And now THIS dated from this past Thursday–She might want to add here that when they originally filed the “rights” case against the state …they said they wanted around 2 dozen walleyes per year for “ceremonial purposes”. That 2 dozen grew to 71 tons a year….So Dear Melanie–maybe look in the mirror!!
“Melanie Benjamin
August 11 at 8:36pm ·
A MESSAGE TO BAND MEMBERS:
Aaniin, This seems to be the summer of broken promises made to the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe. First, the County broke our law enforcement agreement, and so far, the State of Minnesota has turned a blind eye to this public safety crisis. Now, the State of Minnesota has broken its agreement on the ogaa (walleye) harvest for the second year in a row,…and has asked for our understanding.
This matter was decided by the U.S. Supreme Court. In the State’s disregard for a federal court order, what happens next will be determined collectively by us and all the impacted Bands.
The State’s allocation for 2016 was 28,600 pounds and the Band allocation was 11,400 pounds. As responsible stewards of the resource and out of concern for the ogaa, the Bands have remained under our allocation. As requested by our Drum Keepers and Elders, all of the Bands have sacrificed greatly in taking much less than our communities need. The State, however, has not exercised the same restraint, going over its allocation by at least 10,000 pounds, and maybe more. And they are not stopping.
While the Mille Lacs Band depends on the lake more so than the other Bands, this issue also affects Fond du Lac and the Wisconsin Bands. Our Band and Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC) biologists and scientists are hard at work analyzing the State’s calculations and scrutinizing the basis for their decision to keep the lake open. Preliminary indications are that politics played a bigger role than science — or concern for future generations — in the State’s decision to violate the court order and leave the lake open.
Our foremost concern is protecting the ogaa for future generations and protecting your rights as Band Members. Our attorneys who have represented the Band on our treaty rights litigation for the past 30 years – and who won that case in the U.S. Supreme Court – are working closely with GLIFWC and attorneys from other Bands to determine our best legal options to protect the lake and our rights.
As has been our history, the Band has kept our promise. But in violation of the court order, the promise was broken on the other side. We will do whatever we must to ensure the ogaa are protected for generations to come.
Someone needs to protect the lake. The Mille Lacs Band will certainly do so. I know that we can count on the other Bands to stand with us, even if the State chooses not to. As with our Treaties and our other rights, the Band will fight for justice, for our rights and for our future. Miigwech.
(they have consumed 11,400 pounds and the rest of the states anglers have consumed ZERO) if her letter wasn’t so stupid, I would laugh.