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Fort Lawton Takeover News Coverage

On the morning of March 8, 1970, members of the United Indians of All Tribes scaled the fences surrounding Fort Lawton, an army base located at Discovery Point continguous to the city of Seattle. The fort was slated to be decommissioned and the city intended to turn it into a park. After first trying to persuade the city and federal officials that the land should be returned to Native people, Bernie Whitebear and the UNIAT took action. Seven years later, Daybreak Star Cultural Center opened in a section of what had become Discovery Park. The struggle for Fort Lawton is detailed in two essays that are part of this project: By Right of Discovery: United Indians of All Tribes Retakes Fort Lawton, 1970 by Lossom Allen; United Indians of All Tribes Meets the Press: News Coverage of the 1970 Occupation of Fort Lawton by Karen Smith

Here is a digital archive of  the news coverage that accompanied the Fort Lawton struggle, fully readable articles that appeared in Seattle Times, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, UW Daily, Bremerton Sun, Awkesansne Notes, Seattle Medium, Seattle Weekly and other newspapers between 1970 and 1985 (click the titles to read the articles). Karen Smith and Lossum Allen collected most of these articles. Michael Schulze-Oechtering built this database.

Date Publication Article
1-Mar-1970 Seattle PI Senator Jackson checks Lawton scene
8-Mar-1970 Seattle Times Jane Fonda uses "leverage" to aid cause of Indian rights
9-Mar-1970 Bremerton Sun Army repels indians at forts Lawton and Lewis
9-Mar-1970 Seattle PI Indians invade Ft. Lawton
9-Mar-1970 Seattle PI Army disrupts indian claim on Ft. Lawton
9-Mar-1970 Seattle Times Jane Fonda gripes about dentention at Ft. Lawton
9-Mar-1970 Seattle Times Indians "invade" army posts
10-Mar-1970 UW Daily American Indian group supports "reoccupation"
10-Mar-1970 Seattle PI Latest development in Ft. Lawton situation
10-Mar-1970 Seattle Times Indians drum up support for fort claim
10-Mar-1970 Seattle Times Ft. Lawton explains ban on civilians
11-Mar-1970 Bremerton Sun Indians picket outside Ft. Lawton
11-Mar-1970 UW Daily Indian picketers protest police brutality at Ft. Lawton
11-Mar-1970 London Times First and last Americans
11-Mar-1970 Seattle PI County studies 151-acre claim to Ft. Lawton
11-Mar-1970 Seattle Times Indians picket line remains at Ft. Lawton
11-Mar-1970 Seattle Times The most neglected Americans
12-Mar-1970 Helix Oh, Jane…
12-Mar-1970 Seattle PI Equality in Seattle is Indians' message
13-Mar-1970 Argus Buck-passing on longhouse led to Ft. Lawton affair
16-Mar-1970 Bremerton Sun Ft. Lawton "invaders" charged
16-Mar-1970 Seattle PI Military Police arrest 77 Indians at Ft. Lawton
16-Mar-1970 Seattle Times Indians rally at courthouse
17-Mar-1970 Bremerton Sun The Indian siege of Fort Lawton
17-Mar-1970 Seattle PI 14 Indians arraigned for "invasion"
17-Mar-1970 Seattle Times Indians begin 2nd week of picketing
17-Mar-1970 Seattle Times BC Indians support "siege"
18-Mar-1970 London Times Fonda sues US Defense Secretary over ban
20-Mar-1970 Helix Geronimo's Revenge
20-Mar-1970 Helix Geronimo's Revenge(con't)
22-Mar-1970 Seattle PI Indians picket outside Ft. Lawton
22-Mar-1970 Seattle PI On the outside looking hopeful
22-Mar-1970 Seattle PI How Indians would use Ft. Lawton
23-Mar-1970 Seattle PI Indians vote to keep vigil at Ft. Lawton
29-Mar-1970 Seattle PI Indians seek Lawton Chapel
31-Mar-1970 Seattle Times No "all or nothing" Lawton deal for Indians, says Uhlman
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes Indians invade Ft. Lawton
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes Ft. Lawton braces for new type Indian attack
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes The Angry American Indian:Starting down the protest trail
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes Angry American Indian:Starting down the protest trail(con't)
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes American Indians: The Alien Americans
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes American Indians: The Alien Americans(con't)
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes The Red Man's Burden
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes The Red Man's Burden(con't)
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes The Red Man's Burden(con't)
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes The Red Man's Burden(con't)
1-Apr-1970 Akwesansne Notes indians want Nixon to send a representive to a powwow
1-Apr-1970 City Colligian An Indian education center at Ft Lawton
2-Apr-1970 Seattle Times Indians again try to occupy Ft. Lawton; 80 detained
3-Apr-1970 Argus Bremerton Sun:The indian siege of Ft. Lawton
3-Apr-1970 Bremerton Sun Fort Lawton military defeats Indian attack
3-Apr-1970 Seattle Times 15 face trespass charges
3-Apr-1970 Seattle Times 14 await trail in US district court
9-Apr-1970 City Colligian Indians raped
9-Apr-1970 City Colligian Ft. Lawton Indians Capture Summit
14-Apr-1970 Seattle Times Indians ask congress for Ft. Lawton at hearing
1-May-1970 Akwesansne Notes Indians attack army
1-May-1970 Akwesansne Notes Sink or swim polices can never help indians
1-Jun-1970 Akwesansne Notes Indian painter barred from centre
1-Jun-1970 Akwesansne Notes Indians find protests bring results
23-Jun-1970 Seattle Times Urgent Indian needs
16-Aug-1970 Seattle Times Design proposed for Ft. Lawton Indian center
14-Oct-1970 Seattle PI Fort Lawton Park
11-Nov-1970 Seattle PI Indians present Ft. Lawton proposal then leave meeting
12-Nov-1970 Medium Seattle human rights commission says claim of Indians must not be ignored
12-Nov-1970 Medium Seattle human rights commission says claim of Indians must not be ignored (con't)
23-Nov-1970 Seattle PI Cultures, dreams clash on Ft. lawton
2-Dec-1970 Seattle Times Congress acts to free Ft. Lawton park lands for city
4-Dec-1970 Seattle Times Ft. Lawton's role as park periled by Indians refusal to comprimise
22-Jan-1971 Seattle Times Senator Jackson denies "pressure" on bureau
17-Feb-1971 Seattle PI Indians protest, negotiate on Ft. Lawton park issue
12-Mar-1971 UW Daily Fort Lawton: A community of Indians
12-Mar-1971 UW Daily Bone throwing at Ft. Lawton, Do the Indians havve the right?
18-Apr-1971 Seattle Times Indians' bid for land is considered
13-May-1971 Seattle Times Indians hope to avoid prolonged fight with city over Ft. Lawton
15-Nov-1971 Seattle PI City of Seattle agree to build Indian cultural center
15-Nov-1971 Seattle PI City of Seattle agree to build Indian cultural center(con't)
15-Nov-1971 Seattle Times City, Indians agree on Lawton lease plan
5-Dec-1971 Seattle PI Whitebear leads Indians to victory in Ft. Lawton battle
9-Dec-1971 Seattle PI Indian dancers to celebrate Ft. Lawton Victory
13-Dec-1971 Seattle PI Ft. Lawton agreement
27-Jul-1974 Seattle PI The Indian Struggles
5-Sep-1975 Seattle PI Center gets ok
28-Sep-1975 Seattle PI Great day for Bernie Whitebear
25-Jul-1976 Seattle PI Indians build at Ft. Lawton
25-Jul-1976 Seattle PI Indians' center is going up
18-May-1977 Seattle Weekly The Indian arts center that nobody thought would happen
18-May-1977 Seattle Weekly The Indian arts center that nobody thought would happen (con't)
12-Nov-1985 Seattle PI Daybreak Star brings a new day for Indian arts
12-Nov-1985 Seattle PI Daybreak Star brings a new day for Indian arts (con't)