Leech Lake reflects on progress, ushers in hope at 2024 State of the Band Address

Mar. 22—WALKER — Despite cooler temperatures outside, the otherwise sunny weather provided a bright outlook for

Leech Lake Nation

on Friday as it held its 2024 State of the Band Address at Northern Lights Casino in Walker.

Following a year of sweeping successes and struggles alike, the address was an opportunity for the nation to reflect on 2023 as it moves into the next nine months of 2024.

Complete with song, dance and impassioned speeches, an opening song kicked off festivities followed by an invocation by Mike Smith.

A flag song from the Ojibwe Nation drum group ushered in the Leech Lake Honor Guard, royalty and youth dancers, after which Gary Charwood provided his official welcome.

After a number of video greetings from elected officials and an in-person guest speech by Olympic gold medalist Billy Mills, Leech Lake Chairman Faron Jackson Sr. provided his State of the Band address.

Throughout all of his remarks, Jackson emphasized the collaboration of the

Leech Lake Tribal Council

and its influence on the band's actions from the past year.

"As we keep moving forward on the past accomplishments of the band, we all remember that one person can't do everything," Jackson said. "We have a very strong council today as we continue to work to provide services to our band members. It's very important that we stay united in a lot of these things that we work on every day."

Among several updates, Jackson noted his proposal of an economic stimulus package as a way to support band members in the face of inflationary pressures.

The band's tribal reserve fund was started in January 2024, which created a $40 million reserve account. Jackson said these funds derived from fiscal recovery funds made available throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

Through this fund, all adult tribal members will receive $1,500 and children under 18 years old will receive $500 via their trust accounts.

"The people need relief," Jackson said. "The people need it now and together, we can get this done."

Jackson considers the band's financial picture as a positive one. In addition to its $40 million reserve, its general fund currently sits at $18 million.

In terms of developments, Jackson highlighted the opening of the

Zoongi-ide Ikwewaag — or "strong-hearted women" — inpatient treatment wing,

in February. Housed in the Ahnji-Be-Mah-Diz Recovery Center in Cass Lake, this wing focuses on women seeking treatment for substance use and addiction.

The center previously offered services to men only. However,

$850,000 in federal funding opened the way for renovations

and construction of the wing with hopes that fewer individuals will need to be sent away from their homes for recovery.

"The greatest resource we have to battle these addictions is right here in this room. It's us, the people," Jackson said. "This is just the beginning. We can all make a difference in our communities and we can all save lives."

Continuing his focus on recovery, Jackson provided an update on Leech Lake's lawsuits against six opioid manufacturers, which included Purdue Pharma, Cephalon, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, McKesson Corporation, Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen Drug Corporation.

"In 2017, we were the first tribe in Minnesota that had sued a group of opiate manufacturers and distributors alleging the companies are responsible for high levels of addiction and overdose deaths on Leech Lake," Jackson said. "I had stated, 'We hope this lawsuit brings further attention to this major issue.'"

In August 2023, the band received news that an agreement had been reached with four of the companies, with Leech Lake being awarded a $3.6 million settlement as of March. Jackson noted these funds will go toward Ahnji-Be-Mah-Diz and its recovery efforts.

Detailing a wide range of other developments, Jackson left off with a message of hope for the future.

"We've had many more successes and countless hard-fought battles that didn't bear any fruit," Jackson said, "but past and present leaders have an idea on how to make our tribal nations the best that they can be moving forward and maintaining a positive outlook in the challenges that we face."

Prior to Jackson's address, Pine Ridge Nation member Billy Mills delivered a keynote speech where he detailed his experiences as a gold medalist in the 10,000-meter run at the 1964 Toyko Olympics.

Throughout this and other experiences, Mills emphasized the most important takeaways from his sport, none of which included the glory of his wins.

"It's the journey, not our destination, that empowers us," Mills said. "It's the decisions that we make individually or collectively as a nation that choreographs our future."

Appearing via video,

Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan

spoke to a push for Native American voices across all levels of government.

"The best solutions for tribal nations come from tribal nations," Flanagan said. "Let's continue to do this work in a good way because there's so much work left to be done together."

Other speakers appearing via video included

Gov. Tim Walz,

U.S. Sen.

Amy Klobuchar

and U.S. Sen.

Tina Smith.

The recorded stream can be viewed on

Vimeo

with a link provided on the

Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Facebook page.