Tribe joins lawsuit to block sale of National Archives building in Seattle, see story on page 2. Issue No. 373 Serving the Puyallup Tribe of Indians February 2021 Elders and health staff among first protected during Tribe’s rollout of COVID-19 vaccine See story and photos on pages 7 and 8. Housing Environmental Get Involved Members sought for Paid US Postage Tacoma, WA Tacoma, PRSRT STD PRSRT Permit No 899 Solutions Hazard four committees. Tribe partners in Tiny Tribe files lawsuit against See notices on page 10. House Village. Electron Hydro. See story and photos See story on page 3. on page 4. Sustainable Living Learn how to prevent stormwater pollution. OR CURRENT RESIDENT OR CURRENT See story on page 18. Puyallup Tribe of Indians Tribe Puyallup 3009 E. Portland Ave. 98404 WA Tacoma, Puyallup Tribal News February 2021 1 TRIBAL COUNCIL A hand drawn map on original parchment or linen Tribe joins lawsuit asking paper of the Puyallup and Muckleshoot reservations is in the National Archives building in Seattle. The map the federal court to stop was created by George Gibbs in 1856 after the ratification of the Medicine Treaty. It also the sale of Sand Point shows private land claims from non-native settlers who were compensated by the U.S. government for the land they’d archives building cleared and any improvements they’d made on said land. Basically they were paid By Puyallup Tribal News Staff off after illegally settling on Puyallup land. Left: file photo of an interview with Tribal Historic Preservation Assistant The Puyallup Tribe has joined a lawsuit Director Brandon Reynon at against the federal government for illegally the National Archives building. proceeding with the sale of the National for failing to follow the procedural traditional homelands, and struggling Archives and Records Administration’s requirements of FASTA, and for failure to to maintain their traditional cultural building in Seattle. follow federal tribal consultation policies. areas and subsistence lifestyles, and then maintaining their ever-important Other plaintiffs include the state attorney Beyond ongoing efforts to protect treaty land-based spiritual duties, cultural general’s office, 25 other federally recognized rights, moving the archives would exact identities, stewardship practices, and tribal tribes, one Alaska Native Regional a heavy emotional toll, Council said. The governments.” — Jeffrey Thomas Corporation, one intertribal organization motion includes 65 pages of declarations comprised of 37 federally recognized from Puyallup Tribal members and “Important information [about the loss of Alaska Native Tribes and five additional Puyallup Tribal employees about the the Tribe’s land] would never have been Alaska Native communities, the State of archives’ importance. Extracts show discovered if it had not been conserved by Oregon, and 10 other groups consisting a range of uses and consequences of the Department of the Interior in Records of community organizations, historical moving the records away: Group 75 maintained at … the National preservation societies, museums, and a Archives [at] Seattle.” — Samuel J. Stiltner tribal organization. The plaintiffs have asked “The last time I visited the Seattle National the judge to grant a motion for preliminary Archives facility I found a record that listed “My husband [Gilbert King George] will injunction, which would halt the sale – the sale of my ancestors, the Jacksons’ be 83 years old, this spring. It is not an planned for early February – while the court land. … My aunt 4x’s removed, Jennie exaggeration to say that moving the hears the case. The court documents are Jackson, of these ancestors, was murdered materials to Riverside, California will available at PuyallupTribe-nsn.gov. for her land because it was a highly sought effectively end his ability to access these after location. … There are thousands of materials. Our students will miss their The building is commonly called the Sand similar documents that have personal chance to discover their histories with Point archives. It holds history of 272 federally meaning for those who research here. …” their trusted elder to guide and interpret recognized tribes, including the Puyallup — Amber Taylor the work. Our elders often say, ‘There Tribe. Tribal members use the records to is no promise for tomorrow.’” establish membership, show fishing rights, “Some of these documents contain the — Tallis King George trace ancestry and access Native school handwriting of tribal members and their records. Less than 1 percent of the holdings stories in their voice. Simply making a The full text of the declarations are on the are digitized and available online. copy and digitizing it for research will Tribe’s website, PuyallupTribe-nsn.gov. not allow the descendants of these Tribal The federal Public Buildings Reform Board members access to their personal history “These documents are a significant part has fast-tracked the sale to generate and family survival story. The connection of our history,” Tribal Council said. “They revenue for the federal government. The to these documents cannot be measured are the story of our life as a Tribe. They records housed there would be moved and cannot be felt over a computer screen. are our ancestors’ stories. This is a fight more than 1,000 miles away to Riverside, Access to these sensitive, one of a kind worth having.” Calif., and Kansas City, Mo. documents are essential to the historical trauma of the Puyallup people.” Tribal Members: Have you visited the “The archives are important not only to — Brandon Reynon National Archives building in Seattle? If you our history but to our future,” the Puyallup want to share your stories and experiences Tribal Council, the Tribe’s governing body, “Beyond the harm that will be caused about the facility, please send an email to said. “Our staff use the documents housed against the tribal departments, the stories [email protected]. there to support litigation that protects that are passed down from one generation our hard-fought treaty rights. Moving to the next will be lost over time. Families, Tune into the hearing the archives to California and Missouri such as mine, that have lost family Oral arguments on the motion for a obviously would make it much harder for members will not be able to research preliminary injunction are scheduled our Tribe to get these documents when we records and make important discoveries to take place via Zoom (recordings are need them.” about their families by viewing records at prohibited) at 9 a.m. Jan. 29. It is open to the National Archives.” the public at: https://wawd-uscourts. The plaintiffs sued the federal defendants — Charlene Matheson zoomgov.com/j/1617863808?pwd=RTVCc under the Administrative Procedures Act kRHM1B2YkM3cVJqNWZHK0JZUT09 for acting contrary to the requirements of “These unique records contain the Federal Assets Sale and Transfer Act irreplaceable details memorializing You may participate via audio only with: (FASTA), which is a law passed by Congress the Tribes’ earliest efforts to protect Dial in Number: 1-669-254-5252 in 2016 for the purpose of selling high its’ tribal members from being Meeting ID: 161 786 3808 value and underused federal properties, egregiously detached from their Passcode: 353763 2 February 2021 Puyallup Tribal News TRIBAL COUNCIL into Commencement Bay. Five months • Electron maintains and periodically Tribe sues Electron Hydro later, large pieces of turf are still in the river dredges Lizard Lake, which captures, and crumb rubber pieces and fragments harms and kills fish. of plastic grass are clearly visible on the over killing of fish in • Electron maintains a forebay for the shorelines and vegetation. dam, which captures fish and puts them Puyallup River at greater than normal risk of falling “This dam has been killing fish for decades. prey to other fish, delays their migration, The Puyallup Tribe filed a lawsuit in federal The reckless killing of fish in the forebay and kills fish during maintenance and court on Dec. 30 against the operators of this summer in spite of our efforts to warn as regular operations moving water Electron Dam over their ongoing violations and guide them to reduce the fish kill through the penstocks and turbines. of the Endangered Species Act. and then polluting this sacred river with A single maintenance operation crumb rubber was the last straw,” said conducted on July 29, 2020, resulted in The Puyallup River is home to spring the Puyallup Tribal Council, the Tribe’s the deaths of thousands of fish. chinook salmon, which are important governing body. “The owners have to be to Tribal and non-Tribal fishers alike and held accountable. They are killing fish and • The placement of artificial turf in the a critical food source of endangered destroying natural resources that are here river, which spread crumb rubber and Southern Resident orcas, and to for everyone’s benefit, Native and non- plastics over 40 miles of river and finally steelhead and bull trout. All three species Native alike. Our job is to protect the land, into Commencement Bay are protected under the Endangered the water and the fish. That is what we Species Act. The century-old dam in the are doing today by suing Electron Dam’s Electron Dam’s operators have temporarily upper Puyallup has long been a killer of owners for their egregious conduct.” installed a rock dam without full permits salmon and has never complied with the because their actions of placing the turf Endangered Species Act. Lisa A. Anderson with the Law Office in the river delayed their work to install of the Puyallup Tribe is the attorney a bladder dam that would improve In July 2020, a planned outage of the representing the Tribe. The lawsuit, filed operations for electricity generation. This Electron facility stranded, suffocated in U.S. District Court, identifies multiple past summer, the fish ladder remained and pulverized thousands of adults and violations of the Endangered Species Act inoperable blocking most, if not all, of juvenile fish.