WHATCOM COUNTY, Wash. – The United Nations is calling on the federal government to stop the evictions of disenrolled members of the Nooksack Tribe.
UN human rights experts say in a statement that many of the 63 people being evicted are elderly, disabled, or suffer from chronic illness.
They live in homes that were built by the tribe with money from the federal department of Housing and Urban Development.
Some have lived in their homes for more than a decade and the UN agency says the evictions would deny them their right to community and culture.
Evictions were set to happen in late December, but tribal leaders say they will resume later this month.
The Nooksack Tribal Council has moved in recent years to disenroll more than 300 members it says can’t show a lineal connection to the tribe.