Bay Mills Indian Community Issues Statement in Support of Other Tribal Nations

Published February 29, 2020

BRIMLEY, Mich. — The Bay Mills Indian Community, located in Brimley, Mich., issued the following statement to show solidarity with other tribal nations that are defending their tribal sovereignty and land:

“The Bay Mills Indian Community stands in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en People, the Tohono O’odham Nation, and all indigenous people who are defending their lands and waters from destruction and desecration. Too often, Indian people are forced to bear the costs of oil pipelines, mines, and border walls – usually without our consent. It is time for the Canadian and United States governments to live up the principles they espoused when they endorsed the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People – that we have the right to give or withhold consent to the use of our homelands.

We are aware of planned peaceful demonstrations across Canada and the United States to stand in solidarity with tribal communities defending their homelands. We encourage our own tribal members to participate in these peaceful demonstrations. It is important that we act in a peaceful and non-violent way, and we urge law enforcement officers to refrain from responding to peaceful demonstrations with force or violence.

Inconvenience is not the same as injustice.”