Congress takes up land claim bill

TUESDAY, MAY 7, 2002

One tribe's legal tactics will be the subject of debate tomorrow when a Congressional committee debates a bill to extinguish all tribal claims in the state of Illinois.

The measure was inspired by the Miami Nation of Oklahoma, which drew controversy when it filed a 2.6-million-are lawsuit against 15 private landowners in Illinois. Although the claim was withdrawn last summer amid a public relations mess, Republican leaders in the House seem set on having their say on the issue.

House Speaker Dennis Speaker (R-Ill.) and four colleagues, including one Democrat, are seeking to forever settle tribal interests in their state. Their proposal would extinguish all land claims under three 19th century treaties and terminate any aboriginal rights, including hunting, fishing and related rights.

As such, it affects not just the Miami Nation, which once called a larger area encompassing Illinois its home. Various Ojibwe, Ottawa and Potawatomi bands and tribes were signatories to the treaties that required their removal to Oklahoma, Kansas and points elsewhere.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Tim Johnson (R-Ill.) is different from one which seeks to allow state laws to be applied to all federal Indian claims. Sen. Peter Fitzgerald (R-Ill.) drafted his proposal in response to the Miami's claim as well.

Tim Brazill, the Miami Nation's general counsel, will now face questions about the tribe's legal maneuvers in an atmosphere where tribal leaders are often accused of making threats in order to gain casino rights. The tribe's latest moves aren't likely to dissuade critics, either.

Having put Illinois on the back burner, the tribe recently approached the city of Gary, Indiana, regarding potential land claims. Mayor Scott King has said he is open to resolution, and offered to consider a casino.

Under the bill to be discussed tomorrow, casinos aren't mentioned but instead money. Interested tribes would be allowed to sue the United States for treaty and aboriginal claims within one year of the measure's passage.

However, the tribes would not be able to recover land. The proposal provides for monetary awards only.

In addition to the Miami's attorney, Gary Mitchell, vice chairman of Prairie Band Potawatomi Tribe of Kansas, and Larry Angelo, second chief of the Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma are set to appear at the hearing. A Department of Interior representative was not on the House Resources Committee's witness list as of yesterday.

Get the Bill:
To provide for the equitable settlement of certain Indian land disputes regarding land in Illinois (H.R.791)

Relevant Links:
The Miami Nation - http://www.miamination.com
Greenvile and Grouseland Treaty Lines - http://www.surveyhistory.org/greenville_&_
grouseland_treaty_lines.htm