"From bear grass to huckleberries to cedar and more, it's getting harder and harder for the treaty Indian tribes in western Washington to find and access natural resources that are central to our culture.

We need the traditional foods, medicines and materials that make us who we are. Like salmon, shellfish and wildlife, these things are part of us as Indian people. They were so important to us that we reserved our right to gather them when we signed treaties with the U.S. government.

Traditional foods are especially important to Indian people today. Almost every one of us knows a person or a family who suffers from diabetes or some other illness - a lot of the time caused by a lack of traditional foods in our diet.

Our weavers, carvers and other artists work to help keep our culture alive, but they are having a difficult time finding the materials they need. Cedar trees are disappearing to development while other important plants are being damaged or killed by pollution."

Get the Story:
Billy Frank: Sharing of resources needed to protect tribal way of life (The Bellingham Herald 8/5)

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