In 1953, the federal government began the process of terminating its relationship with tribes and transferring jurisdiction on tribal matters to states — even though tribes had treaties with the U.S. government, not the states, and Article VI of U.S. Constitution says that treaties are “the supreme law of the land.” A lot of damage was done by the time termination policies ended in 1968. And now, a state bill nearing approval by the House and Senate would allow tribes in Washington to reverse another remnant of that era and have jurisdiction over civil and criminal matters returned to the federal government.
Articles by Raechel Dawson
