P
percent of the vote. Mankiller will retire from tribal
politics in 1995, citing health problems.
“With all of the progres-
sive work we do in economic
development, protection of
tribal rights and in running a
very complex organization, we
must not forget who we are.
We must pay attention to the
protection and preservation
of tribal culture.... In the past,
promotion of tribal culture
has been viewed as a function
of the community and family,
not of tribal government. But
we’ve reached a point where
we need to assume a leader-
ship role. We need to explore
what we as a government can
do to promote and protect our
culture.”
—Wilma Mankiller at her 1987
inaugural as principal chief of
the Cherokee1986The Hopi prohibit non-Indians from viewing
the Snake Dance.
The Snake Dance is an ancient ceremony of the
Hopi performed to bring prayers for rain to the
underworld. At the end of the dance, members of
the Snake clan dance with washed snakes in their
mouths as members of the Antelope clan whip the
snakes with eagle feathers to keep them from bit-
ing the dancers. This spectacle, widely recorded in
anthropological literature, so intrigues non-Indian
tourists that the dance becomes the most photo-
graphed Indian ceremony. The visitors, however, are
not always respectful of religious ritual. Annoyed by
their interruptions and inappropriate behavior, the
Hopi decide to ban all non-Indian spectators from
Snake Dance ceremonies.The Pikuni Traditionalists Association is
formed to protect Blackfeet religious rites.
Seven Blackfeet leaders organize the Pikuni Tra-
ditionalists Association in response to the U.S.
Forestry Service’s plans to allow oil and gas drill-
ing near Badger–Two Medicine, a sacred site of
enormous religious importance to the tribe. The
Blackfeet ceded the area to the United States in
1896, but in the treaty they retained the right to use
Badger–Two Medicine for ceremonies.United States v. Dion upholds the Eagle
Protection Act.
In United States v. Dion, Dwight Dion Sr., a Na-
kota Sioux, sues the U.S. government after he is
convicted of violating the Eagle Protection Act
(see entry for 1940). The law forbade the killing of
endangered species of eagles but was amended in
1962 to allow Indians who needed eagle feathers for
ritual use to obtain a special eagle hunting license
from the secretary of the interior. Dion was found
guilty of killing four bald eagles because he did not
have such a license.
In his suit, Dion argues that his right to hunt
bald eagles without a license is protected by the
First Amendment, the Indian Civil Rights Act (see
entry for APRIL 18, 1968), and the Yankton Sioux
Treaty of 1858. In a controversial decision that an-
gers many advocates of Indian religious freedom,
the Supreme Court upholds his conviction and
maintains that the Eagle Protection Act supersedes
the provisions of the earlier treaty.The U.S. Civil Rights Commission studies
tribal courts.
The U.S. Civil Rights Commission launches an in-
vestigation into the implementation of the Indian
Civil Rights Act (see entry for APRIL 18, 1968) in