Senate Weighs Puyallup Land Rights and Citizenship
Senator Allen argues that citizenship should grant Puyallup tribal members the right to sell their property, challenging federal restrictions on the reservation.
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The Puyallup Indian bill was taken up for consideration in the Senate today. Senator Allen made an able presentation of his side in the contest. In presenting the subject to the Senate, Mr. Allen noted that the state legislature of Washington had enacted a law upon the request of the Puyallup Indian tribe to facilitate the removal of restrictions on their lands. He argued that the tribe had made wonderful strides in civilization, owning their own homes and cultivating the land, yet congress persists in saying they are incapacitated when it comes to disposing of their property. Allen argued that since the government has already conferred citizenship upon them, it is an inconsistency to deny them the right of alienation that other citizens enjoy.
“The government in its treaty had empowered these Indians with all rights of citizenship, the suffrage as well, and yet when it comes to giving the power of disposing of their property, congress says they are incapacitated.”
This debate over the Puyallup reservation land in 1892 mirrors ongoing legal and civic struggles in the Pacific Northwest regarding tribal sovereignty and land use. The federal paternalism criticized by Senator Allen in 1892 was part of a broader era of forced assimilation, which continues to shape the legal landscape of Washington State today.
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