Seattle's Duwamish Tribe files new lawsuit seeking federal recognition

Seattle’s Duwamish Tribe renewed its quest for tribal sovereignty by filing a lawsuit against the U.S Department of the Interior on Wednesday. The tribe said the lack of federal recognition continues to cost its 600 enrolled members access to healthcare, scholarships, and other benefits.

“As an unrecognized tribe we have limitations, we cannot fully practice our culture," Desiree Fagan, a member of the tribal council, said. "We have to ask permission to display our own artifacts and care for our ancestor’s bones. We have had to buy back the land our longhouse stands on.”

The lawsuit comes as thousands of people are donating to the tribe’s operations through the nonprofit Real Rent Duwamish, and land acknowledgements put a spotlight on the loss of tribal lands.

At a press conference announcing the lawsuit at the Duwamish Longhouse and Cultural Center on Wednesday, James Rasmussen, a member of the tribal council who has also led efforts to restore the Duwamish River, said the place and the people are inextricably linked.