Spilyay Tymoo, Warro Springs, Oregon
May 12, 2005
Page 5
2? decision on
casino at the Gorge
By Sid Miller
Spilyay Publisher Emeritus
The natural resource of the Confederated Tribes have
been dwindling away, namely the timber, which has been
the main source of income for the tribes.
The Confederated Tribes have been searching for other
means of income. Several avenues have been
studied and with the gaming casinos, which are
the main source of income in Indian country, it
was decided to enter that field. In order to com-
pete in that area a suitable location must be established.
There were several sites mentioned and since the Con
federated Tribes had federal land at Hood River, that was
a site first discussed. However, there were several set backs
and opposition to that location, so other locations were
mentioned, and Cascade Locks came into the picture, but
in order to establish a casino in that area, there were sev
eral obstacles to be taken care of, like purchasing the land,
and one of the biggest was to convince the governor to
allow the tribes to build there. After some time the gover
nor decided to allow the tribes to build a casino there.
We are very fortunate to have the governor of Oregon,
Ted Kulongoski, to work with us on constructing the ca
sino at the site, also very fortunate that the residents of
that community arc in favor for the tribes to construct the
casino there. It will boost their economy in all sorts of
ways. It will bring in employment for its citizens and make
it a buzzing little city once again.
A casino in the Gorge at Cascade Locks, a reality for
the tribes who have been struggling economically recently.
This compact must be approved by the Secretary of the
Interior. A casino right near the city of Portland, and along
a major freeway from the cast
Locally there have been some mixed feelings about a
casino in that area. One is the employment situation, some
local members feel that it's too far away to work at the
casino, too far for members to do some gambling at the
casino. Some feel that with the casino that far away from
our home base there could be misuse of funds and income.
About the employment situation at the Indian Head Ca
sino at the present time, there are just a handful of locals
that are employed and most don't stay very long The per
cent is very low on those who have been employed at the
Indian Head Casino, who have been there steady.
Transportation has been a
Ta. As for the locals who object that it's too far to do some
gambling, the majority of gamblers rush for the penny
machines as it is, and there are no big pay-offs there at all.
(Maybe they all beat me to those machines, "Aye.")
With good management the casino can bring in a sub
stantial income and as far as mistrust and misuse of funds,
a person can get into a lot of trouble when caught and
could spend a lot of time in prison. Yep! If everything
goes well we the tribes will benefit from all of this and it is
very possible that we can bring in enough income to where
we could set up programs locally to employ our own
people. There are all kinds of opportunities just sitting
there waiting to be put into action.
Since the membership voted the casino to be built at
the Gorge, we should all proudly accept the fact and back
the project whole-heartedly. We should thank the Gover
nor, Ted Kulongoski, for his decision on this matter. It
was a very big and serious decision for him to make.
And we shouldn't focus on just today, but look down
the road to improve conditions for future generations to
come. We are the pioneers on this venture of constructing
our casino in that location off the reservation land, and be
willing to back what it takes to get the project in morion.
We can do it. Ahh-Naa-Chi-Toon!!!
Donations for Information Day
Tribal Information Day is Thursday, May 19 in Salem.
This is the day when Oregon tribes exchange information
with legislators and the public, and it's an opportunity to
work as a team and walk away with shared goals. This year is
the 30-year anniversary celebration of Tribal Information
Day. The Confederated Tribes will have a booth there, and
Myrtle Adams and Emma Smith, of the Tribal Council of
fices, are asking departments to contribute items to be dis
tributed from the booth.
"We're coming to you for support of showing off our
nation," they stated in their request "We are asking for pens,
pencils, cups, book markers, key chains, magnets, candles,
brochures or any item that would show off pride of the
Warm Springs Indian Reservation." Their hope is to have
the gifts donated and ready by Monday, May 16. They can
be reached at 553-3257 or -3258.
Wkrm Spring Mfrtet C
fndito Arts tod Crtfy
Warm Springs, OR $7761
($41) 5&15S7
Spilyay
Speaks
big factor just to Kah-Nee-
Treaty fishing rights have long legal history
On June 16, the law firm
Karnopp Petersen LLP will host
a dinner in telebration of the
SOth anniversary of itt service
to tht Confederated Tribes. All
tribal mtmbtrt an invited to at
tend tbt tiltbration, which will
bi held at tht Warm Springs
Museum at 5 p.m. In bonor of
Ibis enduring relationship, the
Spilyay is presenting a series of
articles highlighting cases and
events that embody the shared
' history between the Tribes and
' the law firm.
Treaty Fishing Cases
Trtaty Languagt
On June 25, 1855, the seven
tribes and bands of Wasco and
Walla Walla Indians signed the
"Treaty with the Tribes of
Middle Oregon," ceding aborigi
nal title to approximately twelve
million of acres of land to be
opened for white settlement.
With great foresight, the tribal
leaders fought hard in the treaty
negotiations to include protec
tions in the treaty that would
ensure that the Indian way of
life would continue. The treaty
includes the following language:
"The exclusive right of tak
ing fish in the streams running
through and bordering said res
ervation is hereby secured to
said Indians; and at all other
usual and accustomed stations,
in common with citizens of the
United States, and of erecting
suitable houses for curing the
same; also the privilege of hunt
ing, gathering roots and berries,
and pasturing their stock on
unclaimed lands, in common
with citizens, is secured to
them."
Gathering
to discuss
forestry project
The Timber Committee will
host a scoping meeting Thurs
day evening, May 12, to discuss
the proposed reduction of
hazardous fuel loads in the low
eleyation forest. These treat
ments are being proposed to
reduce the threat of wildland
fire to local communities.
The meeting, beginning at 6
p.m. at the Simnasho
Longhouse, is scheduled to
gather tribal member comments
regarding these efforts.
The proposed project con
centrates on areas near County
Line, Sidwalter and the Warm
Springs Community. Most of
the treatments will involve thin
ning of overstocked stands,
mowing and juniper removal.
Staff from the Natural Re
sources and Forestry branches
will be on hand at the May 12
meeting to answer questions.
V,' V
Many Northwest tribal lead
ers were concerned that the
whites would not honor the
promises made in the treaties.
Isaac Stevens was the first gov
ernor of the Washington Terri
tory, and he negotiated many
treaties with Pacific Northwest
tribes during the period that the
1855 treaty was signed. Stevens
responded to the Indians' con
cerns by declaring:
"My brothers and myself
have talked straight to the coun
cil. You and your children will
not be troubled in the use of
your streams. The Indians will
be allowed to take fish from
them at the usual fishing places,
and this promise will be kept by
the Americans as long as the sun
shines, as long as the mountains
stand, and as long as the rivers
run."
Dams
In spite of the United States'
promise, the erection of
Bonneville Dam in 1938 and
The Dalles Dam in 1957
flooded ancient fishing places,
the Long Narrows and Cclilo
Falls, and flooded countless
treaty protected "usual and ac
customed" fishing sites. The
dams also had a devastating ef
fect on the salmonid population.
Prior to white settlement in the
Columbia basin, biologists esti
mate the total runs of salmon
and steelhead were a minimum
of 16 million fish annually. By
1940, the number had reduced
significantly, to about 3 million
fish. As more dams were built
and more habitat destroyed, the
population continued to dwindle.
Despite the loss of tradi
tional fishing sites and the dwin
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dling populations, the Confed
erated Tribes of Warm Springs,
as well as the Vakama, Umatilla
and Ncz Perce tribes, struggled
to protect their ancient way of
life. The tribes continued to as
sert their right to take fish un
der the terms of solemn treaty
promises. Meanwhile, non-Indian
conservationists began to
view tribal fisherman as a threat
to the species, while non-Indian
commercial and sport fisherman
viewed Indian fishing rights as
a threat to their interest in the
fishery. The states of Oregon
and Washington responded to
these concerns by taking the
position that die states had the
authority to regulate all fishing
in the basin, including treaty pro
tected Indian fishing.
Stat Regulation
In 1966, the states began to
aggressively enforce state regu
lations against tribal fisherman.
Tribal attorneys spent coundess
hours defending tribal fisher
men in state court. However,
Indian treaty rights are really a
matter of federal law, and the
only long-term solution was to
bring a case in federal court
In 1968, 14 Yakama tribal
members brought such a case
in federal court, Sohappy v.
Smith. Very soon after, the
United States and the four tribes
(Warm Springs, Yakama,
Umatilla and Nez Perce) filed a
lawsuit in federal court against
the state of Oregon, United
States ft Oregon. Because the is
sues in the two cases were es
sentially the same, the federal
judge consolidated the two cases
into one. The lawsuit asked the
federal court to determine the
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scope of treaty fishing rights and
decide whether Oregon had any
regulatory authority over treaty -fishing.
The federal judge as-
signed to hear this monumental
case was young and fairly new
to the bench. His name was
Robert C. Belloni.
U.S. v. OrtQon Dtcldtd t
In a very controversial dcci-
sion, Judge Belloni held in 1969
that the four Columbia River
treaty tribes had a continuing '
right to take fish at their usual
and accustomed places, and the
Indians were endtlcd to a "fair
and equitable share" of the fish .
resource. The judge further held ,
that, while the state of Oregon
has some authority to regulate
tribal fishing, that authority is
exists within strict limitations. ,
Specifically, among other condi
tions, the state must prove that '"
its regulations are non-discriminatory,
necessary for conscrva-
on, and the least restrictive way
to achieve conservation goals.
Judge Belloni also implicitly rec
ognized tribal regulatory author- -'
ity.
Finally, and very importandy.
Judge Belloni continued the
court's jurisdiction over the case.
The Judge was concerned that
if he simply dismissed the case,
the tribes would have a much
more difficult time enforcing the '
ruling. By continuing the case,
the judge ensured the tribes -could
seek "timely and effective
judicial review" of state regula
tory actions. The tribes would
not have to file a brand new case "
each time the state failed to com- .
ply with the ruling.
See FISHING RIGHTS on 10
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