The Nooksack Indian Tribe is still waiting for a retraction from the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
On Feb. 3, experts from the U.N. called on the Nooksack Tribe to stop the planned evictions of 63 former members of the tribe who reside in 21 homes on tribal lands.
The tribe says the U.N. release relied on “outrageous and disproved allegations from a Seattle attorney,” and was “riddled with misinformation.”
The evictions, initially slated to begin in late December, were delayed following extreme weather and winter storms.
Eviction proceedings were stalled again by the Northwest Office of Native American Programs (NwONAP) of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The department conducted an investigation into the Tribe’s alleged violation of civil rights against those facing eviction and found no illegal activity.
“This situation is difficult for all involved. We also understand our primary responsibility is to Nooksack Tribal Members, and we must honor that.” — Nooksack Indian Tribe
“On December 17, 2021, [we] sent you a letter advising you to delay any pending or planned evictions until the Department of the Interior (DOI) completed its investigation into alleged Indian Civil Rights Act (ICRA) violations,” said a Feb. 14 letter from NwONAP administrator Thomas Carney. “Based on DOI’s findings and NwONAP’s limited review, NwONAP has concluded that the actions taken by the Tribe to date to evict the nine individuals have not violated HUD programmatic requirements.”
On Monday, the Nooksack Indian Tribe Communications Page on Facebook shared Carney’s letter and reiterated the need for additional housing on their land.
“We understand the hardship evictions cause for anyone,” they said Feb. 14. “This situation is difficult for all involved. We also understand our primary responsibility is to Nooksack Tribal Members, and we must honor that.”
There are currently eight households facing eviction, with another 13 on deck. All are members of the Nooksack 306, individuals who self-identify as Nooksack but were removed from tribal records in 2018 following a bitter disenrollment battle.
The Tribe says they have more than 60 tribal members waiting for housing, including people who are currently experiencing homelessness.
Carney’s letter, though, encouraged the tribe to reconsider evictions.
“NwONAP echoes the recent statement made by DOI asking the Tribe to stop these planned evictions,” it said. “We respect and commit to upholding Tribal sovereignty. These evictions will have a substantial impact on the entire community, and even more so to these specific families.”
The U.N. has not publicly acknowledged the Tribe’s retraction request.
