Chronology of American Indian History

2000

January 14

The United States proposes the return of
land to the Northern Ute.
After seven years of negotiation, the Department
of Energy announces its intention to return
84,000 acres of land in northern Utah to the
Northern Ute tribe. The land return is the largest
made to any American Indians in the continental
United States in more than a century. The land,
which borders the Uintah and Ouray Reserva-
tion, was taken from the Ute in 1916 because it
contained oil reserves that the U.S. government
had believed might be needed by the navy during
World War I. The United States, however, never
tapped the oil supply or settled the area. As part
of the agreement, the Ute promise to give the
government royalties from any oil income they
make from the land. The money is targeted to
help fund the cleanup of a radioactive waste site
near Utah’s Arches National Park.

January 16

Lakota Sioux activists occupy their tribal
headquarters.
On the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota,
about 100 Lakota led by tribal elders peacefully
stage a takeover of the tribe’s headquarters. The
protesters demand that the tribal council, cre-
ated by guidelines set by the U.S. government,
step down and allow a traditionally organized
government to take its place. The sit-in partici-
pants also accuse the council of mismanagement
of tribal funds and call for an audit.

February

A Navajo (Dineh) Code Talker G.I. Joe doll
is introduced by Hasbro.
The toy maker Hasbro begins shipping the Na-
vajo Code Talker G.I. Joe as part of a 22-figure
line of classic military figures. The doll repre-

sents a member of the Navajo Code Talkers, an

elite group of marines who during World War

II communicated messages using an unbreakable

code based on the Navajo language (see entry

for APRIL 1942). When the doll’s arm is lifted,

one of seven phrases in Navajo can be heard. The

phrases were recorded by Sam Billison, a mem-

ber of the Navajo Tribal Council and former

Code Talker. Hasbro agrees to donate $5,000 to

the Navajo Code Talkers Association, an orga-

nization founded by the surviving Code Talkers

in 1969.

February 3

An Indian media organization wins

concessions from two television networks.

The CBS and Fox television networks announce

plans to increase minority hiring in response to

demands made by a coalition of activist groups,

including American Indians in Film and Televi-

sion. The announcements come after six months

of negotiation, during which the coalition threat-

ened to sponsor a “brown-out”—a minority

boycott of all network programming. ABC and

NBC previously agreed to some of the coalition’s

requests, although they resisted demands for cre-

ating an executive position for a vice president

of diversity.

March

The Osage Nation sues the federal

government for oil and gas royalties.

The Osage Nation files a second lawsuit against

the federal government over the issue of oil and

gas royalties. They already have a $100 million

lawsuit against the government for nonpayment

of royalties and now request that the court con-

solidate the two cases. The Bureau of Indian

Affairs (BIA) is entrusted with handling the roy-

alties in much the same way as it does the trust

accounts for tribes and individual tribal members

who receive lease, royalty, and other payments

for land. Cobell v. Norton, a class-action lawsuit