The Puyallup Tribe of Washington will host a commemoration and reaffirmation of its treaty rights this Thursday, on the 40th anniversary of the state's raid of a fishing camp.

Tribal members camped along the Puyallup River in the summer of 1970 to exercise their treaty rights. They engaged in a series of fish-ins that culminated in an armed raid of their camp on September 9, 1970.

"It brings chills to me to think of all the things we had to fight for, and still are fighting for," Mark Bridges, whose aunt and uncle were leaders of the camp, told The Seattle Times.

The incident led to a lawsuit by the federal government against the state of Washington. The 1974 Boldt decision reaffirmed tribal rights to half of the fish catch in the state.

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Fish-camp raid etched in state history (The Seattle Times 9/7)