Garfield County News | 1955-02-24 | Page 15 | Navajos Go on 'Warpath', Seek Colorado Water

Navajos Go On 'Warpath', Seek Colorado Wafer In the year 1955, 2,000 Navajo Indians went on the warpath. Instead of seeking the white man's scalp, however, these peaceful Indians sought water to Irrigate 125,000 acres of their tribal lands In Arizona. The water would come from the" Upper Colorado River Storage Project, now pending in Congress. Sam Akkeah. chairman of the Navajo Tribal Council, said a war dance, performed Jan. 24 at Window Rock, Ariz., was meant as "a warning to all those wbo are opposing" the project. The Upper Colorado Basla Grass Roots Committee is a group which Is seeking to unite 100,000 "aqua-lantes" in the fight to push the billion dollar project through to complet ion. The "aqualantes" are water vigilantes. The dance, said Ahkeah, was staged by America's largest Indian tribe to "show our determination to defend this water. W mean this to be a warning to all those who are opposing the project for real or fancied reasons. This water Is vital to our future, and we're ready to do anything possible to protect it. "This action," he concluded, "has the unanimous approval of thei advisory committee of the Navajo Council." Under terms of the Upper Colorado River Compact, an agreement between five states on the Plateau, the reservation Is allotted a portion of Colorado River water. The project was Introduced in the last session of Congress, but failed to pass.