news from montana...

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> Date: Friday, January 16, 1998 9:59 AM
> 
> Buffalo Nations
> P.O. Box 957   West Yellowstone, Mt. 59758
> Phone (406)646-0070 Fax (406)646-0071
> mailto:buffalo@wildrockies.org
> http://www.wildrockies.org/buffalo/
> 
> Press Release                                                   Jan. 15,
1997
> 
> Buffalo Nations and the DOL Butt Heads
> Over Wild Buffalo
> 
> Buffalo Nations and Montana's Department of Livestock (DOL) butted heads
> again today as the DOL attempted to haze wild buffalo into one of the
> capture facilities they use to corral buffalo before sending them to
> slaughter houses.
> 
> The DOL used "cracker barrels" (firecrackers shot from guns) in an
attempt
> to scare five wild buffalo on the buffalo hater's land towards the
capture
> facility, but as it turned out the buffalo outsmarted the DOL by turning
> and running right past them away from the facility. Buffalo Nations
> volunteers then moved through waist deep snow into positions where they
> could interfere with the DOL operations. It was at this point that Bryce
> Smedley, a volunteer, was forced into a confrontation with the land owner
> Mr. Koelzer. Not wanting to be video-taped, Koelzer lowered the snow plow
> on the front of his truck and aggressively told him to leave. Immediately
> after this, Koelzer turned his vehicle around and drove into him,
knocking
> him down and running over his foot.  Luckily, Bryce sustained only minor
> injuries.
> 
> The DOL continued throughout the afternoon trying to haze a total of 13
> wild buffalo towards the facility and even hazed the buffalo in the
> direction of volunteers monitoring DOL's efforts endangering the lives of
> those volunteers. By day's end all 13 wild buffalo had moved into a safe
> area and the DOL gave up.
> 
> Buffalo Nations volunteers trespassed onto the land where the capture
> facility is to confront the DOL, but no arrests were made or citations
> handed out.
> 
> Background
> *Last year, nearly 1100 wild buffalo were slaughtered by the Montana's
> Dept. of Livestock and rangers from Yellowstone National Park. These wild
> buffalo were leaving Yellowstone National Park in search of food during
an
> extremely cold and snowy winter. There is no justification for this
> slaughter.
> 
> *Buffalo Nations is a coalition of Native American Traditionalist and
> grassroots activists of all races volunteering to save the last wild
> buffalo in the United States. There are less than 1000 wild buffalo left
in
> the lower 48.
> 
> 
> 
> Buffalo Nations
> PO Box 957
> West Yellowstone, MT 59758
> 406-646-0070 phone
> 406-646-0071 fax
> buffalo@wildrockies.org
>