As many as one-hundred Native Americans and their Tribal leaders from across the state met with state lawmakers (today) at the Capitol. Although it's not unusual for native-specific issues to make their way into state policy...Minnesota Public Radio's Karen-Louise Boothe reports...the day was, nevertheless, a PRECEDENT-SETTING one: Each day there's a house or senate floor session...an invocation by a sworn state chaplain is offered. NEVER before has that chaplain been a native american spiritural leader. That is, until NOW. 58-year old Thomas Stillday Junior has become the Senate's first American Indian Chaplain...he's a spiritual elder from the Red Lake Band of Chippewa. After delivering a traditional Indian prayer during a peace pipe ceremony o
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KAREN LOUISE BOOTHE: Each day there's a House or Senate floor session, an invocation by a sworn state chaplain is offered. Never before has that chaplain been a Native American spiritual leader, that is until now. 58-year-old Thomas Stillday Jr. Has become the Senate's first American Indian chaplain. He's a spiritual elder from the Red Lake Band of Ojibwe. After delivering a traditional Indian prayer during a peace pipe ceremony on the floor, Chaplain Stillday was asked which issues are most pressing for his people today, both spiritually and socially.
THOMAS STILLDAY: To me, it'd be employment, welfare, education, housing. And I suppose because we have so much violence, people getting along together, those are the main things that we face.
KAREN LOUISE BOOTHE: DFL Senate Majority Leader Roger Moe helped orchestrate the meetings between Indians and state lawmakers. Though, state and tribal government leaders have worked together on many policies in recent years, government relationships have become increasingly more complicated.
ROGER MOE: As you know, we've had the Mille Lacs controversy, the gaming issues have provided certainly some controversy, and bring everybody into the 21st century and have a better working relationship, at least, going down the path we have on some of these issues which have tended to divide people. And I just don't think we're going to be a better state because of that. So it's an attempt to try to bring these issues to the forefront, give them a better forum, better visibility, and see if we can work out whatever differences there might be.
KAREN LOUISE BOOTHE: Moe is proposing a State of the State address for Minnesota's 11 tribal governments to be delivered to a joint local governments committee. Bobby Whitefeather is tribal chairman of the Red Lake Band. He says having a Native American spiritual leader in state government is long overdue, but the swearing in of Chaplain Stillday is inspirational, and he says it signifies basically good relationship between the governments.
BOBBY WHITEFEATHER: And I believe it's been demonstrated that they have worked with very significantly by the state of Minnesota Indian tribes on a government-to-government basis over the years.
KAREN LOUISE BOOTHE: Whitefeather says among the key policy questions facing leaders of tribal governments is welfare reform. Statistics from Native American organizations show that in Minnesota, nearly 2/3 of Native American children are living below the poverty level. Per capita income statistics from 1989 show Native Americans made less than $7,000 that year, the lowest for any of the major racial ethnic groups.
KAREN LOUISE BOOTHE: Whitefeather says federal cutbacks are expected to affect 30% to 35% of Native Americans in the state. He says his welfare reform is discussed in context to reservation's. Two main points emerge.
BOBBY WHITEFEATHER: Number one thing, education. Number two is employment. And when I talk about employment, it's not the employment that you think about. It's minimum wage. People have to have a livable wage.
KAREN LOUISE BOOTH: Other issues he says, include health care, job creation, housing, lawful gaming, and education. But as tribal leaders from Red Lake work through policy with state lawmakers, they're faced with some unique arrangements.
Tripartisan cooperation is essential since Red Lake is a closed reservation with special status, one of only two in the country. Indians there reside on Aboriginal land. Subsequently, state courts have no jurisdiction at Red Lake. Laws that are made are decided by the tribal council and enforced by tribal and federal courts. At the capitol, this is Karen Louise Boothe, Minnesota Public Radio.