reservation Indians often dead[ly] enemies of state - Roberts aded [ly]

[The Straight Story]

Adams: Roberts' 'dishonesty' concerns Indian country Email this page Print this page
Posted: September 15, 2005

by: Jim Adams / Indian Country Today
Supreme Court nominee John Roberts Jr. might be admirable in many respects, but as a private attorney he committed an act of intellectual dishonesty that is drawing attention from one group - the American Indian - that already fears the worst from the current court.

In a brief submitted to the Supreme Court in 1997, Roberts distorted the language of a well-known precedent in a way that can only be called a blatant misrepresentation. Writing for the state of Alaska in its suit against the Native village of Venetie's tribal government, he twisted a quote from the court's 1886 United States v. Kagama decision to say ''reservation Indians ... were often 'dead enemies' of the States.'' The inserted brackets created a statement evoking a deep-seated stereotype of marauding savages, scalping and murdering innocent pioneers. But it is exactly the opposite of the meaning of the famous opinion by Justice Samuel Freeman Miller, a Lincoln appointee.

The original passage, which is often cited in Indian country, is worth quoting in full, because a lot hangs on it.

Miller wrote: ''These Indian tribes are the wards of the nation. They are communities dependent on the United States - dependent largely for their daily food; dependent for their political rights. They owe no allegiance to the states, and receive from them no protection. Because of the local ill feeling, the people of the states where they are found are often their deadliest enemies. From their very weakness and helplessness, so largely due to the course of the dealing of the federal government with them, and the treaties in which it has been promised, there arises the duty of protection, and with it the power.''

http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096411592

[populistdriven]

1. did this jackass roberts ever hear of navajo code ?

http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq61-2.htm

I can't believe he actually....

:wtf:

[populistdriven]

2. seriously, did anyone of those fat cats ask him about this

This needs to get out

/nominated

[sam sarrha]

3. probably a reference to Leonard Peltier.. he had a Kangaroo Court..

convicted of a conspiracy that did not exist... because his 2 co-conspirators were found Innocent. but he was found guilty..:shrug:

[hootinholler]

4. .