There is nothing new in the dispossession of land of indigenous peoples. As a result of European colonialism, the sons of the soil have been subjected to intolerable oppression in all the continents for centuries. Australia, Canada, the US and some other countries witnessed such oppression. Various states have issued official statements, apologising to the indigenous peoples for committing those crimes, in recent times. They are also being provided with some special facilities within the legal framework of the country. Many bonging to Native American ethnicity have been given back their Rights to their lands in the US over the last few decades.

US President Joseph Robinette Biden Jr took such an important step in the second week of August 2023. During a ceremony in Tucson, Arizona, he dedicated an area of the world-famous Grand Canyon to the Native Americans living there, declaring the sacred land as their National Monument. This area is popularly known as Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni. Several Native American tribes refer to this region as their Ancestral Land or Sacred Land.

Speaking at the ceremony after signing the Proclamation at the Grand Canyon, President Biden stated: “I have made a commitment as president to prioritise and respect the tribal sovereignty in self-determination. To honour the solemn promises the US made to tribal nations to fulfil Federal trust to treaty obligations. I pledge to keep using all of that available authority to protect sacred tribal lands.” He added: “At a time when some seek to ban books and bury history, we are making it clear that we cannot just choose to learn only what we want to know. We should learn everything that is good, bad – the truth about who we are as a nation. That is what great nations do.” The President made the comment in the presence of Native American leaders and Senator Kyrsten Sinema.

Incidentally, the State owns this land. Now, the local tribes shall be able to do a lot of work on this land, covering an area of about one million acres. President Biden announced that the Native Americans could perform their religious rituals, make medicines from the plants, and take care of those plants that are available only in this particular region. Most importantly, they could leave the land for their next generation.

It may be noted that the indigenous peoples had to struggle a lot to win their Right over this piece of land. Initially, some tribes living in that area formed an alliance. A Bill on their land ownership has been passed as a result of serious efforts made by the alliance. The Havasupai tribe lives in the remote areas of that region. They informed Deb Haaland, the first Native American Cabinet Secretary in US history, that the declaration of the Grand Canyon a National Park had prompted them to leave their homes. In other words, they were “driven out” by the Federal Government in 1919 to form the Grand Canyon National Park. “Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument will help address past injustices and create a partnership between the US and the region’s tribal nations in caring for these lands,” stressed Haaland.

There are several uranium mines in this region. However, no more uranium can be mined from there, as the area has become a National Monument. Representatives of the indigenous peoples believe that the decision is a significant one in today’s business-oriented world.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das