Chronology of American Indian History

P

government. (See also entries for JULY 20, 1979;
DECEMBER 15, 2000; and JANUARY 20, 2001.)

“I stand before you as a proud

man; I feel no guilt! I have done

nothing to feel guilty about!....

No, I’m not the guilty one here;

I’m not the one who should be

called a criminal—white racist

America is the criminal for the

destruction of our lands and

my people; to hide your guilt

from the decent human be-

ings in America and around the

world, you will sentence me

to two consecutive life terms

without any hesitation.”

—Leonard Peltier on his sentence

for the murder of two FBI agents

May 13

The Mohawk end the Adirondack occupation.
For three years, a group of Mohawk have occupied a
600-acre area of the Adirondack Mountains, which
they call Ganienkeh (see entry for MAY 1974). In
negotiations with the state of New York, the Mo-
hawk finally agree to vacate Ganienkeh in exchange
for 5,000 acres of land in Macomb State Park and
700 acres near Altoona, New York.

May 17

The American Indian Policy Review
Commission issues a report on federal
Indian policy.
Two and a half years after its formation, the Ameri-
can Indian Policy Review Commission (see entry
for JANUARY 2, 1975) issues a 923-page report that
maintains the government should abandon the as-

similationist goals it has long-promoted. It holds

that the United States should instead recognize

Indian tribes as sovereign political institutions

with an inherent right to choose their own form of

government. Some specific recommendations in the

report will lead to the passage of several important

pieces of legislation, including the Indian Child

Welfare Act (see entry for NOVEMBER 8, 1978) and

the American Indian Religious Freedom Act (see

entry for AUGUST 11, 1978). Many more of the

report’s 200 recommendations, however, will not be

acted on by Congress.

June

Inuit Circumpolar Conference (ICC) is

founded to protect Inuit rights.

An international contingent of Inuit meet at the

first Inuit Circumpolar Conference. The meeting

marks the first time Inuit from Alaska, Canada, and

Greenland have come together to form a political

organization. Among the ICC’s goals are to pro-

tect the rights of all Inuit, increase Inuit input in

political decisions concerning them, and promote

self-sufficiency within their communities.

July

The United Nations hosts a conference of

indigenous peoples.

Founded by members of the American Indian

Movement, the International Indian Treaty Coun-

cil (IITC) (see entry for JUNE 1974) organizes the

1977 International Non-Governmental Organi-

zations’ Conference on Indigenous Peoples of the

Americas. The conference is held at the offices of

the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, and is

attended by approximately 100 representatives of

indigenous groups from throughout the Western

Hemisphere.

Among the participants’ recommendations to

the UN is the creation of the Working Group on

Indigenous Populations. The organization will be

created in 1981 to draft a declaration of rights of

indigenous peoples throughout the world.