Inspiring social change through print, spoken word, and live performance.

This appeared in the February 4th 2002 issue of Newsweek...

Lobbying for The Land

        Frustrated by domestic courts, American Indians are taking their legal battles to an international audience—and it may be working. To win back ancestral land, the Western Shoshone of Nevada went before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. The commission, in turn, issued a confidential report to the Bush administration. Staffers who’ve seen the report declined to comment; experts say it may find the United States violated the tribe’s rights. Such a finding would be a first. While the commission lacks enforcement power, Indian leaders say it’s a diplomatic error to ignore the body. “This opens up a new avenue of legal discourse,” says a Shoshone lawyer.

        — Paul Tolme

Back to wordsasweapons.com Shoshone page