MMIR AWARENESS MONTH

Native American and Alaska Native communities experience disproportionately high rates of murder, rape, and violent crime — far above national averages. According to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), Native American and Alaska Native wom en represent a significant share of the missing and murdered across the country. The numbers are not just statistics—they are loved ones, family members, and community pillars. The crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives (MMIR) continues at an alarming level.

Tribal Government News

JOINING FORCES TO PROTECT OUR CLEAN WATER AND WILD RICE

On April 11, members of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, along with partners and allies from across the state, gathered in St. Paul for a day of connection, conversation, and shared purpose. The Water Over Nickel Partner Summit was more than just a meeting — it was a reminder of what we can do when we come together to protect the things that matter most: our wa ter, our wild rice, and our communities.

KEEPING FAMILIES TOGETHER

Diana Sanders and Roblyn Austin, ICWA Monitoring Social Workers, and Abigail Waaraniemi, Lead Social Worker, are three of the dedicated social workers on the Family Services team at the Mille Lacs Band’s Urban Office. Being a social worker in the foster care system is one of the most challenging and emotionally demanding jobs there is. These professionals step into people’s lives during their most vulnerable moments — when families are in crisis, when children are scared and confused, and when the systems meant to help are often overwhelmed.

PIPELINE INDIAN COUNTRY FENTANYL DISTRIBUTER FOUND GUILTY AFTER TRIAL

A federal jury convicted Dimitric Wilson, a Twin Cities resident originally from Detroit, with conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, possession of fentanyl with the intent to distribute, and distributing fentanyl while on pretrial release, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick. According to court documents and evidence at trial, law enforcement set out to discover a supplier of fentanyl in Wisconsin and Minnesota, including in the Twin Cities metropolitan area and on the Mille Lacs Indian Reservation.

CONSTITUTION DELEGATE CONVENTIONS

The Mille Lacs Band Delegates are excited to announce an up coming Delegate Convention that will be held at Grand Casino Hinckley on August 8. Your voice matters, and that is the number one priority of the delegates — to gather a collaborative voice that will help shape the path forward for the Mille Lacs Band and future generations. We will address popular topics, enjoy a lunch together, and close with gift card drawings. This effort is in line with the educational initiatives, partici pation in community events, and Zoom meetings last fall. Please feel free to join either of these convention locations, as they are not district specific for attendance. We are committed to bringing the convention to District II and Urban, and will be seeking recommendations based upon the actual participation of these scheduled events. We welcome your questions and look forward to open discussions. In addition, we’ll cover topics from the analysis re port created in April 2022. Prior to event feel free to send questions or suggestions to mlbdelegates401b@gmail.com.

BAND ASSEMBLY SPECIAL SESSIONS

Most recently the Legislature has given more structure to the sessions by implementing Rules of Band Assembly that do not allow for Old Business to continue on the agenda after the end of each Session. This allows for changes in power when items on the agenda may be an initiative of a sitting member of the assembly who then may be replaced via the election cycle and not committing a new member to existing initiatives. The Special Sessions also recognize the dual roles of Dis trict Representatives as members of Band Assembly and as Representatives within their respective communities. Special Sessions allow for more direct community engagement while there are no scheduled meetings.

Highlights

NASS BIANNUAL FUN RUN CELEBRATING 30 YEARS

In 1995, the Nay Ah Shing Physical Education Department educators brainstormed healthy activities and came up with the idea of having a Fun Run. The idea was implemented and was so popular among students, parents, and staff members that it developed into a biannual NAS school event. A designed T-shirt was added for each Fun Run to bring together a sense of unity between school, community, and culture. The shirt de signs typically resemble a theme or an idea representing the era of that time period. Shirt designs have been created by various students and staff members.

'I KNOW WHO I AM'

“I always knew I was gay. Everybody knew I was gay,” said Lala Machen, a Mille Lacs Band member, reflecting on her childhood. “Now I am finally becoming the woman I always knew I was meant to be.”

Lala is a trans woman — Two-Spirit, as she prefers — and she’s using her voice to raise awareness and advocate for LGBTQ2S+ people in her community. She wants others to know: you are not alone. At 21, Lala is in a healthier place — physically, emotionally, and mentally. However, her path hasn’t been easy. She entered the foster care system as a toddler, bouncing between homes and juvenile centers. “They couldn’t find foster families that would take me — a trans girl,” she said. “People didn’t want me in their house. They didn’t want a gay person in their house.” Her voice caught in a pause, her silence heavy with memory.

WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT IN THE OUTDOORS

Taya Sam-Sablan, great-granddaughter of Leonard Sam-iban, is a 2018 Isle High School graduate. At 24 years old, she works as a clinic assistant at a University of Minnesota health clinic in Maple Grove. When she is not at work, you will find Taya on the lake, in the woods, on a 4-wheeler, hunting, and gathering. Taya’s early teachings and her love of the woods and lake have taken her on an unexpected but rewarding journey. For the last two years, she has participated in outdoor adventures through an all-female wilderness organization whose goal is to empower women by creating unforgettable experiences that build community, confidence, and deepen their appreciation for the wilderness.

MILLE LACS FISHING OPENER 2025

For everywhere who grew up in the Mille Lacs area it comes as no surprise that the Minnesota fishing opener brought a certain buzz into a busy start to the summer. With a steady flow of growing traffic north starting mid-week, trucks and trailers filled the roads with excitement for anglers seeking a few of Minnesota’s state fish that answers to many names including marble eye, gravel lizards, gold, wally-gators — the walleye.

Indian Country News

Remove the Stain Act of 2025 Reintroduced: Confronting a Shameful Chapter in American History

The Remove the Stain Act of 2025 will be reintroduced by Senators Elizabeth Warren (D–MA) and Jeff Merkley (D–OR), along with Representative Jill Tokuda (D–HI), on Thursday, according to Sen. Warren’s Senate office. The Remove the Stain Act is a historic effort to address a long-standing injustice stemming from one of the darkest moments in U.S. military history—the Wounded Knee Massacre. This legislation aims to rescind twenty Medals of Honor awarded to U.S. soldiers for their role in the 1890 massacre of hundreds of Lakota men, women, and children at Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Source: Yahoo News.

Supreme Court declines to stop transfer of Native American site for mining

The Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the way for the federal government to transfer thousands of acres of national forest land containing a Native American sacred site to a copper-mining company. The justices left in place a lower court decision that allows the transfer of land in central Arizona known as Oak Flat. The land, which has great spiritual value to the Western Apache Indians, sits on the world’s third-largest deposit of copper ore. Justice Neil M. Gorsuch, whose rulings have long supported Native American rights, called the court’s refusal to review the case a “grievous mistake — one with consequences that threaten to reverberate for generations.” In 2014, Congress passed legislation directing the government to transfer about 2,400 acres to Resolution Copper to build an underground mine in exchange for company-owned property. The copper mine will create a 2-mile-wide crater, according to court filings, eliminating access to the sacred site. Source: The Washington Post.

National Museum of the American Indian hosts Native veterans for Memorial Day

The National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) is recognizing the contributions of Native veterans for an event on Memorial Day. The event, titled Service and Sacrifice, takes place on May 26 at the NMAI in Washington, D.C. Attendees will hear from Native veterans, make prayer ties to remember loved ones and attend a wreath-laying ceremony at the National Native American Veterans Memorial, which opened in November 2020 and was dedicated in November 2022. Visitors can also view Why We Serve: Native Americans in the United States Armed Forces. The ongoing exhibition shares the stories of American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian members of the military, whose service goes back more than 250 years to the Revolutionary War. Source: Indianz.com.

Tribal police offer reward for information on woman missing since 1990

The Lac du Flambeau Tribe is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for the 1990 murder of Susan “Susie” Poupart. Susie, a member of the Lac du Flambeau Tribe, was last seen on May 20, 1990, in Lac du Flambeau. She had left a house party around 4 a.m. and was walking home alone when two men in a car pulled up next to her. Witnesses saw her enter the car. Susie never arrived at her home, and her family reported her missing two days later. Source: WSAW.