ON JULY 8th,WESTERN SHOSHONE FACING RANGE WAR
US courts have denied Western Shoshone land- and treaty rights to their
homelands. In violation of the Treaty of Ruby Valley the U.S. declared most
of the Western Shoshone territory as "public" land and authorizes the Bureau
of Land Management (BLM) to enforce the TAYLER GRAZING ACT against Western
Shoshone rancher. The Western Shoshone refuse to pay grazing fees for cattle
grazing on Newe Sogobia - the land that the Treaty of Ruby Valley of 1863
guaranteed as Western Shoshone territory.
Mary and Carrie Dann, who fought their case through the courts,
will be the first victims of the last court order.
On June 6th 1991 Judge Thompson ordered the BLM to remove their cattle.
On June 24th the BLM announced in a letter to the Danns, that the 8th of
July will be the deadline.
The Danns are calling on supporters to come to their ranch in Crescent
Valley (off Nevada's highway 8o) as peaceful observers
and to send telegrams and letters of protest.
Bureau of Land Management
Nevada State Office
850 Harvard Way
Reno, Nevada 89520
phone 702-785-6500
fax 702-785-6411
House of Interior and Insular Affairs
Room 1324
Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
The Honourable Senator
Daniel Inouye
Chairman Senate select Committee on Indian Affairs
SH 722
Cannon House Building
Washington DC 20515
fax: 202-224-6747
Dear sirs,
the intent of the Bureau of Land Management, to confiscate
Western Shoshone cattle in Crescent Valley, Newe Sogobia, is an outrageous
act of injustice. In the Treaty of Ruby Valley of 1863 the United States
acknowledged this land as Western Shoshone Territory. This treaty is
still valid in international law. The Western Shoshone Nation has refused
to accept finanzial compensation, therefore the land is still theirs.
Mary and Carrie Dann, who have been seeking justice in the courts of the
US for almost two decades, will be the first victims and a precedence for
other Shoshones, who are depending on the land for their livelihood. A
livestock reduction of more than 90 percent is the economic ruin of
self-sufficient Native Americans, who are thus forced into welfaredependence.
This is an act of genocide that must be stopped immediately.
As Trustee the United States must act in the best interest of it's wards and
live up to it's treaty obligations.
While yustisyfing war against other countrys with the protection of human
rights, the U.S. proves the ineredibility of his policy by violeting the
human rights of Native American nations.
Sincerly