The Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 1995-11-10

              Leech Lakers to join suit against BIA
By Jeff Armstrong
As the NAP went to press, Leech
Lake tribal members were putting the
final touches on a law suit to be filed in
federal court this week seeking the
removal of indicted reservation
officials.
Like their White Earth counterparts,
Leech Lake reservation members are
under the rule of a tribal council
majority accused of conspiring to
defraud the band. White Earth
members filed suit last month to install
a trustee government as a transition
to democratic rule.
According to the present Minnesota
Chippewa Tribe constitution,
incumbent Resenation Business
Committee members control a
demonstrably fraudulent electoral
system, with sole authority over the
appointment of election board
members and judges.
Under a constitutional interpretation
by the Leech Lake RBC in 1990,
council members may be removed
only by four votes out of a five member
RBC. With a majority of RBC
members indicted or convicted, they
would virtually have to vote to remove
themselves from office.
On June 9, Leech Lake members
requested an "outside oversight person
assigned to monitor expenditures and
land transactions until the status of
the Tribal Government is resolved,"
according to a memo from BIA
Agency superintendent Frank Annette
to the Area Director. The letter goes
on to state that "the position of the
Bureau of Indian Affairs is, that until
the matter is resolved in the Federal
Court no programmatic changes
would be made."
Area Director Denise Homer and
federal BIA director Ada Deer failed
to respond to the request, continuing
to recognize the indicted officials as
the "duly" elected government.
For further information on the suit
or to file as a plaintiff, call 335-8454.
Leech Lakers to join suit against BIA/ pg 1
HOTESS parents refuse to be intimidated/ pg 1
Judge throws out IHB lawsuit against NAP/ pg 1
Tribes must overcome institutional weakness/ pg 4
Yankton tribe sued by former casino mngr./ pg 8
Voice ofthe The People
1
HOTESS parents group refuses to be
intimidated by Bellecourt, Woodhull
By Gary Blair
Problems at Heart of the Earth
Survival School (HOTESS) continue,
in spite of attempts by board co-chair
Clyde Bellecourt and the school's new
director, Tim Woodhull, to silence
those protesting against them.
Temporary restraining orders were
issued against three HOTESS school
board members who recently picketed
with former teachers and students
outside the school. Rita Rogers, who
is 72 years old and her daughters Jean
Rogers and Dolly Rogers Means,
appeared in Hennepin County court
on Tuesday to answer charges.
Bill Means, longtime Bellecourt
supporter, showed up with his mother-
in-law for the hearing. Bellecourt did
not attend the hearing with Woodhull.
The outcome of the hearing resulted
in a particle lifting of personal contact
between the parties. The three will
not be allowed to have any contact
with Woodhull other than in a public
setting for another four months.
However, they do have the right to
enter the school and to protest.
Rita Rogers, was also charged by
Woodhull for allegedly hitting him
with a can of pop at a recent school
board meeting. That court appearance
has not been scheduled.
Another meeting was scheduled by
the protest group for Thursday,
November 9, at the American Indian
Opportunities and Industrialization
Center located at Cedar and Franklin
Avenues in south Minneapolis. A
PRESS source says the group will
outline further plans to expose the
corruption   at   the   school.   An
investigation by U.S. Attorney David
Lillehaug has been called for.
That source also says Bellecourt
recently used a HOTESS credit card
at a local gas station to obtain fuel for
a school van. They say he also
purchased snacks and cigarettes on
the card. Bellecourt has been accused
of using school funds for personal use
and travel for years. Attempts to
contact Bellecourt by press time were
unsuccessful.
The recent troubles at the school
started when many of the long-term
teachers were not rehired for the 95/
96 school year. That frustration then
turned to anger when it was learned
that Woodhull was a convicted drug
dealer similar to Clyde Bellecourt.
Many of the protesters now speculate
Woodhull was hired by Bellecourt as a
patsy for a pending audit at the school.
Divide and COnquen war on Native families continues
By Jeff Armstrong
Nearly one of every nine Native
children is removed from the home
yearly in Minnesota, according to the
most recent study by the state
Department of Human Services.
It is a startling statistic, but one
which shows little sign of abating
despite state and federal laws
protecting the rights of indigenous
families. Although Native youths
make up just over 1% of Minnesota's
under-18 population, they accounted
for about 11% of out-of-home
placement cases in 1993—a removal
rate which the state Supreme Court's
Racial Bias Task Force that year
termed "alarming." Descendants of
settlers fare considerably better, with
white children facing barely more
than a 1 in 1,000 chance ofbeing
taken from their homes.
Although the federal Indian Child
Welfare Act of 1978 extended broad
legal protections to Native families
and tribes, that act has been largely
ignored by state courts and cynically
manipulated by corrupt officials. On
reservations beset with political
patronage and division, as are those
of the Minnesota Chippevva Tribe,
child removal petitions have obvious
utility as a weapon against dissent.
Since passage of ICWA, tribal
agencies and officials have had the
right to intervene on behalf of
members and theirchildren orto offer
them a forum in tribal court. But
several tribes, including the MCT
and its member reservations, have
limited their advocacy efforts almost
exclusively to seeking the power of
removal and/or control over
placement.
As a result, the Leech Lake
reservation, which has one of the
most active child welfare offices, also
has one of the highest removal rates
in the state. More than one-third of
MCT removals with known
reservation affiliation were from
Leech Lake, well surpassing runner-
up White Earth, and far out of line
with its population as the second
Judge throws out IHB lawsuit against NAP
By Jeff Armstrong
Hennepin County Judge Robert Lynn
dismissed a second libel suit by the
Indian Health Board and executive
director Norine Smith against the
Native American Press/Ojibwe News.
The paper was sued for publishing a
series of articles exposing financial
and other improprieties at the
Minneapolis clinic, assertions which
Smith claimed were defamatory.
Judge Lynn ruled that a jury verdict
last July on a similar claim filed on
behalf of Smith dealt with the
substantive issues at hand. Lynn ruled
that the legal doctrine of "collateral
estoppel," designed to "prevent
needless consideration of matters
decided in earlier litigation," removed
the need to reexamine claims of
defamation.
Lynn noted that "acorporate plaintiff
such as the IHB has a higher burden
of proof than a private plaintiff. A
corporate plaintiff must prove actual
malice," thejudge ruled. Furthermore,
as the recipient of public funds, said
Lynn, "they are'voluntarily subjecting
themselves to and assuming the risk
of public scrutiny."
In any event, the judge observed,
"whichever standard of liability is
employed, a jury has determined that
the articles which are the subject of
this lawsuit were not libelous." Jurors
were polled separately after the two-
week trial on whether they believed
the articles were false, and if theyr
constituted libel. The jury found that
not only were the articles not libelous,
but were also accurate.
"We're gratified by the decision,
By Eduardo Montes
This year's Mescalero Apache tribal
elections go a long way toward proving
the old adage that "politics make
strange bedfellows" as one-time
opponents band together and former
allies face off against one another.
President Wendell Chino. the tribe's
leader for three decades, will be
challenged for a two-year term
Tuesday by Vice President Fred Peso,
who helped spearhead Chino's efforts
to build a nuclear waste repository on
Apache lands.
Peso, in turn, is being supported by
a nascent activist group called the
Apache Stronghold, whose first public
foray was a campaign to persuade
tribal members to vote against the
nuclear site during a March
referendum. The measure passed.
The political shifts began earlier
this year, according to tribal sources,
when a disagreement caused an
abiding rift between the two top tribal
officials.
Rumors soon began circulating that
Chino had resigned and would be
replaced by Peso. The reports were
debunked and the tribal government
seemingly returned to normal until
Peso announced his desire to run for
president.
When Peso began declaring
intentions to uncover what was
happening to revenues generated by
tribal enterprises such as the Inn of
the Mountain Gods, revelations
Native
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largest MCT reservation. Leech Lake
Family Services, which, like all
reservation agencies, is under the
direct control of the RBC, has
generated the most persistent
complaints of political harassment
while brazenly asserting its sovereign
immunity from compliance with
ICWA.
Cass County, which works closely
with Leech Lake RBC in the judicial
system, correspondingly has one of
the highest placement ratios—mok
than 13 % of Native children there are
placed outside their home. Of 233
such removals in 1993, 145 were of
Native children, who make up less
than 1/5 of the overall population.
The latter statistic is surpassed only
by White Earth's Mahnomen County,
in which 53 of 56 children removed
from their homes were Natives—this
in a majority-white county within ihe
reservation.
White Earth was the first MCT
Divide cont'd on pg 3
Grass Dancer on recent KTCA/TV production, WACDPI-POWWOW.
Photo by Melissa Gerr
John Wilmer elected chairman of Bad River
By John Rainbird
Odanah, WI — The new chairman
ofthe Bad River band of Ojibwe, John
Wilmer said Wednesday in Odanah
that his victory was a mandate for
open government.
Mr. Wilmer defeated former
chairwoman Betty Drake, who was
ousted in an August recall, by a vote
of 369 to 219 in Tuesday's election.
"I think this is basically a huge win
for the people and a mandate against
negative government and a mandate
for open government," said Wilmer,
associate director ofNative American
studies at Northland College in
Ashland Wisconsin.
Drake was involved in a 12-hour
standoff when she refused to vacate
her office after being recalled by a
194-28 vote.
Chairman-elect Wilmer told the
PRESS, "I would like to thank Donald
More for his outstanding role of
community support and stewardship,
in overseeing tribal government
during the interim period (since the
recall election)," said Wilmer. "Mr.
More displayed his support and
community pride. He didn't have do
this, but did it anyway," said Wilmer.
which we certainly anticipated," said
NAP/ON Publisher Bill Lawrence,
who along with reporter Gary Blair
defended himself against Norine
Smith's hieh-oriced leeal counsel in
the first suit "We're only disappointed
that we didn't receive compensation
for legal fees and court costs, as I
believe we may have been entitled to
under SLAPP (strategic lawsuit
against public participation)
legislation," said Lawrence.
Minneapolis attorney Mark
Anfinson represented the NAP in the
most recent court proceedings.
IHB attorney Louis Brenner told the
Press that he had "not discussed the
matter with his clients," and wasn't
sure whether they would appeal Judge
Lynn's decision.
For the complete text of the ruling,
seepg. 5 ofthe PRESS.
Protesters agree to end occupation of
Indian school
MILWAUKEE (AP) _ After some
hesitation following a judge's ruling,
protesters agreed to end their four-
day occupation of the Indian
Community School of Milwaukee.
Three protesters involved in the
occupation ofthe school were ordered
offthe grounds Tuesdayby Milwaukee
County Circuit Circuit Judge John
McCormick.
Two sheriff's detectives arrived at
the school with copies of the court
order around 6 p.m., but none ofthe
three people named was present.
At that time, the protesters vowed
to remain on the site because they
were not included in the order.
Mark Fischer, the acting president
ofthe school's board, arrived shortly
after 7 p. m. with several police officers
and hired security guards, informing
the protesters that, even though the
school is on Indian land, the board
has the authority to deem them
trespassers.
"The court has placed control ofthe
school with the board," Fischer said.
Those specifically under a judge's
orders to vacate the school grounds,
all of whom were fired from jobs at
the school Oct. 31, include Loretta
Ford, former chief executive officer
of the school and chairman of its
board; Joe Gonzalez, her common-
law husband and chief of security at
the school, and Shelly Ford,
administrative assistant and daughter
of Loretta Ford.
Those three and some 50 others had
been occupying the school since
Friday night. Classes were canceled
Monday and Tuesday.
The Fords, Gonzalez, four other
administrators and the board' s lawyer
were fired by the four remaini ng board
members, who said Loretta Ford did
Occupy cont'd on pg 3
Voters in Wildwood approve Indian casino
Mescalero tribal elections pit former allies
against each other, unite foes
sought by Chino's detractors, the
Stronghold began listening.
Neither Peso nor Chino have
returned phone calls from The
Associated Press seeking comment.
Stronghold member Natalie Fossum
said members felt Peso represents a
chance for "change, openness,
fairness, equality." As far as the
nuclear issue, she said, Peso is
professing not to be concerned
whether it goes or not.
So now Peso finds himself among
the slate of Stronghold-backed
candidates, including a member of
the group who is running for a council
seat, and Joseph Geronimo, an
outspoken nuclear opponent running
Tribal cont'd on pg 3
WILDWOOD, N.J. (AP) _ In a
non-binding referendum, city
residents voted Tuesday to join hands
with an Indian tribe to build a casino.
Voters approved the measure by a
better than 2-to-l margin, 1,081 to
491.
The casino will be owned by the
Delaware Tribe of Western
Oklahoma, which claims an ancestral
link to this Cape May County resort
and wants to go into the gambling
business here.
Mayor Fred Wager said it was now
up to him to go out and get the job
done.
"You got a lot of happy people in
Wildwood tonight," Wager said. "If
they voted it no, it would have been
dead. I care about the city of
Wildwood. I care about this town."
Wager said the next step is to take
up the issue with Gov. Christie
Whitman, who opposes the plan.
Whitman says casinos should only be
allowed in Atlantic City.
"We are going to go see the governor,"
Wager said, "and explain why we
need a casino and why we need her."
The presence of a gambling hall
here would mean thousands of jobs,
millions in revenue for the city and a
catalyst for the city's slumping
economy, Wager said.
The Wildwood Renaissance
Committee, a pro-casino lobbying
group, spent about $27,000 to sell the
proposal to residents.
Opponents said a casino would
siphon money from other city
businesses and lead to increased crime
and traffic. Atlantic City casino
leaders and elected officials also
oppose the plan.
On Aug. 17, Wager signed a pact
with the tribe to build a casino with no
hotel rooms or restaurants on a 2 1/2-
acre city-owned parcel near the
Boardwalk.
The 1,250-member tribe, which is
based in Anadarko, Okla., would build
the casino and hire a casino company
to manage it. The site, bordered by
Schellenger Avenue and Oak Street,
is currently a city-owned parking lot.
Dozens of states have gone into the
gambling business since Congress
enacted the Indian Gaming
Regulatory Act of 1988. The law was
intended to regulate reservation bingo
operations but has instead created a
booming industry of tax-exempt
casinos.
The law requires the tribe involved
to have an ancestral link with the
land. But that is only one of the
obstacles facing Wager and casino
supporters.
The New Jersey Constitution limits
casino gambling to Atlantic City, but
it is superseded by the federal law.
The U.S. Department of the Interior
would have to sign off on the plan as
well.