Rappahannock部落获得圣地, 确保部落家园和秃鹰栖息地的永久保护

Partnership with the 十大赌博正规老平台 and generosity of a private donor secure protection of sacred site 

弗吉尼亚州里士满县. 今天，在与美国总统奥巴马的一次活动中.S. 内政部部长德布·哈兰德, Rappahannock部落宣布重新获得了Fones Cliffs 465英亩的土地, 位于拉帕汉诺克河东岸的部落圣地. 在与英国人接触之前, 拉帕汉诺克部落至少住在悬崖上的三个村庄——威卡彭, 火柴和Pissacoack. Fones Cliffs is where the Tribe first encountered and defended their homeland against English settler Captain John Smith during his explorations in 1608.

拉帕汉诺克部落酋长安妮·理查森 (left) with 内政部部长德布·哈兰德 at the 回到河边 Celebration on April 1, 2022. 威尔·帕森/切萨皮克湾项目

“多年来，我们一直在努力为部落恢复这个神圣的地方. 鹰是祈祷的使者, 他们聚集的这个地方一直是一个自然的地方, 文化和精神重要性,” 拉帕汉诺克部落酋长安妮·理查森.

“The Department is honored to join the Rappahannock Tribe in co-stewardship of this portion of their ancestral homeland. We look forward to drawing upon Tribal expertise and Indigenous knowledge in helping manage the area’s wildlife and habitat,” 内政部长德布·哈兰德. “这一历史性的重新获得强调了部落如何, private landowners and other stakeholders all play a central role in this Administration’s work to ensure our conservation efforts are locally led and support communities’ health and well-being.”

The Tribe will preserve the land and the wildlife that flourish there including migratory birds and waterfowl. Fones Cliffs is home to bald eagle nests and has been designated by the National Audubon Society as an Important Bird Area with global significance. 鹰对拉帕汉诺克部落来说是神圣的.

The land will be publicly accessible and held with a permanent conservation easement conveyed to the U.S. 美国鱼类和野生动物管理局. 十大赌博正规老平台协会将地役权十大赌博正规老平台给了USFWS, 然后将所有权十大赌博正规老平台给了拉帕汉诺克部落, 谁打算把土地托管给印第安人事务局. 部落计划修建步道和一座16世纪村庄的复制品, where tribal citizens can educate the public about their history and Indigenous approaches to conservation and connect future generations of Rappahannock youth to their tribal traditions and the river which bears their name.

”关系, knowledge-sharing and co-stewardship with Indigenous peoples are essential to the Service’s mission,” U.S. 鱼类和野生动物管理局局长玛莎·威廉姆斯说. “我们有方向和工具来确保服务和部落之间的合作, 为了保护文化, 服务土地上的信托和条约资源, 支持我们共同的优先保育鱼类, 野生动物及其栖息地.”

从左到右:U.S. 内政部部长德布·哈兰德博士. 卡罗尔·安格尔，拉帕汉诺克酋长安妮·理查森，十大赌博正规老平台协会会长 & 首席执行官乔尔·邓恩. 照片由Randall Larrimore/十大赌博正规老平台协会提供

“感谢威廉·道奇·安格尔家族的慷慨解囊，M.D., 十大赌博正规老平台协会很荣幸能帮助丰斯悬崖归还给部落, and to partner with them to bring Indigenous-led conservation practices back to the Rappahannock River,” 十大赌博正规老平台协会总裁兼首席执行官乔尔·邓恩. 他说:“这是朝着节省大约2亿美元的总体目标迈出的重要一步,000英亩的丰斯悬崖, a haven for wildlife and waterfowl and one of the most beautiful places in the Chesapeake and in fact, 世界.”

这笔捐款为部落恢复了一个标志性的遗址, who were forcibly removed from the Cliffs after 1649 as English settlers took over valuable farmland.

“Warmest congratulations to the Rappahannock Tribe on the successful conclusion of a long journey to reacquire their ancestral lands at Fones Cliffs,” U.S. 参议员蒂姆·凯恩, 是谁在2018年提出并成功通过了承认弗吉尼亚六个部落的立法, 包括拉帕汉诺克. “我对所有为此提供帮助的人深表感谢, 包括安妮·理查森警长, the 十大赌博正规老平台 and Secretary Haaland and look forward to continuing to work together to ensure that the federal government respects the sovereignty and self-determination of Virginia Tribes. 我们还有很多工作要做，以消除对部落社区造成的许多错误, but milestones like this one are a powerful reminder that meaningful steps are possible and necessary.”

“Today marks another important milestone in the history of the Rappahannock Tribe with the acquisition of 465 acres at Fones Cliffs—a sacred site for the Rappahannock people along the Rappahannock River. 我在美国的这段时间里.S. 参议院, 我很自豪能通过联邦政府的认可来支持拉帕汉诺克人, 住房和COVID救济，现在是这些神圣土地的回归. Today’s actions are a win for all Virginians as we work together to correct historical wrongs and to share in our love for Virginia’s natural beauty. I am inspired by the Rappahannock Tribal leaders who continue their pursuit of justice and thank all partners involved for making this moment possible,” U.S. 参议员马克?. 华纳.

“Today’s announcement continues our nation’s belated recognition and celebration of this land’s earliest inhabitants. 联邦政府承认弗吉尼亚的部落, 包括拉帕汉诺克, share an intertwined history with the English settlers that explored these cliffs at the beginning of the 17th century. Conserving these beautiful cliffs—a favorite site for bald eagles—and sharing the history of the first contact tribes is a gift for all Virginians. I’m so grateful to the many organizations, groups and people that worked diligently on this effort. 我还要感谢十大赌博正规老平台协会, 拉帕汉诺克部落酋长安妮·理查森和威廉·道奇·安格尔的家人, M.D. 拥抱这个机会，确保拉帕汉诺克的子孙后代，”评论道 U.S. 众议员罗伯·惠特曼.

Additional funding for the Rappahannock Tribe to conserve 465 acres of Indigenous ancestral homelands on the Rappahannock River have also been made possible by a grant from the National 鱼 and 野生动物 Foundation through Walmart’s Acres for America Program.

“We are honored to help return stewardship of the Fones Cliffs site to the Rappahannock Tribe through Walmart’s Acres for America 程序. 在这个国家和世界各地, 土著人民在保护关键生态系统方面发挥着重要作用,” 沃尔玛首席可持续发展官兼沃尔玛基金会主席 凯瑟琳·麦克劳克林. “阿克斯项目支持我们恢复家园的雄心, protect or more sustainably manage 50 million acres of land by 2030 as well as our commitment to put nature and people at the heart of our business as we pursue becoming a regenerative company.”

此外，这片土地为部落提供了扩展他们的 回到河边 程序, which trains tribal youth in traditional river knowledge and practices and conducts outreach and education for other communities interested in the Rappahannock River. 在2017年，通过刘女士的慷慨解囊. 维吉尼亚州华纳, 十大赌博正规老平台协会促成了丰斯悬崖附近一英亩土地的十大赌博正规老平台, 部落用它作为项目的集结地.

The Rappahannock Tribe is a federally recognized sovereign nation headquartered at Indian Neck in King & 弗吉尼亚州奎恩县. 拉帕汉诺克河周围的地区是部落祖先的家园, 部落继续生存, 沿河参观并进行传统文化活动. Native fish, bird and plant species along the river are of cultural significance to the Tribe.

The Rappahannock Tribe and 十大赌博正规老平台 wish to thank legal counsel for their work on this transaction, 包括Mayer Brown的Timothy Choppin, 埃里克J. 贾尔斯在德拉蒙德伍德萨姆，W. Richard Hairfield在Hairfield Morton PLC和Marion F. Werkheiser和她在文化遗产合作伙伴公司的团队.

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