Well that's an eyebrow raiser.?ÿ They're using Covid as the reason.?ÿ Important is many such highways traverse Indian Reservations (due to historic or topographical/routing necessity).?ÿ Imagine if the Navajo Reservation blocked SR160, 89, 191 & 491, etc. in northeast Arizona.?ÿ It would cause chaos if over 300 miles of public R/W heavily utilized by the trucking industry became unavailable, not to mention motorists.?ÿ Tricker would be short traverses of Interstate over Reservations; do the Reservations have the right to block them?
I've been involved in many acquisition/construction highway projects on Indian Reservations at the State & Federal level over the years and the FED/State entity exercises powerful control concerning R/W activities on their facilities written into the record.?ÿ The Reservations cannot unilaterally block State/Interstate right of passage, although they can petition for closures to the Highway authority controlling the road.
That being said, I understand their position.?ÿ Concerning local Reservation roads it's long recognized they are the controlling agency.?ÿ I'm a Jeeper and have been turned back by signs that say "no non-Indian persons allowed without a permit or licensed guide on board."
Anyway, here's a poorly reported article about the situation:
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We have a situation in California where a very rural county (least populated in the state) doesn't want the state to open the mountain pass highway that would allow "flatlanders" to migrate to their county in mass, like they do every year when the pass opens. There is another way to get there, but it is a much longer drive, and without being able to loop through over that pass, many won't make the trip only to turn around and take the long way back.?ÿ
Not sure how long the impasse will last, but I suspect the state will somewhat cooperate by extending the closure to get some maintenance work done after they have cleared the snow. There has only been one reported case in that county and that person recovered. They hope to keep it that way.
interesting article.
the fear of Covid19 is getting used/miss-used for an amazing number of far-flung things.
are the Reservations not Sovereign, as in separate Nation?
"held in trust" by the BIA or some other "benevolent dictator"?
Despite the treaties forced upon the conquered parties, agreed to under threat of death.
hot topic where I come from.
I figure the Owner should be able to control his own land, and his reasons are nobody else's business.
I used to work on those Reservations in Arizona, the impact could be huge.
Every Reservation I've worked on has been a Soverign Nation.
Since the Native Peoples are considered Sovereign Nations the US has no Constitution right to Eminent Domain but has stolen that right of way land in the same way they stole all other Native Lands. That being said no non Indian has the right to get off that highway.
Paul in PA, where there are no Indian lands.
I have done a lot of work in South Dakota, on several different reservations, for both DOD and USGS. In fact we were there late last month on a different reservation in NE SD, had no problems. Lucky that this time it was not on the one with the roadblocks. The contracting agency did tell us that we should consult with the tribal authorities if we got off of US and state roads. This reservation was mostly large farms and a few Indian settlements.?ÿ
While some are blocking Federal and State highways due to coronavirus risk some other tribes are feeling the pinch and plan to reopen their casinos next week, coronavirus be damned:
It depends. Around here the reservations were created and maintained
by international law. So, yes, they are "Sovereign Nations".
It has lead to some interesting situations, where as roadway leases expire,
people find they no longer have access to their property. The tribes didn't do
anything drastic like set up roadblocks. But the properties along those road
turned from solid investments to unsaleable burdens. If you could find someone
to pay cash you could still sell. If you had to finance, no lender would talk
to you.
Don't get me wrong. The Pueblos around here are really easy to work with.
They just like to know who, when, and why someone is going to be on their lands.
And at certain times of the year you know you will not be granted access.
At least that's my take on the situation locally.
@paul-in-pa Land wasn't stolen.
The Indians were nomadic tribes who migrated all over the place and didn't believe in land ownership.
The Santee reservation in the Dakota's...they migrated from the Santee River area in South Carolina. The Crow Tribe of Montana migrated from Northeast Ohio. The Apache and Navaho migrated from Northwest Canada about the same time Columbus sailed for the America's; the Hopi look upon them as interlopers.
The Reservation system and Indian Tribes being sovereign nations is something the American Government created.
The indians were subject to disease more than anything else and their way of life was incompatible with European settlement after all they were living in the stone age, they hadn't even invented the wheel.
The Indians did not claim to own the land, however by many treaties the US did give them ownership to land that was then subsequently taken from them and their treaty deeds were not honored. That is theft.The Constitution did not grant all Indians representation in Congress, thus considered them separate from the US. While many were nomadic they limited their travelings to certain areas, many of which they shared with like minded peoples. For instance the Delaware and Leni Lenape never ever wandered to Oklahoma but were instead driven their from PA and NJ.
Paul in PA
While some are blocking Federal and State highways due to coronavirus risk some other tribes are feeling the pinch and plan to reopen their casinos next week, coronavirus be damned:
Ha, I knew the County would back down!
"After originally saying she would work to prevent the tribal casinos from reopening, Dr. Wilma Wooten backtracked and said, ??It??s very clear to us that the tribal nations have sovereign authority...our strategy is to review and offer advice.?
Brown lives never mattered.
Still don't.
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