To the people of Red Lake,

           I am not writing this to be better then anyone or to make us feel angry or shame. I am not choosing to write this to criticize or blame. I am doing this because we need something more effective, more powerful. Through the generations, our people have been through hell and back, yet--we made it through.

           Our fathers came together to protect this gift for our children and us. This is a gift of life, love and our land. We now are allowed to live as we wish (to an extent) and we are given enough to survive.

           Our home here in Red Lake has been through many transformations and has welcomed many new faces. We are living through racism, prejudice, poverty, crime, drugs, and many more evil things most people only see in the movies.

           I am a young woman that has seen more then my share. My family and friends are struggling everyday just trying to be ‘okay’. I used to dream one day to win the lottery and make our lives ‘perfect’. I recently realized that no amount of money can fix our problems and no law passed in congress can make us ‘okay’.

           We have numerous problems here on the reservation. There is no perfect way to fix our home and it is certainly not going to be easy [in trying]. We are the oppressed in this nation; we are ignored in the White House and we are being hated for our small steps into the new world. I do not think this will ever stop or go away, only change its form. We will always be treated differently and this world will always find a new way to put us down.

           We have come along way as a people and we need to keep going. I have not found a solution to our troubles despite many nights of brainstorming. I realized that the Red Lake Reservation needs hope, unity and respect for one another. We are the most powerful and adaptable people on this earth. I know these cheesy simple things will not change the world. I just know it will make our home a much happier place to be. Hope is knowing it will get better someday. Unity is coming together to help the most in need. Respect is many things and can start as small as a ‘please’ and ‘thank you’. The hope can give “all” our children the strength to succeed and to believe in themselves. Our unity will give us the power to get our children wherever they want to be. Our respect for “all” will give us peace, happiness and love.

           The way things are going these days these are the things that we need the most. I will always wish that we could have the best cars or finest schools. I know none of us wants to live in fear and misery. The things some of us are doing will surely bring us there and some are already there. We cannot blame each other and criticize one another for trying. That is a waste of time and energy. If we worked together and peacefully, imagine what we can accomplish.

           We all want to give our children the world. Despite our differences, we share this land and it is our job to take care of it and make the future better for generations to come. The negativity has no place among the Native people. Our goals may be far in the future, but lets make the journey as one, the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians.

           We are family and we deserve more...

S.L.

A hopeful Red Laker