Mary Dann and Carrie Dann
Encyclopedia
The Dann Sisters, Mary Dann and her sister, Carrie were Western Shoshone
spiritual leaders, ranchers, and cultural, spiritual rights and land rights
activists. Carrie and Mary Dann filed a request for urgent action with the United Nations
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. They had been active in the movement to recover millions of acre
s of land that originally belonged to the Shoshone
tribe. Much of this land, consisting of a large portion of Nevada
and four other states
, was seized despite the treaty of 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley stating that the Shoshone would never have to give up their land. They were recipients of the Right Livelihood Award
in 1993.
They persuaded the UN and the US government was ordered to halt all actions against the Western Shoshone people. However the mandate has mostly been ignored by the US government.
Mary Dann was killed in an accident on her ranch
in central Nevada on April 22, 2005.
at a Nevada Desert Experience
event protesting the Nevada Test Site
.
Western Shoshone
Western Shoshone comprises several Shoshone tribes that are indigenous to the Great Basin and have lands identified in the Treaty of Ruby Valley 1863. They resided in Idaho, Nevada, California, and Utah. The tribes are very closely related culturally to the Paiute, Goshute, Bannock, Ute, and...
spiritual leaders, ranchers, and cultural, spiritual rights and land rights
Land rights
Land law is the form of law that deals with the rights to use, alienate, or exclude others from land. In many jurisdictions, these species of property are referred to as real estate or real property, as distinct from personal property. Land use agreements, including renting, are an important...
activists. Carrie and Mary Dann filed a request for urgent action with the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. They had been active in the movement to recover millions of acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s of land that originally belonged to the Shoshone
Shoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....
tribe. Much of this land, consisting of a large portion of Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
and four other states
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
, was seized despite the treaty of 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley stating that the Shoshone would never have to give up their land. They were recipients of the Right Livelihood Award
Right Livelihood Award
The Right Livelihood Award, also referred to as the "Alternative Nobel Prize", is a prestigious international award to honour those "working on practical and exemplary solutions to the most urgent challenges facing the world today". The prize was established in 1980 by Jakob von Uexkull, and is...
in 1993.
They persuaded the UN and the US government was ordered to halt all actions against the Western Shoshone people. However the mandate has mostly been ignored by the US government.
Mary Dann
Mary Dann (January 2, 1923 – April 22, 2005) was a Native American activist.Mary Dann was killed in an accident on her ranch
Ranch
A ranch is an area of landscape, including various structures, given primarily to the practice of ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle or sheep for meat or wool. The word most often applies to livestock-raising operations in the western United States and Canada, though...
in central Nevada on April 22, 2005.
Carrie Dann
On April 1, 2007, Carrie Dann was arrested, with 38 other activists, for trespassing at the Nevada Test SiteNevada Test Site
The Nevada National Security Site , previously the Nevada Test Site , is a United States Department of Energy reservation located in southeastern Nye County, Nevada, about northwest of the city of Las Vegas...
at a Nevada Desert Experience
Nevada Desert Experience
The Nevada Desert Experience is a name for the movement to stop U.S. nuclear weapons testing that came into use in the middle 1980s. It is also the name of a particular anti-nuclear organization which continues to create public events to question the morality and intelligence of the U.S. nuclear...
event protesting the Nevada Test Site
Nevada Test Site
The Nevada National Security Site , previously the Nevada Test Site , is a United States Department of Energy reservation located in southeastern Nye County, Nevada, about northwest of the city of Las Vegas...
.