Cocopah Indian Reservation

The Cocopah Indian Reservation is the reservation of the federally recognized Cocopah Indian Tribe (Cocopah: Xawiłł Kwñchawaay),^[1] which represents Cocopah peoples in the United States. As of the 2000 census a resident population of 1,025 persons, of whom 519 were solely of Native American heritage, lived on the 25.948 km² (10.019 sq mi) Cocopah Indian Reservation, which is composed of three non-contiguous sections in Yuma County, Arizona, lying northwest, southwest and south of the city of Yuma, Arizona.^[2] The larger section, bordering the Colorado River, lies west of the Yuma suburb of Somerton, while the other section lies just east of Somerton.

There is a casino and bingo hall on the reservation.^[3] Another Yuman group, the Quechan, lives in the adjacent Fort Yuma Indian Reservation.

History

The Cocopah Indian Reservation was created in 1917 by executive order of US President Woodrow Wilson.^[4] In 1964, the tribe established its first constitution and established a tribal council.^[5] In 1985, the tribe received an additional 4,200 acres, including the northern portion of the reservation, through the Cocopah Land Acquisition Bill signed by President Ronald Reagan. In 2022, containers were erected along the border with Mexico. They were erected by Arizona in response to the Mexico–United States border crisis. The tribe has protested the presence of the containers on their land.^[6] Disputes over construction of the Mexico–United States border wall in tribal land have been ongoing since 2020.^[7]