The case Manoomin et al. v. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is a landmark legal battle centered on the rights of nature, treaty rights, and tribal sovereignty. Filed on August 5, 2021, in the Tribal Court of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe, the lawsuit aimed to protect *manoomin* (wild rice) by asserting its inherent rights to exist and flourish. The plaintiffs, including the White Earth Band of Ojibwe and tribal members, sought to halt the Minnesota DNR's permit allowing Enbridge Corporation to divert five billion gallons of water for constructing the controversial Line 3 oil pipeline. They argued that this diversion violated the rights of *manoomin*, Chippewa treaty rights, and tribal sovereignty..
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First, I would like to acknowledge my ancestors, who endured so much so that we could have what we have today. I’m forever in your debt. Waewaenon Ketaenon (I say thank you)!
Posoh, Anahkwet newiswan, Wapaesyah netotaem. My name is Guy Reiter, and I just introduced myself in my Menominee language. My elders taught me to always introduce myself and my clans before I speak to a new audience. It’s hard for me to write down what I want to say because I value the spoken word over the written word. So I’m going to write as if I’m sitting with you speaking. My Tribe, the Menominee Indian Tribe, is the longest living inhabitant of this land that is called Wisconsin. Like most Tribes in America, we’re one of the most studied peoples on the planet. Our beginning as a Tribe begins a mere 60 miles northeast of our current reservation at the mouth of the Menominee River. The city of Marinette, Wisconsin, now lies on that sacred site. Our oral history states that this is the place where our creation began thousands of years ago. In order to know my Tribe, you have to start with the creation of my Tribe. This creation story can be looked up on the internet or in a book (just take care to remember that the people writing the story were using translators, and a number of things can get lost in translation). The Menominee Creation Story was told to me by one of our elders on the reservation when I started to organize against the Back Forty Mine. We, Menominees, were given the responsibility to look after that river and land by the creator thousands of years ago, and that supersedes any treaty or law. (This article isn’t designed to inform of our whole history, it’s just giving you a very small piece.) |
This guest blog by Anahkwet/Guy Reiter is a part of our America’s Most Endangered Rivers® series on the Menominee River in Wisconsin and Michigan.
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