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Brianna Bishop The Roseburg News-Review November 16, 2005
My name is Briainna Bishop. I am a junior at Roseburg High School and a member of the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians.I am writing to talk about my reaction with the position Commissioners Kittelman and Van Slyke have taken against my Tribe. I have recently been studying the French and Indian War in school and it upset me to realize that there are still prejudices alive within our own county government.
I have collected and read the stories that have been printed in The News-Review. I feel I need to speak up to show the commissioners and people in our area that there are also children, young men/women, adults and elders who have been affected with the “war” that Kittelman and Van Slyke have waged against my Tribe.
My family and I are proud to be Cow Creek Indians. My family opens up our home to foster children and we help teach them to be proud of who they are. I was raised to respect others not only for who they are, but where they come from.
What Kittelman and Van Slyke fail to realize is that my Tribe is family and when they speak against the Tribe, they speak against my family. Kittelman may think that the comments she made were harmless and meant as a joke, but I do not.
Statements have been made that we are stealing the land because we do not pay tax on our own sovereign land. How can we steal something that was ours in the first place? Many years ago this land belonged to the Native Americans. I think it is sad that we have to buy back our own land and still have to fight the government for it.
My tribe is one of the largest employers in Douglas County. We give several million dollars a year to help the surrounding community. We have benefits within the Tribe that help those in need that range from helping with school supplies to helping with money for college.
Can the county commissioners name any other entity within Douglas County that has helped so many people and will continue to help the community for years to come? Can the county commissioners help put me through college or pay for my next visit to the doctor as the Tribe does?
I’m a proud descendant of the Dumont and Rainville families. I am willing to stand for who I am. I am willing to stand up for my family. I am willing to stand up for my heritage.
Thank you for taking the time to read my letter. I hope you will be able to share this letter through your newspaper to show the county commissioners that no matter how hard they try to keep us down, we will always be there to fight for our rights.
Briainna Bishop is a Cow Creek Tribe member, 16 years old and a junior at Roseburg High School.