1855 Treaty Roundtable

I attended this meeting held at the Leech Lake Palace Casino and was glad i did ,there are many instances in Indian County where i as many others have been apprised by this group headed by attorney C. Peter Erlinder where i was not aware of the treaties that were signed many years ago but affect our Indigenous people to this very day.
What i did learn was that in recognition of the 1999,decision affecting the lawsuit ruled on by the Minnesota Supreme Court on behalf of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe ruled that these treaties have other issues such as hunting ,gathering and fishing rights that were never ceded with the land which still by treaty should allow the practice of our communal needs. Of course this is a position paper that this group wants to serve on Governor Pawlenty and "see what he says".And in the negative response on his part may negate a "test Case" such as a tribal member of the 1855 treaty to toss out a net or tap some Maple trees on State Land .
The one thing i pointed out to the group as a Minnesota Senate District 4 Candidate was having a Native American legislative voice in this process is invaluable since at the time of this signing we had no such representation nor do we now while even a multi-BILLION Dollar gambling operation is run over our heads.
Also of great imortance was Nicole Beaulieu a Leech Lake Band Member Announcing her Minnesota State Representative District 4A Candidacy in this years Minnesota Legislative Race. Congratualtions!!