AAnniisshhiinnaaaabbeegg TTooddaayy A Monthly Chronicle of White Earth Reservation Vol. 26 No. 5 White Earth, Minn. [email protected] Wednesday, May 5, 2021 Pine Point Village treated to Earth Day parade The Pine Point Earth Day Parade was held April 24. The parade started at the community center and made it’s way down Pow Wow Highway. Top : Volunteers get ready to walk with a giant butterfly. Left : Drummers entertain the crowd during the parade. Photos by Gary W. Padrta N E 4 D M D 1 G E s R e A T O A k D T R N I a D S O t L A i N O S P t i P m Thank you front A E r o T r S e R t S P P e U D line workers Members of Ogema VFW Post #9880 and Auxiliary recently dropped off pastries at the White Earth Health r e building as a thank you for m S their work in taking care of the o S t reservation community during s W u the pandemic. R C C l The treats were made by E a t Shirley Kjolberg. s o P From left are Sherry Zima, Taylor Soyring, Taylor Vonderharr, Diana and John Karl, Doug Fabre, Amy Moore, Christi Boit, Carol Fabre and Kimberly James. Photo by Shirley Kjolberg 2 Anishinaabeg Today Wednesday, May 5, 2021 Anishinaabeg Today Are we there yet? No, but here is what we can do The Anishinaabeg Today (AT) is the offical publica - By Carson Gardner, M.D R group options, paying attention to risk indicators, making tion of White Earth Reservation and is published once a White Earth Emergency Operations Center do with less, and even getting vaccine jabs in the arm. But… month. Editorials and articles appearing in the AT are are we there yet? When can we stop all this necessary-but- the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily I remember being that runny-nosed kid in the back seat, frustrating detail dragging on and on, and get back to living reflect the opinion or attitude of the AT staff or the White asking a bit too often about when we would get to my aun - a “normal” life again? And “What can I do till we get Earth Reservation Business Committee. tie’s and uncle’s house. I don’t ever remember being there?” stopped from asking, but sometimes the answers got pretty Nope, we’re not there yet. The AT reserves the right to reject any advertising short. I guess I must, as a kid, have felt pretty much out of • Though about 90% of our elders are now vaccinated, or materials submitted for publication. The submission control of the situation. I loved my auntie and uncle a lot, only about 50% of our young and middle-aged adults are of articles, and photos is encouraged, however, they are and had a lot of fun playing with my cousins. But the trip to vaccinated. subject to editing for grammar, length, and malicious/ their house always seemed far too long, especially near hol - • Vaccinated people can still, at least occasionally, carry libelous content. The Editor makes the sole decision of idays; and I had no way of speeding it up. So, “Are we there the COVID virus and spread it. If they are spending time what is published in the AT and will not assume any yet?” was all I could hang onto as a small thread of some with unvaccinated people, people with chronic diseases, or responsibility for unsolicited material nor will the AT control. Plus, I got carsick. Let’s not talk about that. people with weak immune systems they can transmit that guarantee publication upon submission. Deadlines are Eventually I figured things out and changed my pitch to, virus without even feeling sick. strictly enforced! Deadline dates are printed on Page 2 “Can we stop at A-and-W for root beer?” The thing is, it was • COVID variants have arrived, for sure. The main one in each issue. always my uncle driving—and he wanted to get back home right now, the B.1.1.7 variant, is more infectious; and it’s The AT is distributed at no charge to all postal even more than I wanted to get there. harder on unvaccinated young adults and middle aged adults. patrons living on White Earth Reservation, and by mail So, here we are a year-and-change into the COVID pan - And because more people get infected there is then a chance to White Earth Reservation members (who request the demic. Are we there yet? We’d all like to think so. that more people could die—even though B.1.1.7 is not real - newspaper) living within the United States. One per Certainly, many of us have done well in tolerating masks, ly a worse kind of COVID. household. The cost of a newspaper subscription is $12 hand sanitizer, a six-foot ruler, quarantine and/or isolation, per year for non-members (including descendants) liv - work or school from home, absence of many favorite R and See COVID Page 13 ing off the reservation. The AT can be read online for no cost at www.whiteearth.com. For more information call 218-983-3285 Ext. Let’s remember our waters, prayers and generations ahead of us 5903, email: [email protected], fax: 218-983- 3641, or write to: By Winona LaDuke could still lead to tax increases, service cuts or depleted Honnor the Earth reserves, Matt Hilgart of the Minnesota Counties Association Anishinaabeg Today said, calling it a “tsunami” of the worst possible decision. PO Box 418 The Minneapolis Star Tribune just revealed that Enbridge successfully argued that their pipelines had an White Earth, MN 56591 Enbridge has laid out $750,000 to northern police forces, not accelerated depreciation. “I just don’t know where we will Member of the counting an undisclosed number of private security forces. get the money to do it,” said Bob Schmitz, Red Lake County v Native American Journalist Association That includes non lethal weapons like batons, tear gas and Auditor. “You can only get so much milk out of a cow.” v Minnesota Newspaper Association riot gear. Beltrami county for instance took $183,000 or so Enbridge suggests that the new line will provide $35 million and they don’t even have a new Line 3 pipeline corridor. in property taxes annually to the counties, but it’s not clear if WER Business Committee It seems that Governor Walz decided to approve this this true, particularly if the company is allowed to accelerate pipeline because it would create jobs and economic prosper - the depreciation for the pipeline, as it has done in the Tax ity in the north, and that Enbridge proposed this pipeline Case. Michael Fairbanks would be a safe one. The problem is that’s not true. Blowing Off Governments Chairman Enbridge promised that 50% of the jobs would be from In Michigan, the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline under the Leonard Alan Roy Minnesota, but, the Star Tribune reports, “…at the end of Straits of Mackinac is 60 years old and no longer anchored. December…just 33% of the 4,664 workers building the Secretary-Treasurer The Line 5 pipe was put in before the Clean Water Act or replacement for Enbridge’s current Line 3 were Minnesota Clean Air Act. In November of last year, Michigan Governor Raymond Auginaush Sr. residents…Minnesota workers provided only 28% of the Gretchen Whitmer ordered the pipeline to cease operating by District I Representative labor for the project. Many of those jobs have been in logging May 12, 2021. and in security...” At the end, Enbridge will be providing 23 On Jan. 13, Enbridge rejected Michigan’s order saying, Kathy Goodwin jobs over the long term, according to the company. (There are “that the State lacks the authority to terminate or revoke” the District II Representative an exceptional amount of local jobs, however for Native peo - easement, a move that it says would wrongfully displace the ple, from Fond du Lac, or perhaps working for Gordon Cheryl “Annie” Jackson role of the federal pipeline administrator. Estimates indicate Construction). A lot of jobs are also in security, and those, a spill in Michigan could cost $400 billion to clean, if it is District III Representative are what are called “conflict jobs,” sort of like “Blood possible at all. Editor Diamond,” jobs which pit people against people. Wisconsin also has Enbridge pipes, and a history of Remember, that we just witnessed the Derek Chauvin spills. Enbridge did not report a spill for l5 months in 2019. trial and the death of Daunte Wilson. Up north, 250 people In March, Wisconsin officials found that Enbridge had under Gary W. Padrta have been arrested thus far, most of them charged with tres - reported a spill at one gallon of petroleum while it was actu - passing and many of them subjected to unnecessary strip ally over l,200 gallons which leaked from the Enbridge pipe. Future Issues * searches and held in jails in the north. With a bottomless pile Jefferson County residents are questioning why Enbridge of money, sheriff’s are signing up to follow water protectors. Energy took 21 days to repair a leaking underground pipeline Deadline Issue Date In a time of budget cuts and COVID, Enbridge has “incen - that spilled more than 1,200 gallons of petroleum near Fort tivized” surveillance and incarceration of water protectors. Atkinson, contaminating soil and groundwater, and did not Experts in policing question the arrangement.