 |
| Photo credit: www.rawstory.com |
The UN human rights investigator said on Friday that the United States must do more to heal the wounds of indigenous peoples caused by more than a century of oppression, including restoring control over
lands that Native Americans consider sacred. “The sense of loss, alienation and indignity is pervasive throughout Indian country” the UN official said in a statement released Friday. “It is evident that there have still not been adequate measures of reconciliation to overcome the persistent legacies of the history of oppression, and that there is still much healing that needs to be done.” He pointed to the loss of tribal lands as a particularly sore point, naming the Black Hills of South Dakota and the San Francisco Peaks in Arizona as places where indigenous peoples feel they have “too little control”. Mount Rushmore, a popular tourist attraction, is located in the Black Hills, which the Sioux tribe consider to be sacred and have territorial claims to based on an 1868 treaty. Shortly after that treaty was signed, gold was discovered in the region. The US Congress passed a law taking over the land. The US Supreme Court ruled in 1980 that the seizure of the land was illegal and ordered the government to pay compensation. But the Sioux rejected the money and continue to demand the return of the now public lands.
lands that Native Americans consider sacred. “The sense of loss, alienation and indignity is pervasive throughout Indian country” the UN official said in a statement released Friday. “It is evident that there have still not been adequate measures of reconciliation to overcome the persistent legacies of the history of oppression, and that there is still much healing that needs to be done.” He pointed to the loss of tribal lands as a particularly sore point, naming the Black Hills of South Dakota and the San Francisco Peaks in Arizona as places where indigenous peoples feel they have “too little control”. Mount Rushmore, a popular tourist attraction, is located in the Black Hills, which the Sioux tribe consider to be sacred and have territorial claims to based on an 1868 treaty. Shortly after that treaty was signed, gold was discovered in the region. The US Congress passed a law taking over the land. The US Supreme Court ruled in 1980 that the seizure of the land was illegal and ordered the government to pay compensation. But the Sioux rejected the money and continue to demand the return of the now public lands.
No comments:
Post a Comment