In the 1930s, the Kootenai Indians lived in tipis near Bonners Ferry, Idaho. Their allotment lands had been dissipated by theDeclared on Sept. 20, 1974, the Kootenai War began whenBureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A .... A local physician managed to persuade the government to build eighteen houses. These had running water, but no bathing facilities, which were provided in a community center. By the 1970s nothing had changed. The Bureau of Indian Affairs asserted that the tribe had too small an enrollment to qualify for any assistance. Amy Trice decided to do something about it.
... tribal members set up informational pickets and asked for 10-cent tolls onWithin a few weeks, the tribe was able to get a concession and land grant from the federal government. Trice was also known for her efforts to preserve traditional Kutenai culture and beliefs. She was fond of playingU.S. Highway 95 US Route 95 (US 95) is a major north–south US Highway in the western United States. It travels through the states of Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Idaho, staying inland from the Pacific Coast. US 95 begins in San Luis, ...on the north and south sides of Bonners Ferry ... "Thestate police State police, provincial police or regional police are a type of sub-national territorial police force found in nations organized as federations, typically in North America, South Asia, and Oceania. These forces typically have jurisdiction o ...came with Mace and sawed-off shotguns," Trice said at the time. "The closest thing we had to a weapon in our tribal office was a fly swatter." Trice had an ace in the hole. She said she was prepared to call the American Indian Movement for help, the same organization that had gotten into an armed standoff at Wounded Knee, S.D., a year earlier.
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