Native Americans, use voting clout to keep Dikeman out of DA office
Letters to the Editor | from the Eureka Reporter | by Robert Ulibarri | Jun 3, 2006
Dear Editor,
Draconian theories that Native American’s may not be suitable for the jury pool because of cultural beliefs are just nonsense.
Yes, there’s a history here. Yes, there are incidents of racism where Indians were excluded from the jury pool based on the court records. And yes, Dikeman is not as forthcoming as he should have been on his statements to the media regarding this issue.
The Indian vote is growing stronger in Humboldt County. That’s good, and it positions reservation communities to demand more from the District Attorney’s office and other political leaders. More Native Americans voting will serve to increase the momentum, pride and power of the Indian voice in Humboldt County.
Since Native Americans make up almost 10 percent of Humboldt County population, let’s send a strong message to District Attorney Candidate Worth Dikeman: we may not be capable of serving on a jury, but we are darn well capable of using our voting clout to keep him out of the DA’s office.
Robert Ulibarri
Eureka
