"From Time Immemorial": The Fish-in Movement and the Rise of Intertribal Activism

Abstract

This article explores the fish-in movement of the 1960s, uncovering the roots of modern intertribal activism. Fish-ins as intertribal activism began in March 1964 when the National Indian Youth Council (NIYC) brought together Native people in the Pacific Northwest and beyond to protest the arrests of local Native fishermen whom Washington State game officials charged with violating conservation laws and fishing out of season. The NIYC contended that the wardens had violated Native peoples' right to fish at "all usual and accustomed places" as guaranteed by federal treaties. Modeled after African American student sit-ins, fish-ins were a form of civil disobedience designed to produce arrests, garner media attention, and highlight abrogated rights. Tapping recently opened archives, including NIYC Records, Washington State Sportsmen's Council Papers, and the Frederick Haley Papers, the article posits that NIYC fish-ins represent the first example of intertribal direct action and the beginning of the Red Power Movement.