Native American people have been fighting hard for hundreds of years, since contact basically, to reclaim their traditional lands that were taken from them by force and extermination. Much more in recent decades, we are beginning to see a stronger fight to reclaim those territories that once belonged to our ancestors. Many tribes across the country (and perhaps all of them) can safely say that they do not reside on the lands that once traditionally belonged to their people.
In the most recent news though, ICTNM reports on an issue that has been happening in my own community for years, even decades. Roger Kaneretiio Jock was charged with second degree grand larceny under a charge that will most definitely make any one laugh a little; stealing land. Well now, if you really think about it, how does one steal land? Well, he most definitely didn’t walk away with 240 acres he is being accused of stealing, because as his attorney Lorraine White says “the property is still there.” The point of this story is much more than what the eye can see, and for us Mohawks (and Native American people in general) it is about principle. The Treaty of 1796, or the Seven Nations Treaty, “acknowledges the Mohawk people’s aboriginal territory, including the area known as the Hogansburg Triangle where the 240-acre parcel is located.” Whether or not the land is “owned” by this man Mr. Wuerching is not the case. It is the fact that the area is recognized as Mohawk territory in the treaty mentioned above. According to ICTNM,
“the 1796 treaty, which identified lands consisting of a six-square-mile area and other areas to be set aside for the Indian nation, was ratified by Congress. The only way to change reservation land is through an act of Congress, but Congress has not enacted any law that would change the 1796 reservation boundary.”
So another question we can ask is whether or not it is Mr. Wuerching who is in violation of the law. Hmmm… questionable.
Whether or not one can be indicted for “stealing land” is erroneous, the biggest question here is whether or not one can be indicted of reclaiming territory that already belongs to the people in question. Roger Jock, a Mohawk of the Bear clan, is representing the Mohawk people in this case. The land is Mohawk territory, and Mr. Jocks act of reclamation is simply pointing out what should already be known and understood; that the land belongs to the Mohawks.
Although there are many other issues that must be resolved in Indian Country, this is one that could be the Rosa Parks to defending and reclaiming the lands that have been stolen from tribes throughout the country. However, there are other ways of going about reclamation. As some of our tribal chiefs have stated, we are going about it legally through land purchase and gradual ownership. I agree that we should be taking legal steps to reclaiming our traditional lands, but to be honest it hasn’t gotten us very far to begin with.
What I see Mr. Jock doing is making a statement, and I for one commend that statement. I do however believe that there must be a half-way mark that combines both legal strategies with bold statements. Why? Well, because if we don’t make a statement then no one will see our struggle. If we combine legal practices and strategies then we really can’t go amiss, the problem is finding a happy medium and getting the governments to compromise with us and to help us re-obtain what is rightfully ours to begin with.