FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
About the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe
As of October 2007

MILLE LACS BAND

Where is the Mille Lacs Reservation?

The Mille Lacs Reservation is located in East Central Minnesota. It is divided into three districts:

• District I on Mille Lacs Lake near the city of Onamia, where the Mille Lacs Band Government Center and Grand Casino Mille Lacs are located and where the largest concentration of Mille Lacs Band members live
• Districts II and IIa near the cities of McGregor and Isle
• District III near the city of Hinckley, where Grand Casino Hinckley is located

What is the Mille Lacs Band’s relationship to the other Ojibwe (Chippewa) bands in Minnesota?

The Mille Lacs Band is one of six members of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe; the other members are the White Earth Band, Leech Lake Band, Grand Portage Band, Bois Forte Band, and Fond du Lac Band.

How many Mille Lacs Band members are there?

There are approximately 3,900 Band members, including:

• 1,275 in District I
• 300 in Districts II and IIa
• 500 in District III
• 800 in the Twin Cities metropolitan area
• 500 in other Minnesota towns
• 400 across the United States
• 125 other

What are the differences between the terms “Ojibwe,” “Chippewa” and “Anishinabe”?

• “Ojibwe” is the official term to be used for the Mille Lacs Band and the preferred way to refer to Mille Lacs Band members.
• “Chippewa,” which probably came about as a mispronunciation of the word “Ojibwe” by non-Indians, is also used by Indians and non-Indians to refer to Ojibwe people. • “Anishinabe” means “spontaneously created” or “original man” in Ojibwe, and it is used to refer to all Indians who live in North and South America.

How is the Mille Lacs Band’s government structured?

The Mille Lacs Band’s government is based on a separation of powers, similar to the United States federal government. The three branches of the Band’s government – legislative, executive and judicial – ensure through proper checks and balances that no single person or part of the government has absolute and arbitrary power in any particular area.

• The legislative branch of the Band’s government, known as the Band Assembly, consists of one Representative from each of the reservation’s three districts and a Secretary/Treasurer who presides over the Band Assembly as its speaker. Each Representative is elected by the people of his or her district to serve four-year terms in the Band Assembly. Band members who live off the reservation select a home district and vote only for a Representative from that district. The Secretary/Treasurer is elected by all Band members.
• The executive branch’s top official is the Chief Executive, who is elected by Band members every four years. The Chief Executive appoints Commissioners, who are ratified by the Band Assembly, to oversee the various departments in the executive branch.
• The judicial branch includes the Chief Justice and the Court of Central Jurisdiction, which consists of three Appellate Justices and one District Judge.

Does the Mille Lacs Band donate to the community?

The Mille Lacs Band’s Corporate Commission – which owns and operates the Mille Lacs Band’s businesses, including Grand Casino Mille Lacs and Grand Casino Hinckley – contributes thousands of dollars each month to law enforcement agencies, educational institutions, hospitals, food shelves, and other community organizations or projects in Minnesota and nationwide. In 2006, the Band’s Corporate Commission donated about $250,000 to a variety of nonprofit organizations and other charitable causes. Through the Minnesota Tribal Government Foundation, the Band and two other tribes provide economic development funds to other Minnesota tribal governments.

What is the Mille Lacs Band doing to preserve the Ojibwe language and culture?

• The Mille Lacs Band has an Ojibwe Language and Culture Program that is part of the curriculums for all Early Education students and K-12 students at the Band’s Nay Ah Shing Schools.
• Assisted living units for Mille Lacs Band Elders provide a way for them to stay in the community and continue sharing the Ojibwe culture.
• The Band’s Ojibwe Language and Culture Center provides Ojibwe language classes, ceremonial discussions, and other cultural activities such as wigwam construction and sugarbushing (making maple sugar).
• Band members also continue to participate in traditional Ojibwe ceremonies, including dance, name-giving and birth ceremonies.

What community facilities does the Mille Lacs Band own and operate?

The Band owns and operates the following facilities:

• Elementary school: Nay Ah Shing Abinoojiiyag for grades K-4 in District I
• High school: Nay Ah Shing Upper School for grades 5-12 in District I
• Clinics: Ne-Ia-Shing Clinic in District I and Aazhoomog Clinic in District III
• Community centers: District I Community Center, East Lake Community Center and Chiminising (Isle) Community Center in Districts II and IIa, and Lake Lena Community Center in District III
• Elder Assisted Living Units: one in each district
• Ceremonial buildings: one in each district
• Ojibwe Language and Culture Center: Misizahga’igani Anishinabay Izhitwahwin (Mille Lacs Ojibwe Way of Life) near Rutledge
• Workforce Education and Development Center in District I
• Urban Workforce Center in Minneapolis
• Urban Office in Minneapolis to assist urban Band adults and youth with a range of social, economic and recreation services

The Band was also instrumental in assisting in the development of two independently operated charter schools on the Mille Lacs Reservation:

• Minisinaakwaang Leadership Academy in District II
• Pine Grove Leadership Academy in District III

MILLE LACS BAND CASINOS

Where are the Mille Lacs Band’s casinos?

The Mille Lacs Band owns and operates two casinos, Grand Casino Mille Lacs and Grand Casino Hinckley.

• Grand Casino Mille Lacs is located 90 miles north of the Twin Cities on Highway 169 on the west shore of Mille Lacs Lake.
• Grand Casino Hinckley is located midway between the Twin Cities and Duluth, one mile east of I-35 on Highway 48.

How are the Band’s casinos regulated?

Grand Casino Mille Lacs and Grand Casino Hinckley, like all American Indian casinos, are regulated at the federal, state and tribal levels.

• At the federal level, Indian casinos are regulated by the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC). The Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Department of the Treasury also have regulatory roles over Indian casinos. NIGC works to assure that gaming is conducted fairly and honestly, ensures that Indian tribes are the primary beneficiaries of gaming revenue, and shields tribes from organized crime and other corrupting influences. The commission is authorized to conduct background investigations and audits, undertake enforcement actions, and review and approve tribal gaming ordinances.
• At the state level, Minnesota conducts background investigations of casino employees and inspects gaming facilities. The Mille Lacs Band contributes money each year to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety to offset the state’s gaming regulatory costs.
• At the tribal level, the Mille Lacs Band’s Gaming Regulatory Authority regulates the gaming activities at Grand Casino Mille Lacs and Grand Casino Hinckley. The Authority is responsible for oversight and enforcement of Band gaming laws, federal gaming laws, and the state gaming compacts.

ISSUES

What are Band members’ hunting and fishing rights?

In 1837, the Mille Lacs Band signed a treaty giving land to the U.S. government on the condition that Band members would always be able to hunt and fish there. The treaty was never properly enforced, and Band members were often arrested for exercising their rights. An agreement reached between the Band and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to settle the issue was rejected by the Minnesota Legislature, and the matter went to court. In 1999, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Band’s hunting and fishing rights. Since then, the Band has implemented a conservation code that governs Band members who hunt and fish in the area.

What is the history behind the tension between Mille Lacs County and the Mille Lacs Band?

Two treaties that the Mille Lacs Band made with the federal government have caused disputes between the Band and Mille Lacs County. The first is the Treaty of 1837, which gave Band members the right to hunt and fish in the territory ceded to the U.S. government. The second is the Treaty of 1855, which established the Mille Lacs Reservation. Mille Lacs County has disputed the existence of the Mille Lacs Reservation in court, but has lost its cases against the Band.

What is sovereignty, and why are Indian tribes sovereign?

Sovereignty means independence from all others. The Mille Lacs Band’s sovereignty gives it the authority to create its own laws and regulations that govern activities on the reservation within a federal framework. These powers derive from the Band’s status as a sovereign nation that existed before the formation of the United States, from treaties with the United States, and from acts of Congress.

Media Contacts Tadd Johnson at 320/630-2692 OR Patty Dunn at 651/292-8062; cell:  612/597-2162

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Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe | 43408 Oodena Drive | Onamia, MN 56359 Government Center Phone: (320) 532-4181