The Clatsop-Nehalem Confederated Tribes, who live along the coast of northern Oregon, have won an ally in their fight to gain federal recognition. A bill by U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici would restore federal benefits to the Indian tribe, according to the Associated Press.
The tribe has been seeking federal recognition for more than 20 years, the AP reported. In the early 1900s, the tribe signed treaties with the U.S. government that were never ratified, and then driven from their lands by white settlers. In 1954, Congress “terminated” their recognition.
Bonamici introduced the bill in the U.S. House on July 28.
