Natives plan rallies against tobacco tax enforcement

On April 2, 2008 the Seneca Nation and other Natives from around the State will gather at Niagara Square in Buffalo, NY to rally in protest against tax collection on reservations.

New York State has made countless efforts for the past two decades to force Native-owned stores on reservations to charge sales tax to their non-Native customers.

Mohawks from Akwesasne are planning to attend the rally and also hope to organize another one in Salamanca, New York at the end of April, with support from the Oneidas and Senecas.

Minnie Garrow, of Akwesasne, said she and others are hoping to rent a bus to transport other Akwesasro:non to Buffalo.

The rally is to “protest the impending tax enforcement” which Garrow said could happen this April.

“They’re supposed to impose the tax collection on all the Native people and if that should happen we’re out of business,” she said. Though Garrow is not a store owner, her son is.

Garrow said the cigarette taxation issue has been ongoing for years and more people need to be involved to stand up to state leaders and taxation.

“You control people by taking away their resources,” she said. “You take away their economy and what do you have? Dependent people.”

Garrow said the gas stations and cigarette shops in Akwesasne have helped the local economy.

“There’s a misconception that the gas station owners are all rich,” she said. But, she added, the stores feed into the economy both through the wages they pay and the contributions they make to the community either through donations or payments to the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe’s general fund (TGF).

Garrow said many people from Akwesasne are already planning to take a trip to Buffalo for the rally but they hope the bus day-trip will give even more people the opportunity to attend.

“People aren’t politically active anymore,” she said. “And that’s so dangerous. Just hang out and listen. That’s how we learned. It’s the same story over and over.”

Former New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer is currently being sued for his failure to enforce the tax collection on reservations. It’s unclear how his successor, Gov. David Paterson, will address the issue.

Those interested in attending the Seneca rally can contact the Mohawk Rights & Research Office at 518-358-3241.