affairs' building in downtown Vancouver, the Friends and Relatives of the Disappeared (FRD) released a list of twenty eight mass graves across Canada holding the remains of untold numbers of aboriginal children who died in Indian Residential Schools. The list was distributed today to the world media and to United Nations agencies, as the first act of the newly-formed International Human Rights Tribunal into Genocide in Canada (IHRTGC), a non-governmental body established by indigenous elders."

Read this and other stories at http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2008/04/mass-graves-revealed-at-indian-schools.html.

House committee to explore Cheney role in Klamath salmon die-off

2007-07-09T11:00:00.000-07:00

by Jerry Reynolds
Indian Country Today
July 6, 2007

Five years after approximately 70,000 chinook and coho salmon washed up dead on the banks of the Klamath River, the Natural Resources Committee in the House of Representatives will explore the role of Vice President Dick Cheney in a controversial diversion of water to Oregon irrigation farmers. The diversion preceded by only months, ''the largest fish kill ... ever seen'' in the Western states, according to a series of Washington Post articles that spurred committee Chairman Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va.

Read the rest of the article at http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096415374

UK Inuit Accuse US of Destroying Their Way of Life with Global Warming

2007-02-18T09:36:00.000-08:00

The following from the Western Shoshone Defense Project (wsdp@igc.org)

Date: Sun, 11 Feb 2007 18:39:28 +0000 From: andre cramblit Subject: Global Warming & Natives

Published on Friday, February 9, 2007 by the _Independent_ (http://www.independent.co.uk/) / UK Inuit Accuse US of Destroying Their Way of Life with Global Warming

by Andrew Buncombe

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines07/0209-08.htm

A delegation of Inuit is to travel to Washington DC to provide first-hand testimony of how global warming is destroying their way of life and to accuse the Bush administration of undermining their human rights. The delegation, representing Inuit peoples from the US, Canada, Russia and Greenland, will argue that the US's energy policies and its position as the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases is having a devastating effect on their communities. Melting sea ice, rising seas and the impact on the animals they rely on for food threatens their existence.

The Inuit's efforts to force the US to act are part of an unprecedented attempt to link climate change to international human rights laws. They will argue before the InterAmerican Commission on Human Rights (ICHR) that the US's behaviour puts it in breach of its obligations. "The impacts of climate change, caused by acts and omissions by the US, violate the Inuit's fundamental human rights protected by the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man and other international instruments," the Inuit argued in a letter to the ICHR. "Because Inuit culture is inseparable from the condition of their physical surroundings, the widespread environmental upheaval resulting from climate change violates the Inuit's right to practice and enjoy the benefits of their culture."

Indigenous peoples from the Arctic have long argued that global warming was having a dramatic effect on their environment. In 2002, villagers in

the remote Alaskan island community of Shishmaref voted to relocate to the mainland because rising sea levels threatened to overwhelm their community. Data has been gathered to support their claims and scientists

have recorded how polar regions are the most vulnerable to climate change. The most recent international Arctic Climate Impact Assessment suggested global warming would see temperatures in the Arctic rise by 4-7C over the next 100 years - about twice the previous average estimated increase.

The delegation to Washington will be led by Sheila Watt-Cloutier, the former chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference who was last week nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Speaking yesterday from Iqaluit in Nunavut, Canada, she said: "For us in the Arctic our entire culture depends on the cold. The problem of climate change is what this is all about. At the same time we will be bringing in lawyers to talk about the

link between climate change and human rights."

The invitation for the Inuit to give testimony before the ICHR next month comes just days after the most recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change provided a dire assessment about the threat of climate change. In the Arctic, scientists have estimated that summer sea ice could completely disappear by 2040. Martin

Wagner, of the California-based Earthjustice, said: "There can be no question that global warming is a serious threat to human rights in the Arctic and around the world. The ICHR plays an important role in interpreting and defending human rights, and we are encouraged that it has decided to consider the question of global warming."

The ICHR, an arm of the Organisation of American States, can issue findings, recommendations and rulings. It can also refer cases to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Costa Rica, though the US has always made clear it does not consider itself bound by the court's rulings.

------------------------------

End of IndigenousNewsNetwork@topica.com digest, issue 894

United Nations Delays Vote on Native Self-Determination

2006-12-28T09:22:00.000-08:00

Leaders of the world's 370 million indigenous peoples and their supporters expressed sadness and anger Tuesday as a subsidiary body of the U.N. General Assembly rejected a draft declaration calling for the international recognition of native peoples' right to self-determination and control over their traditional lands. Click below to read the rest of the article:

Print news - IPS Inter Press Service

Discussion about the rights of the original peoples of the earth, which has continued for over a decade, was supposed to lead to the adoption of a universal Declaration that would mark a major step toward eliminating the widespread human rights violations suffered by over 370 million indigenous people worldwide. These are the bedrock nations of the world from whom all people of the earth have sprung.

The attitude toward Native peoples that underlies the U.N. decision is not only shameful; it displays a great deal of ignorance. Will it ever change? I read a large amount of material from scholarly authors, including those in physics and other areas of science. Whenever they want to emphasize wrong human behavior, they seem to always refer to "tribalism." They depict Native peoples as primitive, savage, ignorant, and spiritually destitute.

One of my passions in life is to raise awareness of this issue. My latest article in the January 2007 issue of World Futures Journal, titled "On the Cosmic Order of Modern Physics and the Conceptual World of the American Indian," published by Taylor & Francis, represents an effort to shift the public consciousness toward reality.

The best of Creator's blessings to you, dear Reader.

phillip h. duran

Journey of Faith

2006-06-27T14:35:00.000-07:00

JOURNEY OF FAITH for June 16 – 18, 2006---Copyright 2006 by Lee Thomson:

Dear Lee: I want to share how Native Americans still experience discrimination.

My Dad is Mexican-American, and my mother is full-blooded Lipan Apache. They raised me Indian, not Mexican.

I've been a pastor in McAllen, Texas, for 17 years. I pastor two Native churches, and my church sponsors "Son Tree Native Path," my traveling ministry. It's a lot of work, but fun.

America is a great place. The Constitution says we're all equal under God, but the Bureau of Indian Affairs discriminates, recognizing as Native Americans only one-fifth of the tribes. The rest don't receive status papers, rights, and benefits!

My tribe, the Lipan Apaches, has been issued a tribal ID number, but is still in the process of reaching federal recognition, so we don't qualify for federal help and rights. However, illegal aliens and Hispanics qualify for those benefits. I would, too----if I identified myself as Hispanic, not Native American. How unfair!

This discrimination affects how we use eagle feathers in our Native American dancing ceremonies and worship services. Long ago, we honored people by giving them golden eagle feathers. I received 36 feathers as a teenager, and several others later.

But now, eagle feathers can be legally owned only by members of federally-recognized tribes, who must apply for government-issued feathers, and carry permits when carrying feathers. The waiting list for feathers is five years! If we carry feathers without a permit, the government can arrest and fine us, or imprison us for several years.

The eagle is no longer an endangered species. These laws are another way for the government to show that we're conquered people. They make us beg them for the right to use the eagle feathers. A recent incident in my family proves this:

Thirty-five years ago, our family started an intertribal organization which sponsors Native American pow-wows every spring and fall. Most of my family are Christians who don't live on a reservation, so the powwows help us reach out to find urban Native Americans in the community.

At the powwow in March, 2006, my brother-in-law wore dancing regalia with 40 golden eagle feathers, which he'd borrowed from me. A Fish and Game Department agent came and said that the law said I had no right to lend the feathers to anybody. When he discovered I wasn't from a federally-recognized tribe, he took away the two feathers I was wearing, and the 40 I'd lent my brother-in-law.

In the end, they gave me a verbal warning, and fined my brother-in-law $500. Since then, we've hired a law firm that deals with Native American rights violations. Our lawyers think strongly that they can get my feathers back.

The law makes Native Americans into lawbreakers! We have the right to do our ceremonies, but the government says we don't.

Ironically, our lawyers weren't Christians, but now they're coming to visit our Native American church in San Antonio.

My family has been in this community for 90 years, dancing in schools and local parades for 34 years. People KNOW us. When this agent called us "criminals," the local people laughed: they know we're Christians.

I'm on the tribal council, and the spiritual leader of 700 members of three churches. People say, "You're the one who could handle this situation best," because I don't get too excited. Read my articles, "Surrendering the Feathers," at www.SonTree.org .

The federal agent said this was only the beginning of raids on Texas powwows, to take away every feather. So I ask all believers to PRAY, not just that I get my eagle feathers back, but for the Native Americans who have no rights. These laws should change.

Pastor Robert Soto-- -Texas

Dear Pastor Soto: Absolutely! Thank you for sharing your story here.

Dear Readers, let's support Pastor Soto in prayer, so he can successfully change these laws and help end discrimination against ALL Native Americans.

Write "Dear Lee" at PO Box 697, Cascade, ID 83611; or email dearlee@ctcweb.net

Barricades still up at Six Nations during talks

2006-05-24T16:48:00.000-07:00

Barricades Still Up at Six Nations during Talks
Indian Country Today
May 5, 2006

ICT [2006/05/05]��Barricades still up at Six Nations during talks

Six Nations negotiates land claim as standoff draws the world's notice

2006-05-24T16:46:00.000-07:00

Six Nations Negotiates Land Claim During Standoff
Indian Country Today
April 28, 2006

ICT [2006/04/28]��Six Nations negotiates land claim as standoff draws the world's notice

Divine Strake Postponed - May 28th Day of Action Still Scheduled

2006-05-10T10:18:00.000-07:00

Western Shoshone Defense Project
Received May 10, 2006

FYI. Good news, we have a small victory – the Divine Strake test has been postponed – we want it cancelled. These are Western Shoshone lands and the Western Shoshone National Council says no further military testing – the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination agrees. The May 28th Day of Action at the Peace Camp across from the Nevada Test Site is still scheduled to call attention to this issue. Details to follow…

Subject: test site bomb delayed
LAS VEGAS -- A non-nuclear explosion expected to generate a mushroom cloud over the Nevada desert will be postponed at least three weeks, while a federal court reviews plans for the blast, test officials said Tuesday.

"The planned Divine Strake experiment will not be conducted earlier than June 23," said Cheri Abdelnour, spokeswoman for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency at Fort Belvoir, Va. The blast was originally scheduled for June 2.

...

In documents filed Monday with U.S. District Court in Las Vegas, federal Justice Department lawyers sought to push back from May 23 until early June a hearing on a lawsuit filed by the Winnemucca Indian Colony and several Nevada and Utah "downwinders" to block the blast. The judge did not issue an immediate ruling.

Nevada Division of Environmental Protection spokesman Dante Pistone also said Tuesday his agency was reviewing a revised environmental assessment that test planners filed Friday.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/09/AR2006050901461.html

Divine Strake: 700-ton detonation planned on Western Shoshone land

2006-05-01T16:27:00.000-07:00

* International Indian Treaty Council * Western Shoshone Defense Project * Indigenous Environmental Network * Shundahai Network * Nevada Desert Experience * Citizen Alert * Western Shoshone National Council[1]

The “Stop Divine Strake Coalition” Calls for an International Day of Action

The U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) plans to detonate a 700-ton ammonium nitrate and fuel oil explosive on June 2, 2006 at the Nevada Test Site (NTS), a federal facility 65 miles north of Las Vegas. They are calling this test “Divine Strake.”

While this test is not nuclear in composition, its purpose, according to DTRA documents, is to “simulate a low-yield nuclear weapon.” Given that previous nuclear tests have occurred only a few miles away from where Divine Strake will occur, this test raises the specter of kicking up previous radioactive contamination and sending it downwind. We have been told too many half-truths and outright lies to believe in the “safety” of this test. Furthermore, no full environmental impact statement has been done to verify that there is no radioactive contamination at the particular site.

It must be stressed that the presence of the United States military on Western Shoshone land is uninvited. In fact, the Western Shoshone have been fighting for sovereignty over their ancestral and treaty-recognized lands, and to shut down the NTS for years. Most recently, their efforts brought them to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) which found the United States in violation of recognized fundamental human rights standards and international law, and ordered the United States to “freeze”, “desist” and “stop” their activities on Western Shoshone land. All this while the DTRA was preparing for the “Divine Strake” test

As tensions increase with Iran, speculation has increased in the media and elsewhere that this test, in conjunction with other military projects, is building up to an imminent attack on the peoples of Iran, possibly in the form of nuclear bombardment. This test is seemingly a “war game” to initiate a U.S. led invasion of Iran. Many media articles about Divine Strake and its possible role in the escalation of tension with Iran may be found on www.shundahai.org/divine_strake.htm and http://www.disarmamentactivist.org/

Because our goal is to stop the test, and to not expose anyone to undue health risks from the actual blast, our focus will be an International Day of Action on Sunday May 28, 2006 (Memorial Day Weekend) at the Nevada Test Site Peace Camp, located across Highway 95 from the Test Site. We are looking for allied organizations to join our coalition, and either join us at the Nevada Test Site on the 28th, or stage actions in their own communities throughout the following week.

Some of our anticipated activities will be:
¨ Delivering eviction/deportation notices to the U.S. Department of Defense and Department of Energy as illegal, non-respecting immigrants to indigenous lands.
¨ A rally with speakers from indigenous, immigrant, nuclear abolition, and peace and justice communities.
¨ Non-violent direct action training
¨ Peacekeeper training
¨ Workshops on the history of the test site and radiation compensation, indigenous sovereignty, and the escalation with Iran.
¨ Spiritual ceremonies to remember those who have suffered or died as a result of war and nuclear weapons testing.
¨ Brainstorming workshops on what common actions folks can do later in the week in their respective cities
¨ Vigil activities at U.S. Federal Buildings and Bechtel Corporation offices on June 1 and June 2, if the test has not been canceled.

Some of our anticipated needs are:
¨ Getting the word out to sympathetic communities
¨ Development of fliers and other outreach materials
¨ Optimizing media participation both before, during and after the event
¨ Providing shelter, food and water to participants
¨ Organizing workshops
¨ Providing “peacekeepers” to keep the event on message and free of violence.

Ongoing activities – Please keep the phone calls, letters coming!
The test detonation can be cancelled. We call for the United States Government to do so immediately. Concerned citizens can call or write to express their opinions to their Congressional Representatives and:

President George W. Bush comments@whitehouse.gov 202-456-1111
The White House1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NWWashington, DC 20500

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld http://www.dod.gov/faq/comment.html
Secretary Donald H. RumsfeldSecretary of Defense1000 Defense PentagonWashington, DC 20301-1000

James Tegnelia dtra.publicaffairs@dtra.mil (800) 701-5096
Defense Threat Reduction Aagency Attn: James Tegnelia 8725 John J Kingman RD Stop 6201 Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-6201

Please contact us if you would like to join our coalition. We will then proceed with detailed plans based on the coalition’s collective abilities.

https://webmail.xmission.com/horde-3.0-cluster/services/go.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.treatycouncil.org%2F https://webmail.xmission.com/horde-3.0-cluster/services/go.php?url=mailto%3Ajimbosimmons%40treatycouncil.org https://webmail.xmission.com/horde-3.0-cluster/services/go.php?url=mailto%3Aandrea%40treatycouncil.org
https://webmail.xmission.com/horde-3.0-cluster/services/go.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsdp.org%2F https://webmail.xmission.com/horde-3.0-cluster/services/go.php?url=mailto%3Awsdp%40igc.org
http://www.ienearth.org/ rshimek@ienearth.org ien@igc.org
https://webmail.xmission.com/horde-3.0-cluster/services/go.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.shundahai.org%2F https://webmail.xmission.com/horde-3.0-cluster/services/go.php?url=mailto%3Aeileen_mccabe_olsen%40yahoo.com https://webmail.xmission.com/horde-3.0-cluster/services/go.php?url=mailto%3Apete%40shundahai.org
http://www.nevadadesertexperience.org/ amy@nevadadesertexperience.org https://webmail.xmission.com/horde-3.0-cluster/services/go.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.citizenalert.org%2F https://webmail.xmission.com/horde-3.0-cluster/services/go.php?url=mailto%3Apmj1%40citizenalert.org, tonyg@citizenalert.org

[1] Preliminary approval, pending formal consensus approval at the next WSNC regular meeting.

Robert Soto, Lipan Apache: Surrendering the feathers

2006-04-24T12:13:00.000-07:00

Below is a letter from Robert Soto that I had forgotten to post. He describes the experience of giving up his feathers. In case anyone thinks that the colonizing days are over, think again.

March 25, 2006

Dear Friends:

I wish I could describe the day and the feelings that went through my heart and mind as we delivered my two roach feathers to the federal agent today. As you may already know, our area of the world is warm and sometimes very hot throughout the winter. We have not had rain or even a cold day almost all winter. But this morning when I woke up, not only was it colder than normal, but it was a super gloomy day with rain. As went to pick up two of our elders to help us out in our ceremony, I almost felt that God our Creator was weeping with His children.

Words can't really describe what was going through my heart as about 25 of us gathered outside the lawyer's office complex with our ceremonial regalia and prayed. I prayed that God would give us wisdom. I prayed that God would continue to guide us. As I prayed I reminded my people that Romans 8:28 was still in the Bible, that all things do work together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose. I reminded them that God was still on the throne and that He was still in control. I reminded them that we have to be patient for the greater good that will come out of this day and the event that was about to follow. As I finished praying, one of our honored elders, a decorated Korean war veteran, held the two feathers in his hands. The feathers were wrapped in our traditional ways, as if we were about to bury one of our own. The drummers started singing our traditional farewell song in our Apache language as we slowly started our way to the room where the federal agent was waiting for us. As we slowly proceeded through the hallway, workers came to support us and then stood bowing down as in prayer. As we entered the room, the federal agent was waiting for us.

He could not look us in the eye. We stood there and sang our song. When we finished our song, I lit some sage with the very same feathers that I was giving up and blessed the bustles and feathers that were being taken away. Then all the people came and smudged themselves. Then our drum sang a farewell song. It was a powerful song. There was not a dry eye in the room. Our people were crying as we had just lost a loved one. In many ways, we had.

After we finished our song I looked at the agent and told him we were finished. At that time he asked everyone except Mike and I to leave the room. We stayed behind and he talked to us. He wanted to assure us that this was not a racial thing or just picking on Indians. That he was just doing his job. He then turned to me and said, "Do you understand this?" I looked at him and said, "I wish not to say anything." We signed our charges and we left. The lawyer came to say goodbye and every one with tears in their eyes thanked him for all his help. One lady who was with us is from Switzerland. She is here to help Iris and me with our church work. She looked at the lawyer with tears in her eyes and said, "I have always read about the bad things we did to the Indian people. In Europe we think things have changed. But now I know that things have not changed at all."

As I was getting ready to leave I asked the lawyer about a videotape that was on the table with the agent. He said he would go and ask. Basically, the war is not over. He is going to war with the Indian people in Texas. I was told that the agency is planning to invade many other pow wows in Texas. His goal is to bust any Indian person who is not federally recognized in Texas. This does not sound like he is 'just doing his job'. He has an agenda and has chosen to attack a certain people group. In Texas there are over 280,000 Native Americans. Most of these do not have their status card. So this man has chosen to go to war against all of us. Our lawyer advised us to warn all the people who put on pow wows - to warn them about the wrath that is still to come against them from an agent who is taking this as his task to destroy who we are as Native Americans.

Tonight was a very sad night. I performed for an arts organization in McAllen. Tonight I danced without my feathers for the first time ever. Keep us in prayer. This story is not over. He might come after me again. I guess some of us must die before the world sees that very little has changed when it comes to Native American rights.

I will be traveling tomorrow to a pow wow where I will be the head man dancer, doing my hoop dance and will be conducting a Native worship service. Pray for us as we travel 490 miles to the pow wow. I do not feel like dancing, but at the same time I have obligations to keep. Pray for all who will come to our service on Sunday. Love you all and thank you for your prayers. I will send you the letter with the state officials we need to contact very soon. By the way, we will try and have some pictures of the surrendering of our feathers in our website by Saturday or Sunday.

Our website is http://sontree.org/.

Robert Soto, Lipan Apache Warrior for Jesus
ROBTSOTO@aol.com

Letter from Robert Soto, Lipan Apache

2006-04-07T21:52:00.000-07:00

Received Friday, April 7, 2006

Dear Friends:

I came home yesterday and will depart tomorrow to Florida. This past weekend I had an obligation as a head man dancer at a pow wow, as well as taking a dance team to a university for a two-hour educational presentation. Now I am preparing to depart again to be a guest speaker and performer at a Native conference sponsored by the Methodist Church in Leesburg Florida. I must apologize for not being able to answer all of your e-mails that I have received - from not just in the United States, but all over the world. Each of your letters has been a source of comfort and encouragement.

Even though I was at a pow wow this weekend, I spent the whole weekend praying and seeking our God and Creator's direction and wisdom as to what to do next concerning my surrendered eagle feathers. At this time I am writing a newspaper article that I hope will make the three major newspapers in our area, and maybe others throughout Texas and the United States. Then I will be seeking legal counsel from a lawyer that is familiar with violations of our first amendment rights and violations in our religious practices and freedom when the federal agent rudely came into our pow wow are and started harassing both vendors and dancers.

But the next step is writing to our four government officials and informing them of the violation of one federal officer when he chose to interrupt our pow wow. I will give you some of the things I feel were clear violations of our rights a Native Americans so as to help you write your thoughts. I would like to hear that over a thousand letters came to each official to make them aware of what happened.

1. The illegal taking of our feathers which are sacred to all Indian people - both with BIA cards and without.

2. Threatening to arrest us if we did not cooperate and having to ask him four times to show me his credentials as he ordered me to give up my roach feathers.

3. A violation of our sacred rights when he forced his way into our pow wow area, after he was advised hat the pow wow was a sacred gathering and he had no right to enter into it.

4. His insistence that the pow wow was not a sacred gathering because we had advertised our event to the public in the newspapers. Thus when we invited the public, according to him, it ceased being a sacred event and gave him the right to come into our pow wow and doing what ever he desired.

5. The threat that he would not stop until every Indian in our area, the Rio Grande Valley and Texas, who was not of federally recognized status, would have their feathers taken away.

6. The threat that he or the US Fish and Wildlife Department would invade every pow wow in Texas to make sure any Indian who did not deserve the use of eagle feathers were taken away.

7. His insistence that this was not a racial issue or that he was not picking on any particular group of people or Indians, yet threatening to harass any non-status Indian or Indian without a permit from the US Fish and WildLife Service for that feather. Thus creating war on every non-status Indian in Texas; over 270,000 of whom call Texas their homes.

These are some suggestions. If you desire, you may check out my website where I have put all the letters I have written so far, including pictures of the surrendering of our feathers ceremony.

http://sontree.org/fs/ceremony.htm

Send four letters via the US Postal service to our federal representatives. E-mails normally are not read. Here are the four representives to write:

Senator John Cornyn517 Hart Senate Office Bldg.Washington, DC 20510

Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison284 Russell Senate Office Bldg.Washington, DC 20510

Rep. Ruben Hinojosa2864 W. Trenton Rd.Edinburg, TX 78539Rep. Lloyd Doggett311 N. 15th St.McAllen, TX 78501

I thank you for your help in this issue. I truly feel that we need to take a stand and fight the system now, not for my sake but for the sake of all who will follow in our circle for years to come. God bless and thank you for your help.

Robert Soto Lipan Apache Warrior for Jesus

P.S. The following is a copy of a letter from Daniel Romero, chairman of the Lipan Apache Band of Texas, Inc., which you may find helpful as you formulate your thoughts for your letter to our representatives.

Dear Tribal Members and Native American Community,

On March 11, 2006, during the McAllen Pow Wow, Robert Soto's (Lipan Apache) Eagle feathers were removed by a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Agent who stopped the Pow Wow and harassed vendors while searching for eagle feathers. General Council Member of the Lipan Apache Band of Texas, Inc. told the agent that he was violating the Freedom of Religion Act by harassing dancers and vendors during the giveaway - a sacred ceremony. Not much can be done about the Eagle feathers, but the attitude of the agent must not be allowed to set the standard among Texas Native Americans. General Council Secretary of the Lipan Apache Band of Texas, Inc. told the agent to leave the Pow Wow, the agent responded by stating that because the event was announced in the newspaper he did not have to leave.

Question: What would happen if a Native American man or woman entered a church during a mass and ordered everyone to empty their pockets to see if they had us dollars in their pockets. The Native American person would be charged with violating a church mass, so why is it right for an agent to conduct himself this way?

Please remember that Robert Soto is the Vice Chairman of the Lipan Apache Band of Texas, Inc.

So what can we do to help Robert Soto?

Write or Fax the US Senator and US Congressman listed below

Please forward this information to any individual or to interested party. All responses are appreciated.

Peace,

Daniel Castro Romero, Jr.
General Council Chairman
Lipan Apache Band of Texas, Inc.

U.S. Defies United Nations Decision

2006-04-07T21:49:00.000-07:00

Western Shoshone Defense Project
Shundahai Network
Joint Press Release - April 4, 2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE :
U.S. Defies U.N. Decision– Plans Massive Military Detonation on Western Shoshone Land
Western Shoshone call for halt to planned June 2 “Bunker Buster” detonation at the Nevada Test Site

Speaking with media last week, US military spokesman James Tegnelia confirmed U.S. plans to detonate a 700 ton explosion at the Nevada Test Site on June 2, 2006 in a test called “Divine Strake.” The location of this test would be on Western Shoshone land, and would be in direct violation of a recent decision by the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD). In its decision, made public March 10, 2006, the CERD Committee urged the United States to “freeze”, “desist” and “stop” actions being taken, or threatened to be taken, against the Western Shoshone Peoples of the Western Shoshone Nation. In its decision, CERD stressed the “nature and urgency” of the Shoshone situation informing the U.S. that it goes “well beyond” the normal reporting process and warrants immediate attention under the Committee’s Early Warning and Urgent Action Procedure.

The CERD decision explicitly cited ongoing weapons testing at the Nevada Test Site as well as efforts to build an unprecedented high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, NV.

James Tegnelia of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency was quoted by Agence France Presse as saying, "I don't want to sound glib here but it is the first time in Nevada that you'll see a mushroom cloud over Las Vegas since we stopped testing nuclear weapons," and notes further that this is the “largest single explosive that we could imagine.” The Department of Defense announced in late October 2005 that the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrating (RNEP) weapon project was being dropped in favor of a more conventional methodology.

The detonation plan also runs contrary to earlier public statements made in late March to the Las Vegas Review-Journal by Linton F. Brooks, administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration. In his statement, Mr. Brooks announced that the Bush administration had no plans to start detonating warheads at the Nevada Test Site. "We have absolutely no evidence that we're going to need to test. ... We don't see any specific reason now that leads us to believe we'll need a test," Mr. Brooks said. "On the other hand," he said, "we don't know everything about the future."

According to Raymond Yowell, Chief of the Western Shoshone National Council, “We’re opposed to any further military testing on Shoshone lands. This is a direct violation of the CERD finding and an affront to our religious belief - Mother Earth is sacred and should not be harmed. All people who are opposed to these actions by the U.S. should step forward and make their opposition known.”

Carrie Dann, Western Shoshone grandmother and Executive Director of the Western Shoshone Defense Project, “The U.S. has named this 700 ton explosive ‘Divine Strake’. It’s a mystery why they use ‘devine.’ Isn’t ‘devine’ used for your deity, God, Your sacredness? Why don’t they call it ‘Hell Strake?’ I believe when you are working testing weaponry of destruction of life, you should not associate it with ‘devine.’ We want this insanity to stop – no more bombs and no more testing.”

Eileen McCabe-Olsen, Associate Director of Shundahai Network noted, “This test, besides being an egregious violation of Western Shoshone sovereignty, is an escalation that should outrage anyone concerned with peace, justice and care of our environment.”

Pete Litster, Executive Director of Shundahai Network said “Ongoing weapons tests at the Nevada Test Site violate international law. They violate the standing treaty between the U.S. Government and the Western Shoshone people. They also violate the spirit of non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The Test Site is located on Western Shoshone territory, and must not continue to be misused in bold violation of standing agreements between the U.S. government and the Western Shoshone nation.”

Although approval for the test was sought and obtained from the state of Nevada in January 2006, the test detonation can be cancelled. The Western Shoshone National Council, the Western Shoshone Defense Project, and Shundahai Network call for the United States Government to do so immediately. Concerned citizens can call or write to express their opinions:

President George W. Bush comments@whitehouse.gov 202-456-1111
The White House1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NWWashington, DC 20500

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld http://www.dod.gov/faq/comment.html
Secretary Donald H. RumsfeldSecretary of Defense1000 Defense PentagonWashington, DC 20301-1000

James Tegnelia dtra.publicaffairs@dtra.mil (800) 701-5096
Defense Threat Reduction Aagency Attn: James Tegnelia 8725 John J Kingman RD Stop 6201 Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-6201

CONTACTS:
Julie Fishel, Western Shoshone Defense Project 775-468-0230 wsdp@igc.org
Pete Litster, Shundahai Network 801-637-1500 pete@shundahai.org

The Western Shoshone Defense Project's (www.wsdp.org) mission is to affirm Newe (Western Shoshone) jurisdiction over Newe Sogobia (Western Shoshone homelands) by protecting, preserving, and restoring Newe rights and lands for present and future generations based on cultural and spiritual traditions. The W.S.D.P. was established in 1991 by the Western Shoshone National Council to provide support to Mary and Carrie Dann, Western Shoshone grandmothers who were facing the confiscation of the livestock that they graze on Western Shoshone lands.

Shundahai Network (www.shundahai.org) is dedicated to breaking the nuclear chain by building alliances with indigenous communities and environmental, peace and human rights movements. We seek to abolish all nuclear weapons and an end to nuclear testing. We advocate phasing out nuclear energy and ending the transportation and dumping of nuclear waste. We promote the principles of Environmental Justice and strive to insure that indigenous voices are heard in the movement to influence U.S. nuclear and environmental policies. All of our campaigns and events incorporate the values of community building, education, spiritual ceremonies and nonviolent direct action.

Western Shoshone Defense Project
P.O. Box 211308
Crescent Valley, NV 89821
775-468-0230
775-468-0237 (fax)
www.wsdp.org
wsdp@igc.org

The Taking of Lipan Apache Feathers by a federal agent

2006-03-23T13:53:00.000-08:00

From Robert Soto, Lipan Apache

Dear Friends:

I want to thank you for all the prayers and all the support you haveÂ sent, and for all your e-mails; they have brought such encouragement to our hearts. I also want to thank you for all your advice and research results you have sent us.

Today we, my brother-in-law and I, met with our lawyer and he explained in detail to us all that he had found. In reality, it sounded more technical than my mind could handle. I have learned a lot during my journey down this path that God the Creator has allowed me to go through. So I will tell you what we have to do, and what I have learned through this experience.

WHAT DO WE HAVE TO DO?

Our lawyer tried everything to help us keep our feathers but at the end, he could find no route to accomplish that. He carefully studied all the court cases that I sent to him that were sent to me by a lot of you, and also found several himself. While the cases I was sent seemed to work to our favor, he also found many others that did not. His concern, which is a valid concern, was that if we fought the federal government in this issue it would backfire on us with a big possibility of losing, resulting in an even greater battle for my freedom in the future, which he stated would affect a lot of areas of my life. So we decided to accept the federal agent's proposal. This does not mean they have won the war, just one little battle. We will continue to fight, but I will explain that later. Unless the federal agent changes his mind, we are looking at the following penalties: first of all, I will receive a verbal warning and not be charged any fines, but will have to give him my two roach feathers. For my brother-in-law, he will receive a reduced fine of $500 and all the feathers I loaned him will be taken away. The original fine was $5,000. So after much prayer, by both of us and our lawyer, we decided that this could not be fought in the court system and that the whole situation was a no-win effort in our area. By the way, the two roach feathers that I have to turn in will not be turned in to the federal agent in his office. I told the lawyer that I would turn in my feathers in a neutral place like the lawyer's office, and that as we turned in our feathers, we would have a mourning ceremony and sing a mourning song for our great loss. I will be taking four elders to our ceremony to witness the surrendering of our feathers to the United States Government.

WHAT HAVE I LEARNED?

What have I learned from this situation? First of all, I have learned that if you are not a federal-recognized Indian, according to federal law, you are not an Indian. Because the United States government defines a Native American as a person belonging to a federally recognized tribe. Secondly, if you do not belong to a federally recognized tribe, you do not have the same religious and ceremonial rights as those who are federally recognized. Thirdly, since we do not have the same rights as those who are federally recognized, we cannot even call ourselves Native Americans according to federal law. Fourthly, this means that anything we produce that is Native in character cannot be called Native American art or crafts. Fifthly, I have learned that the only legal feather is a feather issued to you by the depository set aside by the federal government. That means that even if you are carrying a BIA card, you are not entitled to carry those feathers unless you have a permit from the federal government. That also means that if you are gifted a feather and you do not belong to a federally recognized tribe, that gift is against the law. Sixthly, if you are gifted a feather, when you receive that feather you have to report to the feather depository with all the information they ask for - like who gave you the feather, his permit number, etc, and register it with the federal government and wait for a special permit that states that this feather has been given to you by someone who legally received the feather through the United States government. This means that if any of your Indian friends who have the proper credentials give you a feather and you do not have a BIA card or your tribe is not federally recognized, that feather is illegal and cannot be used under federal law. I could bore you with more logistics, but these are the ones I remember. So what I have learned through all this is that if you are not a card-carrying Indian with a number issued to you by your tribe which has been federally recognized, you are not an Indian according to federal law. These are laws; many of them given to the United States government by federally recognized tribes to protect the rights of those who are federally recognized. And sad to say, the law is the law. So, who am I? is my question. This is where you have to make a decision in your heart. As I told my lawyer, "I am a Lipan Apache Indian. I was brought up a Lipan Apache Indian. We have been practicing our culture ever since I can remember. We have a history, and ancestors who made us who we are. Because of all this, I have convictions in my heart for the right to use what I feel are my God-given rights as a Lipan Apache. The law might tell me otherwise, but that does not change who I am and who God has created me." Our lawyer told me that if things are going to change, it will not be in the court system but through our governmental officials. He said that we have to unite ourselves and let our politicians know what is happening, and that laws need to be changed. Now our lawyer did tell me one thing of great interest to all who are not federally recognized. That within the next year or two, a case is getting ready to go to the Supreme Court over this issue, feathers and the those who are not federally recognized. He said there is a big possibility that the laws will change because eagles are no longer an endangered species. So keep an eye open for that, and see what we can do to help them decide for all of us who do not carry a BIA card.

WHAT DO I PLAN TO DO?

I do not know about you and your tribe, but we did not survive all these years in the deserts by hiding and running away.Â As soon as this is over, I need your help to inform the following representatives about what has happened. Not so much about the feathers, but of what I feel are still violations of our religious rights as Native Americans and how our circle was violated when the officer came in with no regard to who we are as Indian people. I have a letter ready to go from our tribal chairman which I will e-mail to all who have written to me the last week and a half. If you really care and want to do something to correct what has happened, I encourage you to invest $1.56 in four stamps and write to the four political representatives whose names I will provide as soon as this is over. Many of you have said to me, "What else can I do besides pray?" Well, here will be your opportunity to do something. Can you imagine what would happen if four or five thousand letters poured into the offices of our political officials? At least the voice of our Indian people will be heard. I am praying that more than four or five thousand letters come in. I am praying that with your help, you can get the word around and thousands more will come in. This will at least give them a little idea of the gravity of the issue and that this is not just Robert Soto in South Texas speaking, but the whole world.

WHAT CAN YOU PRAY FOR?

All this time we have been asking you to pray for Mike and me. By the way, Mike is my brother-in-law. But there are some spiritual issues I need you to pray for. This issue has affected our children. Many of our children are afraid of the federal government now and see them as the bad people because they will not allow us to be who we are, Indians. As Dillon, one of my nephews said to his mother, "Why should we dance if we cannot wear our feathers?" I know the feathers do not make the Indian, but at the same time, they are a symbol of who we are and who God the Creator made us. In 1847, the state of Texas passed a law outlawing not just the Lipan Apaches, but all Indian tribes from within its borders. It was at this time that we went underground with our ceremonies and language and dances. If our ancestors were captured as Indians they were either sent to the Mescalero Reservation in New Mexico, or imprisoned, or killed and scalped because the scalp of a Lipan Apache brought 100 pesos for a man's scalp, 75 pesos for a woman's scalp and 50 pesos for our child's scalp by the Mexican government. This is our history; maybe you are wondering, "Why are you telling us this and what does this have to do with eagle feathers?" I tell you this because we will never be able to have a family traditional gathering again without the worry of a federal official deciding to make a name for himself and deciding to come and take our feathers or the feathers of anyone attending our celebration. So once again, we will have to take our ceremonies and pow wows underground and not invite the public or advertise for others to come. Pray for us, the Lipan Apaches. This will take a long time to recover. I will write more after the turning over of our feathers. It will be a very emotional event. Keep us in prayer.

Robert Soto - Lipan Apache Warrior for Jesus
MORE ABOUT ROBERT SOTO: www.mcallen.lib.tx.us/library/tsrp05.htm

Western Shoshone Victorious at United Nations

2006-03-21T21:49:00.000-08:00

Press Release – For Immediate Release
Western Shoshone Victorious at United Nations: U.S. Found in Violation of Human Rights of Native Americans – Urged to Take Immediate Action

Excerpt of press release follows...

10 March 2006, Geneva Switzerland. Today, in an historic and strongly worded decision by the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) the United States was urged to “freeze”, “desist” and “stop” actions being taken or threatened to be taken against the Western Shoshone Peoples of the Western Shoshone Nation. In its decision, CERD stressed the “nature and urgency” of the Shoshone situation informing the U.S. that it goes “well beyond” the normal reporting process and warrants immediate attention under the Committee’s Early Warning and Urgent Action Procedure.

This monumental action challenges the US government’s assertion of federal ownership of nearly 90% of Western Shoshone lands. The land base covers approximately 60 million acres, stretching across what is now referred to as the states of Nevada, Idaho, Utah and California. Western Shoshone rights to the land - which they continue to use, care for, and occupy today - were recognized by the United States in 1863 by the Treaty of Ruby Valley. The U.S. now claims these same lands as “public” or federal lands through an agency process and has denied Western Shoshone fair access to U.S. courts through that same process. The land base has been and continues to be used by the United States for military testing, open pit cyanide heap leach gold mining and nuclear waste disposal planning. The U.S. has engaged in military style seizures of Shoshone livestock, trespass fines in the millions of dollars and ongoing armed surveillance of Western Shoshone who continue to assert their original and treaty rights.

...

Following is the text of the decision by the United Nations committee:

COMMITTEE FOR THE ELIMINATION
OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION
Sixty- eighth session
Geneva, 20 February – 10 March 2006

EARLY WARNING AND URGENT ACTION PROCEDURE

DECISION 1 (68)

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A. Introduction
1. At its 67th session held from 2 to 19 August 2005, the Committee considered on a preliminary basis requests submitted by the Western Shoshone National Council, the Timbisha Shoshone Tribe, the Winnemucca Indian Colony and the Yomba Shoshone Tribe, asking the Committee to act under its early warning and urgent action procedure on the situation of the Western Shoshone indigenous peoples in the United States of America.

2. Considering that the opening of a dialogue with the State party would assist in clarifying the situation before the submission and examination of the fourth and fifth periodic reports of the United States of America, due on 20 November 2003, the Committee, in accordance with article 9 (1) of the Convention and article 65 of its rules of procedure, invited the State party, in a letter dated 19 August 2005, to respond to a list of questions, with a view to considering this issue at its 68th session.

3. Responding to the Committee’s letter, the State party, in its letter dated 15 February 2006, stated that its overdue periodic reports are being prepared and that they will include responses to the list of issues. The Committee regrets that the State party has not undertaken to submit its periodic reports by a specific date, that it has not provided responses to the list of issues by 31 December 2005 as requested, and that it did not consider it necessary to appear before the Committee to discuss the matter.

4. The Committee has received credible information alleging that the Western Shoshone indigenous peoples are being denied their traditional rights to land, and that measures taken and even accelerated lately by the State party in relation to the status, use and occupation of these lands may cumulatively lead to irreparable harm to these communities. In light of such information, and in the absence of any response from the State party, the Committee decided at its 68th session to adopt the present decision under its early warning and urgent action procedure. This procedure is clearly distinct from the communication procedure under article 14 of the Convention. Furthermore, the nature and urgency of the issue examined in this decision go well beyond the limits of the communication procedure.

B. Concerns

5. The Committee expresses concern about the lack of action taken by the State party to follow up on its previous concluding observations, in relation to the situation of the Western Shoshone peoples (A/56/18, para. 400, adopted on 13 August 2001). Although these are indeed long-standing issues, as stressed by the State party in its letter, they warrant immediate and effective action from the State party. The Committee therefore considers that this issue should be dealt with as a matter of priority.

6. The Committee is concerned by the State party’s position that Western Shoshone peoples’ legal rights to ancestral lands have been extinguished through gradual encroachment, notwithstanding the fact that the Western Shoshone peoples have reportedly continued to use and occupy the lands and their natural resources in accordance with their traditional land tenure patterns. The Committee further notes with concern that the State party’s position is made on the basis of processes before the Indian Claims Commission, “which did not comply with contemporary international human rights norms, principles and standards that govern determination of indigenous property interests”, as stressed by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in the case Mary and Carrie Dann versus United States (Case 11.140, 27 December 2002).

7. The Committee is of the view that past and new actions taken by the State party on Western Shoshone ancestral lands lead to a situation where, today, the obligations of the State party under the Convention are not respected, in particular the obligation to guarantee the right of everyone to equality before the law in the enjoyment of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, without discrimination based on race, colour, or national or ethnic origin. The Committee recalls its General recommendation 23 (1997) on the rights of indigenous peoples, in particular their right to own, develop, control and use their communal lands, territories and resources, and expresses particular concern about:

a) Reported legislative efforts to privatize Western Shoshone ancestral lands for transfer to multinational extractive industries and energy developers.

b) Information according to which destructive activities are conducted and/or planned on areas of spiritual and cultural significance to the Western Shoshone peoples, who are denied access to, and use of, such areas. It notes in particular the reinvigorated federal efforts to open a nuclear waste repository at the Yucca Mountain; the alleged use of explosives and open pit gold mining activities on Mont Tenabo and Horse Canyon; and the alleged issuance of geothermal energy leases at, or near, hot springs, and the processing of further applications to that end.

c) The reported resumption of underground nuclear testing on Western Shoshone ancestral lands;

d) The conduct and / or planning of all such activities without consultation with and despite protests of the Western Shoshone peoples;

e) The reported intimidation and harassment of Western Shoshone people by the State party’s authorities, through the imposition of grazing fees, trespass and collection notices, impounding of horse and livestock, restrictions on hunting, fishing and gathering, as well as arrests, which gravely disturb the enjoyment of their ancestral lands.

f) The difficulties encountered by Western Shoshone peoples in appropriately challenging all such actions before national courts and in obtaining adjudication on the merits of their claims, due in particular to domestic technicalities.

C. Recommendations

8. The Committee recommends to the State party that it respect and protect the human rights of the Western Shoshone peoples, without discrimination based on race, colour, or national or ethnic origin, in accordance with the Convention. The State party is urged to pay particular attention to the right to health and cultural rights of the Western Shoshone people, which may be infringed upon by activities threatening their environment and/or disregarding the spiritual and cultural significance they give to their ancestral lands.

9. The Committee urges the State party to take immediate action to initiate a dialogue with the representatives of the Western Shoshone peoples in order to find a solution acceptable to them, and which complies with their rights under, in particular, articles 5 and 6 of the Convention. In this regard also, the Committee draws the attention of the State party to its General recommendation 23 (1997) on the rights of indigenous peoples, in particular their right to own, develop, control and use their communal lands, territories and resources.

10. The Committee urges the State party to adopt the following measures until a final decision or settlement is reached on the status, use and occupation of Western Shoshone ancestral lands in accordance with due process of law and the State party’s obligations under the Convention:

a) Freeze any plan to privatize Western Shoshone ancestral lands for transfer to multinational extractive industries and energy developers;

b) Desist from all activities planned and/or conducted on the ancestral lands of Western Shoshone or in relation to their natural resources, which are being carried out without consultation with and despite protests of the Western Shoshone peoples;

c) Stop imposing grazing fees, trespass and collection notices, horse and livestock impoundments, restrictions on hunting, fishing and gathering, as well as arrests, and rescind all notices already made to that end, inflicted on Western Shoshone people while using their ancestral lands.

11. In accordance with article 9 (1) of the Convention, the Committee requests that the State party provide it with information on action taken to implement the present decision by 15 July 2006.

U.S. Found in Violation of Human Rights of Native Americans

2006-03-21T21:45:00.000-08:00

Press Release For Immediate Release

Western Shoshone Victorious at United Nations: U.S. Found in Violation of Human Rights of Native Americans Urged to Take Immediate Action

10 March 2006, Geneva Switzerland. Today, in an historic and strongly worded decision by the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) the United States was urged to freeze, desist and stop actions being taken or threatened to be taken against the Western Shoshone Peoples of the Western Shoshone Nation. In its decision, CERD stressed the nature and urgency of the Shoshone situation informing the U.S. that it goes well beyond the normal reporting process and warrants immediate attention under the Committees Early Warning and Urgent Action Procedure.

This monumental action challenges the US governments assertion of federal ownership of nearly 90% of Western Shoshone lands. The land base covers approximately 60 million acres, stretching across what is now referred to as the states of Nevada, Idaho, Utah and California. Western Shoshone rights to the land - which they continue to use, care for, and occupy today - were recognized by the United States in 1863 by the Treaty of Ruby Valley. The U.S. now claims these same lands as public or federal lands through an agency process and has denied Western Shoshone fair access to U.S. courts through that same process. The land base has been and continues to be used by the United States for military testing, open pit cyanide heap leach gold mining and nuclear waste disposal planning. The U.S. has engaged in military style seizures of Shoshone livestock, trespass fines in the millions of dollars and ongoing armed surveillance of Western Shoshone who continue to assert their original and treaty rights.

Based upon these actions and a dramatic escalation of new actions threatening irreparable harm to Western Shoshone and their environment, last year, with the support of the Univ. of Arizona Indigenous Law and Policy Program, the Western Shoshone filed a renewed legal action at the United Nations CERD. In addition to evidence of the United States conduct, the Western Shoshone delegation also delivered over 13,000 signatures from citizens across the United States of America supporting the Western Shoshone action to CERD. This petition was a result of a campaign organized by the rights-based development organization Oxfam America to demonstrate the widespread concern for the Western Shoshone peoples to the United Nations.

CERD rejected the U.S. argument that the situation was not novel and therefore should wait to be reviewed until the U.S. submits its Periodic Report past due since 2003. The Committee informed the U.S. that [a]lthough these are indeed long-standing issuesthey warrant immediate and effective action [and] should be dealt with as a matter of priority. The United States was urged to pay particular attention to the right to health and cultural rights of the Western Shoshonewhich may be infringed upon by activities threatening their environment and/or disregarding the spiritual and cultural significance they give to their ancestral lands.

CERD presented its decision to the Western Shoshone this morning. The decision details the U.S. actions against the Western Shoshone and calls upon the United States to immediately:

· Respect and protect the human rights of the Western Shoshone peoples;

· Initiate a dialogue with the representatives of the Western Shoshone peoples in order to find a solution acceptable to them, and which complies with their rights;

· Adopt the following measures until a final decision or settlement is reached on the status, use and occupation of Western Shoshone ancestral lands in accordance with due process of law and the U.S. obligations under the Convention;

o Freeze all efforts to privatize Western Shoshone ancestral lands for transfer to multinational extractive industries and energy developers;

o Desist from all activities planned and/or conducted on Western Shoshone ancestral lands;

o Stop imposing grazing fees, livestock impoundments, hunting, fishing and gathering restrictions and rescind all notices already made.

The decision is historic in that it is the first time a United Nations Committee has issued a full decision against the U.S. in respect to its highly controversial Federal Indian law and policy. The decision expressed particular concern that the U.S. basis for claiming federal title to Western Shoshone land rests on a theory of gradual encroachment through a compensation process in the Indian Claims Commission. The decision highlights that this same process was found by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to violate international human rights norms, principles and standards that govern determination of indigenous property interests. When the U.S. last appeared before the Committee in 2001, Committee members expressed alarm and concern that U.S. laws regarding indigenous peoples continue to be based on the outdated, colonial era doctrine of discovery.

The Committee gave the U.S. a July 15, 2006 deadline to provide it with information on the action it had taken. The decision issued today demonstrates a solid commitment by the United Nations human rights system to make the Western Shoshones struggle a priority. Whereas indigenous peoples have been active at the United Nations for several decades, the decision today also brings a breath of hope to indigenous communities across the U.S. and globally where the negative effects of U.S. policy and influence reach. In its decision, the Committee drew particular attention to its General recommendation 23 (1997) on the rights of indigenous peoples, in particular their right to own, develop, control and use their communal lands, territories and resources.

Comments from Western Shoshone Delegation to United Nations (March 10, 2006):

We have rights to protect our homelands and stop the destruction of our land, water, and air by the abuses of the United States government and the multinational corporations. The situation is outrageous and were glad the United Nations Committee agrees with us. Our people have suffered more nuclear testing than anywhere else in the world and theyre continuing underground testing despite our protests. Yucca Mountain is being hollowed out in order to store nuclear waste. We cannot stand for it this earth, the air, the water are sacred. People of all races must stop this insanity now in order to secure a safe future for all. Joe Kennedy, Western Shoshone.

The Western Shoshone Nation is very thankful to the Committee members for their decision affirming U.S. discrimination and destructive policies do not go on unaccounted for. Truth is what it is that can never change. We pray for the healing of our peoples, the land and the harassment and destruction to stop. While others are allowed the freedom of religion, we are kept from the very same right. The Newe (people) use this ancestral land for sacred ceremonies. The federal agencies prevent our access to some of these important areas. Our ancestors burials are being dug up and placed into local museums basement storage areas because of surge of gold mines and nuclear developments. This is an outrage to our people! Judy Rojo, Western Shoshone.

This battle has been going on for quite some time, but weve seen a dramatic increase in the federal government and the companies rush to finalize what they consider a settlement in order to get a hold of our lands for activities that are contaminating our water and our air. Again, we are very pleased that our rights are finally being taken seriously and we look forward to positive actions being taken by the U.S. Steven Brady, Western Shoshone.

We are Shoshone delegates speaking for a Nation threatened by extinction. The mines are polluting our waters, destroying hot springs and exploding sacred mountainsour burials along with them--attempting to erase our signature on the land. We are coerced and threatened by mining and Federal agencies when we seek to continue spiritual prayers for traditional food or medicine on Shoshone land. We have endured murder of our Newe people for centuries, as chronicled in military records, but now we are asked to endure a more painful death from the U.S. governmental agencies a separation from land and spiritual renewal. We thank our past leaders for their persistence and courage and the CERD for this monumental step Bernice Lalo, Western Shoshone.

Non-Indian eagle feather case returns to federal court

2006-03-20T09:12:00.000-08:00

from Indianz.com...
In hearing a case about four non-Indians with eagle feathers in their possession, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals also said:

"The court, however, said non-federally recognized Indians are entitled to possess eagle feathers and parts. The Interior Department was ordered to pay Joselius Saenz, a member of the terminated Chiricahua Apache Tribe of New Mexico, $40,000 and return his eagle items.
Even federally recognized Indians have trouble obtaining eagle feathers. The National Eagle Repository's waiting list is five years long."

Indianz.Com > News > Non-Indian eagle feather case returns to federal court

National Archives Indian Records Discarded

2005-09-23T08:58:00.000-07:00

National Archives Indian Records Discarded
Assoicated Press - JOHN HEILPRIN
Sep 23, 2005

WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal officials are investigating how National Archives documents of interest to Indians suing the Interior Department were found discarded in a trash bin and a wastebasket.

The discovery came to light on Sept. 1, when Archives staff noticed federal records in one of the trash bins behind the National Archives Building near the Capitol. They notified the Archives' inspector general, Paul Brachfeld, whose staff recovered the documents.

They found at least a portion of the documents were Bureau of Indian Affairs records dating to the 1950s, according to Jason Baron of the Archives' Office of General Counsel, in a letter last week to an Interior Department official.

Brachfeld's office began investigating, and ``what appear to be Indian records were discovered in a waste basket in the stack areas at Main Archives,'' Baron wrote. Taken together, the two dumping incidents ``may be intentional acts aimed at unlawfully removing or disposing of permanent records from the Interior Department,'' he wrote.

Lawyers for the Indian plaintiffs suing the Interior Department over lost royalties ran across Baron's letter this week in a routine court filing by Justice Department lawyers on behalf of Interior's Office of Trust Records.

Dennis Gingold, the plaintiff's lead attorney, said the discovery represents more of ``the same repugnant, desperate actions we've come to expect'' from the Interior Department.

Dan DuBray, an Interior Department spokesman, pointed out that the documents were not in the custody of his agency. He said the department was told by the National Archives that all the discarded documents had been found within restricted locations at the Archives.

``We have every confidence that the inspector general of the National Archives will get to the bottom of this very serious issue,'' he said.

Susan Cooper, a spokeswoman for the National Archives, said ``a limited number of boxes'' were found within trash containers in the loading area and in wastebaskets in the stack areas - both within secure locations.

The Interior Department ``had nothing to do with it,'' Cooper said. ``This is a problem at the National Archives, not the Interior Department.''

Cooper said Archivist of the United States Allen Weinstein had directed increased security measures in the stacks and loading docks, including monitoring trash disposal and ensuring all stack doors remain locked.

Congress found problems in 1994 with Interior's administration of 260,000 Indian trust accounts containing $400 million. Two years later, Elouise Cobell of the Blackfeet Indian tribe and others filed suit. They allege the department cheated about 500,000 Indians out of more than $100 billion, by mismanaging oil, gas, grazing, timber and other royalties from their lands dating to 1887. They have offered to settle for $27.5 billion.

United Nations Committee Responds to Western Shoshone

2005-08-23T15:14:00.000-07:00

From: "Carrie Dann" To: Subject: Release: United Nations Sends Formal Request to U.S. Regarding Western Shoshone (Tenabo/Yucca Mtn named) Date: Tue, 23 Aug 2005 14:15:49 -0700 X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook, Build 10.0.3416 Importance: High X-ELNK-AV: 0
For Additional Information or Interviews, Contact:
Western Shoshone Defense Project
775-468-0230

**Press Release – For Immediate Release**

United Nations Committee Responds to Western Shoshone Requests –
Specific Mention of Threatened Spiritual & Cultural Areas:
Mt. Tenabo and Yucca Mountain

August 23, 2005

Crescent Valley, Nevada (Newe Sogobia). On the final day of its 67th Session, August 19, 2005, the Chairman of the United Nations Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination issued a formal letter and series of questions to the United States regarding the situation of the Western Shoshone. The letter was issued after a private meeting with representatives from the United States on August 15, 2005 based on requests by the Western Shoshone Nation* that the Committee act under its early warning and urgent action procedure to prevent further escalation of federal assaults on Western Shoshone people and their ancestral lands. A delegation of Western Shoshone traveled to Geneva August 8-20 to present the requests.

A full copy of the letter is attached to this release. Questions range from the U.S.’ position on the Treaty of Ruby Valley, seizures of Western Shoshone livestock, efforts to privatize Western Shoshone land to benefit mining and energy industries and ongoing harassment of Western Shoshone people. The Committee asked specifically about United States approval of expanded mining activities in the Mount Tenabo area in Crescent Valley and the approval to store nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain. Both areas are of spiritual and cultural importance to the Western Shoshone and are sites where local creation stories originate.

The Committee has asked the United States to respond to the questions by December 31, 2005 for further examination at its next session beginning February 20, 2006 in Geneva Switzerland.

Upon receipt of the letter earlier today, Raymond Yowell, Chief of the Western Shoshone National Council stated:
“We are pleased that the United Nations Committee (CERD) is willing
to look into this. We encourage the U.S. to respond in an honorable
manner and to begin to work toward a solution on this long standing
matter – for the benefit of all concerned.”

Western Shoshone lands cover approximately 60 million acres stretching across what is now referred to as the states of Nevada, Idaho, Utah and California. The United States claims around 90% of the land base as “public” or federally-controlled lands. The Western Shoshone challenge the U.S. assertion of ownership stating that there has never been a legally valid transfer, sale or cession of land by the Western Shoshone to the United States.

* Full copies of the Requests are available at www.wsdp.org under “Legal Actions.

NOTE: Letter could not be attached to this blog.

Census Pushes for Indian Removal

2004-12-18T07:54:00.000-08:00

FROM UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE
FOR RELEASE: WEEK OF DECEMBER 17, 2004
COLUMN OF THE AMERICAS by Patrisia Gonzales and Roberto Rodriguez
CENSUS PUSHES FOR INDIAN REMOVAL

Years of U.S. governmental assimilationist policies have succeeded in convincing about half of all the people within the "Latino/Hispanic" census category to see themselves racially as white. Now, for the 2010 census, the U.S. Census Bureau wants the other half.

On its face, this move to eliminate the "other race" category appears to be neutral. Yet if the bureau gets its way, by 2010, the people within the category of Latino/Hispanic will essentially become a subcategory of "white."

The bureau should not prevail. And it probably won't, because Rep. Jose Serrano, D-N.Y., has blocked the bureau's move to eliminate the "other race" option through language in the recent omnibus bill. However, keeping "other race" is not a solution either, but is the problem.

The bureau's perceived problem is of its own making. About 97 percent of all those who checked the "other race" category (10 million and 15 million in 1990 and 2000, respectively) are Latinos/Hispanics.

The bureau has long believed that those who exercise this option are racially confused. Thus, without their consent, it has traditionally re-categorized virtually all of them into the white category. The bureau's 2010 proposal would have the same funnel effect of corralling them into the white category because they don't perceive the other categories as being designed for them. It's a bureaucratic way to arrest the browning of the nation.

Anyone who reads a biology book knows that racial categories are unscientific. But if we play along with the bureau's fiction of forcing everyone into black/white/Asian and American Indian categories, what's undeniable is that the vast majority of "Latinos/Hispanics" are not white. Those who choose the "other race" category have long been sending out this message.

Most within the Latino/Hispanic category in the United States are what some term "mestizo," or racially mixed. Most people with Mexican and Central American roots are primarily indigenous or indigenous-based mestizos. A better part of their ancestry includes people who've been on this continent for thousands of years, and they have African, European or Asian roots, as well.

This covers nearly 75 percent of this census category. Of the remaining 25 percent, many of the people from South American and Caribbean nations are even more indigenous or African. And, of course, within all these populations, there is also a (minor) European element.

In effect, debates may rage about how to label or define Latinos/Hispanics, but what is certain is that the vast majority are not white. Thus, to steer virtually all of them into the white census category is tantamount to what we've long termed demographic genocide.

Since the issue is essentially limited to Latinos/Hispanics, one option that has been proposed is adding a mestizo racial category. That may not be accurate, but that's how many see themselves, and it would dramatically reduce the number of Latinos/Hispanics checking the "other race" category.

Perhaps therein lies the problem: Government bureaucrats may not want to officially condone the "browning" of the nation -- and many of those who can will opt for the white category and indeed do not want to be seen as brown. (Eliminating affirmative action for Latinos/Hispanics who identify themselves as white would reduce the number of Latinos/Hispanics who would choose white.)

The truth is, none of this is news. Jack Forbes, author of the book "Aztecas del Norte," has been writing about this for more than 40 years, warning about the efforts to de-Indianize the continent. De-Indianization is but another word for genocide -- a project that commenced in 1492.

The best solution is for the bureau to get out of the identity business altogether. One only needs to see the bizarre nature of how the government determines American Indianness by blood quantum. It will not be long until all other groups go down the same path. (Currently, the National Hispanic Scholarship Fund has created a similar formula for eligibility purposes.)

The bureau's effort runs contrary to thousands of years of history and is but another form of Indian removal. Beyond that, it's taking the nation back to a time before the advent of the civil rights movement and ethnic studies (where one learns ones history, when shame and embarrassment in being brown -- in having Indian blood -- was the norm.

This should be a clarion call for every artist, writer, scholar, elder, danzante, journalist, historian, demographer, professor, student, librarian, filmmaker and storyteller (people and organizations charged with keeping the memory) to inform their community and oppose any governmental effort to wipe brown people off the map. If given no option, indigenous (as Forbes has always suggested) is a fine choice.

COPYRIGHT 2004 UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE

* Perhaps it is high time for national organizations such as the National Association of Chicana/Chicano Scholars to discuss this issue and send this message to the Census as the bureau seems to be ignorant about such matters.

* The writers can be reached at XColumn@aol.com or 608-238-3161, PO BOX 5093, Madison, WI 53705. Column of the Americas is posted every Sat at: www.uexpress.com/columnoftheamericas/ If you would like to see it in your local newspaper, please call/your local editor and direct them to Universal Press Syndicate at 1-800-255-6734.

Western Shoshone Nation, Part II - An Open Letter

2004-12-16T22:40:00.000-08:00

June 22, 2004 Message from Hugh Stevens, Chairman Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone. For more information call Te-Moak Tribal Office at 775-738-9251. For general information on Western Shoshone land issue see http://www.wsdp.org/.

AN OPEN LETTER to

the President of
the United States,

the U. S. Congress, and

the American People

from
the Western Shoshone Nation

Concerning the Worst Case of Injustice to be Inflicted Upon
our Nation as American Indians in More than a Century

Dear President Bush, Members of

Congress, the People of the United States:

Today, the Western Shoshone Nation is in a struggle for survival against powerful forces within the U. S. Congress that are attempting to steal our ancestral homeland. While Western Shoshone warriors are fighting in Iraq to defend and protect the United States, certain members of Congress are attempting to illegally confiscate our homeland, which the U. S. Government promised to preserve and protect for the Western Shoshone Nation by the 1863 Ruby Valley Treaty.

If the Western Shoshone Claims Distribution Bill (H.R. 884/S.618) is passed and approved by the President, our Western Shoshone warriors will not have a homeland to return to when they complete their tour of duty in Iraq.

Today, the Western Shoshone People are not being attacked by U.S. Army soldiers who are firing their rifles and swinging their sabers in murderous attacks upon our people, as they did in the 1800s. Instead, today, the Western Shoshone People are being attacked by a Congressional juggernaut that has been fueled by false and misleading information that is intent upon stealing our sacred lands from under our feet.

While the direct frontal attacks of the 1800s were deadly and killed many Shoshones, today s Congressional attacks upon the Western Shoshone are far more devastating and destructive, since, if they are successful, they will destroy the entire Shoshone Nation.

People say How could this be happening in the United States of America in the 21^st Century? But it is happening, and the legislative conquest of the Western Shoshone will succeed unless stopped by Congress, the American People, and the President of the United States.

WHAT CONGRESS IS BEING TOLD

Members of Congress have been told that the Western Shoshone People want the distribution of the funds that were made available to the Western Shoshone Nation in 1979 by the Indian Claims Commission for damages inflicted upon the Western Shoshone People in 1872. The funding, which represents 15Â¢ per acre plus interest, is currently being held in the U.S. Treasury.

THE TRUTH

Seven tribal governments of the Western Shoshone Nation strongly oppose the distribution of the Indian Claims Commission funding which, if accepted, will extinguish their title and ownership of 24,000,000 acres of Western Shoshone lands that were guaranteed to the Western Shoshone by the U.S. Government by the 1863 Ruby Valley Treaty.

These lands have never been ceded or sold by the Western Shoshone. and remain the homeland of the Western Shoshone Nation.

ILLEGAL ACTIONS BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

In 1951, Western Shoshone filed a claim for damages with the Indian Claims Commission for actions being taken by the Federal Government to illegally confiscate Western Shoshone lands. Twenty-seven years later, in 1978, the Indian Claims Commission got around to responding to the Western Shoshone claim. Finally, in 1979, the Indian Claims Commission attempted to make a final judgment on the Western Shoshone claim. By law, in order for the Indian Claims Commission to make a final judgment on a tribal claim, two actions were required. First, the amount of monetary judgment for damages had to be determined by the Indian Claims Commission, and secondly, a final report had to be filed with Congress that defined the basis for the judgment. In the case of the Western Shoshone claim, the amount of monetary judgment was established by the Indian Claims Commission, BUT THE REQUIRED FINAL REPORT WAS NEVER FILED WITH CONGRESS... WITHOUT BOTH STEPS BEING TAKEN, ANY SETTLEMENT AMOUNT WOULD BE INVALID, AND ANY PAYMENT BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR THE TAKING OF INDIAN LANDS WOULD BE ILLEGAL.

During the time period from 1946 to 1979 that the Indian Claims Commission was authorized by Congress to address Indian claims, 320 claims were addressed, but 20 claims were not completed, since no final reports were filed with Congress on the 20 claims. The Western Shoshone claim was one of the claims that was never completed by the Indian Claims Commission before Congress abolished the Indian Claims Commission in 1979.

The Indian Claims Commission final judgment on the Western Shoshone claim remains incomplete as of this day, and can never be completed, since the Indian Claims Commission is no longer in operation.

SECRETARY OF INTERIOR ACCEPTS INDIAN CLAIMS COMMISSION FUNDING AS THE TRUSTEE OF THE WESTERN SHOSHONE

Despite the fact that the legal responsibility of the Indian Claims Commission was never fulfilled, the Secretary of Interior, acting as the trustee of the Western Shoshone Nation, accepted the payment of 15Â¢ per acre, plus interest, as a fair settlement for the confiscation of 24,000,000 acres of Western Shoshone lands by the federal government, a settlement that included compensation for the richest gold fields in the United States from which $25 billion in gold has been removed from Western Shoshone lands without any compensation being paid to the Western Shoshone Indians, as required by the 1863 Ruby Valley Treaty.

THE INDIAN CLAIMS COMMISSION DECLARED THAT THE WESTERN SHOSHONE LANDS WERE LOST BY THE WESTERN SHOSHONE ON JULY 1, 1872 AS A RESULT OF GRADUAL ENCROACHMENT ON THE WESTERN SHOSHONE LANDS... A COMPLETELY FABRICATED AND UNTRUE STATEMENT.

The 1863 Ruby Valley Treaty was a treaty of peace and friendship between the Western Shoshone and the U. S. Government. Article II of the 1863 Ruby Valley Treaty gave the U.S. Government, emigrants, and travelers across the Western Shoshone lands permission to have unobstructed and free access to travel through and on Western Shoshone lands, but the Treaty never ceded ownership of the lands. Specifically, Article II of the 1863 Ruby Valley Treaty states:

The sevaral routes of travel through the Shoshone Country, now and hereafter used by White men, shall be forever free, and unobstructed by the said lands, for the use of the Government of the United States, and of all emigrants and travelers under its authority and protection, without molestation or injury from them.

For the Indian Claims Commission to declare that the Shoshone lost their lands in 1872, three years after the Ruby Valley Treaty was ratified by Congress, is not possible inasmuch as encroachment by definition means to trespass on or through territory, and the word trespass means to enter without permission. The Western Shoshone gave their permission for the U.S. Government, emigrants, and settlers to pass through and use Western Shoshone lands; therefore, the taking of Western Shoshone lands by gradual encroachment was a fabricated myth that was made up by the Indian Claims Commission. It is not possible to trespass across lands if permission is granted to enter and use the lands, and that is precisely what the Western Shoshone Nation granted to the U.S. Government, to all emigrants and settlers by the terms of the 1863 Ruby Valley Treaty.

WHAT THE WESTERN SHOSHONE NATION IS SEEKING

Mr. President, and the People of America, please do not allow the Congress to use the injustices and abuses of our nation s American Indians that occurred during the 1800s to serve as the standard for which continuing abuse and mistreatment of Indian people will continue in the 21^st Century, precisely what approval of H.R.884/S.618 would perpetuate.

The United Nations, the Organizations of American States, and the National Congress of American Indians have all called for the U.S. Government to enter into good faith negotiations with the Western Shoshone Nation in an attempt to resolve this long-standing dispute that threatens our people, our culture, and the very survival of the Western Shoshone Nation.

We are prepared to enter into good faith negotiations, and we sincerely believe that a fair and just resolution of this matter can be achieved.

We appeal to the President of the United States to issue an Executive Order to the U. S. Department of Interior to direct the Secretary of Interior to enter into good faith negotiations, on a nation-to-nation basis, with the Western Shoshone Nation in an attempt to a reach fair and just resolution f the land dispute related to the 1863 Ruby Valley Treaty between the Western Shoshone Nation and the U. S. Government.

And we appeal to the U.S. Senate, please do not approve H.R.884/S.618 without at least giving the Western Shoshone Nation a hearing on the bill so that our voices may be heard.

______________________

Hugh Stevens,

Chairman, Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone

-----------------------------------------

UPDATE - Action Alert
June 22, 2004
Western Shoshone ÂDistributionÂ Bill
House passes Bill in expedited vote despite NCAI Resolution and Western Shoshone Opposition

In a behind the scenes, completely un-democratic and purely political maneuver, the Western Shoshone Distribution Bill (S 618/HR 884) was passed by a voice vote several hours before the scheduled vote on Monday, June 21, 2004. Because of the death of the Senate bill on June 1, the next step will be for the vote to move back through the Senate and then on to the President.

The bill was passed based on an illegitimate ÂvoteÂ claiming to represent Western Shoshone people, despite the fact that the Western Shoshone National Council, a majority of the democratically-elected Tribal Councils representing over 70% of the population, and all of the traditional Western Shoshone strongly oppose the bill. In addition, the National Congress of American Indians, the largest umbrella organization of Native American Tribes in the U.S. passed a resolution on Monday opposing the bill as a threat to Native American sovereignty and equal protection of the laws.

Do we live in a country of lawless ness and corporate corruption or do we still believe in a Congress and elected officials who reflect fairness and legality of process? This bill, the Western Shoshone Distribution Bill, may well be the test case of our time.

For further information, please see www.sdp.org or call 775-468-0230.

WHAT TO DO to express your concerns:
Democratic National Committee - 202-863-8000 (Why isnÂt this a national campaign issue?)
Republican National Committee - 202-863-8500 (Why isn't this a national campaign issue?)
Contact your Senator Â Or Senators who claim to uphold Human Rights and Rule of Law
Contact the White House
And anyone else you may think could be persuasive in this issue.
Statement by Western Shoshone:

Western Shoshone Land - Silence is Golden if You Could Mine Your Own Business, As It Is Stated in Nevada.
Statement by Larson R. Bill (Western Shoshone), June 1, 2004.
I always thought Nevada was the Silver State, all of a sudden itÂs gold. The Western Shoshone Distribution Bill, S 618/HR 884 sure looks like hush money to me and other Western Shoshone. Why the push to pay us off? How much is it worth to a couple of senior congressmen and their corporate constituents to buy us off? How much is it worth to buy off or hush up constitutionally protected rights? Your guess is as good as ours Â A few things we do know Â and they all relate to money, lots of money Â except when it comes to the Western Shoshone:

The Western Shoshone Distribution Bill - S 618/H.R. 884
The Truth: Fiction v. Facts

Fiction: A majority of the Western Shoshone people are in favor of the bill.
Facts:
· A majority of the tribal councils and all of the traditional Western Shoshone oppose the distribution of money until resolution of the land issues.
· There have been no government to government consultations on the bill.
· In 1980, at the formal Hearing of Record, the Western Shoshone rejected the claims money because the U.S. could not demonstrate how it had legally acquired title to the land from the Western Shoshone. Since that time, there has never been any vote of the Western Shoshone on the bill. There has been no demonstration in any form that the straw poll ballot referenced by Congressman Gibbons and Senator Reid was ever authorized or certified by any Western Shoshone government. No independent monitoring ever occurred and to this day no independent or government body has seen the alleged ballots or been allowed to review the process.
· Despite specific requests by Congressmen Tom Udall (NM) and Raul Grijalva (AZ), the Department of Interior has failed to provide any documentation of their statements that a ÂmajorityÂ of Western Shoshone are in favor of the bill.
· The tribal chairman, Felix Ike, who testified before the Senate and House committees in favor of the distribution has been formally removed from any tribal leadership position. An investigation is underway with regard to his actions while in office, in particular, his dealings with Congressional offices and the Department of Interior.

Fiction: The intent of this bill is simply to distribute money awarded to the Western Shoshone for damages.

Facts:
Â· This bill will distribute money awarded for alleged extinguishment of title to 24 million acres of land, the vast majority of which is currently classified as ÂpublicÂ lands.
· This bill will open the way to large scale privatization of lands held sacred by the Western Shoshone and currently used and occupied by the native people for grazing, gathering medicinal and food plants, hunting and fishing, and ceremonial purposes.
· In a November 2003 letter sent to Secretary of Gale Norton, Congressman Grijalva (AZ) raises serious concerns about the real intent of the bill and the involvement of the federal government and mining, energy and nuclear industries in presenting a misleading picture of the issues to the public and to members of Congress. (Copy available at www.wsdp.org)

Fiction: Western Shoshone land title has been fully litigated in the U.S. courts.

Facts:
· The Western Shoshone have never received a hearing on the issue of title.
· The Treaty of Ruby Valley, which recognizes the boundaries of 60 million acres of Western Shoshone land has never been litigated.
· The only issue decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in U.S. v. Dann was whether or not ÂpaymentÂ had been made when the money was accepted by the Department of Interior on behalf of the Western Shoshone. The Supreme Court said ÂyesÂ, Interior serves as a ÂtrusteeÂ to the Indians and InteriorÂs acceptance equals acceptance by the Western Shoshone, thereby triggering a statutory bar to litigation on the issue.
· Last year, after 10 years of briefings and hearings, an international judicial body (the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights) found that the process used by the U.S. violates Western Shoshone rights to property, to due process, and to equality under the law. Amnesty International has issued a formal report on the situation and has called upon the United States to adhere to the international ruling by engaging in good faith negotiations with the Western Shoshone.
· In September 2003, a new lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court in D.C. (Western Shoshone v. U.S., Case No. 03-CV-2009 (Judge Lamberth)). The lawsuit asserts the unconstitutional nature of the federal process and asserts Western Shoshone title to the 60 million acre land base. Preliminary filings are underway.

Fiction: The land dispute can be resolved after the distribution is made.

Facts:
· Instead of a fair resolution, Nevada Congressmen Reid and Gibbons have already set the stage for corporate giveaways and large scale privatization of the lands. For example: H.R. 2869 would work to give away Western Shoshone lands to major mining interest such as Placer Dome; HR 2772 would encourage large scale expansion of geothermal energy production with no provision for Western Shoshone cultural beliefs or compensation for use of the hot water; Senator ReidÂs office has drafted the Northern Nevada Public Lands Management Act which creates a process for large scale privatization of the same lands at issue in the distribution award.

· Department of Interior continues acts of armed surveillance and threats of impoundment against Western Shoshone. (In the past Congressional session, hundreds of cattle and horses were forcibly seized by the Department under military-type tactics.)

Fiction: The lands are not highly valuable and there is no hidden agenda by U.S. lawmakers and corporations to ÂclearÂ title.

Facts:
· The land and its resources are worth billions of dollars to mining and energy companies.
· The land produces 2/3 the gold production in the U.S., making it the third largest gold producing area in the world, behind South Africa and Australia. Due to the enormous wealth of minerals, a 1999 USGS report sited the area as the number one investment opportunity for extraction companies.
· Energy companies are lining up for access to the vast geothermal resources with Senator Reid calling the area the next ÂSaudi ArabiaÂ of geothermal energy production. Much of the energy production is presumed for use to subsidize existing and expanded mining operations.

Fiction: The Western Shoshone are being unreasonable and cannot agree amongst themselves as to a fair resolution of the issue.

Facts:
· From the beginning, the Western Shoshone have asked for good faith negotiations with the United States. Their request is simple: to sit across the table and talk on an equal level.
· Complex negotiations occur in the corporate world everyday and if the U.S. were to commit the appropriate political will, a process could be decided upon that would satisfy all concerned.

· The cost to the taxpayer would be less than continuing the dispute and may in fact save monies which would otherwise be spent in ongoing enforcement actions against Western Shoshone and monies wasted or not realized in private sweet heart deals with private corporations and land developers.

Following are samples of some of the statements, letters and list serve communications being sent by Western Shoshone and supporters.
*********
Statement by Western Shoshone:

Western Shoshone Land - "Silence is Golden if You Could Mine Your Own Business, As It Is Stated in Nevada."

Statement by Larson R. Bill (Western Shoshone), June 1, 2004.
I always thought Nevada was the Silver State, all of a sudden itÂs gold. The Western Shoshone Distribution Bill, S 618/HR 884 sure looks like hush money to me and other Western Shoshone. Why the push to pay us off? How much is it worth to a couple of senior congressmen and their corporate constituents to buy us off? How much is it worth to buy off or hush up constitutionally protected rights? Your guess is as good as ours Â A few things we do know Â and they all relate to money, lots of money Â except when it comes to the Western Shoshone:

· THE WESTERN SHOSHONE: The Western Shoshone people (ÂNeweÂ) have lived on this land for thousands of years Â our creation stories stem from the mountains where our ancestors lay buried. The waters, the plants, the other living beings and the earth itself all hold special meaning to us. The Distribution bill would pay approximately 15 cents an acre for land that was never agreed for sale, with no hearing and no public purpose.

· GOLD: Western Shoshone lands are the 3^rd largest gold producing area in the world, behind only South Africa and Australia Â One mountain alone, Mt. Tenabo, which Congressman Gibbons has slated for a privatization scheme (HR 2869) to Placer Dome (5^th largest gold company in the world) has estimated revenues of $7-8 billion. In mining contributions received in the 2004 cycle, Congressman Gibbons comes in 2^nd in the House with Reid as the 4^th highest recipient in the Senate. Other multinationals mining in our area include Barrick, Kennecott, Newmont and Marigold.

· WATER: Western Shoshone lands have been cited as sitting atop a subterranean sea with vast quantities of drinking quality fossil waters. Example: Dewatering processes by several of the gold mines pump drinking water quality water 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at levels from 20 to 70 thousand gallons/minute. Vidler Water, a subsidiary of PECO Holding Corp., is in the area and initiating discussions with County and State officials regarding water privatization efforts.

· ENERGY: Western Shoshone hot springs are cited to be the next ÂSaudi ArabiaÂ of geothermal energy production by Senator Harry Reid. Congressman GibbonsÂ bill, HR 2772, would open up our area to massive geothermal production with preliminary subsidies for the energy industry and the option to convert energy leases into mineral claims through the back door.

· NUCLEAR WASTE: Western Shoshone lands contain Yucca Mountain, cited home for the nationÂs nuclear waste repository. The construction contract for the waste repository was awarded to Bechtel Corporation at $1.2 billion.

· NUCLEAR WEAPONS/MILITARY: Western Shoshone lands are home to the Nevada Test Site and the Federal Counterterrorism facility, both managed through Bechtel, SAIC and Lockheed Martin. The management contracts amount to billions of dollars on a several year renewal basis. The Bush administration has talked of reopening nuclear testing at the site.

A fair deal? We donÂt think so Â and neither should you. Mother Earth is not expendable, except only in the mind of a diseased man. Stop the Western Shoshone Distribution Bill (S 618/HR 884) and stop abuse of our lands, resources and beliefs. WeÂve been in this struggle for a long time now and itÂs about time the U.S. gets back to reality and deals with this issue in a good way rather than continuing all this terrorism against the vanishing race of the original people of this Nation.

List Serve Communication:
Those of you with eyes to see and ears to hear,
I am forwarding an action alert Â. asking for people to contact their representatives and oppose the Western Shoshone Distribution Bill to be voted on by the House of Representatives this Tuesday (June 1). Please read the action alert to learn the specifics.
Based on my understanding, this appears to me to be yet another case where the US government is unilaterally ending a treaty agreement with an Indian Nation without tribal consent. In a conversation with someone about this the other day they cynically asked:
"Yeah, but what do you expect? When has the US government ever honored treaties with the Indians?"

My reply to his question:
They've never honored the treaties. And I expect more from my government. I, for one, honor treaties and I will raise the one empowered voice I have to appeal to those who represent me in government to do the same. Those who opposed slavery expected more, those who professed that separate was not equal expected more--because those practices were based on racial discrimination. So is the US practice of not honoring treaties made with Indian nations. We must expect more from our government than that.
Thanks to those of you who have already responded to this issue. I urge the rest of you to do what you can. Even if it is just learning about the issue yourself and sharing this information with others.
****
Indigenous Rights Watch
"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."" ~Martin Luther King, Jr.
"When individuals assume responsibility for ensuring each otherÂs human rights the foundation for unity will be firmly established.Â ~Bahai International Community

Western Shoshone Defense Project
P.O. Box 211308
Crescent Valley, NV 89821
(775) 468-0230
Fax: (775) 468-0237
http://www.wsdp.org/

Tigua Tribe Cheated by Lobbyists Abramoff and Scanlon

2004-12-16T21:59:00.000-08:00

This case of exploitation of American Indian tribes is under investigation by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. Former lobbyist Jack Abramoff and public relations executive Michael Scanlon are charged with manipulating the Tigua Indian Tribe (Ysleta del Sur) and walking away with millions of dollars. Responding to the evidence, Senator Byron L. Dorgan called the activities "a cesspool of greed, a disgusting pattern, certainly, of moral corruption, possibly of criminal corruption...a pathetic, disgusting example of greed run amok."

Let the games begin
Indian Country Today
October 6, 2004

Of Capitol Hill and lobbyists, leadership and tribes
Indian Country Today
October 11, 2004
First in a series - analysis

Abramoff hearing a disgrace for tribes?
Indian Country Today
October 15, 2004
Second in a series - analysis

Allen: Lobbying scandal is all on the D.C. learning curve
Indian Country Today
October 21, 2004
Third in a series - analysis

Abramoff: Lobbying scandal highlights peril of tribal feuds
Indian Country Today
October 29, 2004
Fourth in a series - analysis

Corruption runs deep in Abramoff/Scanlon
Indian Country Today
November 19, 2004
Fifth in a series - analysis

Abramoff trail points to Congress
Indian Country Today
November 26, 2004
Sixth in a series - analysis

Investigating the Indian Gaming Scandal
NOW with Bill Moyers, PBS
November 19, 2004

Western Shoshone Nation, Part I - Story of a Broken Treaty

2004-12-15T23:59:00.000-08:00

The Western Shoshone's struggle to retain their homeland and the 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley should be mainstream news. The history of this struggle and the incredibly vacuous argument used by the United States to justify land theft goes back to 1979, when the Indian Claims Commission (ICC) placed a cash settlement in an Interior trust account for lands deemed taken from the Western Shoshone by “gradual encroachment.” Legislation then tried to force the distribution of this money, an amount set at the 1872 fair market value of 15 cents an acre. The Western Shoshone have always maintained that their homeland is not for sale. The struggle continues to the present time. Two important video documentaries focus on the issue: Broken Treaty at Battle Mountain and the sequel, To Protect Mother Earth (also referred to as Broken Treaty II).

Please visit the Western Shoshone Defense Project at www.wsdp.org for full and current information and how to help. The following is some historical background I used to announce the videos when I screened them in the mid-1990s on the Washington State University campus.

The United States made close to 400 treaties with American Indian Nations. Every treaty grants rights from Indians to non-Indians. In the Treaty of Ruby Valley (13 Stat. 663), the U.S. agreed to recognize the boundaries of the traditional Shoshone homeland in exchange for Shoshone commitments of peace and friendship. The Shoshone provided right-of-way through their lands, allowing safe passage and even a railroad, but never agreed or intended to give up land. However, the U.S. has been using it for nuclear testing and now claims that native (aboriginal) title has been extinguished.

In January of 1995, Peace Brigades International issued a report on the case:

"Before Europeans came to America, the Shoshone numbered about 60,000 and lived throughout a large area extending from what is now Southern California through Nevada into parts of Idaho and Utah. They travelled widely during the summer to hunt and gather, but would spend the dry winter in clan groups around various springs. In the spring and fall, representatives from all the clans gathered together - these were spiritual gatherings as well as meetings for decision-making.

After the European conquest of the Americas, Shoshone lands were first claimed by Spain and later Mexico. In 1848, after the United States defeated Mexico, Shoshone territory came under official control of the United States. Discovery of gold in 1848 in California caused a westward migration of European settlers, who traveled directly through Shoshone territory.

In seeking to negotiate with the various Shoshone peoples, the U.S. divided the Shoshone people into five groups - the Western, Eastern, Northwestern, Lemhi and Goshute - and signed treaties with each group in 1863. The Treaty of Ruby Valley was signed between the Western Shoshone and the United States, allowing safe passage of US citizens through the territory. The treaty also allowed railroad, mining and timber activities. According to the Shoshone, when the treaty was signed they did not imagine that so many people were going to come and live on their lands. They also say that the treaty contained many words that they did not understand and did not exist in the Shoshone language.

For the US, however, the treaty was a signal to begin the exploitation of the region's resources. Minerals were discovered and mining began. The bull pine and juniper forests that had been thick were cut down to construct the mines. The railroad was built through Nevada, for which the government sold off large amounts of land. Following the Civil War, soldiers who hadn't been paid were given land in the west to begin homesteads. The railway also sold some of its land to farmers. The remaining land was designated as public lands under federal control, administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Today this still makes up 85% of Nevada's lands.

Alongside of this process, the Euroamerican ways of life, beliefs and laws became the dominant culture. Europeans settled near the springs where Shoshone homes had been, causing the Shoshone to become homeless. Many Shoshone were forced onto reservations. Yet, by scattering when US soldiers came to round them up, many of them were able to remain on their land. Some started living in colonies near the towns established by whites, while others congregated around ranches.

The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 forced the Indians to establish a new form of government known as the IRA system and assigned the U.S. as trustee of the reservation lands. Because not all Indians lived on reservations, only a part of the Western Shoshone came under the IRA governments. With the traditional settlement patterns changing and pressure from a series of U.S. laws, the clan system, a primary basis for Shoshone government, was slowly lost.

In 1946, the U.S. passed the Indian Claims Commission Act. It was designed to clear up any outstanding land title disputes with respect to the Indians and to pay for the land that had been taken from them and damages done to them. It was under this Act that the Temoak Tribes, a group within the Western Shoshone, filed a land claim to obtain payment for their land. They were heavily criticized by other Shoshone tribes because the Western Shoshone had never ceded their land, either through a treaty or through losing a war. However, the Indian Claims Commission (ICC) determined that the land had been taken - by gradual encroachment of whites. This finding allowed the ICC to choose 1872 as the year the encroachment process was completed and establish the value of the land at the time of its taking.

By the time the government was ready to pay the Shoshone at 1872 prices, the Shoshone were determined to refuse any money and maintain their title to the land. In 1979, the government transferred $26 million from the Treasury to the Secretary of the Interior, who accepted the money "on behalf" of the Shoshone as their trustee. The Shoshone appealed this action, but the court ruled that the transfer of money represented payment and therefore, the Western Shoshone had lost their rights to the land.

In 1982, traditional government of the Western Shoshone was formalized as the Western Shoshone National Council (WSNC). The Council consisted mainly of traditional tribes and bands not recognized under the IRA system, but included some IRA governments and offered participation to non-represented Shoshone. In striving for recognition as the government of an independent nation, the Council circulated a declaration of sovereignty, issued its own passport, appointed marshals and an envoy in Europe and began to hold gatherings at the Dann Ranch. Chief Raymond Yowell is the current Chair of the WSNC.

In the non-native community, a movement called Wise Use has been growing among Nevadans and residents of other western states to gain local control of public land from the federal government. People feel resentment toward the federal government which dictates from afar how they should use their land. Mistrustful of outsiders - some counties have formed citizen groups to control immigration from the south - this movement's position relative to the Shoshone struggle for sovereignty is unclear.

Currently, consultations are taking place between the U.S. government and the different Shoshone bands and tribes about how to settle the land rights question. The negotiations are held in secret, and while the government mostly wants to talk about the distribution of the money they set aside, Shoshone leaders insist that they want to talk about land. However, many Shoshone individuals, who do not believe they will get the land back anyway, would be willing to accept the money to relieve difficult economic conditions.

The Dann Case

Carrie and Mary Dann are the leaders of the Dann Band in Crescent Valley, Nevada. They live on the Dann Ranch, which has cattle and horses that graze on the surrounding land. In October 1973, the BLM (Bureau of Land Management, administrators of federal lands) sued the Danns for trespass, for exceeding their grazing permit by 332 cattle.

The permits issued by the BLM are for a certain number of animals and months per year. Having more animals for a longer time or grazing outside the official grazing season is considered to be "overgrazing". As there are few fences and no particular places for each rancher's cattle, overgrazing is not determined by the state of the land, but rather the politics of land ownership.

From 1974 to 1991, the Dann case went through many courts. The Danns maintained the land they used had been recognized under the Treaty of Ruby Valley as Shoshone aboriginal territory, and challenged the U.S. to prove its ownership of the land. After many contradictory rulings and appeals, the case ultimately reached the Supreme Court which ruled that aboriginal rights had been extinguished. At that point, Carrie Dann says she has lost all faith in the American court system and decided on peaceful resistance. According to Chief Raymond Yowell, Chair of the WSNC (Western Shoshone National Council), the Dann case has become a test case for the Shoshone's rights to the land.

Recently, the WSNC established a national security zone around the Dann Ranch, and formed the Western Shoshone Defense Project (WSDP) to protect it. Most of the volunteers in the WSDP are non-native supporters, but they follow the leadership of native people. The volunteers are committed to nonviolence, which they define as not being aggressive and not hurting people.

In 1988, the Alves family bought the neighbouring Dean ranch, where they raise quarter horses and have cattle. Maynard Alves has sued the BLM to force them to take action against the Dann sisters, because of their overgrazing of federal land and his own private land. According to Alves, he has been forced to feed hay to his cattle and horses, which is very expensive, and has also had to take on different jobs to earn extra money. He feels caught in the middle of the conflict, and did not know about the
conflict when he bought the ranch.

Recent Chronology of Events

In June 1991, the BLM sent a notice to all livestock permittees saying that all non-authorized livestock could be impounded within 30 days. Between November 1991 and February 1992, the Danns through a contractor gathered about 1800 horses and sold them. The BLM later gathered another 161 horses.

On April 10, 1992, the BLM tried to confiscate 25 head of Dann cattle that were grazing before the beginning of the official grazing season. When the cattle were gathered in a corral to be loaded on a truck, Carrie Dann got into the corral, so that the cattle could not be driven onto the truck without risking harm to her. After some negotiation, BLM District Manager Rod Harris gave the order to release the cattle. Later, he was heavily criticized for that decision, which he says was made out of a concern for Carrie's safety.

On November 20, 1992, the BLM rounded up 269 horses in Crescent Valley. Many federal police were present when they tried to leave with the first load of horses. Clifford Dann, the brother of Carrie and Mary, poured gasoline over himself and threatened to set himself on fire if they did not turn the horses loose. An ensuing scuffle to separate Dann from the lighter resulted in gasoline getting on a police officer, and in Clifford being hurt. No fire occurred, but Clifford was convicted in federal court of having assaulted a federal officer and spent nine months in jail before being released on probation.

The WSDP says that in the case of another round-up, its task would be to stop the BLM from taking away cattle or horses until the Dann sisters or Chief Raymond Yowell could arrive to negotiate. They are concerned about the possibility that the BLM might come with a lot of police again and use violence to take the animals away.

In April 1993, a BLM pickup with three people drove on a road 6-8 miles north from the Dann ranch. They were stopped by two cars from the WSDP, and asked about their business. Being outnumbered by people who appeared strong and determined, the BLM people chose to avoid a physical confrontation and drove away. They were followed for several miles. There have been several other reports of Dann supporters confronting people telling them to get out, and threatening them. At one point, Maynard Alves was confronted by Dann supporters, and fired his automatic gun in the air.

We understand that both the BLM and the Danns and their supporters are concerned about possible acts of violence around the Dann case. Yet, independently from each other, both Rod Harris, District Manager of the BLM, and Carrie Dann made the statement that this whole issue was not worth hurting or killing a single person. The BLM employees we met with do recognize that it is not possible to resolve the local problem without resolving the source of the problem. But they are not authorized to deal with land rights issues, and their regulations impede them from efficiently addressing cultural and spiritual issues that result in conflict.

The Mining Issue

Crescent Valley is also home to the Cortez Gold Mine whose operations are located about four miles south of the Dean Ranch. Mining, the most important economic activity in the area, supports many shops, restaurants, transportation enterprises and other industries. The mining company wants to extract a recently discovered gold ore body by open pit mining. To prevent water from filling the pit, Cortez would need to lower the groundwater level by pumping. Bound by law to promote mining, the BLM is currently receiving public comment on its Environmental Impact Statement for the project.

Because the mine dewatering could affect wells at both the Dean Ranch and the Dann Ranch, in this issue Maynard Alves is an ally of the Danns. He approached Chief Raymond Yowell to suggest they join efforts to oppose the mine dewatering. According to both Alves and the WSDP, the cooperation in the struggle against the mine has decreased the tension that existed between them around the grazing issue.

Two Levels of Conflict

On the surface level of this conflict is the Dann case. PBI may have a role in decreasing the violence in confrontations arising from this issue.

However, this is just one part of the underlying, or source conflict. By an overwhelming process of assimilation, backed by violence and political power, US Americans have taken use of the land away from the Western Shoshone. The Shoshone now wish to reclaim what they consider to be their legal and sovereign rights over the land. On both sides of the conflict, the land is an essential part of their livelihood and culture.

The situation might very well remain calm in the future, but this would not mean an absence of violence: the lack of political autonomy, cultural and spiritual self-determination and economic opportunity is a form of violence from which the Shoshone have been suffering for some time. Creating space for nonviolent change in this context is part of our ongoing challenge.

The Project Committee of the North America Project is currently evaluating the findings of the team. Although our understanding of the situation is still limited, we have gained some basic knowledge which would help us to act quickly if we received a request from any of the groups involved in this conflict. We hope that our visit to Nevada has helped people there to understand about PBI and its possible roles and limitations, so that they can choose to request our presence if they feel it would be helpful."

The foregoing report was issued in 1995. For up-to-date information, including how you can help, please visit the Western Shoshone Defense Project's website at www.wsdp.org/.

How America Handles Indian Money

2004-12-15T17:52:00.000-08:00

The following is an excerpt from my essay "What Happened to the Nation's conscience?" (home.earthlink.net/~phil-duran)

The U.S. government cannot account for billions of dollars belonging to approximately 500,000 American Indians and their heirs that have been held in trust since the 1880s. The Cobell v. Norton case (http://www.indiantrust.com/) is a class-action lawsuit that was filed to hold the government accountable. The overview page on Elouise Cobell’s Website summarizes the case as follows:

“Thousands of individual Indians generally were allotted beneficial ownership of 80- to 160-acre parcels of land in the break-up. As trustee, the government took legal title to the parcels, established an Individual Indian Trust and thereby assumed full responsibility for management of the trust lands. That included the duty to collect and disburse to the Indians any revenues generated by mining, oil and gas extraction, timber operations, grazing or similar activities.”

The government has admitted collecting at least $13 billion from Individual Indian Trust lands but doesn’t know what happened to the money or the compound interest earned over generations. Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell, R-Col., the only American Indian in Congress, has depicted the government’s treatment as follows:

“Imagine if you went to your bank to withdraw money, but the teller did not know your account balance and could find no evidence your account ever existed. You ask about deposits made from the receipts from rental property you own and the bank teller has no idea [i]f those payments are being made. When you complain to the bank manager, he says he cannot help. Then you find out the bank doesn't keep account documents in file cabinets; it keeps them in plastic garbage bags or stacked exposed in leaky, rat-infested buildings. In fact, one warehouse is so overrun with rats that the bank employees will not go inside for fear of catching the Hantavirus. Certainly you would go straight to the federal authorities that oversee the banking industry, there would be an immediate and thorough investigation and the bank's executives would face several penalties, perhaps even jail time.”

According to Senator Campbell, on the very day the government attorneys were assuring a federal judge that all necessary steps were being taken to preserve all relevant documents in the ongoing class action, the U.S. Treasury Department destroyed 162 boxes of documents that may have contained the evidence needed to determine how much money the United States owes.

“Both in court and before the Congress, the Interior Department has resisted any outside independent review, has stonewalled, been held in contempt for making repeated misrepresentations to the court and has adopted a ‘fight every issue’ strategy” (Campbell).

U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth declared the conduct of federal officials “fiscal and governmental irresponsibility in its purest form,” in view of the mismanagement, fraud, ineptness, dishonesty and delay.

Cobell v. Norton is one legal case among many that could be cited, not to mention the many broken treaties, represents a continuing attitude of the federal government. It should bother the American conscience.

Considering the commandments and other Biblical admonitions against such acts and attitudes by individuals and nations toward oppressed peoples, what is the Christian response?

After spending more than four decades in Christian circles and concentrating my efforts during the past 10 years in trying to raise awareness on issues and developments in Indian country, why do I find a general disinterest among church leaders and members?

Bush Administration Knowingly Cheated Indians

2004-12-14T20:15:00.000-08:00

Special Report
Fraud in New Mexico
By Scott Patterson
Published: December 3, 2004
full story at http://www.smartmoney.com/onthestreet/index.cfm?Story=20041203

An investigation by SmartMoney.com has found that officials in the Bushadministration had detailed knowledge of fraudulent practices that allowedenergy companies to cheat impoverished Native American Indians out of vastsums over dozens of years. These officials were aware that employees of thefederal government were helping oil and gas companies underpay to operateon Indian lands in the state of New Mexico — and did nothing to stop it.This is the first in a two-part series.

Special Report
An Ugly History
By Scott Patterson
Published: December 7, 2004
Full story at http://www.smartmoney.com/onthestreet/index.cfm?story=20041207

An investigation by SmartMoney.com has found that officials in the Bushadministration had detailed knowledge of fraudulent practices that allowedenergy companies to cheat Native American Indians out of tens of millionsof dollars over dozens of years. These officials were aware that employeesof the federal government were helping oil and gas companies underpay tooperate on Indian lands in the state of New Mexico — and did nothing tostop it. This is the second article of a two-part series.