LINCOLN CITY, Ore. – The sound of drums echoed through the conference room of the Chinook Winds Casino Resort in Lincoln City, Oregon, as hundreds of people in vibrant tribal regalia danced in a circle. It was a celebration of the annual powwow held by the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, marking 47 years since the tribe regained federal recognition. But this year’s event was particularly significant, coming just two weeks after a federal court lifted restrictions on the tribe’s rights to hunt, fish, and gather – a victory that tribal leaders had been fighting for decades.
The Siletz is a confederation of over two dozen bands and tribes whose traditional homelands spanned western Oregon, as well as parts of northern California and southwestern Washington state. In the 1850s, the federal government forced them onto a reservation on the Oregon coast, where they were confederated together as a single, federally recognized tribe despite their different backgrounds and languages.
However, in the 1950s and 60s, the Siletz, along with over 100 other tribes, lost their federal recognition under a policy known as “termination.” This devastating decision resulted in the loss of millions of acres of land, as well as federal funding and services for the tribes. The goal of this policy was to assimilate Native people and move them into cities, but it also had a financial motive – to limit the government’s costs in providing for tribal nations.
Losing their lands and self-governance was a painful experience for the Siletz tribe, and they fought for decades to regain federal recognition. In 1977, they became the second tribe to succeed, following the restoration of the Menominee Tribe in Wisconsin in 1973. However, to regain a fraction of their land – only 1,457 hectares out of the 445,000-hectare reservation established for the tribe in 1855 – the Siletz had to agree to a federal court order that restricted their hunting, fishing, and gathering rights. This was a devastating blow, as it limited their ability to provide for themselves and participate in important cultural traditions.
The settlement imposed caps on how many salmon, elk, and deer could be harvested in a year and restricted where tribal members could fish, hunt, and gather for ceremonial and subsistence purposes. Tribal chair Delores Pigsley, who has led the tribe for 36 years, described the impact of these restrictions as “unfair” and something they have had to live with for decades. The tribe was even forced to buy salmon for ceremonies because they could no longer provide for themselves, and people were arrested for hunting and fishing violations.
But in a remarkable turn of events, the tribe’s hard work and perseverance finally paid off. Oregon and the U.S. came to recognize that the agreement subjecting the tribe to state hunting and fishing rules was biased, and they agreed to join the tribe in recommending to the court that the restrictions be lifted. In a joint court filing, attorneys for the U.S., state, and tribe acknowledged that the 1980 Agreement and Consent Decree were a product of their times and represented a biased and distorted position on tribal sovereignty, traditions, and the Siletz Tribe’s ability to manage and sustain wildlife populations for tribal use.
Finally, at the end of last month, the tribe’s efforts were rewarded when a federal judge vacated the court order, granting the tribe back their full rights to hunt, fish, and gather on their land. Additionally, a separate agreement with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has given the tribe a greater role in regulating tribal hunting and fishing. This was a momentous victory for the Siletz people, and it was a long-awaited moment of justice and recognition.
As Pigsley reflected on those who had passed away before seeing the tribe regain its rights, she expressed hope for the future. She emphasized the importance of passing down tribal ways and culture to the younger generation, stating, “There’s a lot of youth out there that are learning tribal ways and culture. It’s important today because we are trying to raise healthy families, meaning we need to get back to our natural foods.”
Among those celebrating and praying at the powwow was Tiffany Stuart, wearing a basket cap that her ancestors were known for weaving, and her 3-year-old daughter Kwestaani Chuski, whose name means “six butterflies” in
