By KEN RITTER
LAS VEGAS (AP) - The way Allen Moss sees it, most of the riches of Nevada - from the Las Vegas Strip to the state's gold mines - belong to an American Indian tribe.
Keep Las Vegas, he said. But the Western Shoshone tribal leader wants to reclaim ancestral lands stretching from California through Nevada and Utah to Idaho.
Time after time, in lawsuit after losing lawsuit, the Western Shoshone National Council and its members have been turned aside as they try to use a 19th-century treaty to win back what they say has been improperly taken by the U.S. government.
"Las Vegas is on Shoshone land. The gold mines, that's all Shoshone," said Moss, Reno-area representative to the eight-member tribal council in Nevada. "People don't understand how much money, how many resources are coming out of Shoshone country."
Want to read more? Click here: http://redwebz.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2305
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Today in history...
1610: Membertou (MICMAC) becomes the 1st Indian Catholic.
1832: Reverend Samuel Worcester has been arrested, and convicted of living, and working, among the CHEROKEEs without having a state permit, or having sworn an oath of allegiance to the state of Georgia. Today the Supreme Court rules that the state of Georgia has unfairly tried to exercise control over the CHEROKEEs contrary to federal law, and treaties. The court will strike down most of the anti-Indian laws passed by Georgia, including those seizing their lands, and nullifying tribal laws. Before the trail, President Andrew Jackson officially stated that he has no intention of supporting the CHEROKEEs over the state of Georgia. Speaking to the court's decision today, Jackson would be quoted as saying, "John Marshall has rendered his decision; now let him enforce it." Jackson would ignore the Supreme Court ruling, and continue in his efforts to move the CHEROKEEs out of the south, and into the Indian Territory.
1832: Reverend Samuel Worcester has been arrested, and convicted of living, and working, among the CHEROKEEs without having a state permit, or having sworn an oath of allegiance to the state of Georgia. Today the Supreme Court rules that the state of Georgia has unfairly tried to exercise control over the CHEROKEEs contrary to federal law, and treaties. The court will strike down most of the anti-Indian laws passed by Georgia, including those seizing their lands, and nullifying tribal laws. Before the trail, President Andrew Jackson officially stated that he has no intention of supporting the CHEROKEEs over the state of Georgia. Speaking to the court's decision today, Jackson would be quoted as saying, "John Marshall has rendered his decision; now let him enforce it." Jackson would ignore the Supreme Court ruling, and continue in his efforts to move the CHEROKEEs out of the south, and into the Indian Territory.
Unused FEMA trailers headed to reservations nationwide
South Dakota reservations in dire need of housing
By Bill Harlan
Officials on the Pine Ridge and Rosebud reservations in South Dakota say their communities urgently need mobile homes that could be available under a new federal law.
Sen. Tim Johnson’s office announced Friday that American Indian tribes throughout the nation will get 2,000 so-called “FEMA trailers,” which are sitting idle in Arkansas and Texas.
The trailers are mostly three-bedroom mobile homes, Johnson spokesman Megan Smith said.
Johnson pushed through legislation last year that allows FEMA to distribute the homes to reservations, where housing shortages are often dire.
"I saw pictures of tens of thousands of empty mobile homes sitting unused in Hope, Ark., while South Dakota's Indian tribes were struggling through a tough winter with inadequate housing," Johnson said in a written statement. "There is still much that needs to be done to improve Indian housing, but this is a good step toward addressing this serious problem."
Click here to read more: http://www.nativebiz.com/community/News,op=visit,nid=15755.html
By Bill Harlan
Officials on the Pine Ridge and Rosebud reservations in South Dakota say their communities urgently need mobile homes that could be available under a new federal law.
Sen. Tim Johnson’s office announced Friday that American Indian tribes throughout the nation will get 2,000 so-called “FEMA trailers,” which are sitting idle in Arkansas and Texas.
The trailers are mostly three-bedroom mobile homes, Johnson spokesman Megan Smith said.
Johnson pushed through legislation last year that allows FEMA to distribute the homes to reservations, where housing shortages are often dire.
"I saw pictures of tens of thousands of empty mobile homes sitting unused in Hope, Ark., while South Dakota's Indian tribes were struggling through a tough winter with inadequate housing," Johnson said in a written statement. "There is still much that needs to be done to improve Indian housing, but this is a good step toward addressing this serious problem."
Click here to read more: http://www.nativebiz.com/community/News,op=visit,nid=15755.html
Tribal members gather for sacred sites prayers
Mohave Daily News
NEEDLES - Members of the Fort Mojave Indian Tribe gathered Thursday morning to participate in the National Prayer Day for Native Sacred Sites. The gathering took place at the Topock Maze, a Mojave sacred area along the lower Colorado River.
According to Mojave beliefs, this area is both a physical manifestation and a spiritual pathway for the afterlife. The Maze is an integral part of the Mojave way of life, beliefs, traditions and culture.
While the Maze has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1978 and is formally recognized as nationally significant. It recently received national attention as the subject of a settlement agreement between the Fort Mojave Indian Tribe and Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) over the location of PG&E water treatment facilities within the Maze area.
Even though settlement was achieved, those gathered prayed for further understanding by PG&E and other agencies as to the nature of this cultural landscape.
Some prayed for forgiveness for any desecration that may occur until the facilities are removed and a final remedy is selected that respects the sacred area.“This has been a long struggle,” said Linda Otero of the Fort Mojave Tribal Council.
“It is a battle that we continue to fight and today we pray for continued guidance, preservation and national support to defend this sacred area.”
NEEDLES - Members of the Fort Mojave Indian Tribe gathered Thursday morning to participate in the National Prayer Day for Native Sacred Sites. The gathering took place at the Topock Maze, a Mojave sacred area along the lower Colorado River.
According to Mojave beliefs, this area is both a physical manifestation and a spiritual pathway for the afterlife. The Maze is an integral part of the Mojave way of life, beliefs, traditions and culture.
While the Maze has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1978 and is formally recognized as nationally significant. It recently received national attention as the subject of a settlement agreement between the Fort Mojave Indian Tribe and Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) over the location of PG&E water treatment facilities within the Maze area.
Even though settlement was achieved, those gathered prayed for further understanding by PG&E and other agencies as to the nature of this cultural landscape.
Some prayed for forgiveness for any desecration that may occur until the facilities are removed and a final remedy is selected that respects the sacred area.“This has been a long struggle,” said Linda Otero of the Fort Mojave Tribal Council.
“It is a battle that we continue to fight and today we pray for continued guidance, preservation and national support to defend this sacred area.”
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