SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 989
         WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas is pleased to
  recognize the Texas Band of Yaqui Indians; and
         WHEREAS, The Texas Band of Yaqui Indians are descendants of
  the Yaqui Indian Nation whose members inhabited the Sonoran
  Desert region of Mexico and the Southern United States long
  before modern borders were established; and
         WHEREAS, The tribal members were driven out of Mexico under
  threat of genocide; under the leadership of Ya'ut Ave'lino, the Yaqui
  Indians traveled north, and by the 1870s, a band of tribespeople had
  settled in the Township of Presidio and Fort Davis; and
         WHEREAS, Surviving members of the Yaqui tribe were
  instructed to never speak of their identity in public, as they
  continued to fear for their survival, yet their history was
  passed down through oral tribal storytelling; descendants of
  Ya'ut Ave'lino contributed information relating to their tribe's
  unique past to the Pascua Yaqui Tribe in Arizona, and
  documentation exists today at the Presidio Historical Society
  and the Overland Trails Museum in Fort Davis; the members of the
  Texas Band of Yaqui Indians now exist openly and have preserved
  their traditions by establishing the Texas Yaqui Bow Leaders
  Coyote Society, which is based in Lubbock; and
         WHEREAS, The Yaqui Indians of Sonora were the subject of a
  series of ethnohistorical expeditions organized by Texas Tech
  University beginning in 1934; a commemorative symposium and
  expedition celebrating the 50-year relationship between the
  university and the Yaqui Indians took place in 1984; and
         WHEREAS, Despite many years of adversity, the Texas Band of
  Yaqui Indians represents a proud and noble group of people who
  were never conquered, and tribe members work diligently to pay
  tribute to their ancestral history and preserve the Yaqui Indian
  culture and language; now, therefore, be it
         RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 84th
  Legislature, hereby honor the members of the Texas Band of Yaqui Indians
  and extend to them best wishes for the future; and, be it further
         RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared in
  their honor and as an expression of esteem from the Texas Senate.
 
  Perry
   
   
   
    ________________________________ 
        President of the Senate
     
        I hereby certify that the
    above Resolution was adopted by
    the Senate on May 27, 2015.
   
   
   
    ________________________________ 
        Secretary of the Senate
   
   
   
    ________________________________ 
         Member, Texas Senate