Wherein Moominmama has her prejudices upended learning about the Mdewakanton band in Minnesota...

The Dakota people see life in circles: the rotation of days and seasons; the cycles of planting, hunting and fishing; life and death. All is interconnected. So it's no surprise that this Dakota cultural center on native land near Lake Prior, Minnesota is designed in a circular shape, in fact overlapping circles.

Much of the building is reserved for the Shakopee Mdewakanton (pronounced Mid-eh-WAH-ka-ton) Sioux Community, but a museum display and gift shop are open to the public. The Mdwakanton are one of seven bands (Seven Council Fires) of the Dakota/Lakota/Nakota Nation. 

The Dakota/Lakota/Nakota terms differentiate between dialects of a people spread across the west and upper midwest. They were called the Sioux by French fur traders whom they first encountered in the 1600s.

The history of the Minnesota Dakota mirrors much of what happened to native peoples throughout the U.S. They had a long history living in fertile lands, in this case near the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers. Once the whites arrived, the tribes were swindled out of that land and pushed westward. Then repeatedly, funds promised by treaty went into the hands of traders to pay "debts." 

Despite these tensions, many Dakota were on good terms with the newcomers. Intermarriage, especially with the French, was not uncommon so many had ties to both white and native worlds. But in 1862, a winter of starvation followed by denied government annuities and other injustices led to a rebellion: the U.S.- Dakota War.

The conflict lasted a matter of weeks but divided many of the Dakota in the area, some who joined the fight and others who worked for peace. But in the end, 400 warriors were captured and 303 sentenced to death. President Lincoln reversed many of those death sentences, but 38 were executed and the rest of the Dakota, men, women and children, were forcibly removed.

This involved  a winter in a concentration camp at Fort Snelling, forced marches, crowding into cattle cars and boats headed for Nebraska and South Dakota. Thousands died. And for any who slipped away, the government offered $200 per Indian scalp through 1868.

By 1877, the U.S. government initiated a policy of forced assimilation, removing Dakota children from their families and placing them in boarding schools. In Minnesota, this was the Pipestone Indian School, and the museum has a collection of wrenching oral histories from those who once attended this school. 

A roughly 200-acre parcel of land in Prior Lake was allotted for the Dakota starting in 1880, and gradually, the Mdewakanton started to rebuild a small community there. In the 1960s, they took steps to establish themselves as a sovereign nation. The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community was federally recognized in 1969.

And here's where they upended all of Moominmama's expectations and prejudices. The SMSC turns out to be one of the wealthiest, if not THE wealthiest, tribe in the United States. They expanded their land ownership and got in on the ground floor with gambling casinos (they started with bingo). 

But unlike so many reservations, their location near Minneapolis/St. Paul in the southern half of Minnesota gave them access to a major market. They also obviously did an amazing job of managing their finances, electing people to their governing council who have expanded and diversified their holdings, making the tribe the leading employer in their county. 

The SMSC has now contributed millions to political campaigns and invested in lobbying to give native interests a more influential voice in Congress. And they've helped other tribes, including their former "enemies" the Ojibwe in northern Minnesota.

Wealth and Indians was not something that had ever been linked in my mind. Now it is. And it goes to show what can happen when people have the resources to succeed. They succeed. The Mdewakanton also serve as role models, with major investments in green energy, recycling and natural foods. And the cultural center marks their commitment to preserving their language, educating their youth and maintaining their core values.

Already I can see how important family relationships are to the Mdewakanton. In story after story, having a great number of relatives is the true measure of wealth and status.

 

I leave you with a photo of Minnehaha Falls outside Minneapolis. If nothing else, this entire state is filled with lovely places named by the Dakota. Moominmama bought a book about the Dakota language (Minne, or Mni, means water in Dakota) and a collection of Dakota stories to learn more!