The westward movement of the 19th century brought about a conflict between the federal government and Native Americans that still hasn't been settled.

People of the Western Shoshone Nation continue to struggle to retain land that they claim is rightfully theirs, said Western Shoshone Nation Members Chief Raymond Yowell and Carrie Dann in a news conference Wednesday night in the auditorium of Deike Building.

Citing possession rights that go back generations, the two criticized the federal government for covering up the legal issue of land title by focusing on livestock grazing rights.

Yowell and Dann took a break from lobbying in Washington, D.C., for grazing rights to visit the University at the request of the Native American Indian Student Association.

"From our point of view, we have the land," Yowell said. "They can't show how they got it from the Indians."

For the last 17 years, the Western Shoshone Nation has been in a constant court battle with the U.S. government over land rights.

The government concocted the theory of "gradual encroachment" because it could not find a date for when the land was taken from the Indians, Yowell said.

Under gradual encroachment, the Shoshones supposedly relinquished their land as they allowed the settling of white people, excavation of mines and building of railroads during the last century. The government has never obtained the land through purchase, exchange or act of Congress, he said.

"We can't sell the land," Dann said. "Not now, not ever."

Western Shoshone lands encompass over 30 million acres, mostly in Nevada, but also extend into parts of California, Idaho and Utah. The lands were acquired in 1863 under the Ruby Valley Treaty, which was ratified by Congress.

The immediate issue is the impending confiscation of cattle on Dann's ranch in Crescent Valley, Nev., by the Bureau of Land Management.

Dann and her sister Mary rely on their livestock for survival. The controversy over grazing rights goes back to 1974, when the Dann sisters were arrested for trespassing after refusing to pay grazing fees on approximately 5,000 acres of land the Shoshones claim is theirs.

Dann asked people to write Congress to "tell them to get on the ball and do something about the environment." She explained that the Shoshone lands are used for nuclear waste dumping and nuclear testing.

"Most people don't even know that there are nuclear tests running every three weeks," said Bonnie Eberhardt, a coordinator for the Western Shoshone Nation support group.

The group, which has no official membership, is nationwide and includes thousands of people who share information about the Shoshones' situation.

"It's a very loose network of people who let each other know what's going on," Eberhardt said.

The Danns have also received worldwide support in their attempt to prevent the bureau's cattle roundup, which is scheduled to take place Sept. 24. They have received letters from Canada, Central America and Europe. Even members of the German Parliament have written to Congress about the issue.

"There's been quite a response," Yowell said.

The Western Shoshone National Council is calling for a nonviolent protest if the bureau goes through with the confiscation of cattle on Dann's ranch.

"They will have to go through humanity if they're going to do the roundup," Yowell said.

Many people, including white settlers, have promised their support. The white people, as well as the Indians, are in jeopardy of losing their lands if the government gains control, Dann said.

Beth Heidere, secretary for Eco-Action, which helped sponsor Wednesday's event, called the Shoshone's predicament "ridiculous and unfair."

"It just seems so backwards that you wonder how it could happen," said Heidere (senior-elementary education).