Occupying Alcatraz: Native American Activists Demand Change

Occupying Alcatraz: Native American Activists Demand Change — page 3
stepped forward Leighton flipped open his briefcase took out a stack of papers and began reciting the Sioux Treaty of 1868 aloud And it is further stipulated that any male Indians over eighteen years of age of any band or tribe that is or who shall hereafter become a party to this treaty who now is or shall hereafter become a resident or occupant of any reservation or territory not included in this tract of country designated which is not mineral land nor reserved by the United States for any special purpose other than Indian occupation shall be entitled to receive from the United States a right to the land When Leighton finished Aylworth looked around at each member of the group He grunted and scratched his head Though the reference to the 1868 treaty was not a serious legal route to seizing the island it was clear the protesters were serious about getting their message across As if realizing that matters had gotten out of his control Aylworth shrugged and said Well I guess if you want it you can have it A Desire for Action In the weeks and months leading up to that fateful March day the Native American community in the San Francisco Bay Area had been searching for a way for their voices to be heard Like many Native Americans throughout