SAULT TRIBE…REACHING THE FINAL COUNTDOWN?

By Lynne Weaver

Have you ever had the feeling that eminent doom is just around the corner? Just out of the blue, a thought crosses your mind that you should be on guard for something bad to happen but there isn’t a shred of evidence to verify those feelings. Occasionally those feelings are likely the result of certain circumstances such as your child leaving for college or a parent suddenly not feeling well. Certainly the state of the economy has a lot of people clinging to their sanity, jobs and bank accounts. But there seems to be something more going on with the Sault Tribe then what the members are aware of.

Curiously, some long time employees at the top of the heap seem to heading out of Dodge. They aren’t exactly being public about it but gossip in northern Michigan’s small towns travels fast. Not wanting to jeopardize anyone’s job by supplying the public with detailed information takes precedence over being the first to relay the rumors so subtle hints are the best I can do. Some of the top guns are seeking employment far from the sinking Sault Tribe including at least one higher up on the tribal gaming commission. Those who have never had to worry about their position with the tribe are talking about early retirement while others are planning to put their homes on the market.

As the Sault Tribe leaders were faced with the truth that they were headed for financial disaster, threats of disenrollment, loss of benefits and voting privileges for descendents of the Mackinac Bands made by at least one Sault Tribe board director and several members of the Sault Tribe, began to circulate.

The biggest indicator of all is the sudden interest in the Mackinac Bands of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. Not only are Sault Tribe members inquiring about the status of the MB’s affirmation of federal acknowledgement but past and present leaders and business associates of the Sault Tribe seem to be leaning toward the MB. One group of Mackinac Band members (myself included) who are working towards the development of a plan for economic stability for our expanding community, understand that wind energy and other renewable resources are quickly becoming the fastest growing global industry with the promise of good paying, long-term job opportunities. Our active interest in this field is attracting investors, grant writers and attorneys who are treading lightly in the direction of the Mackinac Bands.

Now, with what appears to be a flight for safety from the jaws of the Sault Tribe’s financial problems, it may be the Mackinac Bands that eventually provides safe haven for those who have long awaited independence from the Sault Tribe. In any case, we can get this done a lot faster with a little more help and the doors are open wide for those who are ready to roll up their sleeves and pitch in.
Call or email me: lynne.mackbands@yahoo.com 906-440-7099

DANGER TO THE GREAT LAKES

Friends, Associates, Tribal Members and Elected Officials:

If you don't think this is a real threat...read on and learn about this invasive fish that will ultimately destroy the Great Lakes and its eco-system. As residents and citizens of Michigan...we all better get involved with the EPA, Great Lakes United, and other organizations to learn about this invasive Asian Carp and find out how we as citizens can prevent this threat from entering into the GREAT LAKES! Ask..."What can I DO?"

Anne Thompson on NBC National News last night...had a segment on this issue and the real threat of the Asian Carp. There is only one barrier preventing this invasive species from entering the Great Lakes and it is closer than you think!
Please read the link for more information: Here

As a member of the Mackinac Band, this is a serious issue that will undoubtedly destroy the health and habitat of our precious waters. How can we as the Mackinac Band be part of solving this serious threat that is only one barrier away from the Great Lakes? Putting aside all politics...this is vital to all people.
Anne
"Know that you are a helper,
a traveler along life's road,
whose noble purpose lightens the burdens of another's load"
---Jamie Sams

The Mackinac Bands is proceeding ahead to get information on how we can personally get involved and help to prevent this species from entering our Great Lakes! We need to get direction and become informed on how we as citizens can address this serious issue. It is essential to form a citizen's coaltion! What can we do at this immediate juncture?

MACKINAC BANDS POWWOW REMINDER

Mark your calendars for August 8th, 2009 to attend the MB powwow in Rogers City at 1 p.m. Greet A.I.M members(American Indian Movement) from the Michigan chapter who will have a booth where T-shirts and other A.I.M. items can be purchased.

Bouschor: A Name Synonymous with Business Failures

Through the decades, Sault Tribe members have stood by helplessly and watched one tribal business fail after another. Every failed venture bore the fingerprints of one man whose name seems to breed disaster: Bernard Bouschor.

I have forgotten the names of all Bouschor’s business failures and even the number eludes me. It’s not easy to find the details and I have looked under rugs, blankets and even under the wool over the eyes of some people, but the answers seem to be covered up pretty well. If I were to send a request under the Freedom of Information Act, would I receive a reply or would the answer be something like, “Sorry, but details of the tribe’s financial affairs are not the business of tribal members.” Venturing a guess, I believe Bouschor is responsible for between 30 and 35 failures with Greektown being the Titanic of all failures.

Although Bouschor passes off his biggest failure onto the last administration, public information can verify that Greektown’s financial struggles began when Bouschor wrapped his fool’s gold finger around a pen and signed away the Sault Tribe’s future to the Greeks for a mere $25,000. How much will the tribe have invested in Greektown only to lose it all…a billion or more?

Many casinos are going under but is the debt to owners comparable to what the Sault Tribe members will feel with the loss of Greektown? It’s probably not fair to blame it all on Bouschor so we should just blame him for those failed business’s whose beginnings were based solely on his decisions. Surely, some of the failed business ventures were properly researched by competent advisors whose decisions were not controlled by Bouschor. As soon as I hear of one tribal business failure not synonymous with the name Bouschor, I’ll post it here.

Who Are the Mackinac Bands?

Who are the Mackinac Bands and the Mackinac Tribe, LLC., are they seeking federal acknowledgment, why did the Sault Tribe adopt the Mackinac Bands and how did they do it, what is the mystery surrounding the removal of John Causley, was there a break-in of the Mackinac Bands office, what is the status of the Mackinac Bands….? These are questions that linger and continue to be asked.

The Mackinac Bands of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians were signatories on the 1836 and 1855 treaties with the United States whose members were identified and federally recognized on the Horace Durant Rolls as being a separate and unique tribe. Horace Durant was an Indian agent appointed by the Secretary of Interior to prepare a census roll between 1907 and 1910 in order to make payment to the Indians in the Mackinac area.

During the late 1970’s, the Sault Tribe Board of Directors, with Bernard Bouschor as Chairman, passed a resolution to adopt the Mackinac Bands as members of the Sault Tribe. With the approval of that resolution by the Secretary of Interior, the Sault Tribe claimed ownership to all property that belonged to the MB. Recently, a question presented to the Assistant Secretary of Interior asked why there was no required secretarial election for MB members to vote on the adoption. The MB is still waiting for an answer but maybe the answer is not one the Secretary of Interior is willing to provide. Whether or not they respond will not change the outcome that has made members of the MB second class citizens in the eyes of the Sault Tribe. Several directors and members of the Sault Tribe have argued that the 14,000 MB members, who are also Sault Tribe members, are not eligible to vote. Some Sault Tribers also dislike sharing any sort of benefits with MB members. Apparently, the Sault Tribe wanted to have their cake and eat it too but without the calories.

The Mackinac Tribe, LLC. is a group of people who splintered from the MB in April, 2008, to represent a smaller group of MB descendents. They recently dropped the LLC from their name and attempted to convince the MB, in what would have been an unwise decision, to join them as one tribe. Continuity of the MB would have been lost and the MB would have ceased to exist.

John Causley, former chairman of the MB, was removed by a vote of the board. Records belonging to the MB were obtained, not through a break-in, but with the assistance of law enforcement who accompanied MB board members while they reclaimed their property.

Causley did file a letter of intent (to file a petition for federal acknowledgment) with the Secretary of Interior. The regulations for filing are complicated but the status of the MB is not. Logically speaking, it should be easy.The difficulty is convincing the Secretary of Interior that we have been here much longer than they have, we are not going away and that we are already approved as members of a federally recognized tribe according to the treaties and the Durant Census rolls. The MB wants affirmation of recognition as well as to separate from the Sault Tribe so that we can be the unique tribe we are. We want rights to the provisions defined in the treaties of which we are signatories and we don't want the constant threat of disenrollment (by the Sault Tribe).

If you are a Mackinac Band descendant and a member of the Sault Tribe, then you only need to provide proof of your identity to become an enrolled member of the MB. For others, it will be necessary to trace ancestral history to find a family connection to the MB. Only after affirmation of federal recognition is received, will it be necessary for those who are members of both the MB and ST to choose one over the other.

Ironically, the MB has many supporters who are not members of the Sault Tribe or the Mackinac Bands and are also not American Indians but who want to assist with our efforts. For purposes of identification, they receive membership cards as part of our support group but will not be entitled to any membership benefits.

If you have any questions about the Mackinac Bands, I will find the answer if one exists. Email me at lynne.mackbands@yahoo.com or weave977@yahoo.com Please provide me with a phone number if you wish to speak with me.

The Sinking of Greektown

By Lynne Weaver
After reading the special edition of “ The Greektown Challenge” in the Sault Tribe paper, the picture is much clearer. Chairman McCoy feels it is unfair that critics blame only the tribe. I don’t blame the tribe. The tribe is made up of a group of members numbering close to 40,000. The vast majority of Sault Tribe members were not involved in any decisions regarding Greektown. Shouldn’t we blame the decision –makers of the tribe for the collapse of Greektown just as GM, Chrysler and several financial institutions blamed their top executives for their failure to stay ahead of change?

The first error in judgment by tribal leaders was a lack of foresight in determining potential issues with location, location, location. If you are considering the purchase of a house and the lack of garage or parking is a major issue, do you buy that house or pursue a better location where there is sufficient land to build the garage without the need to jump through hoops. Room for expansion should have been a prerequisite prior to finalizing the real estate purchase.

McCoy goes on to blame the state of Michigan and the city of Detroit for many of the financial difficulties because of increased “sin” taxes. Gambling facilities have long been the target of anti-gambling legislation, so did tribal leaders expect that opposition to gambling would suddenly go away in the future? At some point, anti-anything always wins at least part of the argument. McCoy blames Detroit for failing to provide timely zoning approvals that put a wrench in construction timelines. If it is compulsory to change a law, policy or ordinance in order to make something happen, then shouldn’t it be crucial to secure that step prior to arranging construction of such a large project?

Now tribal leaders are faced with explaining why new management has been able to increase revenue above the two competing casinos in such a short period of time. Even though the former Greektown management board and several tribal leaders blamed the previous underperformance of Greektown on the failing economy, they must now explain away the sudden increase in revenues during the worst period of a recession this country has experienced in decades. Are we missing something here…literally?

Greektown, the brainchild of former chairman Bernard Bouschor, may have been a great idea in concept but inept planning, the lack of expert counsel, and an eye focused on a fast buck may have put a hole in the boat from day one. Perhaps we should ask the Greeks, who profited greatly from their $25,000 investment, on how not to get screwed. At any rate, maybe if the tribal leaders would have considered a backup plan to diversify funds towards other viable business ventures, rather than placing all their eggs in one basket, the future of the tribe would be a little less bleak.

With job losses within the Sault Tribe reportedly in the thousands, isn’t it time to stop with the excuses and start with accountability? Only time will tell what the sinking of Greektown means for the members of the Sault Tribe.

Mackinac Bands Meets Mackinac Tribe

Apparently the lines of email communication were down when it came to the announcement of a public meeting between the Mackinac Bands and the Mackinac Tribe. One grape on the vine told me that a meeting would be held on a specific day but further inquiries went unanswered. I did manage to speak to two representatives for the Mackinac Bands though and received an email from a person who regularly sends negative posts about the MB’s and the MT’s quest to be affirmed of federal recognition.

For those that care, the Mackinac Bands of Ottawa and Chippewa Bands have been around since the Horace Durant rolls said so. Anyone who is a member will be hot about that remark since the Bands existed long before the federal government reared their ugly heads. In April of 2008, half the MB board splintered away, upon the advice of an attorney, to become the Mackinac Tribe LLC. The shift was originally intended as a name change and not as a fracturing of the group but the lack of an organized effort, along with a little power shifting, resulted in a rift between the two boards. The recent meeting was arranged with two purposes in mind but those purposes were the exact opposite of what each group wanted.

The leaders of the MT expected the leaders of the MB to forget their existence and join their group. The leaders of the MB agreed to work with the MT towards federal recognition but made it clear that it would be a terrible mistake to attempt to rewrite history. A recent letter from the Secretary of Interior sent to the Mackinac Tribe LLC’s attorney indicated that the Mackinac Bands currently has representation and that splintered groups are not being considered for recognition. Previously recognized in decades past, the Mackinac Bands is seeking affirmation of recognition. One critical aspect for federal recognition or affirmation is the continuity of history, a sort of audit trail of existence. If the Mackinac Bands agreed to join with the Mackinac Tribe wouldn’t this be counterproductive to that idea.

Proving the existence of the Mackinac Bands should be as easy as proving the existence of dirt since they are mentioned in numerous documents prior to even having a written language. The adoption of the Mackinac Bands into the Sault Tribe by resolution of the ST’s board vote only and permission of the Secretary of Interior would indicate that the MB was a federally recognized tribe if the motion to adopt was achieved so easily. The question of why the MB members were not given the right to vote on the adoption rather than be given the recognition to operate as a separate tribe is waiting for an answer from the Secretary of Interior. Considering the unfavorable publicity surrounding the Sault Tribe is it any wonder that a group that could separate from the “bad kids” would do so.

At any rate, the Mackinac Bands deserves your community support.

How to Be a Good Sault Tribe Member for Dummies

By Lynne Weaver
Ten rules to being a good Sault Tribe member.
1. Never question authority.
This is by far the most important rule to becoming a faithful and obedient Sault Tribe member. Tribal Officials are the ultimate and final authority, not law enforcement as some may assume. Do not conclude that as a voting member, you have the right to opinions that may question authority.
2. Learn to nod yes effectively.
Move your head from its upright position directly downward until the chin touches the area located at the top of the breastbone. This movement signals your approval with whatever you are told by tribal officials.
3. Ignore the tribal constitution.
This document was originally intended for approval by the Bureau of Indian Affairs for the purpose of obtaining federal acknowledgement and can be amended by the Sault Tribe Board of Directors only, as needed.
4. Believe everything you are told.
If tribal officials tell you that everything is hunky-dorey fine, you should believe it because they would never deceive tribal members unless it was absolutely necessary. The definition of “necessary” is at the discretion of the board and other tribal officials.
5. Do not ask for tribal financial updates.
The financial position of the tribe is none of your business. The “don’t ask-don’t tell” rule is always in effect.
6. Do not ask that the meetings be televised as before.
One of the benefits of having tribal members not living within meeting zones is that it is less complicated for tribal officials. If members can’t attend meetings, it is easier not to be held accountable. This is also easier for members come election time since a simple guess is all that is required to know who has worked in the best interest of the tribe.
7. Give back your Elder check if you received one.
The Board of Directors needs it to pay for unnecessary trips across the country to attend conferences that bring nothing of value back to the tribe.
8. Be happy that the board is not making any financial sacrifices for the tribe.
Someone has to benefit from all the money received from the land claims. Be happy that you don’t have the headaches associated with how to spend 67K a year for working a part-time job. Since members are not privy to such highly confidential information, apologies to all if the figure is higher now.
9. Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil.
If you have heard about the FBI investigations and the discovery of the endless can of worms, put your hands over your ears. If you were a witness to questionable activities by any tribal official, cover your eyes. Place your hand over your mouth if you feel tempted to tell anyone what you have heard or seen.
10. Drink the red koolaid as soon as the effects of the first nine rules begins to wear off.

"He who does not bellow the truth when he knows the truth makes himself the accomplice of liars and forgers."
Charles Peguy
If you want to get to the liars, go after the accomplices first and they will point the way to save themselves.
Me

Thomas Jefferson

"The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions, that I wish it always to be kept alive."
--Thomas Jefferson

From the Presque Isle County Advance

Full schedule of events planned for Nautical City Festival 2009
6/24/2009 8:23:59 PM
By Richard Lamb, Advance Editor

The Mackinac Bands of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians are teaming up with the Presque Isle County Historical Museum to put on the first full-blown Powwow to ever be held in northeastern Michigan. The Powwow will feature several drum teams, singers, costumed dancers, storytellers and American Indian crafters. The Powwow is set for festival Saturday, August 8 from 1-4 p.m., but the museum's famous “buffalo burgers” will go on sale beginning at 11 a.m. The public is invited to bring a lawn chair for an interesting and educational afternoon of family-friendly entertainment celebrating the thousands of years of American Indian culture in this area. Admission is free. Thompson also said the spacious lawn of the Bradley House will be the site of an the Voyageur Rendezvous encampment by historical reenactors from around the state. The reenactors make history come alive by donning period attire and demonstrating skills that would have been practiced by the voyageurs who frequented the northern lakes during the 1700s.

Read more here...

No one says it better than Maxine...