The 5 Civilized Tribes... so goes the tail.  All resetled in Oklahoma.  Not by choice.  Trail of Tears is remembered in Oklahoma at Tahlequah, Oklahoma, capital of the Cherokee Nation. Tsa La Gi. The Trail of Tears play in Tahlequah was a play with wide attendance from 1969 until 2005 where actors portayed the removal of the Cherokee tribe from southeastern US to Oklahoma.  The amphitheater is in disrepair presently but there is a movement to have it put back in place.  The Trail of Tears Museum in Tahlequah tells the story of the forceful removal of the Cherokees.

There was a revolution of sorts in the Cherokee govenment back in 1997 that was so bizarre as to almost sound like a made for TV drama, but it was so much more real to the Cherokee Naition.

The Cherokees are the largest recognized tribe in the U.S., not due in a small part to Wilma Mankiller.

Because the eligibility for the tribal rolls is somewhat less strict that other tribes many people who have no overt cultural or physical similarity to the more pure bred members of the tribe are included  as "Cherokee".  Every 2nd Hollywood "star", in addition to the Hollywood wannabees claims to be "part Cherokee".

It is a very interesting tribal group, to say the least.  They always get the most publicity regarding the forced removal, but other tribes also had terrible situations that brought them to what is now Oklahoma.  There is an overabundance of terrific suffering examples in "Indian Territory" history.  You can pick any tribe and quickly find tales of immense suffering and injustice.  

Those countries inimical to the United States are fond of finding each and every incident where Native Americans have experienced a tragedy of some sort via direct or indirect U.S. government involvement.  They use it in their own propaganda machines to show as many warts on Uncle Sam as possible to their own populations as if to say:  Look how much better life is in Cuba, Russia, China, Venezuela, Iran, et cetra.  The Cherokee situation is the one that gets the most publicity, but it is not unique.

Thanks for pointing out the Trail of Tears situation, Cal, but the forced separation of Native American children for the purpose of "getting the Indian out of them" took place in the 20th century and, in some ways, may have been even worse that the suffering of the Trail of Tears.

I think that enumerating one tragedy after another can risk creating a numbness to any tragedy experienced by Native Americans.  My purpose in bringing up some of these tragedies was simply to emphasize that those Native Americans in Nevada who oppose the creation of the Thacker Pass Lithium Mine have historical and cultural reasons to mistrust any such proposal, whether that proposal is via a governent entity or via a public corporation, even if that corporation is headquarted in Canada as is Lithium Americas Corporation.

I don't think going down the line an listing every single breach of trust on both sides of the US vs Native Americans will accomplish anything, but being aware of how these events can influence the perspective of many, if not most, Native Americans is an important thing for companies to keep in mind, especially mining companies where their actual and/or proposed mining activities are perceived by local Native Americans as a threat to their culture and existence.  LAC has an opportunity to break the mold in a good way.  Regardless of how the litigation turns out, LAC will be closely watched by the ranchers and the Native Americans who perceive that the development of the Thacker Pass Project has a direct impact on them.  My hope is that the 40 something year life of the LAC Thacker Pass Mine is one that puts companies like the Peabody Coal Company to shame and serves as a model for good relations.  You may not remember, but going back all the way to the Western Lithium days and beyond into the Jon Evans/LAC era there has been an effort to work closely with the indigenous population in Argentina.  It wasn't a perfect marriage, but they did put out the effort.  There should be some lessons learned by LAC from that experience and the situation at Thacker Pass would be a great time to show that the company has improved as a result of that experience.

Just some idle thoughts of an idle old guy, Cal.  Best to you and to all our LAC stock owners.

Cal, so that you don't think I didn't get your drift with your post I want to assure you that I agree with what you wrote:  "I still hope that LAC management will be able to work together with the Indian community through school and job programs."

Cal, you just managed to say in one sentence what I crammed into a veritable "Gone With the Wind" or "War and Peace" length dissertation.  If brevity counts then you are about $500 a share.  Let's hope LAC gets to that same level of achievement!  Soon?

Okiedo