One hundred and fifty years ago, my home state of Minnesota achieved statehood. This year’s sesquicentennial anniversary is a cause of celebration for most Minnesotan residents, who are proud of the many strengths their state has to offer: good schools, beautiful cities, strong communities, a culture of “Minnesota nice,” and even a little town called Lake Wobegon – a place that epitomizes down-to-earth, Midwestern values.

The Unitd States breaks its own laws every time it ignores the treaties it has made with Native American Nations. We need to hold our elected officials accountable...

Yet one group of Minnesota residents – indeed, the original group of Minnesota residents – is being left out in the cold during this celebration of statehood. It is a group that is often marginalized, misrepresented, or overlooked entirely in U.S. memories of the past as well as in the policy discussions of the present. This group, of course, is Native Americans.

Each state in the union was carved out of lands stolen from Native Americans through war, broken treaties, or outright theft. Minnesota is no different. In fact, four years after achieving statehood, Minnesota earned the dubious distinction of having the largest mass execution in U.S. history when 38 Dakota were hanged in the aftermath of the “Dakota War of 1862.” (Most of the Dakota who survived the war/genocide and the subsequent executions were displaced to Nebraska and South Dakota). This part of Minnesotan history will not be highlighted during the anniversary celebration, and Native activists seeking an acknowledgement of this aspect of the state’s past have so far been ignored.

Minnesota’s sesquicentennial celebration can be an important reminder for non-Natives to acknowledge their state’s past treatment of Native Americans and to change current state policies regarding Native Americans. And later this year, Minnesotans – Native and non-Native alike – will have the chance to march side-by-side in the Dakota Commemorative March, in memory of the Dakotas displaced by the state of Minnesota and the U.S. government. (More information about this march will be available at www.dakota-march.50megs.com/onered.html as the event approaches, later in the year.)

However, it shouldn’t take an anniversary to remind us to seek justice for Native Americans, especially when similar atrocities occurred in all 50 states. There are opportunities for people throughout the United States to stand in solidarity with their Native sisters and brothers.

One of the most important ways to get involved in promoting justice for Native Americans is to contact your government representatives in Washington and urge them to keep the promises made in treaties with Native American Nations. These promises include health care and education, which the U.S. government has repeatedly failed to fully fund. The U.S. Constitution states that treaties stand alongside the Constitution and federal laws as the supreme law of the land. Thus the United States breaks its own laws every time it ignores the treaties it has made with Native American Nations. We need to hold our elected officials accountable if they are complicit in neglecting or violating treaties.

The past and present treatment of Native Americans is often difficult to address, since it brings to light some of the worst tendencies of the country and states we live in, and it can implicate our own thoughts and actions. Yet for that reason, it is most critical that we do address these injustices – for the healing of Native American peoples, of our communities, and of ourselves.