More than a thousand people, representing tribes across the Pacific Northwest, gathered on Saturday to mark the 50 years since the loss of Celilo Falls in Washington. Celilo Falls, on the Columbia River, was traditional fishing grounds for dozens of tribes. But on March 10, 1957, it was flooded when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers created The Dalles Dam. Destroyed were Celilo Village and a way of life. "My ancestry is right here, underwater," James Kiona, a member of the Yakama Nation who was born at the falls in 1949, told The Seattle Times. The falls were so loud that the sound of the water crashing down could be heard for miles. "Fifty years of silence," said Wilbur Slockish Jr., a hereditary chief of the Klickitat Tribe. After a salmon meal, tribal leaders spoke about the need to protect treaty rights and preserve culture. Get the Story:
Tribes mourn loss of falls (The Seattle Times 3/12)
Phil Ferolito: Visit brings history of Celilo Falls to life (The Yakima Herald-Republic 3/12)
Silenced thunder (The Dalles Chronicle 3/11) $rl Celilo Legacy Blog - http://web.mac.com/fivecrows/iWeb/Celilo/Blog/Blog.html
Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission - http://www.critfc.org Related Stories:
Yakama Nation signs salmon protection agreement (08/15)
Yakama Nation seeks compensation for salmon (07/04)
Judge orders new plan for salmon on Snake River (05/24)
Idaho senator kills salmon counting center (11/30)
Idaho senator inserts rider to kill salmon counting (06/24)
Judge orders Bush to reconsider salmon plan (05/27)
Columbia River tribes forced to shut down fishery (05/11)
Mark Trahant: Few salmon left for tribal ceremonies (04/25)
Tribe seeks higher standard on Columbia River (04/21)
Yakama Nation agrees to dam conservation plans (03/31)
Report backs tribe in Columbia River pollution claim (03/08)
Bush administration to reduce protections for salmon (12/01)
Warm Springs Tribes criticize shift on dam breaching (09/10)
Federal agencies change minds on removal of dams (09/01)
Nez Perce Tribe calls for protection of salmon (08/13)
Judge sides with tribes on proposed water spill (07/29)
