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JUNE 27, 2000

Rick Lazio, a Republican Congressman from New York, caused some controversy with his potential Indian constituents during his campaign on Sunday in Buffalo for the New York Senate seat.

Referring to the fairness of Indian gaming, Lazio said "Native Americans were given many parts of our country, some (of it) very difficult land, with very few opportunities."

A spokeswoman for the St Regis Mohawk Tribe took great offense with his statement, saying that Indians were not given land, they had their land taken away from them. An Onondanga Nation representative said Lazio needs a history lesson.

Members of the traditional Six Nations Iroquois Confederacy, consisting of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca, and Cayuga Nations, all have outstanding land claims with the state. The Courts have consistently upheld the rights of the tribes, whose lands have been illegally taken by the state of New York.

Lazio supports Indian gaming, saying he opposes federal government intervention on Indian casinos on tribal land. The New York State Assembly recently tabled a bill that would have given the state and local governments more say on casinos off reservations.

He defended his comments through his spokesperson, who said Lazio was obviously referring to tribes in the West, some of whom were forced onto reservations.

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Lazio's comments anger Indians (AP 6/27)