For a while, Indigenous people were not allowed to fish in the river that had been theirs since time dawned. Later, they couldn’t fish, even when granted permission.
The combination of dams, chemical runoffs from farms, climate change and drought caused toxic algae blooms. In 2002, there was a massive fish kill that ultimately spurred several tribes to actively oppose PacifiCorp’s application for a 50-year renewal of its license to run the dams.
It was approved, but with the proviso that the company must add fish ladders to each dam. Installing ladders cost twice as much as leveling the dams, ultimately, so the company modified its stance. Yet, even with PacifiCorp’s agreement, the process took years.
It was completed last year, and in what might be seen as Mother Nature’s justice, a decadelong drought ended, rainstorms increased the river’s flow and sediment that had accumulated behind the dams washed away.
It’s easy to get angry, reading about the bigotry and stupidity the Indian nations had to endure. But, once in a while, the Yurok storytelling takes us to a passage that makes you forget anger. For example:
The Yurok have a tradition, in times of war, to send women to attempt to negotiate peace first. Only if they fail do men get involved.