Occupation of Winter Dam, Winter, WI, 1971-present
Honor the Earth Pow-wow, Hayward, WI, 1971-present
Constructed in 1923 on the Chippewa River, Winter Dam flooded land occupied for generations by the Lac Courte Oreilles (LCO) Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. The dam was a disaster for the LCO Ojibwe, submerging villages and burial sites and destroying once abundant cranberry bogs and wild rice beds that were vital sources of food and income. When the initial 50-year operating license for Winter Dam expired in 1971, LCO activists and members of the American Indian Movement (AIM) occupied the dam for five days and demanded their long-standing grievances be heard. After lengthy negotiations with federal and state officials an agreement was reached in 1984 in which the LCO received a cash payment, 4,500 acres of land, and rights to develop a hydroelectric power plant at the dam. The LCO Honor the Earth Pow-wow—held annually on the third weekend in July and today one of the largest pow-wows in North America—began in 1971 as a small gathering of LCO members opposed to the renewal of the dam’s license. The pow-wow commemorates this important moment in LCO history and empowers tribal members to continue the struggle for justice and self-determination.
Image: Winter Dam on the Chippewa Flowage, July 2009