More than 100 Haskell Indian Nations University students, faculty and alumni took part in a Tuesday forum on protecting lands considered sacred.

“Wow, I’m pleased to see so many people here,” said Dan Wildcat, an American Indian Studies professor at Haskell.

Wildcat joined Michael Yellow Bird, director of Kansas University’s Center for Indigenous Studies, and Lucia Orth, a lawyer and an adjunct professor at Haskell, in a panel discussion aimed at drawing parallels between ongoing efforts to route the South Lawrence Trafficway through the Baker Wetlands and plans to clear 100 acres of forest in the San Francisco Peaks area near Flagstaff, Ariz., to expand ski runs.

Among American Indians, both areas are considered sacred.

A documentary film on the San Francisco Peaks controversy, “The Snowbowl Effect,” was shown prior to the discussion.

Wildcat warned the audience that national efforts to lower the barriers between church and state will be disastrous for Indians and their beliefs. He predicted a “very frontal attack on Indian sovereignty in Congress” within five to 10 years.

Yellow Bird urged the group to view the United States’ presence in Iraq within the context of its efforts to eradicate Indians.

“They’re both what I call territorial colonialism,” Yellow Bird said.

All three speakers said the strength to fend off attacks on Indian culture lies with education, unity and the mastering of technology.

“We are going to need some warriors and some lifetime volunteers to step up,” Wildcat said.