An Analysis of Traditional Ojibwe Civil Chief Leadership A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA BY Giniwgiizhig - Henry Flocken IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF EDUCATION Frank Guldbrandsen, Adviser May, 2013 © Giniwgiizhig - Henry Flocken 2013 i Acknowledgements My wife, Clarice Mountain, endured the weight of my absence. Her strength helps me succeed. I love her immensely. My children, Terry, Tashina, Samara, Bobbi, Ricky, Ryan, Lisa, Ashley, and Desi, also felt my absence. Marcy Ardito instilled in me that I was smart and could do anything. Dr. Frank Guldbrandsen is a friend and an intellectual guerrilla emancipating cattle from slaughter. ii Dedication This work is dedicated to the late Albert Churchill, a spiritual leader, and his great family. Albert kept traditional ceremonies alive and always shared knowledge with those who asked. Knowledge is useless unless it is shared. He said if we do not share our knowledge, then the flow of new knowledge will be blocked and we will not learn. He always said, “Together we can do anything.” iii Abstract Little is known about traditional Ojibwe civil chief leadership. This critical ethnography is an analysis of traditional Ojibwe civil chief leadership. Hereditary chiefs are interviewed. Chief leadership lies nested in the Anishinaabe Constitution. It is clan-based and value-based. It includes all of creation. Leadership is emergent and symbolic. Chiefs symbolized and are spokespersons for the will of the people. They were selected based on their virtues. The real power is in the people, in clans in council. Hunting groups had spokesmen in clans. Chiefs were chosen from the clan headmen in council. Larger area councils selected a chief from the chief-council. This system is spiritual, holistic, consensual, and egalitarian. It empowers the people. Colonial oppression has transformed what was a bottom-up structure to a Western top-down structure often filled with nepotism, favoritism, and corrupt and coercive leadership. Coupled with historic trauma, this engenders self-oppression and social dysfunction. Many activists call for a return to traditional Anishinaabe government, but little is known about what that is. The purpose of this critical ethnography is to know traditional Ojibwe civil chief leadership, add to leadership knowledge, and use that knowledge in Anishinaabe leadership models for tomorrow. iv Table of Contents Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................. i Dedication ........................................................................................................................... ii Abstract .............................................................................................................................. iii CHAPTER I. PROBLEM AND BACKGROUND .............................................................1 Introduction ..............................................................................................................1 Background of the Problem .....................................................................................1 Statement of the Problem .........................................................................................6 Purpose of the Study ................................................................................................6 Research Questions ..................................................................................................7 Assumptions of the Study ........................................................................................7 Significance of the Study .........................................................................................8 Limitations and Delimitations ..................................................................................9 Definition of Terms................................................................................................10 Summary ................................................................................................................11 CHAPTER II. REVIEW OF LITERATURE ....................................................................12 Introduction ............................................................................................................13 Worldview..............................................................................................................13 Etymology of Anishinaabe and Ojibwe .....................................................14 Creation and Re-creation ...........................................................................15 Clan System ...............................................................................................17 Value System .............................................................................................18 The Great Spiritual Migration ....................................................................20 Season-round Economy .............................................................................22 Totemic Bands ...........................................................................................24 Sacred Legends ..........................................................................................25 Dreams and Vision Quests .........................................................................25 Grand Medicine Lodge ..............................................................................28 Shaking Tent ..............................................................................................29 Ceremonial Drum Society..........................................................................30 Gift Giving .................................................................................................30 Bimaadiziwin – Reciprocal Relationship with Spirits and Creation .........31 Leadership ..............................................................................................................34 Women as Leaders .....................................................................................34 Hunter as Leader ........................................................................................36 Spiritual Leaders ........................................................................................37 War Chiefs .................................................................................................39 Civil Chiefs ................................................................................................42 Councils .....................................................................................................46 Social Control ............................................................................................50 Atomism and Nucleation ...........................................................................52 v Summary – Ojibwe Leadership and Worldview ........................................55 Colonialism, Paradigm Shift ..................................................................................56 Leadership Clash ........................................................................................56 French Trade, Infiltration, Dependency and Decentralization ...................60 English Trade, Chiefs’ Diplomacy with World Power Allies ...................64 American Trade, Loss of World Power Allies...........................................66 Medallion Chiefs’ Disruptions ...................................................................69 Alcohol and Disease ..................................................................................70 Economic Change and Dependency ..........................................................71 Clan System Shift ......................................................................................75 Trade Summary ..........................................................................................76 American Oppression and Systems Collapse ........................................................77 Loss of Land and Resources and Economic Collapse ...............................77 Shift Towards Charismatic Leaders and War Chiefs .................................81 Religious Schisms, Oppression, and Division of Chiefs ...........................88 Reservations Agents Usurp Chiefs and Council ........................................90 Cultural Genocide ......................................................................................91 Indian Reorganization Act and New Constitutions ...............................................92 Elected Ojibwe Chiefs of Canada ..............................................................94 Elected Ojibwe Chiefs of the United States and Self-Oppression .............95 Colonization and Decolonization ...............................................................98 Summary of Review of Literature .......................................................................100 CHAPTER III. METHODOLOGY .................................................................................103 Introduction ..........................................................................................................103 Qualifying the Research Topic ............................................................................103 Research Design...................................................................................................105 Role of the Researcher .........................................................................................107