Abstract
From the moment that European colonizers landed in North America hundreds of years ago, land rights have been stripped away from the Indigenous people of this land. Land Back is an activism and advocacy movement to regain land rights for the Tribal Nations across the United States. Returning stolen land to Tribal Nations is a form of reparations for the atrocities the United States has inflicted upon these Nations for hundreds of years. Additionally, land that is managed by Indigenous communities is proven to be more resilient against the detrimental effects of climate change, making the return of land to Tribal Nations a necessary tool in the mitigation of the climate crisis here in the U.S. This Note focuses primarily on the Tribal Nations of New York and their fight for their land back across the State. From broken treaties, lost lawsuits, and legal battles against local, state and the federal government, this Note argues that there is a need for a statutory method for Tribal Nations to obtain land rights in New York State. Through an amendment in the New York State Eminent Domain Procedure Law, the state government would be able to exercise a taking of private property and transfer the land rights to a Tribal Nation. Such an amendment would be an important step in righting the wrongs of the past and creating a more equitable property distribution to the Tribal Nations of New York State.
Recommended Citation
Devin N. Barbaro,
Taking the Land Back: How to Return Stolen Land to the Indigenous People of New York State Through Eminent Domain,
32 J. L. & Pol'y
37
().
Available at:
https://brooklynworks.brooklaw.edu/jlp/vol32/iss1/2