Lecture: Hunting, Fishing, and Native Sovereignty

In his talk, Yakama hunter and fisherman Aaron Paul Whitefoot discusses the history and tensions that linger from the Treaty of 1855.

What happens when the sovereignty of one nation conflicts with the laws and practices of another?

The Treaty of 1855 is a document signed by Native American leaders, Washington Territory’s Governor Isaac Stevens, and Oregon Territory’s Superintendent of Indian Affairs, Joel Palmer. Palmer and Stevens pushed for “exploitative treaties” by “cajoling and threatening the delegates,” according to historians at the National Park Service. Despite resistance from Yakama Chief Kamiakin, Nations were confined to reservations and other areas were opened for white settlement, including “ceded land.” While the Yakamas could continue to hunt and use this land, the treaty removed the Yakamas’ exclusive use of it, granting wide access to of the land to white settlers.