Almost all people, regardless of race or income, agree that it’s important to honor your agreements.
Yet all too often, local, state and federal governments seem incapable of living that value when it comes to honoring treaties with Native Nations.
Native Nations received very little in treaty agreements. Native Nations have relatively small populations, making them easy targets for bullying. At every turn, when treaty disputes arise, Native Nations have sue to enforce what benefits they have.
The latest case comes from Mille Lacs County, where the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe won the latest legal dispute with the county over the Band’s reservation boundaries and the extent of Tribal police authority.
Perhaps county leaders are pressing the case to hold onto power through division, treating the Mille Lacs Band as an enemy.
In all likelihood, the county will continue challenging the Band’s treaty boundaries.
Everyone in Mille Lacs County has the opportunity to honor the treaty agreements that have not, and are not, being followed. They can encourage county leaders to drop any further litigation.
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