Michigan Indian

Devastating Forest Fire at Keweenaw Bay Indian Reservation

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From ICT:

MARQUETTE, Mich. – Several American Indian tribes helped plant 12,000 trees across northern Michigan in May during the interfaith EarthKeeper Tree Project including members of an Ojibwa tribe who bravely tried to save 45 sacred spirit houses from being destroyed as two huge forest fires broke out just hours after planting the last seedlings.

Thousands of EarthKeeper volunteers from more than 100 churches and temples planted more than 12,000 white spruce and red pine seedlings measuring 12 to 16 inches tall in all 15 Upper Peninsula counties and Minocqua, Wis., said Catholic EarthKeeper Kyra Fillmore of Marquette, the project distribution coordinator, adding the teams hope “the trees grow strong and tall.”

The EarthKeeper team includes 10 faith traditions with more than 150 participating churches/temples (Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, United Methodist Church, Unitarian Universalist, Baha’i, Jewish, Zen Buddist, Quakers), plus the nonprofits Superior Watershed Partnership and Cedar Tree Institute, as well as the Northern Michigan University EarthKeeper Student Team.

Hours after the last of 12,000 trees were planted, a forest fire on the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community reservation jumped the road ravaging a sacred cemetery.

In an ironic twist, two huge forest fires erupted May 20 destroying thousands of trees only hours after the final ones were planted by members of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community.

Fanned by 40 mile per hour winds with gusts to 60 mph, one inferno in Baraga County rampaged across hundreds of acres of KBIC forest land and into a tribal cemetery used by members of the Zeba Indian Mission United Methodist Church.

Susan J. LaFernier, church member and KBIC vice president, said the fire destroyed 45 sacred spirit houses at the KBIC Pinery Cemetery that has been managed by the Zeba Indian Mission for nearly 200 years.

When the blaze roared across the remote cemetery surrounded by woods LaFernier was raking and preparing to bury her cousin hours after planting the last of the trees.

She and tribal men, who were preparing the grave, jumped into action using anything they could to prevent the fire from reaching the spirit houses; fortunately dozens were saved.

Continue reading →

LTBB Election Results

Kate Fort

From the Petoskey News-Review:

Tribal leadership shifting

By Christina Rohn News-Review Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 1, 2009 9:18 AM EDT
The leadership for the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians will be shifting.On Monday, during the tribe’s general election, the team of 51-year-old Ken Harrington of Petoskey and 63-year-old Dexter McNamara of Pigeon, won the chairman/vice chairman positions over incumbents Frank Ettawageshik and Bill Denemy — with 504 votes to 319.

Each position has a four-year term.

Harrington said when the results came in Monday, he was elated.

“We were right there at the polls … I did the Tiger Woods pump, and immediately left the room and started making calls,” he said. “I’m just thankful and I feel real humble — it’s been a long road.”

Ettawageshik, who has served on tribal government for 20 years — 14 as chairman — said he is ready to help Harrington make the transition into his position.

“I have congratulated Ken on his win, and I’ll be working on a smooth transition from one administration to the other,” he said.

Harrington said he is ready to get to work, and has different priorities for the tribe than the current administration.

“There’s different agendas that I have that Frank has been implementing, or not implementing,” he said. “(Frank) does so much travel, and his time was spread so thin with so many different committees that it was hard to do what needed to be done here at home.

“I hope to get caught up to speed on things — I want to move in as fast as possible.”

Harrington said he has plans to rent out the old Victories Casino building, and focus on renewable energy.

As for the five seats available on tribal council, each having four-year terms, Julie Shananaquet secured her place with 543 votes, John Bott won a spot with 520 votes, Belinda Bardwell took a position with 439 votes, incumbent Melvin Kiogima secured his seat with 402 votes and Aaron Otto rounded out the group of five with 399 votes.

Harrington said he is pleased to see new people getting a chance on the council.

“The new generation is coming in — we’re the younger people,” he said. “The ‘good old boy’ system is going to change — I think it’s good.”

Ettawageshik said he agrees that having new members on the council is positive for the tribe.

“I just think it’s a very healthy and good thing,” he said. “I’m looking forward to getting our council seated and functioning.”

According to Denise Petoskey, chair of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians’ election board, these results are preliminary, and will be certified July 13, and the swearing in will take place Aug. 23.

Continue reading →

Burt Lake Legislative Backers View Casino as a Long Shot

Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

From the radio (?!?!), via Pechanga:

State Rep. Matt Lori reports that – after looking into the possibility of changing state gaming laws to allow the Burt Lake Band to establish an Indian casino in Sturgis – believes the chances are slim.

The Burt Lake Band has tried and failed to receive federal recognition as a tribe four times.  Without federal recognition, they are unable to establish a casino under state gaming laws.

At the request of local developers hoping to bring a casino and the jobs that come with it to the area, Lori agreed to investigate whether it is possible for the tribe to gain official recognition from the state, and modify current Michigan gaming laws to allow the project to move forward.  However, after consulting with legislative legal advisors and leaders in both the House and Senate, Lori said he did not believe it is a feasible option.

“I recognized the potential economic impact in terms of jobs and increased tourism a casino would bring to the area which is why I was willing to look into this issue, but it doesn’t seem possible at the current time,” said Lori, of Constantine.  “The legal hurdles combined with the dynamic in the Legislature are too much to overcome.”

Senator Cameron Brown previously said he believed it would not be possible to gain recognition from the state and modify gaming laws, and Lori’s investigation confirms that position.

“From my point of view it would be fruitless to continue pursuing legislation that has very little hope of succeeding at this time.  Rather than give people false hope, I think we need to move on to find another solution,” Lori said.

Lori said he is willing to meet with developers and city officials on how to best proceed.

Crime News at GTB

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From Indianz:

Clifford Gould Jr., a member of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians of Michigan, was sentenced to life in prison for assaulting three children.

Gould, 47, was convicted of four counts of aggravated sexual abuse and one count of abusive sexual conduct. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan said he attacked three girls at his home on the reservation.

Gould will serve out his entire life sentence because there is no parole in the federal system, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a press release

Get the Story:

Grand Traverse tribe member gets life for child assaults (The Detroit Free Press 6/29)

Muskegon Museum Repatriates Remains

Kate Fort

Eric Hemenway continues his good work up at LTBB:

From the Muskegon Chronicle

Ancient Indian remains reburied with dignity

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

By Marla Miller
mmiller@muskegonchronicle.com

MUSKEGON — The aroma of burning sage, cedar, sweet grass and tobacco swirled into the air at the Old Indian Cemetery Tuesday as about 50 people gathered for the repatriation and reburial of Native American bones.

Native Americans believe burning the cleansing herbs brings good spirits to them, and when smoking tobacco and speaking, the words go directly to God, according to Joseph Genia, a Muskegon resident and member of the Grand River Band of Ottawa Indians, who led the ceremony.

“Grandfather, have pity on us for digging up our relatives and not doing anything about it,” he said as part of the closing prayer. “Have pity on us and bless us here in this life.”

The centuries-old remains of nine West Michigan American Indians were returned to a proper resting place after a long process led by John McGarry, executive director of Lakeshore Museum Center, and Eric Hemenway, of Harbor Springs.

Hemenway is a research repatriation assistant and member of the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians. He works with state and federally recognized tribes to pursue the return of Native American remains and sacred objects.

Continue reading →

Kimberly Teehee Appointed to White House Position

Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

“This is an important appointment and one that bodes well for Michigan Tribes. Teehee worked in Kildee’s office for years and understands the needs of MI tribes better than many other possible appointees.” N.R.

From the NYTs:

President Obama made good on a campaign promise to have an American Indian adviser in the White House to counsel him on tribal issues. He appointed Kimberly Teehee as a senior policy adviser for Native American affairs. Ms. Teehee is a member of the Cherokee Nation and has worked for Representative Dale E. Kildee, Democrat of Michigan, for the last decade. She will be a member of Mr. Obama’s domestic policy council.

Nottawaseppi Huron Band to Contract Police Services to Local Village

Kate Fort

From the Battle Creek Enquirer:
Athens, Potawatomi police plans move ahead
Council says up to $25,000 may be available next year
Justin A. Hinkley • The Enquirer • June 11, 2009

ATHENS — The Athens Village Council said it can spare $20,000 to $25,000 from its 2010-11 budget to subcontract police services from the local Potawatomi.

Council President Mike Alverson said that, because the village recently purchased several pieces of large equipment and finished major maintenance projects that won’t soon be repeated, money from those funds could be re-allocated in next year’s budget for the police service.

The village has been in talks for months with the Athens Township-based Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi, which in January established a one-man police force that it hopes to soon expand with federal grants. Athens has been without dedicated police service since the mid-1980s and has had problems with vandalism and thefts.

Continue reading →

Michigan Indian Legal Services Newsletter

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

MILS_Spring_2009_Newsletter

Interlochen Public Radio on Saginaw Chippewa Reservation Boundary Case

Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

From IPR:

The Saginaw-Chippewa Indian Tribe won a victory last month in an ongoing lawsuit over the boundaries of Indian land in Isabella County. The suit has yet to go to trial, but it’s been in court for years.

Should the tribe win, it would exert tribal sovereignty throughout five townships, and half the city of Mt. Pleasant.

Just what that would mean is still not clear to Mt. Pleasant’s Mayor, Jim Holton. “Well the city has several concerns, obviously, with this. And it’s still a lot of theory. It’s still a lot of ’What if’s.’”

Some of Holton’s big “What if’s” include questions of zoning, law enforcement, and taxation. “Who to tax, how can we tax. Can we collect on tax? It’s obviously vital to our survival as a city, with infrastructure, roads and all those things.”

Saginaw-Chippewa leaders do not want to comment on ongoing litigation. But Matthew Fletcher says – as he understands it – those last two are also some of the tribe’s biggest concerns: taxation and law enforcement. Fletcher runs the Indigenous Law Center at Michigan State University.

Continue reading →

Michigan Casino Market Stagnant

Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Old news….

From the K’zoo Gazette:

The gaming-market “pie” has grown only slightly while being sliced into smaller pieces, analysts say

BY CHRIS KNAPE | Gazette News Service

Michigan’s economy is down, its unemployment is up and the auto industry is in a battle for its life.

But when it came to spending on lady luck at casinos, the state bucked national trends until winter set in.

Revenue at Michigan’s three commercial (non-Indian) casinos was up 1.3 percent in 2008, while commercial casinos around the country saw revenue decline 4.7 percent from record 2007 levels, according to state data and a study by the American Gaming Association.

Michigan’s tribal casinos, though not tracked by the association, also saw some revenue growth, based on records of payments they made via their state revenue-sharing agreements.

But growth in that sector was scattered, driven by the first full year of operations at the Four Winds Casino in New Buffalo.

“It’s a dynamic where you don’t know if it’s an aberration, or if it’s a peculiarity of the Michigan market,” said Eric Bush, administrative manager for the Michigan Gaming Control Board, which regulates the state’s casinos.

“It doesn’t seem to be making a downturn and following the economy.”

The upward trend is not expected to continue, however. Eric Kalm, executive director of the MGCB, said the big question now for the state is how big of a revenue drop it should expect.

Continue reading →