We support and encourages questions, comments, and discussion concerning the concepts covered in this website. If you have any questions or comments regarding any of this site's subject matter, please click on the link to our message board. All we ask is that you keep your questions or comment clean and please include your email address in the space provided.
"Each handicap is like a hurdle in a steeplechase, and when you ride up to it, if you throw your heart over, the horse will go along, too."
Indian Country Today letter titled,
"Honors Mixed Bloods"
and a reply titled "Mixed Blood Speaks"
MIXED BLOOD SPEAKS
Indian Country Today, Op-ed page
March 4, 2008
Thank you for allowing the Readers of Indian County Today to have the opportunity to voice their opinions.
I noticed in the Feb. 22, 2008 Mr. Tim Walks Tall wrote a short article titled “Honors Mixed Bloods.” I was very impressed with Mr. Walks Tall article and felt I wanted to respond.
I am a “Terminated” American Indian who lives in Eastern Utah. We were terminated in the late 50’s early 60’s. When reading Mr. Walks Tall’s article made me think of our termination and how we were judged on “Blood Quantum.” There were only 490 in our group; out of the 490 around 260 were minor children. We were given the name “Terminated Mixed Bloods,” even though we have full bloods listed on our rolls. I like Mr. Walks Tall cannot understand how Congress or other Tribes would let the Government brand American Indians with Blood quantum s just like we were getting a pedigree like a horse or cow. These are “Racial Blood Degrees,” and should have never came into existence for the American Indian, or anyone else.
We too live our lives in peace and harmony trying to teach our children what we have been taught. We struggle with other Tribes who consider us to be “white” because the Government stamped “Terminated” on our foreheads. Our people attend Native Ceremonies but we are always looked down on. We live in constant fear for other Tribes, because as long as our termination is alive and breathing, it puts every tribe in the United States at risk of eventually being terminated. Most of our people are now Elders and we have seen things happen because of being branded “mixed blood” that no Indian should ever have to see or live.
Yes, I agree with Mr. Walks Tall the battles that are constantly being waged upon the Natives of this county would be best fought in numbers and not who the government chooses to be Indian or White regardless of their Native Heritage. If only all Native people could ban together it would be a great day, if they could only see what’s in your hearts and spirit’s and not in the name “mixed blood.”
Blessings to all of our Brothers and Sisters across this land, both full blood and mixed blood, I only see one kind of Native American I seen an Indian.
Oranna B. Felter:
“Terminated Mixed Blood” “Uinta Band Member of Utah.”
Let's Not Forget "Martin Luther King" Civil Rights Leader
LETS NOT FORGET "MARTIN LUTHER KING"
Civil Rights Leader
by: Oranna B. Felter
Lead Plaintiff, Felter v. Kempthorne
January 17, 2008
This Monday January 21 is a National Holiday in honor of Martin Luther King, who was an advocate and outspoken leader of civil rights, freedom, equality and justice for all.
Martin Luther King was a true humanitarian and a leader in civil rights for all people of all color and races.
Martin Luther King's "Dream" was for justice for all, for everyone to be treated equally.
Martin Luther King's visionary leadership and message of racial equality should serve as a reminder to our Nation and the State of Utah, that there remains an Act of Congress, the Ute Partition and Termination Act (UPA) that was enacted in 1954 on basis of "Race and blood lines." History shows that the UPA is a law based on nothing more than evil motives of many of our own Indian people and organizations, Federal Officials, Senators and Congressmen that continues to hold the terminated Mixed-Blood Uinta's and their descendents "Hostage to a racial law that controls the destiny and lives of the Terminiated Mixed-Bloods Uinta's and their Descendents.
When remembering the struggles and cruel irony that history presented to the Black Americans when they were fighting for racial equalitiy in the 1950's and 60's, remember that right here in the State of Utah, Duchesne and Uintah Counties that our own American Indians were being branded on racial blood lines as "Mixed-Blood's" by Congress and Federal Officials who carried out the long repudiated Federal policy of "termination of American Indians" and stripped adults and minor children of their Native Identity and that sthis law still exists to this day over fifty years later.
Firmly and with pain in my heart, I say not only to the living Terminated Mixed-Bloods and their descendents, but also to my spirit people, that we will never go away and we will take every chance to throw light of honor and the truth of the termination that has taken the lives of our proud people, while our own Country, whom many of our terminated group has been military veterans, sat idly by and done nothing to protect us as United States Citizens.
Yes, Martin Luther King "Had A Dream" but until the termination of the Mixed-Blood Uinta's is gone, Martin Luther King's fight for equality, civil rights and Justice for all has not yet been completed and the pain and agony continues to live and breathe.
Oranna B. Felter, Terminated American Indian
Lead Plaintiff, Felter v. Kempthorne
P.O. Box 465,
Fort Duchesne, Utah 84026
AN ANALYSIS
The Governments Motion to Dismiss
By: Earl Denver
November 27, 2007
I’ve been asked to write an analysis, of the governments renewed motion to dismiss our case. An analysis is, “the process of breaking a concept down into more simple parts, so that its logical structure is displayed."
I find it impossible, for me, to fully analyze the government’s reasoning for wanting our claim dismiss because I’m not a qualified legal analyst. To analyze each paragraph will only add to the confusion that already exists. So I’ll concentrate on just a few particular areas and endeavor to explain the meaning of some words used in the government’s motion to dismiss and why they are used.
I’ll begin with the Court of Appeals decision. On January 19, 2007 the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in Washington D.C., rendered a unanimous opinion that remanded our case back to Judge Roberts. “Remand” means, “to send back”; a higher court may remand a case to a lower court so that the lower court will take a certain action order by the higher court.” The Appeal’s Court opinion was “we remand to the district court to determine whether P.L. 108-108 applies to any of Felter’s claims!”
Now in this bill, the word “notwithstanding” the first word used in this section of P.L. 108-108 is a preposition meaning “in spite of.” When used as an adverb it means “despite anything to the contrary.”
On August 31, 2007, the government filed in the District Court of Washington D.C. a renewed motion to dismiss. On page 13 of their motion, the government states. “None of Plaintiffs’ claims fit within the scope of P.L. 108-108, because the provisions setting aside the statute of limitations until an accounting is provided apply only to cases of trust fund mismanagement, not improper termination of federally recognized Indian status, asset mismanagement, or demands for an accounting.” I believe the government is splitting hairs on this.
On November 2nd after asking for and receiving a seven-day extension, the government filed a reply to our response of September 27th. If you’ll notice on page three of their brief, they make reference to the Cobell case by stating “in keep with this analysis of the Indian Trust Accounting provision the court found that the statute did not provide for the “revival of potentially long stale claims.” What they are doing is denying the word “notwithstanding” in P.L. 108-108 and quoting something said in 1993.
I’ve saved the best for last. Also on page three in the first paragraph line 7, they use the word “Moribund.” This word caught my eye right away. Moribund is a word which means “being on the point of death, its also a word used in Veterinary medicine meaning “in a dying state.” I find their use of this word to be in bad taste and offensive. To me this implies that our case, along with the terminated mixed-bloods, and their descendents are nothing more then dying dogs, which confirms the fact that these bureaucratic lawyers are nothing more then pompous mouthpieces of the current administration and administration of the past and their attitudes towards the American Indian!
To conclude my analysis, I encourage you to stay strong! We’ve come to far to give up now, just because some big words have been wrangled about!
July 24, 2007
The Lead Plaintiff's reply to Hatch's letter.
From Oranna B. Felter, Lead Plaintiff.
Dated August 23, 2007
Senator Orrin G. Hatch - Utah
104 Hart Senate Office Building
United States Senate
Washington D.C. 20510-4402
Dear Senator Hatch,
Thank You for your kind letter of July 18, 2007. I truly appreciate your taking time to respond to my concerns. I fear, however, that I have not been sufficiently explicit in my communication with you; please allow me to clarify:
In your letter to me, you said: “As you know, the mixed blood Ute Indians voted to Terminate tribal status in the 1950’s.”
Senator Hatch, I must respectfully challenge the above assertion. Although the Congressional record indicates that a vote of the mixed-blood Utes was taken, we now have documented proof, buried for many years, that there was in fact no such vote and that the “meeting” that took place and that was subsequently reported as a “vote” in favor of termination was staged by persons misusing their substantial power and influence in order to give the impression of legitimacy so they could intentionally and willfully deceive Congress, the BIA, and the people of this nation into believing that the criteria for voluntary termination and implementation of the Ute Partition Act had been met.
You also stated: that “since the enactment of the Ute Partition Act, there have been at least 24 Federal lawsuits filed claiming that the vote to terminate ute tribal status was illegitimate.”
Yes, there have been at least that many. Doesn’t it strike you as odd, Senator, that so many lawsuits would be filed for the same “frivolous” reason, that so many people would gather what few precious financial and emotional resources they had available to them just to complain, if there were no genuine basis for those people affected by the Ute Partiton Act; we are told that we are citizens of the United States and of the Great State of Utah. As members of your constituency, are we not at least as deserving of your serious attention as those who live in more populated and prosperous areas of the State? Senator Hatch, it seems to me that the sheer number of lawsuits on this issue filed over the past fifty-plus years strongly suggests the need for serious inquiry into the methods and instruments used to bring about the enactment of the Ute Partiton Act. Unfortunately, those in the best position to conduct such an inquiry have always been and continue to be the successors of those whose deception and fraud forced the Ute Partiton Act into being in the first place. Senator, you are one of those successors. By failing to investigate the evidence that is now available, you are choosing to remain in the group of those who have been duped, those who are guilty of harming untold numbers of your fellow Utahans.
As I mentioned in my last Letter to you, our Lawsuit- Felter V. Kempthorne in now before the United States Federal Court in the District of Columbia. This not a frivolous suit; rather this is an effort to reverse years of abuse and neglect that have resulted in me and my people living unnecessarily in poverty and hardship and hanging onto one small shred of hope for overcoming the burdens placed on them by the premature termination of their Federal Trust Status.
I understand how reluctant you must be to introduce legislation to rectify the wrong that has been done by the Ute Partiton Act. Certainly you would not want to take such a step without first satisfying yourself that the evidence is legitimate, clear, and convincing. With that in mind, I invite you to come for a visit; meet the people here who are living under the dark cloud of termination. See what has resulted from the implementation of a Policy that was so ill-conceived that it was revoked and rescinded for virtually every other group it was imposed upon “except the mixed-blood Uintas.” Study the evidence that proves we were subjected to termination in a “backroom exchange deal” that allowed some members of the Tribe to remain “un-terminated” at the expense of hundreds who were forcibly and mercilessy subjected to the “enlightened” policy of termination - a policy that was foisted on them and on Congress in the most devious fashion imaginable.
We will happily make this information easily available for you and your staff to review; we have nothing to hide and we need your help. Senator Hatch, we have been harmed and shamed and damaged repeatedly. Our parents, siblings, and our children have suffered and died because of this policy, and the suffering continues even today. The courts have ignored our pleas because Congress has told them to. Congress has ignored our plight because they believe the information Senator Watkins furnished was accurate and sincere. Sir, that information was not accurate or sincere with Senator Watkins originally presented it, and it cannot and will not become so over time. The harm, however, is magnified with every passing day.
Senator Hatch, we need a champion, a hero, who can help us to help ourselves. We have seen all the good you can do when you see the need please make the effort to learn more, to understand better, to see the need to correct the record so it shows that the Ute Partition Act truly was enacted “against our will” and that the only right response to this problem is the one that “Repeals” the Ute Partiton Act, grants us the same tribal recognition, rights, and Federal Trust status we previously enjoyed as members of the Ute Tribe, and allows us to “Reclaim that which was stolen from us so long ago: Our Culture, Our Honor, and Our Livelihood.”
Thank you for your time and attention. I promise to keep you updated with developments as we continue our efforts to reverse the “racial and political discrimination imposed upon us,” and I promise to post your kind and thoughtful future responses on our Web site and in our Newsletters so everyone who is watching us will know how supportive you wish to be. I hope to learn very soon that you will be coming to visit us and to talk about ways we can work together to help even the lowliest and most needy citizens of Utah.
Again Thank You for responding to my Letter.
Our Web Site is: www.undeclaredutes.net
Lead Plaintiff, Felter v. Kempthorne
No Justice at the End of the Tunnel
No Justice at the End of the Tunnel
By: Illa Chivers
Dated May 5th 2007
My thought's on the latest case known as "Ute Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation,et al., vs. Ute Distribution Corporation, et al.,." And the damage created by P.L. 671 (The Ute Partition Act of 1954).
It' looks like the Utah Mormon politicians have done away with the Uinta owners of Executive Order 1861. The Interior Department said the Uinta's are not a tribe in their own right. This statement is the exact same statement made about the so-called Affiliated Ute Citizens of the State of Utah. The behind closed door amendments to the 51 agreement and P.L. 671 (the Ute Partition Act of 1954) has finally set up the Reservation so it can be abolished for Utah interest.
No protection by the U.S. Government, whose sole interest is to completely eliminate the Uinta's and other Native tribes of the United States of America using their laws and Court's to commit Genocide without firing a shot.
In Utah, it looks like the only people with the right to a bloodline inheritance (Pedigree) are the Mormons. The Ute Tribe non-treaty Indians have managed to steal an entire reservation without having a treaty to the land. With the true holder to the treaty, the Uinta's as outcasts, the government can, in time, abolish the Uintah and Ouray Reservation. The is sure to position Senator Hatch and Senator Bennett high on the totem poll, right up there with those Utah politicians from the past who set up and started the encroachment to take the reservation from the Indians. The great Mormon leader, Brigham Young told the Indian people, "We will take it a valley at a time."
The discrimination the Ute Tribe brought against the Mixed Blood Uinta's over the past 53 years has set a precedence in tribal government which many tribes are using as a guide line to create greed and unhappiness among their own people by setting up committees to disinherit their own people.
It's as if the Indian Nations have been infected by a disease that is slowly consuming them. A well-baited trap.
The American Flag Is Upside Down Over 490 Mixed Blood Uinta Indians And Their Decedent’s In The State Of Utah.
The UDC(2) mentions the 490" terminated Indians, in this litigation, it has to, to hide the fact by the use of the names and or roll numbers to legally present cases which is detrimental to their operation according to By Laws set forth from the beginning.
This Corporation dose not tell the courts, that most of the Terminated Indians are not affiliated with them, because if they did the US Government may step in to review why these Indians have faced a 55 years of struggle to save themselves from facing the Genocide of their people.
"I for one am tired of being a Pawn for John S. Boyden’s, pet Indian rip off, The UDC Corporation of Utah." John S. Boyden Via Bryon Croft and associates drafted the Ute Partition Act. For years these down trodden Indians have tried to get the US Government to make amends to this corrupt existence the Indians witness hidden by the color of law, by every means they could.
When Senator Mark Andrews was seated in Washington D. C. He put the word out to help these Indian people though the BIA and other agencies. Utah politicians blocking the way at every turn in the road.
Recently some Indians had faith that Senator John McCain would be interested in this crusade for justice, however Mr. McCain is siding with the Utah politicians accordingly.
There is injustice in the land of the free, a place where the United States of America, Tells the world of it’s righteousness, while turning a deft ear to the cry’s of these Native American Indian people who’s lives have been destroyed under the color of Law.
The congress plus the United States Senate in a redress for once, in good conscience could Defend A Native Americans struggle to survive. Perhaps the cold & uncaring politicians who have helped to destroy the owners as the law intended to do in its.
Descriptive Recall
I forgot to mention that during my research when I found these files missing at the United States Archives. For over a half hour I retrace my steps to make sure I was looking into the right file.
There was a man watching me who evidently worked as a janitor in the Archives building. He finally approached me and told me the records you are looking have been taken out by the FBI. I know where they are and if you will trust me with $ 30.00 I will see to it you receive this Census you are trying to find. I handed this old gentleman thirty Dollars, then devised a route to get them back to Utah, address & all but not my own address. In about three weeks this information showed up at the designated address.
I met Tim Coulter who was with the Institute for the Development for Indian law. I went to their building to find a copy of the Executive Order. We, still have these census rolls. Hopefully in a safe place. Our Indian ancestors were listed as full blood Indian in accordance with federal Indian law where one drop of blood constituted Indian.
In 1916 the Government put the whiteriver Utes and the Uinta Band on the same census roll. Back in Utah the Whiteriver band started claiming half interest to the reservation as theirs, claiming they bought it. The next Census taken in the following years, the Ute Bands were divided into sections Uinta, Whiteriver & Uncompahgre.
Today the Utes claim the reservation because of the 1950 Agreement that was forced onto the Uinta Band. The 1950 agreement eventually grew into the Ute Partition Act. Read Julius Twohy statement about how Rex Curry & the Claims attorneys took over the meeting on that day. Julius Twohy called, the Uinta Band the True Utes who would loose their roots with the actions perpetrated by these claims attorneys and acting BIA officials. When the Bands were segregated the Uinta Band had the controlling Vote by head count in popular referendum via Guidelines of the IRA Act. Termination took 3/4 of the Uinta Band out; from that time on there were not enough Uinta to hold the reservation together.
The Tribal Business committee now has two of the Confederated Bands of Ute from Colorado setting in making decisions on reservation business. Two to one votes cannot protect the Uinta band interests the fourth being the Ute Distribution Corporation protecting the non-Indian stockholders interest. In Washington D.C. UDC Corporation is called the Ute Development Corporation. I'm trusting this information will in some small way help DC and others to understand some of the History.
The reason I, myself kept trying to find justice some way some how is a long time ago I was going from house to house to find our people, like the department of the Interior said to do. I came to one of my cousins' home. There were three little children playing outside barefooted in the snow. This alarmed me, I got out of my car & suggested to these little children you better get inside & put your shoes on before you freeze your feet. This little person told me, we have no shoes! This cut me so deep that all the time I visited these children’s parents I was fighting back the tears.
When I finally cut short the visit. I wept while driving to another home. Politicians in The State of Utah had brought many of these emancipated Indian to this existence and no one cared, them that did, were themselves many in the same boat.)
(1) The Ute Partition Act of 1954.
(2) Ute Distribution Corporation.
May 5th 2007
From: Illa Chivers
My thought's on the latest case known as "Ute Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation,et al., vs. Ute Distribution Corporation, et al.,." And the damage created by P.L. 671 (The Ute Partition Act of 1954).
