The Native American Press (Bemidji, Minnesota), 1993-03-26

              'Frannie and Clyde's' attempted
ambush ofthe Native American
Press is foiled at MAIC
By Bill Lawrence
When Native American Press
Publisher BillLawrenceandStafTWriter
Gary Blair arrived at the Minneapolis
American Indian Center on Monday
March 22nd to review MAIC contract
and financial records, they were met by
approximately 50 AIM and MAIC
employees and hand picked supporters.
Though Francis Fairbanks and Clyde
Bellecourt organized the ambush and
werepresent atthe event, newly chosen
MAICPresidentJoAnneStately directed
theaction. OtherMAIC Board Members
present were Ron Otterstad, Donna
Fairbanks, Sheri Riemeas, Dawn Paro
and Leona Raisch
Anticipating the ambush and taking
into consideration the previously
circulated smear letter about Mr. Blair,
Messrs. Blair and Lawrence brought a
video recorder and appropriate written
materials.
As AIM and MAIC employees and
supporters filed into MAIC conference
room, Mr. Lawrence was presented a
copy of a smear letter which had been
prepared for the 1986 Red Lake Reservation Tribal Council election. Mr.
Lawrence promptly responded by circulating copies of a letter which refuted
all the allegations in the smear letter.
Lawrence alsocautioned the groupabout
further distribution and publication of
the smear letter as he considered it
libelous and threatened legal action if
there were any further circulation.
Showing obvious signs of being upstaged by the quick response to the
smear letter and the operation of the
video camera by Press Staff Writer
Gary Blair, Ms. Stately tried to salvage
some semblance of a meeting by obfuscating its intended purpose by
attemptingtoverbally answerthe.Pw.ss 's
letter of March 17th and at the same
time encouraged insults and diatribes
by their supporters. It was obvious by
the nature and tone of the insults and
tirades that it had been orchestrated by
the recently united duo of' 'Franny and
Clyde." MAIC critics can't decide
whether this is more of a match of
convenience or necessity due to the
Press's effort to review their financial
records.
One admission by Ms. Stately during
the discussion period was the fact that
the Center had settled a sexual harassment claim out of court. She would not
divulge names of the parties, or the
amount of the settlement of what account the settlement funds came from.
The attempt to obtain information by
the Press was the result of numerous
complaints that have been made about
the inadequacy of MAICs operation by
theMinneapolis Americanlndian Community.
Former heavyweight boxer Jim
Beattie, currently AIM treasurer, vehemently attacked the Press for carrying
articles critical of AIM chairman Clyde
Bellecourt. Beattie, who is reported to
be an ATM Native American culture
and heritage lecturer, also violently attacked the characterofPress staff writer
Gary Blair. Publisher Lawrence challenged Beattie for his condemnation of
Blair in view of his admiration of
Bellecourt's and his character. Beattie
left the room shortly after is tirade and
reentered a short time later to apologize
to Gary Blair for his verbal attack.
After about an hour and a half of the
verbal exchange between the Press and
the AIM/MAIC employees and supporters, the session wound dowa
In response to a request from Press
publisher Bill Lawrence, Ms. Stately
reluctantly agreed to provide the Press
withawrittenresponse to the March 17,
1993, letter requesting contract and
financial information. She also agreed
to allow the Press to review all federal,
state and local government contracts at
a date to be agreed by both parties.
In leaving the building Messers. Blair
and Lawrence were accosted by two
MAIC employees. The two employees
followed the Press out the door and
taunted them by throwing copies ofthe
last edition ofthe Press into a garbage
can. After a nose-to nose-discussion the
Press left the premises.
An interesting observation about the
session is the fact that despite having
nearly five days to organize the ambush
"Franny and Clyde'' were able to muster only around 50 people to support
them. In view of Bellecourt's claim that
he has 10,800 volunteers it was a dismal
showing. Pull out the employees at the
MAIC from the meeting and they had
practically no one. And you can bet that
none of those in attendance on behalf of
AIM of MAIC were on annual leave
from their government funded jobs.
Right!!! JoAnne?
Senate to consider rewriting Indian
Gaming Act
WASHINGTON (AP)
The chairman ofthe Senate Indian
Affairs Committee said Friday that
he is going to hold hearings on a
possible overhaul of the law that
spawned the Indian gambling
industry. Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-
Hawaii, had resisted reopening the
law but has come under intense
pressure from the nation's governors.
Inouye announced his plans at a
meeting of more than 80 tribal leaders
and warned them of "awesome
opposition" to their burgeoning
industry.' 'Apparently all sides have
come to believe that there are problems
with the act, and that it needs to be
opened for amendment.... We are at
a crucial juncture in federal-Indian
relations," Inouye said.
Inouye had said previously that he
would only hold meetings, rather
than formal hearings, with state
officials, tribal leaders and other
people interested in the issue. Inouye
also said Friday that he is requesting
meetings with governors and state
attorneys general who are involved
with Indian gaming.
The Indian Gaming Regulator)' Act,
passed in 1988, allowed Indians to
open casinos in states where such
gambling was already allowed, even
if only for charities. Casinos in
Connecticut, Minnesota and
elsewhere have created thousands of
jobs in poverty-stricken areas. But
tribes must negotiate compacts with
states to regulate the games and some
states refuse to allow them by invoking
In Arizona, Gov. Fife Symington
recently signed a ban on charitable
gambling to stop tribes from opening
casinos. Tribes want to amend the
law to expand the number of games
they can offer and to prod states into
negotiating with them. Some
opponents of Indian gaming are
calling for a moratorium on Indian
casinos.
Congress "must take corrective
measures to ensure that the Indian
community retains the right to
continue to use this important
economic tool,'' said Charles Keechi,
chairman of the National Indian
Gaming Association. The House
Natural Resources subcommittee on
Native American affairs will hold an
oversight hearing on Indian gaming
April 2.
The hearings will begin in May.   immunity to lawsuits.
Recap of events in Minneapolis Indian
community
By Gary Blair
On March 24,1993, another protest
was staged in front of the old Hennepin
County Detox Center, located at 1800
Chicago Avenue South in
Minneapolis. This time, however, the
event was different. It drew a cross-
section of over 50 people that included
two members of the Minneapolis
Police Department. The officers were
in uniform and are considered
government employees so they were
not permitted to carry signs. Others
who attended were representatives
from organizations within and
surrounding the Phillips
neighborhood and individual
American Indians who decided they
wanted to do something about the
abuse.
The major Twin Cities media also
found themselves back at the scene of
what they once referred to as old
news. The purpose for this latest
demonstration remained the same as
last fall when the county was forced to
close their detox center. American
Indian community members and now
others are still demanding that
Hennepin County officials be held
accountable for the client abuse before
the site is reopened. Abuse allegations
include rapes, beatings and torture of
both female and male clients by either
detox center staff or other
unsupervised clients.
In September of 1992, The Press
broke the first of nineteen articles on
the old detox center, a place dubbed
"The Chamber of Horrors". The
following is a recap of some of the
events that have occurred or have
been reported in the Minneapolis
American Indian community since
that time.
The American Indian Coalition for
Civil Rights (AICCR) was formed in
response to the abuse allegations at
theolddetoxcenterwhen tribal leaders
and the Minnesota Indian Affairs
Council looked the other way.
Hennepin County Commissioner
Peter Mclaughlin became the target
of AICCR when he failed to make
good on his pre-election promises to
do something about the abuse and
Clyde Bellecourt maintained his loss
of respect and leadership status in the
community when he tried to reduce
the heat for Commissioner
Mclaughlin. Mr. Bellecourt admitted
that he had been aware of the
continuing abuse at the detox center
but never took any steps to address it.
Instead, he chose to put all his energy
and resources into the Indian logo
issue. At the time of his protest in
front of the Hubert Humphrey
MetroDome in downtown
Minneapolis, an American Indian
man reported that he had to drink his
own urine because he was refused
water by detox center staff while being
locked in one ofthe center's rooms.
More recently, AICCR lost a few
members because it was decided they
had more to gain personally by
ignoring the civil rights issue and
trying to obtain control over an Indian
run detox center the county had been
considering. The list of those with
their own agenda included Gordon
Thayer and Robert Albee, both ofthe
American Indian Housing
Corporation (AIHC). According to
reports and other written documents
obtained by The Press, Thayer and
Albee were in no position to take
control of another organization
because their activities with the
housing corporation were already in
question. The following is an example
ofthe documentation received by The
Press concerning activities in the
Indian community that certain so-
called leaders criticize us for
reporting. It is a memo dated March
18. 1993:
TO: American Indian Housing
Corporation/American Indian Task
Force
on Housing and
Homelessness
FROM: Diana Buckanaga
RE: Resignation
Due to the irregularities regarding
AIHC Board Members receiving pay
for work that was done for the
American Indian Housing
Corporation, I hereby submit my
resignation from the AIHC Board of
Directors.
As an enrolled member ofthe Leech
Lake Band, I cannot condone the
actions of this board and I will not
remain with a corporation that allows
board members to rip off the American
Indian people. I find no fault with the
work that was done but I am real
concerned about the manipulation of
the majority of funds which are being
paid out to board members.
These funds were supposed to be
used to enhance Indian people with
their housing needs... not to put monies
in board members pockets. This is in
clear violation ofthe AIHC Articles
of Incorporation.
Previous to Ms. Buckanaga's
resignation, your writer received a
phone call about an emergency
meeting that was to be held the next
day at the AIHC office. The caller
said the AIHC board was going to fire
both Thayer and Albee for receiving
money from the corporation which is
against the law because they are board
members.
Upon arriving at that meeting, I
was joined by others who I had
informed of the meeting. When we
first tried to enter the meeting room
we found the door to be locked.
Recap/See Page 3
Franny & Clyde ambush is foiled
Senate will revisit Indian Gaming Act in the spring
Legislative Audit responded to by Attorney General
Carlton County is being called Northern Mississippi
Problems at Bug School come to surface in letter
BIA needs a Moses for its resurrection
The Largest Weekly Native Newspaper in North America
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From left to right, Tracy Morrow, Angela Powers, Robert Meeshenow, Gilbert Rodriguez, Larry Jones,
Delia Wack, Cathi Thompson, Doug Colhoff, Dawn Wind, Retail Sales class instructor Colleen Falk, and
Vickie Neeland. Not pictured were Randy Norris and James Kingbird, who are also in the retail sales class.
Bemidji Area Race Relations Task Force
sponsors 'Job Fair' at Bemidji Holiday Inn
By Larry Adams
The Bemidji Area Race Relations
Task Force sponsored a Job Market
at the Bemidji Holiday Inn on
Wednesday afternoon. It was the first
Job Fair in the Bemidji area
sponsored by the Bemidji Area Race
Relations Task Force, among others.
Many of the Bemidji area
merchants and store representatives
were on hand to talk to the many
curious and prospective job seekers.
The Job Fair was put together by
Erv Sargent of Bemidji's OIC,
Paul Welle of First National Bank,
and Keith Balsiger of American
Family Insurance in Bemidji.
Some of the 32 employers
included Food 4 Less, McDonalds,
Red Lake Builders, the Minnesota
Department of Transportation, BSU
and North Country Regional
Hospital.
Greg Sanders, a dispatcher from
the Thorson Construction company
in Bemidji, said that there were
some truckers coming through to
talk to him at the Job Market.
Another prospective employer at
the Job Market was Pat Anderson
of Anderson Fabrics of Blackduck
and Crookston.
"Basically, they've been looking
pretty good," Anderson said,
referring to all the prospective job
seekers at the Holiday Inn.
Anderson felt that the people he
had seen Wednesday afternoon
were very employable.
Gloria Hanson from the Staples
Technical College was also at the
Job Fair. She had brought some
students from the Staples area to
look for job opportunities.
State Attorney General declines to recover
MIAC expense and travel funds
By Mel Rasmussen
The State of Minnesota's Office of
the Attorney General released its legal
opinion concerning the Minnesota
Indian Affairs Council Financial
Audit (December 1992). The audit
was conducted by the Office of the
Legislative Auditor and was released
to the public on December 18, 1992.
According to this audit there were
questions raised about the ability of
the Indian Affairs Council and its
management to conduct the
appropriate business ofthe Council.
More specifically, an issue was raised
in the possible misuse of state
taxpayers dollars.
In the original report there were
questions raised about several issues.
The first issue was in regards to the
significant travel costs claimed by the
executive director, Roger Head. This
issue was based upon his work
location. Head spent 90% ofhis time
in St. Paul and was considered in a
travel status. His true work location
was in Bemidji, Minnesota. Because
of this travel status, Head claimed
and was reimbursed over a four year
period a total of $73,864. This figure
was over and above his regular salary
which is in the range of between 50
and 60 thousand dollars a year.
The second and more important
issue was in the Council's and Head's
development of a series of contracts
for professional services performed
by Ms. Joanne Stately. The audit stated
that under state law the council should
have hired an employee, rather than
contracting for Stately's services. It
resulted in a higher level of
compensation, including payment for
certain mileage reimbursements not
provided for under these contracts.
This point, in and by itself, could be
construed as a misuse or
mismanagement of state funds.
According to the audit it was
estimated that Head and the Council
paid between $40,00 and $50,000
more than if it had hired an employee
through the state employment system.
However, the big issue that was
referred to the Attorney General's
office for possible resolution was in a
travel reimbursement that was not
allowed under her contracts. This was
for the amount of $8,863, a mere
pittance in comparison to the other
expenditures.
Mr. Peter M. Ackerberg, Special
Assistant Attorney General, reported
in a letter dated March 10, 1993,
which addressed the $8,863 in
expense reimbursements received by
Ms. Stately from the State. The
reimbursements were for travel
between her office-residence in
Plymouth and the St. Paul office of
the Indian Affairs Council pursuant
to her contracts with the Council.
According to Ackerberg he
concluded that the questioned
reimbursements are not legally
recoverable by the State. This is based
upon his interpretation of existing
court cases which address this issue.
Ackerberg concluded that because of
the ambiguity of the contract it is
possible to have more than one
interpretation of the reimbursement
policy. Another factor that came into
play was the changes in the
Commissioner's Plan on
reimbursement provision which were
modified during the Stately
contractual period.
In one sense under an expansive
construction or interpretation of the
contract terms reimbursement would
be permitted, even though the
Commissioner Plan at the time was
apparently generally understood by
state employees and employers to
exclude commute miles. On the other
hand, in a narrow construction or
interpretation of the contract terms,
the reimbursement would not be
permitted in accordance with the
generally understood scope of
reimbursable mileage policies.
It was because of this ambiguity, a
reviewing court would look to the
extrinsic evidence or expansive view
to determine the parties' intent. In
this case because Stately applied for
the reimbursement and Head inquired
about theirpropriety and subsequently
approved payment of these
reimbursements, then the quantum
Audit/See Page 3