The Winnemem Wintu continue their determined struggle for the restoration of federal recognition. Representatives of the northern California tribe assert that they have long been recognized by the U.S. government, and their lack of that official status now is simply the result of being mysteriously dropped from the BIA list of recognized tribes in the late 1980s. Federal recognition would help them fight the raising of Shasta Dam, which would cause the McCloud River to back up further and drown what remains of the Winnemem’s traditional homeland.