Matthew Ricchiazzi: Seneca Nation defrauded of gaming rights

Wednesday, February 20, 2013  

"In Western New York, wealthy corporate gaming interests have been conspiring to defraud the Seneca Nation of an asset—regional exclusivity rights—that the Nation purchased in a 2002 gaming compact.

Those executives, development interests, and investors have conspired with politicians, state legislators, local governments, Albany lobbyists, and media operatives to defraud the Seneca Nation of this asset. In that aim, they've opened competing gaming venues in blatant violation of the 2002 compact; they've contributed money to influence Albany politicians; they've spent big on media propaganda; and they've effectively stolen this asset from a vulnerable and still impoverished people.

They are the modern day manifestation of Indian land thieves - people who get rich on the racist and untrue premise that Indians are too stupid to realize they're being cheated. That's what's characterized much of Native political history, to the extent that the Supreme Court has enshrined the "federal trust responsibility" into the cannons of federal Indian law, explicitly to protect Indians from state governments, mainstream politicians, and local business interests."

Get the Story:
Matthew Ricchiazzi: In Western NY, Wealthy Corporate Gaming Interests Conspire to Defraud Senecas (Indian Country Today 2/20)