- Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe
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The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe (Ojibwe language: Misi-zaaga'igani Anishinaabeg), also known as the Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa Indians or the Mille Lacs Band of Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, is an Ojibwa tribe located in Minnesota. The tribe boasts 3,942 tribal members as of July, 2007. Their land-base is the Mille Lacs Indian Reservation, consisting of two reservations and nine communities defined in the tribal constitution, aggregated into three districts.
Contents
Clans
There are eight major doodem types found among the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe. They are Bizhiw (Lynx), Makwa (Bear), Waabizheshi (Marten) Awaazisii (Bullhead), Mai'ingan (Wolf), Migizi (Bald Eagle), Name (Sturgeon) and Moozens (Little Moose). Due to the historical Mille Lacs Band of Mdewakanton Dakota that formed in part the historical Mille Lacs Indians and the Snake River Band of Isanti Dakota that became part of the historical St. Croix Band of Lake Superior Chippewa that survives today in part as the St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Minnesota, Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe have a high degree of Mai'ingan-doodem members.[1]
History
The historical tribes forming the contemporary Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe became part of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe in the 1930s. In 1922, the various Chippewa Indian Agencies located across northern Minnesota were consolidated to form the Consolidated Chippewa Agency, based out of Cass Lake, Minnesota. Under the supervision of the Consolidated Chippewa Agency, Minnesota Chippewa Tribe was organized on July 24, 1936 under the authority of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934.
Before that time, the historical tribes now forming the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe were the Mille Lacs Indians, Sandy Lake Band of Mississippi Chippewa, Rice Lake Band of Mississippi Chippewa and the St. Croix Chippewa Indians. The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe was chartered by the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe on October 8, 1939. Inclusion of the Sandy Lake Band of Mississippi Chippewa in this charter caused a dispute between the Mille Lacs Indians and the Sandy Lake Band of Mississippi Chippewa. The Sandy Lake Band had been recognized as an independent tribe up until it was mentioned in this document. The Sandy Lake Band is no longer independently recognized by the United States federal government, although it retains its own reservation and community, the Gaa-mitaawangaagamaag , in Mille Lacs Band District II.
The Indian Reorganization Act, together with the Charter of the Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa Indians, also effectively divided the St. Croix Chippewa Indians into three groups: The St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Minnesota and two separate St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin. Like the Sandy Lake Band, the St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Minnesota became part of the Mille Lacs Band under the Band charter. Similarly, the St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin divided between those who came under the tribal charter of Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians and those who sought and got full Federal Recognition, independent of both the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe and the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.
The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe owns and operates Grand Casino Hinckley and Grand Gasino Mille Lacs. The tribe has seen an economic boost since it has opened the two casinos, along with several other businesses, since the early 1990s. Using the generated revenues, the tribe has begun to aggressively invest in community infrastructure and community futures.
Tribal government
The tribal government structure of the Mille Lacs Band is unique in that it is one of the few Native American governments with three branches of government, modeled after the government structure of the United States.
Executive branch
The current Chief Executive of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe is Marge Anderson. The executive branch houses majority of the tribal government's departments, headed by commissioners appointed by the Chief Executive.
- Department of Justice, headed by the Solicitor General
- Office of the Solicitor General
- Office of Public Safety
- Motor Vehicle Licensing
- Office of Emergency Management
- Corporate Commission, headed by the Commissioner of Corporate Affairs
- Band Member Development
- Corporate Commission-owned Businesses
- Small Business Development
- Administrative Department, headed by the Commissioner of Administration
- Band Governance
- Facilities Management
- Grants Management
- Human Resources
- Information Services
- Department of Community Development, headed by the Commissioner of Community Development
- Housing Department
- Housing Loans
- Housing Maintenance
- Resident Services
- Public Works Department
- Planning and Zoning
- Roads
- Sanitation
- Water and Sewer
- Facilities Maintenance
- Project Management
- Housing Department
- Department of Health and Human Services, headed by the Commissioner of Health and Human Services
- Ne-Ia-Shing Clinic
- District II Clinic Services
- Aazhoomog Clinic
- Public Health Department
- Behavioral Health Services
- Family Services
- Community Support Services
- Department of Natural Resources and Environment, headed by the Commissioner of Natural Resources
- Office of Natural Resource Management
- Conservation Enforcement
- Forestry and Wildfire Management
- Land Maintenance
- Natural Resources Licensing and Permitting
- Real Estate
- Wildlife and Fisheries
- Wildrice Management
- Office of the Environment
- Air
- Brownfield
- Energy and Eco-systems
- General Environmental Assistance
- Water and Septic
- Office of Culture
- Tribal Historic Preservation Office
- Tribal Operations
- Office of Natural Resource Management
- Department of Education, headed by the Commissioner of Education
- Nay Ah Shing Schools
- Nay Ah Shing Lower School
- Nay Ah Shing Upper School
- Minisinaakwaang Leadership Academy
- Pine Grove Leadership Academy
- Early Education
- District II East Lake Education Program
- District III Aazhoomog Education Outreach Program
- Community Youth Services
- Higher Education
- Library
- Cultural Immersion
- Nay Ah Shing Schools
Legislative branch
The current Secretary Treasurer of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe is Curt Kalk.
- Band Assembly
- Legislative Administration
- Office of Budget and Management, headed by the Commissioner of Finance, appointed by Band Assembly
- Employee Payroll Services
- Insurance Services
- Revolving Loan Fund
- Burial Insurance
- Discretionary Loans
Judicial branch
The Chief Justice of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, Rayna Mattinas
- Tribal Court
- District Court Liaison Services
List of Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Chiefs
Chairman
- late 1930s: ???
- 1940s: Sam Yankee
- early 1950s: Fred Jones
- late 1950s: Jerry Martin
- 1959–1964: James Shaugobay
- 1964–1965: Raining Boyd (interim appointment)
- 1965–1972: Sam Yankee
- 1972–1991: Arthur Gahbow
- 1991–1992: Marge Anderson (interim appointment)
Chief Executive
- 1992–2000: Marge Anderson
- 2000–2008: Melanie Benjamin
- 2008–2008: Herbert Weyaus (interim appointment)
- 2008–present: Marge Anderson
Notable members
- Maude Kegg
- Jammie Thomas
- Melanie Benjamin
See also
- Minnesota Chippewa Tribe
- Minnesota Indian Affairs Council
- United States v. Mille Lac Band of Chippewa Indians, 229 U.S. 498 (1913)
- Minnesota v. Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa Indians, 526 U.S. 127 (1999)
References
- ^ Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission's Mazina'igan article on Clans and Mille Lacs Band Clans
- Buffalohead, Roger and Priscilla Buffalohead. Against the Tide of American History: The Story of Mille Lacs Anishinabe. Minnesota Chippewa Tribe (Cass Lake, MN: 1985).
- A Comprehensive Guide to The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Government. Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe General Assembly (Vineland, MN: 1996).
- Minnesota Indian Affairs Council
- Aaniin Ekidong: Ojibwe Vocabulary Project. St. Paul: Minnesota Humanities Center, 2009.
- Treuer, Anton. Ojibwe in Minnesota. St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2010.
- Treuer, Anton. Living Our Language: Ojibwe Tales & Oral Histories. St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2001.
External links
- The official website of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe
- Copy of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe's Charter for the Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa Indians
- Bemaadizing: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Indigenous Life (An online journal)
- Eni–gikendaasoyang "Moving Towards Knowledge Together" Center for Indigenous Knowledge and Language Revitalization
- Mille Lacs Indian Museum Historic Site
Mississippi Chippewa Full political Successors Mille Lacs • White EarthMinor political Successors Lake Superior Chippewa Full political Successors Bad River • Bois Forte • Fond du Lac • Grand Portage • Keweenaw Bay • Lac Courte Oreilles • Lac du Flambeau • Lac Vieux Desert • Red Cliff • Sokaogon • St. CroixMinor political Successors Leech Lake • Mille Lacs • White EarthCategories:- Ojibwe
- Native American tribes in Minnesota
- Department of Justice, headed by the Solicitor General
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