S moke S ignals
JUNE 15, 2018
9
SOU professor writes book about Tribal casino battle
By Dean Rhodes
Smoke Signals editor
Ten years ago, the Confeder-
ated Tribes of Grand Ronde and
the Warm Springs Tribe were on
opposite sides of a proposal that
would have allowed the eastern
Oregon Tribe to build a new casino
in Cascade Locks in the Columbia
River Gorge.
Grand Ronde Tribal Council
members at the time, including
Cheryle A. Kennedy and Reyn Leno,
testified at five public hearings held
in Stevenson, Wash., Portland,
Hood River, Warm Springs and
Cascade Locks held by the Bureau
of Indian Affairs.
Warm Springs representatives
also turned out in force as well.
As reported by Smoke Signals,
the Warm Springs proposal to build
a $389 million, 603,000-square-foot
riverfront destination and casino on
60 acres in Cascade Locks boiled
down to debating green vs. green
– environmental concerns against
badly needed revenue for the Warm
Springs Tribe and economic stim-
ulus for the depressed town of
Cascade Locks.
Grand Ronde Tribal representa-
tives also expressed concerns about
encroachment by another Tribe into
Grand Ronde ancestral and historic
homelands and abrogation of a
long-stand-
ing state
policy of
one casino
per Tribe on
Reservation
land.
In the end,
the Warm
Springs
Tribe never
Brook Colley
built a casi-
no in Cascade Locks and the Grand
Ronde Tribe weathered criticism
for not supporting another Tribe’s
economic development efforts. Even
some Grand Ronde Tribal members
debated their own Tribe’s opposi-
tion, reminding people of Warm
Springs’ support for the Grand
Ronde Restoration effort in the
early 1980s and its members’ help
in rejuvenating Tribal culture after
Restoration occurred.
The contentious time between
two Oregon Tribes is the topic of
Southern Oregon University Native
American Studies Assistant Profes-
sor Brook Colley’s new book, “Power
in the Telling: Grand Ronde, Warm
Springs and Intertribal Relations
in the Casino Era.”
The book, published by the Uni-
versity of Washington Press, con-
tains a forward written by former
Grand Ronde Tribal Historian and
Summer gathering
Photos by Auburn Logan
Tribal Cultural Education Specialist Brian Krehbiel, left, demonstrates
how to weave during the 2018 Chinuk Wawa Summer Gathering held
at achaf-hammi, the Tribal plankhouse, on Tuesday, June 12. The
annual event is an opportunity for Tribal members and community
members to learn about the Tribe’s language and culture. The
gathering also took place Wednesday and Thursday, June 13-14.
Youth paint during the 2018 Chinuk Wawa Summer Gathering held at
achaf-hammi, the Tribal plankhouse, on Tuesday, June 12.
To hear Colley discuss the
book and her research, visit
www.spreaker.com and search
for “Smoke Signals podcast” to
listen to an interview posted on
Thursday, June 7.
Cultural Resources Department
Manager David Lewis.
Colley conducted 33 interviews
for the book, which creates an
“in-depth study that unravels the
history of this disagreement and
challenges the way conventional
media characterizes intertribal ca-
sino disputes in terms of corruption
and greed,” states a press release
from the University of Washington
Press. “Instead, she locates these
conflicts within historical, social
and political contexts of coloniza-
tion.”
Colley examines how casino econ-
omies affect the relationship be-
tween gaming Tribes and federal
and state governments, and the
repercussions for the Tribes them-
selves.
“Ultimately, Colley’s engaging
examination explores strategies
for reconciliation and cooperation,
emphasizing narratives of resil-
ience and Tribal sovereignty,” the
releases states.
“Brook Colley brings a dynamic
voice to researchers who have much
to offer in terms of their rich cul-
tural heritage and craft wisdom in
decolonizing methodologies,” said
Cornel Pewewardy, professor emer-
itus of Indigenous Nations Studies
at Portland State University, in one
of the book cover’s blurbs.
“I think it made some pretty good
arguments about what’s been going
on,” Lewis said. “About the various
overlapping land claims. I think it
really reveals a lot about that whole
situation.
“I think really what she is reveal-
ing, and I think everyone needs
to see this, that there is no sort of
right answer. Tribes have been put
in an impossible situation of trying
to work it out now with limited
resources. … It’s just the case that
we’re basically trying to look out
for our own interests in the modern
age of Indian politics. That’s the pie
we’ve been given. We didn’t create
the pie. We were given that struc-
ture by the Bureau of Indian Affairs
and we were told to live with it.
“We all wish that the Tribes
of Oregon worked together and
shared finances, but that’s not the
way right now that Tribal politics
is working.”
Lewis said one important lesson
from the book is that Tribes need
to work together, especially in light
of the Trump administration, which
appears to be working to reduce
Tribal sovereignty.
“We need to be working together
for the future,” Lewis said. “If we are
separated, as we are now in many
ways, we’re weaker than if we’re
working together for our future.”
Colley is an enrolled member
of the Eastern Band of Cherokee
Indians.
The book, available at www.
washington.edu/uwpress, retails
for $90 hard cover and $30 paper-
back.