Native American Press / Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 2002-08-09

              INDEX
NEWS AROUND INDIAN COUNTRY 2
NEWS BRIEFS 3
COMMENTARY/EDITORIALS 4
CLASSIFIEDS 7
Alcohol abuse
drowns Natives
page 8
Nation's suburbs
catching cities on
rate of low
birthweight
babies
page 6
Safeguarding the
funds or risking
them?
page 4
Healing is redirecting
negative energies to
a positive flow
page 4
Indian Health Board
in Minneapolis
by Vincent Hill
page 4
TRO stops forensic audit at Leech Lake
By Bffl Lawrence
According to sources who wish
to remain anonymous, a forensic
(fraud) audit ofthe payroll account
ofthe Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
which began on the morning August 6 was shut down a short time
after it started by a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO), issued by
judge Margaret Treuer ofthe Leech
Lake Band of Ojibwe Tribal Court.
According to Leech Lake tribal attorney Frank Bibeau, several members ofthe Leech Lake Tribal
Council asked for the TRO because they hadn't approved ofthe
auditors selected by secretary/treasurer Archie LaRose. They felt one
ofthe auditors who was previously
employed by the Leech Lake Band
had a conflict of interest and may
be prejudiced by his past employment. The TRO named Yvonne
Amundson and Dennis Maddox,
Individually and as Agents for Majestic Eagle Monitoring, Inc,. as
Respondents (those being restrained).
In a telephone interview, Archie
LaRose told Press/ON that he, "selected Majestic because they were
the low bidders, they are owned by
a Leech Lake tribal member and
were available immediately to do
the audit." He said he didn't feel
that the past employment of Dennis
Maddox by the Band constituted a
conflict and would prejudice his
ability to do the audit." LaRose
said he "ordered the audit because
he had heard of widespread allegations of fraud in the handling of
tribal payroll funds." He also said
that he had tried to "work with the
other members ofthe tribal council
in securing the audit," but they sat
on his proposal for several weeks.
"As secretary/treasurer under our
tribal constitution I'm responsible
to the Leech Lake people for the
accounting and safe-guarding of
tribal funds and have the full authority to obtain audits as I feel are
necessary," LaRose told this writer.
"When the Majestic auditors came
in last Tuesday they were only going to look at the payroll records
and give me an idea ofthe scope of
the audit and an estimated cost.
Believe me, I don't want to spend
any more money than is absolutely
necessary to get the job done. The
estimated cost ofthe first phase
was $6,000"
"I feel the TRO was totally unnecessary, but I'd be willing to sit
down with the other council members to work this thing out as long
as the audit happens," the Leech
Lake secretary/treasurer said.
According to the TRO, a hearing
is scheduled for Friday August 9 at
10:00 a.m. before judge Treuer at
the Cass Lake Facilities Center.
The question wtil be heard by the
Leech Lake tribal court. The only
affidavit in support ofthe requested
TRO is signed by Leech Lake
tribal attorney Joe Plummer.
Attorney DarreU Carter of
Bemidji, Minnesota will represent
Majestic at the TRO hearing on
Friday. Leech Lake tribal attorney
Frank Bibeau will represent the
Leech Lake tribal council.
Leech Lake secretary/treasurer
LaRose explained his support for
the forensic audits to Press/ON.
He said that as he campaigned last
Winter and Spring on the Reservation and in Twin Cities, the "number one issue brought up by Leech
Lake tribal members was about our
finances and the management of
our businesses, especially our casinos. In the month that I been in office so far, I've tried to find out, but
its been difficult. Things are really
in a mess. Why, we don't even
have an approved budget for fiscal
year 2003 which started July 1.
This, the budget should have been
approved last April, but it wasn't.
There is a huge amount out in unclosed out travel advances and
loans that must be dealt with."
The financial problems presently
confronting the Leech Lake band
are significant. According to secretary/treasurer LaRose, "We have
started constmction on a $ 18 to 20
million hotel/convention center
without the finances being secured.
Our Walks Tall Program was recently cancelled by the State for
mismanagement." (See story on
page 1) LaRose continued, "the
Department ofthe Interior is demanding more information on our
fiscal year 2000 Single Audit Act
Report. I have sent out memos to
the responsible managers and department heads trying to get a
handle on what's going on, and as
soon as I find out I'll be reporting
to the Leech Lake people. I've
scheduled a public meeting on
Monday August 12 at 5:00 p.m. at
the Veterans Memorial Center in
Cass Lake to inform the people
more in detail what I've found out
so far, and to get their input."
Eli Hunt
receives
notification of
cancellation of
Walks Tall
Program
By Maxine Eidsvig
By letter dated July 26,2002, Eli
Hunt, Chairman ofthe Leech Lake
Band of Ojibwe, received notice of
the cancellation of Grant #2001-
00134 between the Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS),
Office of Drug Policy and Violence
Prevention and the Leech Lake
Band of Ojibwe for the Walks Tall '
Program. The program will be cancelled effective August 30,2002.
According to Tricia Hummel of
the DPS, the action was taken due to
ongoing problems with the administration of the grant. Reasons cited
were a history of late reports, missed
deadlines, reports lacking detail, and
a lack of progress in implementing
certain elements ofthe work plan
(such as evaluation activities). The
Department of Public Safety wrote
that while they regretted taking the
action, they could not continue to
fund grants that were consistently
out of compliance with agreement
requirements.
The proposed budget for the
Walks Tall program in 2003 was
$150,000 in state funding.
The notice served as the required
thirty (30) day notice of cancellation as stated in section V.B. ofthe
grant. Allowable expenditures
were to be reimbursed through August 30,2002, for work or services
satisfactorily performed.
Beltrami County candidate calls for
legal, political reform
By Jeff Armstrong
White Earth enrollee and
Green Party activist Audrey
Thayer views her campaign for
Beltrami County commissioner
as a platform for empowering politically disenfranchised Natives
and reinventing government to
serve community needs rather
than corporate interests.
"There's something wrong with
the system," Thayer says. "Government should be actually helping people instead of detaining
them."
Thayer said that as a member
ofthe five-person county commission, she would ardently oppose construction of a new law
enforcement center whose costs
have been estimated at in excess
of $9 million. The candidate said
she would favor redirecting such
spending into programs which
could serve as an alternative to
jail for non-violent offenders.
The daughter of a German immigrant farmer and his
Anishinabe wife, Thayer says she
is uniquely
prepared to serve as a bridge between cultures.
"There was a lot of discrimination when I was growing up.
People either picked on my
mother or my father. I didn't understand it at the time," said
Thayer.
Thayer's mother was a product
ofthe boarding school termination era, who struggled to retain
and pass on her culture. Thayer
was bom in Joliet, Illinois after
the family was forced to relocate
to Chicago when they lost the
farm.
"She used to tell me 'don't ever
forget who you are' and I haven't,
but it took me a long time to find
out what it really means to be
Anishinabe," said Thayer.
After her mother died when she
was 20, Thayer discovered her
religious heritage and began participating in traditional ceremonies, as she does to this day. She
is also a jingle dress dancer and a
wild ricer, though she was forced
to sell her precious ricing canoe
during her previous commission
campaign, which left Thayer just
30 votes short of entry into the
runoffbetween the top two candidates.
As a family therapist and occasional teacher, Thayer says she is
very concerned with racial and
cultural prejudices within the social welfare and educational systems.
"Native children are taken
from their homes and placed in
special ed because they don't fit
the criteria for the status quo of
the community. They didn't fit
the mold of white, middle-class
society," Thayer said.
Thayer said she did not perceive any contradiction in Native
people seeking representation in
non-tribal government.
"We've got to start stepping
out. This is our land. This is
mother earth. This is all we have
for generations to come," said
Thayer. "What does it mean to be
an American? Does it mean you
have to compromise yourself as a
Native person? I don't think so."
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Volume 15 Issue 10
August 9,2002
AP Photo/Tom Olmscheid
Ed McGaa the endorsed U.S. Senate candidate ofthe Minnesota Green Party outlined
his campaign agenda during a speech at the Minnesota Vietnam Veterans Memorial on
the grounds ofthe State Capitol in St. Paul, Minn., Monday, Aug. 5, 2002.
McGaa says he will appeal to veterans in
campaign
By Patrick Howe
Associated Press
ST. PAUL — In the ceremo-
^art to his campaign,
' Breen i arty U.S. SenaSt candidate Ed McGaa on Monday
showed that his brand of Green
is ofthe olive-drab variety.
McGaa, a Marine Corps
fighter pilot in Vietnam, used
the Minnesota Vietnam Veterans' Memorial as his backdrop
and said he plans to campaign
in the state's veterans' halls.
Backers wore M-A-S-H-style
campaign T-shirts, while
McGaa noted his own combat
medals.
McGaa acknowledges it's an
unusual approach for a candidate from the Green Party, for
whom nonviolence is a central
tenet.
"Some Greens think that 1 am
obsessed with all things that are
military, and in a way they are
right," he said. He says his service record distinguishes him
from Democratic Sen. Paul
Wellstone and Republican
Norm Coleman, who did not
serve in the military.
He says, though, that he's op
posed to excessive military spending, which he says is destroying
the environment and the economy.
And McGaa says while he supports fighting terror'; . : "The
Bush-Wellstone carpet bombing
approach to this war will only lead
us down a path of devastation."
Though McGaa is the party's
endorsed candidate, he faces fellow Green candidate Ray Tricomo
in the Sept. 10 primary.
Party chairman Cam Gordon
says the party officially stands behind McGaa but some members
are concerned about his military
talk. "I think some people in the
Greens are turning toward Ray
Tricomo in the hopes he may be a
peace candidate," he said.
A Sioux Indian and author of
books on spirituality, McGaa dismissed the complaint of critics
who say his candidacy has little
chance of winning, but could tip
the race away from Wellstone,
who many Greens support.
In fact, Ms candidacy has been a
subject of debate for liberals nationwide. It was discussed by delegates to the national Green Party
convention last month and has
been noted in left-leaning maga
zines ranging from The Washington Monthly to The Progressive.
McGaa rejects the spoiler argument, .uid say* he's running to
win. "Time for this incumbent lo
go," he says, while also praising
Coleman for trying to get him invited to debates.
The Independence Party's Jim
Moore is also running.
Among his campaign proposals, McGaa:
—Says spending on foreign
military aid is "primarily responsible" for the "demise" of Social
Security. He challenges budget
reports that show foreign aid is
about 1 percent ofthe federal
budget, saying "You can't really
find out the real true figures, but
it is actually in the trillions" since
World War II.
—Wants to demand the Senate be comprised of an equal
number of men and women.
—Wants voters to be able to
rank multiple candidates on the
ballot, creating an instant mnoff
if none receive a tme majority of
the vote.
Patrick Howe may be reached
at phowe(at)ap.org
Minnesota basic skills test trends for
1996-2001 released in new study:
Native students trending
better in reading scores
By Jean Pagano
A new University of Minnesota
study released on Wednesday, August 7 examines trends in the testing scores of students for the Minnesota Basic Skills Test (MBST)
for the years 1996 through 2001.
The study documents the trends
and achievements of students in the
state of Minnesota. It also examines trends among racial minorities
(white students account for over
87% of all students), students with
a limited proficiency in English,
students with individual education
plans, students eligible for free or
reduced-price lunches, and those
students older than average.
The Minnesota Basic Skills test
is required of all students before
graduating from high school in the
state of Minnesota and measures a
student's score in reading and
mathematics. Students in grade 8
are commonly the ones taking the
skill test, but other children between grades 8 and 12 do take the
test. The first two years of study,
encompassing 1996 and 1997, represented the first two years ofthe
test. At that time, the tests were not
mandatory. Beginning in 1998, the
MBST is required of each student.
Native American students make
up one ofthe five racial categories
in the study: white, Asian, Native
SCORES to page 5
Opinion casts doubt on legality of
Lake Sakakawea gambling
By Dale Wetzel
Associated Press
BISMARCK, N.D. —
Changes in North Dakota law are
needed before the Three Affiliated Tribes may operate a casino
yacht on Lake Sakakawea, Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem
said.
The Legislature has barred Indian gambling operations outside
reservation boundaries, and the
lake is not part ofthe tribe's Fort
Berthold reservation, Stenehjem
said in an opinion Friday.
Tom Disselhorst, a Bismarck
attorney who represents the tribe,
called Stenehjem's conclusions
"disturbing."
"I really think it's somewhat off
OPINION to page 6
MN Human
Rights Department
rejects yet another
police brutality
complaint
By Jeff Armstrong
The Minnesota Department of
Human Rights last month refused
to act on an excessive force complaint by a White Earth man who
was severely beaten by police after leading them on a 20-mile
pursuit from the Shooting Star
Casino in Mahnomen.
James Grandboise, age 56, was
held at gunpoint April 4 as he
was knocked unconscious outside
of his White Earth home by unidentified state and tribal officers.
Despite sustaining serious head
injuries in the police assault, he
was denied medical treatment before and after his arrest. The
Anishinabe man filed a human
rights complaint April 10, alleging that he was subjected to unreasonable force due to law enforcement racism.
On July 2, however, the human
rights department summarily dismissed Grandboise's complaint,
stating "it does not appear that
any ofthe complaints you have
raised regarding the Mahnomen
County Sheriffs Department
would provide sufficient basis for
BRUTALITY to page 6
Acting tribal
chairman, two
councilmen
latest to be
indicted
Associated Press
BELCOURT, N.D. — Three
more officials ofthe Turtle
Mountain Band of Chippewa,
including the acting tribal chairman, have been indicted by a
federal grandjury.
The latest indictments, released Monday, charge Melvin
"Mike" Lenoir, 40, the acting
chainnan ofthe tribe, and Jeff
Desjarlais, 35, and William A.
Decoteau Jr., 42, both tribal
councilmen. The indictments
bring to seven the number of
current and former tribal officials facing charges.
Lenoir, Desjarlais and
INDICTMENT to page 6
Appeals court upholds Indian
religious use of eagle feathers
Associated Press
DENVER — The government must return eagle feathers
to a descendant of American Indians so he can use them in religious practices, a federal appeals court mled.
In a case that weighed freedom of religion against the
government's ability to protect
bald and golden eagles, the 10th
U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
on Monday upheld a lower
court's ailing that the seizure of
the feathers violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
Prosecutors had appealed the
mling in the case of Joseluis
Saenz, one of three people who
had asked a federal appeals
court to allow them to use eagle
feathers in their religious practices, even though they are not
members of federally recognized American Indian tribes.
Saenz is a New Mexico resident and descendant ofthe
Chiricahua Apaches, a tribe that
is no longer recognized by the
government. The other two cases
involve Utah residents Raymond
Hardman and Samuel Ray
Wilgus, who are not American Indians but who still want to use the
feathers for religious purposes.
A lower court rejected their arguments and the federal appeals
court sent their cases back to the
lower court.
In all three cases, the government argued that only members
of federally recognized tribes
should be allowed to use the
feathers.
Government attorneys have
said the demand for eagle feathers exceeds the government's
supplyjn a repository in the Denver area.
Minnesota's Indian population dominated by Ojibwe,
Sioux tribes, scattered on, off 11 reservations
By Renee Ruble
Associated Press
MILLE LACS LAKE, Minn.
— When the Mille Lacs Band of
Ojibwe finally had some money
to spend, the band's first building
wasn't a tribal headquarters, a gift
shop or a clinic.
In the shadow of maple trees,
overlooking the state's second-largest lake, the band raised a round,
wooden building. Its purpose: A
ceremonial gathering place to celebrate the band's traditions through
dance, drums and song.
"One tiling that makes us strong
is we follow our tradition," said
band elder Jim Clark. "It's been a
long, hard trek."
The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe
has called these central Minnesota
woodlands home for more than
200 years, settling alongside Mille
Lacs Lake a century before Minnesota was granted statehood. They
POPULATION to page 6
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