Freep’s Mike Thompson on Michigan Mascot Issue

Here. With accompanying comic:

Michigan schools-American Indians-education

News Coverage of BMIC/Sault Tribe Off-Rez Gaming Bills

From the Detroit Free Press:

WASHINGTON – The House Judiciary Committee is set to work on a couple of bills on Wednesday that would allow for two new Indian casinos in Michigan – even though another committee has already approved them.

It could set up an interesting jurisdictional question for the House.
A couple months ago, the Natural Resources Committee voted overwhelmingly in favor of the two pieces of legislation, which would authorize land swaps with two tribes, resulting in new casinos in Romulus and Port Huron. That vote was expected to send the bills to the House floor.

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Freep Opposes Bay Mills and Sault Tribe Bills

From the Detroit Free Press:

Say no to a bad precedent on casinos

Among John Engler’s last acts as governor of Michigan — on Dec. 30, 2002, to be precise — was approving a land claim settlement with two Upper Peninsula Indian tribes that gave them rights to property for two separate casinos in southeast Michigan. The settlement was long overdue, but the terms Engler allowed were way too generous to the tribes.

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Sault Tribe Police Chief Scandal

From the Detroit Free Press (H/T Indianz):

Assault case topples Greektown Casino chairman:Acccused by a woman, he’s also suspended as cop

The chairman of the Greektown Casino board of directors has been forced to step down after being accused of assaulting a woman who fought off his sexual advances.

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BMIC and Sault Tribe Bills News Coverage

From Indianz:

Michigan off-reservation gaming bills delayed


The House Natural Resources Committee was due to consider two off-reservation gaming bills on Thursday but they were delayed due to opposition from Michigan. H.R. 2176 and H.R. 4115 settle land claims for the Bay Mills Indian Community and the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, respectively. The bills allow the tribes to open casinos away from their existing reservations. The bills have the support of some members of Michigan’s Congressional delegation. But Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Michigan) opposes them and got House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) to pull them from the committee’s markup yesterday, The Detroit Free Press reported. Rep. John Conyers (D-Michigan) also opposes the legislation, the paper said. “I will not call up those bills today,” Rep. Nick Rahall (D-West Virginia), the chairman of the committee, said yesterday in response to the controversy.

Get the Story:
Casino proposals for Port Huron, Romulus on hold (The Detroit Free Press 11/15)
Dice yet to be rolled on new casinos (SooToday 11/15)

And Yet More Press Coverage of Inland Settlement

From the Detroit Free Press: “Some people argue that Indians who exercise their treaty rights should be required to use only the fishing and hunting gear available in 1836. But the treaty doesn’t say that, and if you read histories of northern Michigan in the 1830s, when Sault Ste. Marie was a much bigger town than Detroit, you’ll realize that the Indians already had a fairly substantial commercial net fishery going to supply the needs of their tribesmen and the white settlers.”

More Press Coverage of Inland Settlement

Detroit Free Press: ” QUESTION: Why didn’t the state fight the Indian treaty rights in court? ANSWER: That’s the route Michigan took in the 1970s Great Lakes case and that Wisconsin and Minnesota elected to follow in the 1990s with even more disastrous results for sportsmen. Those other states got a series of rulings that not only upheld the treaty rights of the Indians but gave them 50% of the walleye quotas in inland lakes, allowed them to use gill nets and created inland commercial walleye fisheries.” Exactly!

Escanaba Daily Press: “The federal courts have consistently held that the passage of time changes nothing from when the original treaties were signed. It could be considered as similar to how our Constitution has held up without other interpretation, in providing our rights as citizens.”

Alpena News: “Avoiding litigation over the issue was a huge accomplishment – saving both sides a lot of money and needless aggravation. Tribal members seem content that their basic cultural identity and rights both were recognized and reserved, while conservationists seem satisfied safeguards are in place to scientifically manage our natural resources for generations into the future.”