The Winnemem Wintu will conduct a war dance from September 12 -16, to protest the raising of Shasta Dam, which could flood more of their ancestral lands – including ceremonial sites, ancestral villages and burials. The War Dance is performed when a serious threat to homeland and culture is perceived, and though there have been many threats the dance has not been performed since 1887. The Bureau of Reclamation is studying raising Shasta Dam by between 6 and 200 feet to store more water for the Central Valley and southern California.  Read the Winnemem Wintu press release.
Read a Redding Record Searchlight op-ed piece about Shasta Dam by Caleen Sisk-Franco (September 6, 2004).
UPDATE (Sept. 14):  Read the New York Times War Dance report.