The Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 1994-08-12

              Resident files civil rights suit against Little
Earth management
By Gary Blair
A Hennepin County Unlawful
Detainer Court [eviction court] Judge
called the case "strange."
Littie Earth of United Tribe's management, the Westminster Management Corporation, said in their termination notice it was "material noncompliance" of the lease.
On Wednesday of this week White
Earth enrollee Bernadine (Rock) Gordon, resident ofthe Little Earth Housing Project located in south Minneapolis, was ready to have her eviction
case heard when a last minute agreement was reached. That agreement
will allowthe Native American mother
of five to stay in her home for another
four months, a place were she has
lived for nearly seven years.
The eviction agreement also offers
her a letter of recommendation when
she moves. But Gordon, who has filed
a civil rights complaint against her
landlord involving her 2-year-old son
who has cancer, would not drop her
complaint as part of the settlement.
Her reasons for fighting the eviction
included a number of issues that made
the case unusual.
According to Westminster's eviction notice, Gordon's oldest son was
the focus of their complaint. They
alleged that he used profanity to address the resident caretaker; wrote on
Little Earth walls with markers; attempted to escape security through a
second floor window; attempted to
kick open a tenant's door while identifying himself as a "Vicelord" gang
member; firing a 22 gage shotgun out
of his window; and numerous curfew
violations.
"Oh, the mother is a very nice person, it was her son that was out of
control," said one Little Earth Resident.
Gordon says the things they alleged against her son were never cor
roborated and her son is now working
and doesn't live with her anymore.
Little Earth residents the PRESS
spoke with say difficulties with her ill
child caused her to be away from
home a lot and she didn't know what
the oldest one (18) had been doing.
The issues behind Gordon's eviction appear to be part of a growing
movement to "clean-up" Little Earth
as a result ofthe activities taking place
during and since the Clyde Bellecourt
drug selling days at the housing
project.
As a result of the new clean-up
efforts, a nonprofit board of directors
approved by HUD has been put in
place and that group plans to purchase
and manage the complex.
PRESS sources say local HUD officials wanted to make sure that Clyde
Bellecourt didn't have any input in
their plans to sell the 22-year-old ur-
Suit continued on page 3
Ruling on undercounting of minorities could
benefit big cities
New York, N.Y. (AP) Big cities could
get more federal money and political
muscle under a court ruling that said
theBushadministration failed to justify
the undercounting of minorities in the
1990 census.
Southern California and Arizona also
would gain a congressional seat each,
at the expense of Wisconsin and
Pennsylvania, if the decision by the
Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is
allowed to stand. States also could be
forced to redraw congressional and
legislative districts.
"It is another step up the road of
achieving equal votes for equal numbers
of persons," said Robert Rifltind, a
lawyer who helped argue the case for
New York City. The ruling compares
with such voting milestones as the 14th
Amendment, women's suffrage and the
voting Rights Act, he said Tuesday.
The Clinton administration wouldn't
say if it would challenge or accept the
ruling, which likely would benefit
Democrats by boosting the official
population in areas with many
minorities - mostly big cities that tend
to vote heavily Democratic. It won't
affect this fall's elections, but funding
shifts could start within a few months,
according to lawyers who argue the
case.
The Census Bureau has known for
decades that minorities are more
difficult to reach and therefore
undercounted in the population
surveys it takes every ten years.
During the 1980s the agency devised
a formula to statistically adjust the
figures and better reflect the nation's
true population.
The adjustment would increase the
nation's official 1990 population by
about 5 million, to nearly 255 million,
to offset undercounting of blacks,
Hispanics, American Indians and
those of Asian or Pacific island decent.
The Census bureau estimated that
Hispanics were undercounted in 1990
by 5.2 percent, American Indians by
5 percent, blacks by 4.8 percent and
Asians and Pacific islanders by 3,1
percent.
Court says tribe isn't immune to casino suit
By Chris Ison
Staff Writer
Minneapolis Star Tribune
The Minnesota Court of Appeals
has ruled that an Indian tribe cannot
claim sovereign immunity in a lawsuit brought by a former casino contractor, a decision that further weakens a key defense for many tribes in
Minnesota and perhaps around the
country.
The ruling was based partly on a
federally recognized charter that the
Prairie Island Sioux in Red Wing and
other tribes adopted more than five
decades ago. Attorneys on both sides
ofthe case, which involves a tour bus
director working for Treasure Island
Casino, say the decision could be devastating for many tribes.
Outsiders' ability to sue tribes has
become a major issue with the emergence of Indian gaming and other
spin-off businesses. As tribes have
begun conducting more business with
outside contractors, lessors and others, and as they've begun hiring thousands of employees, litigation and
potential litigation have increased.
But tribes often have claimed they
can't be sued in state courts because
they are considered sovereign nations.
The decision handed down Tuesday
takes away that argument in this case
and could weaken it in others.
"The importance [ofthe decision] is
that sovereign immunity is being
chipped away at, particularly when it
comes to business," saidattorney Craig
Greenberg.
Greenberg represents Brent Johnson
a tour bus operator who was hired by
the tribe and whose job was eliminated two months later, according to
his suit. Johnson is suingfor $854,000
in back pay, claiming fraud and discrimination.
He says the tribe persuaded him to
AIM tribunal to reconvene in Minneapolis
By Shelley Davis
The tribunal ofthe Confederation of
Autonomous Chapters ofthe American Indian Movement, which began
in San Rafael, California is scheduled
to reconvene in Minneapolis in September.
The idea of a tribunal came out of
Edgewood, New Mexico when 17
American Indian Movement chapters
gathered and discussed similar situations they were having with the National American Indian Movement,
Inc. (N-AIM) in Minneapolis. The
Edgewood meeting occurred in December 1993.
A five person panel of indigenous
peoples found Clyde and Vernon
Bellecourt (representatives ofN- AIM)
guilty of subversion of the American
Indian Movement (ATM), its principles and activities. It also found
Clyde Bellecourt guilty ofthe use, sale
and/or distribution of drugs and alcohol to American Indian people, according to the panel's statement. Other
charges were not discussed due to the
limited scheduling ofthe San Rafael
tribunal. The remaining charges will
be heard when the tribunal reconvenes and sentencing will be rendered
upon its completion.
The panel listened closely as a soft
spoken young woman testified that
Clyde had used drugs during "informal" meetings as recently as 1992.
She stated she was 17 at the time she
witnessed Clyde, Bill Means and her
father getting "high" during these "informal" meetings and she said her
younger siblings (one of whom was
eight years old at the time) were present
during the meetings. She said she was
told the meetings were "informal AIM
meetings."
She also said Clyde and her father
would give the young children attending the meetings marijuana. She said
she had heard that some Indian youth
had been selling drugs for Clyde.
"And I would see kids come up to
Clyde and ask if he... if Clyde could
front money to them," she said.
Joe Locust, panelist, stopped the
young woman and asked, "You say,
you have heard?"
"Yes. And I would see kids come up
to him and they would go off in private
and talk," she replied.
She was in Minnesota during that
time after being released from a substance abuse treatment program and
was trying to remain drug and alcohol
free, she testified.
Her testimony, along with documentation of Clyde's drug usage in
the past, including a conviction in the
1980's for distribution, was brought
forth to the panel as evidence.
Evidence submitted concerning
charge one, subversion ofthe American Indian Movement, its principles
and activities included oral testimony
from about one dozen people and documentation including statements made
to the media by the Bellecourts and
their associates, transcriptions of
speeches, letters and position statements, as well as other documentation. Also available to the panel was
the opening statement and invitation
to Minneapolis which Clyde had presented at the opening ofthe tribunal.
Oral testimony given included discussions concerning blood quantum,
"legitimate" and ''recognized" AIM
chapters, appointments of AIM chapters and leaders by the N-AIM (National American Indian Movement,
Inc.) in areas where ADM chapters
already exist and are actively functioning. Some of the testimony was
documented by statements to the media by N-AJM and its recognized chapters and through telephone conversation transcriptions.
Vernon said in an interview, in order for a group to be "legitimate" ADM
chapter, the group must "have a board
of directors from the within the Indian
community." He said the chapters are
sanctioned and must incorporate to
get tax exempt grants from founda-
AIM tribunal continued on page 4
Leech Lake man receives intertribal plaque/ pg 5
Indians need newspapers free of censorship/ pg 4
Aquash murder case reopened/ page 1
RLTC mtg. to reconvene-on item 9, 8/12/94/ pg 5
MIAC exec, director position readvert./ pg 6
i
Voice of the Anishinabeg (The People)
1
The
Fifty Cents
But in 1991, Bush administration
Commerce Secretary Robert
Mosbacher rejected adjusting the
count- even though he acknowledged
that minorities were undercounted.
He said it would "abandon a 200-year
tradition of how we actually count
people." The commerce Department
oversees the Census Bureau.
The government was sued by New
York City, Los Angeles, Atlanta and
Houston and the National Association
for the Advancement of Colored
People. Last year a federal court in
New York City threw out the lawsuit,
declaring that Mosbacher's decision
wasn't arbitrary or capricious.
The Appeals Court, in a 2-1 ruling
Monday, sent the case back to the
lower court and set a much stricter
standard for the government to meet
in defending a decision not to adjust
the census count. Now the government
must show the decision is "essential
to the achievement of a legitimate
government interest," notmerely that
it wasn't arbitrary or capricious.
Ojibwe
News
We Support Equal Opportunity For All People
1
Founded in 1988      Volume G   Issue 7      August 12, 1994
A weekly publication.
Copyright, The Ojibwe News,  1 994
sell his tour bus company to the tribe
and then operate it as a tribal employee. The tribe then fired him and
took over the business, eliminating
competition in the busing business,
which brings thousands to the casino
daily, he says.
He also says that he was discriminated against because he is white, and
that he was fired after casino officials
told him they wanted him to stop
busing black people to the casino.
Tribal representatives have denied
the claims, which have not been
brought to trial because of the sovereignty issue.
Some of those representatives met
Thursday to determine whether to appeal to the state Supreme Court, and
their attorney said he thinks an appeal
could be successful.
"I think it's a case that's vastly out
of line with federal precedence," said
Suit continued on page 3
WELRP spokespersons Robert Shimek (L) and Winona LaDuke (M) explain to Solway logger Paul
Lundberg why they blockaded a road in northern Becker County Monday. Photo by Tim Kjos
White Earth group blockades road over
owner/timber dispute
By Nate Bowe and Tim Kjos
Staff Writers
Detroit Lakes Tribune
Members ofthe White Earth Land
Recovery Project blocked a Solway
logging company from using a road
to harvest Becker County owned timber Monday.
The action caught Paul Lundberg,
his son and employees by surprise
early that afternoon, as well county
officials.
Tuesday, the Becker County commissioners and the county Natural
Resources Department reviewed possible options if the stalemate couldn't
be resolved.
WELRP representatives claim the road
leading to the 24-acre timber site owned
by the county is on their property.
WELRP owns 715 acres about 10
miles east of White Earth. The nonprofit organization purchased the
property in 1992 as a means of restoring the White Earth reservation's land
base. WELRP is not turning the property over to tribal trust, however.
Lundberg began logging at the site
last week. WELRP commumty organizer Robert Shimek discovered the
activity Monday monu% while tending to unrelated matters at their property.
By 1:30 p.m., Shimek and WELRP
campaign director Winona LaDuke
had parked two vehicles on the one-
lane, tree-lined road to prevent travel
to and from the logging site approximately one mile away.
LaDuke and Shimek mowed some
tall grass for a tipi and lit a "sacred"
dampfire minutes before Lundberg
arrived with a semi-truck and empty
trailer to load timber. Lundberg was
stopped by the blockade.
"We're sorry that you're the one
who has to be caught in this stuff,"
informed Shimek. "But we are the
property owners here."
Becker County sold the timber to
Potlatchfor$2,817.50.Potlatchthem
hired Lundberg and his crew to cut
the timber, most of which is aspen
and birch.
"So we can't load it up and get it our
of there?" queried Lundberg.
"No," replied LaDuke, "There won't
be any loads going out of there today."
Added Shimek, "Maybe at some
point there will, but it's not about
you. It'sabout the wayBecker County
has gone about the business of squandering these forests. There is a lot at
stake here for us. To you, it's jobs,
family, your home, mortgage payments on your equipment. But for us
it's a way of life that's here in this
forest that has sustained us as native
people."
Shimek said they won't let any tim-
Blockade continued on page 3
Court ruling could weaken key tribal defense
ST. PAUL (AP) _ A key defense for
some Indian tribes being sued may
have been weakened by a Minnesota
Court of Appeals ruling.
The court ruled that a tribe cannot
claim sovereign immunity in a lawsuit
brought by a former casino contractor.
The ruling was based partly on a
federally recognized charter that the
Prairie Island Sioux in Red Wing and
other tribes adopted more than five
decades ago.
Attorneys on both sides ofthe case,
which involves a tour bus director
working for Treasure Island Casino,
say the decision could be devastating
for many tribes. Outsiders' ability to
sue tribes has become a major issue
with the emergenceof Indian
gambling and other spinoff
businesses. Litigation and potential
litigation has increased as tribes
conduct more business with outside
contractors andas they hire thousands
of employees. But tribes often have
claimed they can't be sued in state
courts because they are considered
sovereign nations.
"The importance (of the decision)
is that sovereign immunity is being
chipped away at, particularly when it
comes to business," said attorney
Craig Greenberg.
Greenberg represents Brent
Johnson, a tour bus operator who was
hired by thetribe and whose job was
eliminated two months later,
according to his suit. Johnson is suing
for $854,000 in back pay, claiming
fraud and discrimination. He says
the tribe persuaded him to sell his
company to the tribe, then operate it
as a tribal employee. The tribe then
fired him and took over the
business.eliminating competition in
the busing business, which brings
thousands to the casino daily, he said.
Johnson also says he was
discriminated against because he is
white.
Tribal representatives have denied
the claims, which have not been
brought to trial because of the
sovereignty issue. Some of those
representatives met Thursday to
determine whether to appeal tothe
state Supreme Court, and their
attorney said he thinks an appeal
could be successful. "I think it's a
case that's vastly out of line with
federal precedence," said Richard
Duncan, the tribe's attorney on the
case.
Aquash murder case reopened
Piere, S.D. — There is a grand jury
convening in South Dakota scrutinizing the death of Anna Mae Pictou
Aquash, Indian activist and American Indian Movement member from
Nova Scotia. Aquash may have been
sexually assaulted before being executed in South Dakota during the
mid seventies. Not too much other
than this is known at this time, though
August 16,1994 is a day scheduled to
hear witnesses. Reports indicate that
Dennis Holmes, Assistant U.S. Attorney, is heading the grand jury.
In an unusual step, Bob Ecoffey,
reputedly a U.S. Marshall, is one of
the investigators and Sue Black of
Grand Junction, Colorado is
scheduled to be one ofthe witnesses.
Anna Mae Aquash was staying at
Sue Black's house just prior to being
transported to Rapid City, South
Dakota to her subsequent execution
style murder.
?