An upstate citizens' group is staging a motorcade this weekend, asking the governor to collect taxes on Indian business enterprises.
Cayuga Nation representatives are planning their own demonstration for the same time, and have announced that they will also offer free gas to customers at their LakeSide Trading Station on Route 89.
The motorcade will start at 10 a.m. Saturday, and has been organized by the Cayuga-Seneca chapter of Upstate Citizens for Equality, according to an announcement released by the group Wednesday.
Riders will begin on Route 414 near Seneca Falls, proceed through Waterloo, down the Thruway to Geneva, and back to the starting point. There will be no speeches at the beginning or end of the ride, according to the release.
The Indian Affairs Citizens Advisory Committee and the Seneca County Board of Supervisors are also sponsoring the rally. The demonstration is an attempt to implore Gov. David Paterson to enforce a law passed in 2006 requiring tax collection on tobacco products and gasoline sold to Indian businesses.
But Clint Halftown, the federally recognized representative of the Cayuga Nation, said Wednesday that the motorcade will do little more than be a “public nuisance” and a “hazard on the roadways.”
The Cayugas and other nations from around the state will show their opposition when the rally drives by on Saturday, Halftown said. The LakeSide Trading Station has also announced that it will give away $10 worth of gas to each customer between 8 a.m. and noon.
As a sovereign Indian nation, the Cayugas have a right to sustain themselves in whatever economy they choose, Halftown said.
“They need to come to the table and talk to us, instead of trying to just pass a law and trying to enforce it upon us,” he said.
In their release, UCE and Indian Affairs Citizens Advisory Committee representatives state that this rally is “not against Indians, nor racist in any manner.”
Verbal or physical confrontations caused by any participants will not be tolerated, according to the statement.
The motorcade will start at 10 a.m. Saturday, and has been organized by the Cayuga-Seneca chapter of Upstate Citizens for Equality, according to an announcement released by the group Wednesday.
Riders will begin on Route 414 near Seneca Falls, proceed through Waterloo, down the Thruway to Geneva, and back to the starting point. There will be no speeches at the beginning or end of the ride, according to the release.
The Indian Affairs Citizens Advisory Committee and the Seneca County Board of Supervisors are also sponsoring the rally. The demonstration is an attempt to implore Gov. David Paterson to enforce a law passed in 2006 requiring tax collection on tobacco products and gasoline sold to Indian businesses.
But Clint Halftown, the federally recognized representative of the Cayuga Nation, said Wednesday that the motorcade will do little more than be a “public nuisance” and a “hazard on the roadways.”
The Cayugas and other nations from around the state will show their opposition when the rally drives by on Saturday, Halftown said. The LakeSide Trading Station has also announced that it will give away $10 worth of gas to each customer between 8 a.m. and noon.
As a sovereign Indian nation, the Cayugas have a right to sustain themselves in whatever economy they choose, Halftown said.
“They need to come to the table and talk to us, instead of trying to just pass a law and trying to enforce it upon us,” he said.
In their release, UCE and Indian Affairs Citizens Advisory Committee representatives state that this rally is “not against Indians, nor racist in any manner.”
Verbal or physical confrontations caused by any participants will not be tolerated, according to the statement.
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Biggguy wrote on Oct 2, 2008 10:07 PM: