Letters

I am extraordinarily touched by the bravery and tenacity of Elouise Cobell’s work on behalf of the Blackfoot people and other Native Americans (“Truth and Consequences on the Reservation,” by J. Michael Kennedy, July 7). It is unimaginable that our country has been in such denial over the mistreatment of indigenous people and that we are guilty of such longstanding neglect of those who have lived in this land for thousands of years. I cried as I read about Cobell’s being awarded a MacArthur Foundation award and then a Lannan grant worth millions of dollars in order to pursue a lawsuit against the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Cobell is a heroic warrior, one whose efforts should be followed by the press regularly and held close to our nation’s heart. Only by coming clean and leaving denial behind, and only by making sorely needed reparations to both Native Americans and African Americans, will our country truly grow up. We must hold ourselves accountable for our sins.

Joan Ashworth-Ward

Los Angeles

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love this country but mistrust its government. We took this country away from the Indian nations, and it is morally wrong that we do not live up to the “treaties” we signed with them. To mismanage their affairs and steal from them is the bottom of moral depravity. The U.S. government should apologize for the wrongs it did, reach an equitable settlement with the Indian nations, let them manage their own properties, and abolish the BIA.

Karl J. Ruzicka

San Dimas