The legal battle that has been happening between the Western Shoshone and Ruby Valley Treaty has been ongoing for decades. The Ruby Valley treaty was a treaty of friendship and peace signed between the Western Shoshone people and the United States Government. This treaty granted the United States government safe passage, and the right to mine gold and other valuable minerals that were found in their territory. Since this treaty was signed in 1863, the U.S. had been regularly breaking this treaty, which has resulted in decades long battle between the Western Shoshone and the United States Government.
The Newe, which means “the people” are the extensive tribal ancestors or the Western Shoshone Native Americans. Their traditional territory expanded
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These small groups covered allocated areas and in such areas were given jobs to perform. These jobs could include hunting, fishing, or gathering. In the 1820’s once white colonization began, white people renamed the Newe Shoshone, which is how they got their current name. Then Immigrants began to flood America because of the gold mines in California, and of those immigrants, many settled in the territory of the Newe people, claiming their most fertile …show more content…
Mary and Carrie Dann, who’s ranch is in Crescent Valley in the heart of Western Shoshone territory, were approached in 1973 by the Bureau of Land Management and were told to apply for grazing permits and were told to pay grazing fees for their livestock. The coming year the Dann sisters were sued for trespassing, but the year before argued that their cattle were grazing on Western Shoshone Territory. The Dann sisters have since been struggling to maintain their way of life after the Bureau of Land Management has repeatedly tried to impound their livestock. Ever since, the Dann sisters have been struggling to maintain their way of life against the repeated attempts by the Bureau of Land Management to impound their livestock.
The word “encroachment” insinuates that the activity happened against one’s will. The activities that are included in the treaty are not encroachments, the Western Shoshone Nation never relinquished its territory through a ratified treaty with the United States. Such a ratified treaty is required by the organic act. The organic act established the territory of Nevada. The treaty of Ruby Valley never renounced land