“Honor the Earth” Director Winona LaDuke pays Tribal Council a visit
4/30/2015 2:00:00 PM - Tribal Observer

Natalie Shattuck, Editor 

Winona LaDuke, American activist, environmentalist, economist, and writer known for her work on tribal lands claim, preservation and sustainable development, paid a visit to the Saginaw Chippewa Tribal Council on Thursday, April 16.

            LaDuke is the “Honor the Earth” executive director. According to honorearth.org, Honor the Earth creates awareness and support for Native environmental issues and develops needed financial and political resources for the survival of sustainable Native communities. These resources are developed by using music, the arts, the media, and Indigenous wisdom to ask people to recognize the joint dependency on Earth and be a voice for those not heard.

            Tribal Council previously donated $1,500 to LaDuke for an Honor the Earth contribution.

            On her way to Grand Traverse to discuss awareness of pipeline fracking, LaDuke visited Council to thank them for the donation and to give updates on her development.

            LaDuke discussed facing pipelines and oil barrels placed within her tribe, and the fact oil barrels are headed to Michigan in the future.

            “The reason I’m here is you are far away from my reservation, but the (pipeline) problem is coming here,” LaDuke said. “What’s going on in my reservation will affect you all.”

            LaDuke plans to horseback ride along the pipeline route. This will be her third year riding.

            She encouraged SCIT Tribal Members to join, and a horse and wagon is needed. She said the ride is scheduled the last week of August into September.

After the thank you and presentation, Chief Steven Pego honored LaDuke with a Pendleton blanket containing the SCIT logo.

            LaDuke is an Anishinaabekwe enrolled member of the Mississippi Band of Anishinaabeg. She lives and works on White Earth Reservations in Minnesota. In 1999 and 2000, LaDuke ran as the vice-presidential candidate with Ralph Nader on the Green Party of the United States ticket.