On the surface, the dispute that took center stage at last Monday night’s Charlestown Town Council meeting focused on proposed con­tract changes for Joseph Larisa, Jr., the town’s solicitor in charge of handling Indian affairs.
But it wasn’t hard to see the issue lurking just beneath the surface – the one on the mind of virtually every resident in the room. It was­n’t the status of a lawyer’s contract; it was residents’ concern about a potential Narragansett Indian Tribe casino. And it was a concern both justified and real.
Four months ago, Rhode Islanders emphatically shot down a con­stitutional change that would have allowed the Charlestown-based Narragansett tribe and its partner, Harrah’s Entertainment of Las Vegas, to build a casino off Interstate 95 in West Warwick. And one might think those opposed to casino gaming in the Ocean State would be able to relax. With a 2-to-1 verdict against the tribe’s West Warwick plans, federal officials and perhaps even the tribe should have gotten the message that a casino shouldn’t even be on the table, right?
Wrong. Since the November vote, Narragansett Chief Sachem Matthew Thomas has already floated the idea of pursuing a Newport Grand-style slots parlor on tribal land in Charlestown. He has lobbied federal lawmakers about repealing the Chafee Amendment – the fed­eral legislative rider that’s essentially blocked the tribe from making local use of the Indian Gaming Act. And while the majority of Rhode Island’s federal lawmakers now stand in support of the Chafee Amendment and against a casino, Thomas has found a friend in U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy – whose 1st congressional district lies north and east of South County.
In the meantime, there are reports that Narragansett officials have at least contacted officials in other area towns about land availabili­ty. And, during Larisa’s contact hearing last week, he and Charlestown Councilor Harriet Allen noted concerns over the poten­tial for the tribe to acquire additional land contiguous to its settle­ment lands, then pushing the case for expanded trust territory or a federal “Indian country” designation that’s been used in Connecticut and elsewhere.
Translation: The talk of an Indian casino in Rhode Island – partic­ularly in Charlestown – is very much alive. And groups who fought so hard to bring out the “no” vote last November must be committed to continuing that fight.
Thankfully, there are signs they recognize that. Over the past two months, town councilors throughout South County – including neigh­bors Charlestown and Westerly – have unanimously passed resolu­tions calling on Rhode Island’s congressional delegation to keep the Chafee Amendment in place. And the Rhode Island Statewide Coalition – formerly the Shoreline Coalition – has conducted exten­sive signature efforts to drive home the same point.
Residents on the grass-roots level have also clearly recognized the need and mobilized. Addressing the Charlestown Town Council last Monday night, Council President Katharine Waterman made it clear that, if the council followed Town Administrator Edward Barrett’s rec­ommendation to cut Larisa’s retainer from $2,000 per month to $300, Larisa would understandably take a hike. And John Goodman – founder of the fledgling Charlestown Citizens Alliance – said that, if the council forced out perhaps the state’s foremost Indian Affairs attorney, residents would consider that a “pro-casino” vote by the council. Minutes later, the council voted unanimously to renew Larisa’s contract, and keep the town’s Indian Affairs attorney in place. And some 200 residents delivered a standing ovation.
It would be nice if the day comes when residents of Charlestown, other South County communities, and other cities and towns throughout the state could relax and not have to worry that a poten­tial casino is lurking around so many court verdicts and pieces of leg­islation, especially on the federal level. Voters, after all, had turned thumbs down on allowing casino gambling in 1994, and this past November’s 2-to-1 vote came despite a renewed push by supporters who touted the need to keep Rhode Island gambling money from fun­neling into Connecticut – and it came despite a $17-million Harrah’s election campaign.
But that day is not here yet. Some people – from the Narragansetts and their supporters to Congressman Kennedy – still haven’t gotten the message.
That means all of us have to keep shouting – even four months after November’s loud and emphatic “no.”