jdmann@cdp.uucp (David Yarrow) (10/11/89)
/* ---------- "GUNFIRE AT ST. REGIS MOHAWK NATION" ---------- */
/* Written 2am 10/11/89 by David Yarrow(jdmann) in gen.nativeam */
Source: Syracuse Post, Tuesday, Oct 10 by Elizabeth Petros, staff writer
POLICE LIFT ST. REGIS BLOCKADE
ST. REGIS INDIAN RESERVATION - A temporary blockade of the reservation
was lifted early Monday after state police in Massena determined gunshots
fired near a patrol car were part of an isolated incident.
The shots, fired about 8:50 pm Sunday, did not hit the car and no one was
injured, Troop B Commander Maj. Ronald Brooks said in a prepared statement.
But because troopers couldn't readily determine whether the shots, believed
from a rifle, were aimed at the car, non-residents were rerouted around the
reservation from about 9 pm Sunday to 2:30 am Monday, he said.
The reservation was reopened after discussions with various factions on
the reservation convinced police the incident was isolated. An
investigation is continuing.
The shooting Sunday followed more serious events the night before in
which tourist buses leaving a bingo hall were hit by a gunshot, rocks and
paint as they headed toward Canada. Two women were slightly injured by
shattered glass when a hail of objects hit the buses at state Route 31 and
Raquette Club Rd about 9 pm. Moments later, another bus was hit by a single
gunshot while stopped at Canadian Customs offices on Cornwall Island. The
shot struck the bus' lower part and didn't injure anyone, police said.
Also Sunday, for the fourth time in two months, a transformer supplying
power to a casino was damaged by gunfire. The Route 37 transformer, shared
by Bear's Den restaurant and Tony's Vegas International, was fired on at
1 am Sunday, but power wasn't affected. Police say violence is believed to
be caused by anti-gambling supporters, but no arrests have been made.
The events during the weekend marked the latest round of violence which
began July 20 when a gambling raid by state and federal agents was met with
armed resistance from a self-appointed Mohawk security force. On Aug. 27 a
group of gambling opponents set fire to a newly renovated casino.
COMMENTARY: Sharpshooters are becoming regular features in the struggle
of St. Regis residents to remove unwanted gambling operations from their
land. There's no shoot-outs, just single shots at carefully chosen targets.
There is no use of the words "nation" or "sovereignty" in this article, a
significant lapse. St. Regis (or Akwesasne) is Mohawk Nation land which
straddles the US-Canadian border on the St. Lawrence River in northern NY.
As one of the Six Nations Confederacy, Mohawk Nation is a sovereign, and
NYS troopers and FBI agents have no authority.
St. Regis has three governments: traditional tribal council of chiefs
selected by clanmothers, Canadian-backed elected council, and US-backed
elected council. The US Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) does not recognize
the traditional council, but funds the three member elected council.
Nonetheless, NYS and FBI are determined to shut down illegal gambling on
St. Regis land. In a twist on history, their ally in this is the
traditional tribal council, who wrote President Bush last year requesting
federal aid to remove these undesireable businesses from their lands.
Meanwhile, the BIA-backed elected council supports and encourages gambling.
Twice in 1988 NYS troopers and FBI agents conducted raids of gambling
casinos on Mohawk land at the request of the traditional chiefs. In July of
1989 NYS and FBI officers raided the gambling halls without notifying the
chiefs, which triggered an armed standoff for one week between troopers and
a Warriors Society of Mohawks armed with automatic weapons. The warriors
claimed NYS had violated Mohawk sovereignty in the raid.
Since then the conflict within the St. Regis community has become a
guerilla war as outlaw casino operators try to remain open and residents
opposing the gambling harrass the businesses. At one point an anti-gambling
faction surrounded another group in a casino and threatened to throw in
tear gas. A Mohawk casino operator wanted on federal and NYS charges was
arrested with $70,000 after a high speed chase. Meanwhile NYS poilce keep a
watch at the roads leading onto St. Regis.
In 1986 Tuscarora Nation voted gambling activities off of their land. In
1987 Onondaga Nation did likewise, and ordered slot machines removed from
Indian businesses on Onondaga land. In 1988 a bingo hall was burned at
Oneida Nation in Madison County. Now, in 1989, the gambling issue has come
to a boil at St. Regis Mohawk Nation.
- prepared by David Yarrow, the turtle, for SOLSTICE magazine
***** SOLSTICE: Perspectives on Health and Environment, is published
bimonthly at 201 E. Main St Suite H, Charlottesville, VA 22901 804-979-4427
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