essay

An anthropological perspective on Zuni land use

zuni and the courts : a struggle for sovereign land rights • Lawrence, Kan. • Published In 1995 • Pages: 103-120

By: Ferguson, T. J. Thomas John).

Abstract

This article discusses the litigation proceedings before the United States Claims Court between the Zuni and the United States government over lands taken by the government without payment and for damages to the reservation by the acts and omissions of the United States in its role of trustee. In the judicial proceedings two fundamental issues were raised: (1)the extent and organiztion of traditional Zuni land use and,(2)the relationship between human land use and environmental degradation. In the latter case erosion was one of the principle damages claimed by the Zuni although the U.S. Department of Justice asserted that erosion was a natural, clyclical process not related to human land use. This assertion therefore had to be examined using data from all of the research disciplines applied by Zuni experts, including anthropology. Details of this investigation comprise a large portion of this work. In addition to contributing information pertinent to the issues involved, anthropological data were useful in documenting damage to archaeological sites caused by road construction on the Zuni Indian Reservation (p. 113).

HRAF PubDate

2009

Region

North America

Sub Region

Southwest and Basin

Document Type

essay

Evaluation

Creator Types

Archaeologist

Ethnohistorian

Document Rating

4: Excellent Secondary Data

5: Excellent Primary Data

Analyst

John Beierle; 2007

Field Date

1970-1980

Coverage Date

1846-1990

Coverage Place

Zuni Reservation, New Mexico, United States

Notes

T. J. Ferguson

Includes bibliographical references

LCCN

94044026

LCSH

Zuni Indians