BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 7, 2021
In 2008, the Maine Legislature unanimously approved the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which makes plain in Article 26 that “Indigenous peoples have the right to own, use, develop, and control the lands, territories and resources that they possess by reason of traditional ownership.” A scant four years later, the state of Maine unilaterally revoked this right of ownership and control of the river, leading to litigation by the Penobscot Nation, and the recent federal appeals court decision in favor of the state. As long as Maine continues to oppose legitimate Indigenous rights, we will never have peace. Gov. Janet Mills has the ability to stop this taking. ~ Diane Oltarzewski, Belfast