Authors and Status
H.C.R. No. 4, the first engrossment: 86th Legislative Session (2009-2010) Posted on March 17, 2010
1.1 A house concurrent resolution
1.2 expressing regret for conflicts between Native Americans and European settlers.
1.3 WHEREAS, Minnesota native peoples are spiritual peoples with a deep and abiding belief
1.4 in the Creator, and have maintained a powerful spiritual connection to the land; and
1.5 WHEREAS, the arrival of Europeans in the land now called Minnesota opened a new
1.6 chapter in the history of Minnesota native peoples; and
1.7 WHEREAS, by 1862, native people in Minnesota had lost most of their land, and the land
1.8 that was still theirs was not fully theirs and whereas these forces led to the Conflict of 1862; and
1.9 WHEREAS, after this conflict, the Minnesota state government asked President Lincoln to
1.10 order the immediate execution of all 303 Dakota males found guilty in a military commission, and
1.11 whereas President Lincoln, ordered the hanging of 38 of these Dakota people, and promised to
1.12 remove every Dakota from Minnesota; and
1.13 WHEREAS, in Minnesota there were forced removals, a bounty for every scalp of a Dakota,
1.14 concentration camps, forced marches, warfare, boarding schools, the largest mass hanging in
1.15 United States history, forced assimilation to white culture and the Christian religion, and the use
1.16 of the addictive drug alcohol to gain lands and resources and cause intertribal wars; and
1.17 WHEREAS, sacred burial grounds and other sacred sites were desecrated and derogatory
1.18 names were given to geographic places that were extremely disrespectful to native peoples; and
1.19 WHEREAS, because of the United States of America's belief in the "doctrines of
1.20 discovery," collectively called the Doctrine of Discovery, Minnesota Dakota and Ojibwe tribes
2.1 were denied their fundamental human rights and denied their rights to be fully independent
2.2 sovereign nations and have absolute root ownership of land within Minnesota; and
2.3 WHEREAS, most of Minnesota's Dakota people were forced from Minnesota, exiled to
2.4 reservations in different states and to Canada and abusively stripped of their cultures; and
2.5 WHEREAS, the policies toward Minnesota Indian tribes and the breaking of covenants
2.6 with these Indian tribes have contributed to the severe social ills and economic troubles in many
2.7 Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, Nebraska, Montana, and Canadian native communities
2.8 today; NOW, THEREFORE,
2.9 BE IT RESOLVED that the members of the Minnesota legislature:
2.10 (1) express regret at the deaths of Minnesota Indians and European settlers as the result
2.11 of past conflicts;
2.12 (2) acknowledge that on many occasions conflicts resulted in cruel and inhumane acts;
2.13 (3) express regret for the ramifications of former offenses and commitment to build on the
2.14 positive relationships of the past and present to move toward a brighter future where all the
2.15 people of what is now known as the State of Minnesota live reconciled as brothers and sisters, and
2.16 harmoniously steward and protect this land together;
2.17 (4) acknowledge the offenses of Minnesota citizens against Indian tribes in the history
2.18 of Minnesota, in order to bring healing to this land by providing a proper foundation for
2.19 reconciliation between the State of Minnesota and the Indian tribes that have been subjugated
2.20 and exploited by Minnesota citizens;
2.21 (5) urge indigenous American people and Americans of European descent to treat each
2.22 other with respect and to resolve disputes in a spirit of compromise and recognition of our mutual
2.23 humanity; and
2.24 (6) commend other state governments that have begun reconciliation efforts with Indian
2.25 tribes located in their boundaries and encourage all state governments similarly to work toward
2.26 reconciling relationships with Indian tribes within their boundaries.
2.27 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the State of Minnesota,
2.28 the Senate concurring, that this resolution is an expression of regret and does not affect land
2.29 titles or other legal claims.