Bill Text: MI SR0151 | 2021-2022 | 101st Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: A resolution to urge the United States Department of Interior to approve the petition of the Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians for federal acknowledgement.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2022-06-23 - Adopted [SR0151 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2021-SR0151-Enrolled.html
senate resolution no.151
Senators Huizenga, Hollier, Johnson, Victory, Brinks, Chang, Ananich, Outman, MacDonald, Irwin, VanderWall, Schmidt, Bayer and Bizon offered the following resolution:
Whereas, The Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians (GRBOI), are the political successor-in-interest of the Grand River Ottawa People that first established a sovereign-to-sovereign relationship with the United States in a series of treaties: the 1795 Treaty of Greenville, the 1807 Treaty of Detroit, the 1821 Treaty of Chicago, and the 1836 Treaty of Washington. This relationship was further strengthened by the 1855 Treaty of Detroit, which recognized the ancestral homelands of the GRBOI people located in western Michigan, including areas north of the Grand River in and around Muskegon and Grand Rapids; and
Whereas, The GRBOI have a well-defined social community in western Michigan, connected by extensive kinship since first sustained contact with Europeans. The GRBOI maintained significant marriage rates between members of the GRBOI, over 50 percent, until the 1920s and with members of other closely related tribes from Michigan into the late 1930s; and
Whereas, The members of the GRBOI share long-standing social activities involving most of the GRBOI through powwows, Kateri Circles, spring and fall celebrations, and Ghost Suppers. These activities are rooted firmly in the historical tradition and circumstances of social interaction and political activity among Anishinaabek communities in Michigan, particularly urban tribes like the GRBOI; and
Whereas, The GRBOI have provided important social welfare programs for its members and other urban tribes in southern Michigan. These programs involve significant interaction and support from and to several federally recognized tribes in the area. These tribal interactions provide significant evidence of the maintenance of both community and politics for the GRBOI; and
Whereas, The GRBOI has been seeking federal recognition for three decades. The GRBOI's request has been on the "active consideration" list since 2013. Without federal recognition, members are denied their rights to healthcare, housing, and education assistance, among others, through resources that are provided only to federally recognized tribes; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate, That we urge the United States Department of Interior to approve the petition of the Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians for federal acknowledgement; and be it further
Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the Governor, the United States Secretary of the Interior, and the Director of the United States Office of Federal Acknowledgement.
