In treaties Indian tribes reserved many rights, including the right to fish, and in return, relinquished hundreds of thousands of acres of their land to the United States government. Treaties are the foundation of the legal decisions which uphold Indian fishing rights. How are U.S. native fishing rights defined in the various treaties? How have those rights been interpreted in subsequent legal decisions?
How are Canadian aboriginal fishing rights defined differently than U.S. Indian fishing rights?
U.S. Treaties
Canadian Documents
U.S. Legal Decisions
Canadian Legal Decisions
How have courts in the U.S. and Canada help to define the native/aboriginal fishery in the Columbia Basin? How has the Boldt decision affected the native fishery?
U.S. Legal Decisions
Canadian Legal Decisions
United States v. Washington
What was the result of the Oregon Treaty on native people in Canada and the U.S.?
How have Indian people utilized different fishing technology in different environments?
How did The Dalles Dam affect Celilo Falls and Celilo Village? How have other dams affected the native fishery in the U.S. and Canada?
What was the response among the U.S. native population and Canadian aboriginal population to Grand Coulee Dam? How did the U.S. and Canada compensate its original inhabitants for their losses as a result of this dam?
How did the Columbia River Treaty affect the Columbia Basin and its inhabitants?
How would you describe the “treaty right to harvest” to a friend?
Describe how several interest groups created the Umatilla Basin Project.
What contemporary problems do Indian fishers face? How are some native fishers responding to these new challenges?
