The Klamath Indians

Located near the Oregon and California border, and comprised of three historically separate tribes: the Klamath, Modoc, and Yahooskin. The Klamath Tribes have inhabited the Klamath River Basin for thousands of years, with lifestyles and heritage revolving around the natural resources of the area. Multi-tribal and multi-village gatherings have been important traditions, including those celebrating fish runs. Salmon have been vital to the physical, economic, and spiritual health of the Klamath tribes for generations. Though the U.S. government initially recognized the rights of Oregon natives to live on their 20 million acre settlement, European colonizers recurrently pushed land boundaries, creating tension between farmers and natives. In 1864,
Terminated tribes may have maintained their legal status as sovereign governments, but they no longer passed or enforced laws and were unable to exercise their power to act as governments. The Klamath tribes were assimilated into the state body politic for fourteen years after termination. There was no governing body for the Klamath tribes from 1961 to 1975. The majority of members removed themselves from affiliation with the tribes as a “legal entity”, these removed members were still Klamath, but they had no legal status either as Klamaths or as Indians. Remaining members of the Klamath tribes occasionally conducted meetings and resolved disputes concerning their common interests; they elected an executive committee from their ranks to enable interaction between themselves and the trustee that managed the tribes' remaining assets. Only one political body continued to represent the entire Klamath population during the 1960s and early 1970s, which was the Executive Committee on Claims. That committee was left in place to deal with the federal government on outstanding claims, but it had no authority outside its narrow
Government. This principle recognizes the right of tribal governments to “determine citizenship and laws, govern, and otherwise act as nation-states.” Tribal sovereignty historically has been undermined by the fact that many tribal assets are held in trust by the U.S. government. The trust relationship has deteriorated the tribes voice by making numerous barriers and giving the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) the final say in contracts. The high number of poor and unemployed American Indians, combined with scarce tribal funds to treat these problems, has weakened tribal sovereignty and self-sufficiency as tribal governments are forced to turn to other governments for aid. This aid often includes specific guidelines that successfully decrease tribal voice and their cultural