I respect the hereditary leadership and the council. I ask for that same respect in return. Our people have survived removal, broken treaties, and attempts to scatter our families. We do not need to silence or diminish one another while carrying forward the ways of our ancestors.
I stand ready to meet in council, in ceremony, or in good faith discussion with any of you who carry genuine concern. Let us speak as Anishinaabe — face to face, with tobacco and truth — rather than through rumors or public challenges. Ceremonies do not CREATE birthright, ONE drop does. Public popularity contests do not mandate spiritual authority, walking the path of truth does even in the silence of solitude! I need no validation from any other native to be native. IF you meet me eye to eye, I will meet you eye to eye.
My commitment remains to the healing, sovereignty, and spiritual strength of MY SOUL, MY walk with the Creator. I am of the Pembina Red Bear Band and the Mdewakanton people, with deep roots to the fire of the Mdewakanton lineage of my grandfather Little Crow. I will continue to walk as Onwaachige — carrying light and speaking what the spirits direct.
I ask you to honor the same sacred law we all claim to uphold: do not silence a woman, a veteran, or a carrier of the Midewiwin who has been called and accepted by those who came before us. I never asked you to understand me OR to walk with me; but let this be made clear now and forevermore: You can not give me what I already have.
Miigwech. In the spirit of peace and unity for the people.
Nibwaskaa Songab “One Who Is Wise And Stands Strong”
A Statement to My Relatives, the Hereditary Chiefs
Boozhoo,
I am Nibwaskaa Songab “One Who Is Wise And Stands Strong”; Ogimaakwe and Midewiwin Wabeno of the Mdewakanton. I come to you in the spirit of truth, respect, and the sacred fire that binds our people.
I have been called by my ancestors and named by Ogimaa Ma’Lingaan, Albert Dennis Lambert (Jiisakiiwigaan), into the roles I now carry. My bloodline connects through the Pembina Band lineage and the Reindeer Clan (Adik Songab) of the Pembina people and Little Crow off the Mdewakanton. I have stood as a warrior, served this country as a United States Marine, and walked the red path with humility and discipline. I do not seek to divide our people.
It has come to my attention that some among you question my right to speak, to teach, or to claim my rightful heritage. When I do, you seek to legally silence me and seek audience with NON-NATIVES to put me in my place. The White man has no dog in this walk but a big mouth, an ego unchecked, a closet of unrepented generational sins, and a lack of integrity. They ask for what they will not give. I will NOT BEND MY KNEE! To them, or YOU. I address you directly and with an open heart, and a FIRM hand. I am Little Crow:
My voice is not granted by popular vote or the approval of every leader. It was given by the Creator, confirmed through ceremony, and recognized by the late Ogimaa Ma’Lingaan himself. No one chief or council holds sole authority to erase another’s lineage, calling, or place within the nation when that connection has been acknowledged through traditional ways. You have no say over my indigenous rights.