By Jalen Maki
Tomahawk Leader Editor
MADISON – State Senator Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk) this week fired back at the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians Tribal Council after her banishment from the Lac du Flambeau Indian Reservation.
On Monday, Sept. 9, The Tribe announced that the Tribal Council had voted to ban Felzkowski from Tribal lands in response to remarks she made during a public meeting in Woodruff in August.
The Tribe last year barricaded four roads often used by non-tribal members, saying the roads were built on tribal lands illegally and that the lease to use them had expired more than a decade earlier. The roads have since been temporarily reopened.
The meeting was convened in an effort to resolve the issue, and the possibility of returning state land to the Tribe in exchange for putting an end to the roads dispute was put forth.
During the meeting, Felzkowski reportedly said she feels like the stranded homeowners are being held hostage and allegedly also said “It’s kind of like giving in to terrorists, and I don’t like it.”
In a statement, the Tribe said Felzkowski’s remarks were “particularly irresponsible and disrespectful given her role as co-chair of the current Special Committee on State-Tribal Relations, a position that carries a responsibility to foster mutual understanding and respect between the State of Wisconsin and Tribal Governments.”
John Johnson Sr., President of the Tribal Council, said Felzkowski’s “comparison of the Lac du Flambeau Tribe to terrorists such as the Proud Boys and the Taliban, organizations with no sovereignty or treaty rights, and that seek to harm the United States, is not only offensive, but dangerously misinformed.”
In a statement received by the Tomahawk Leader on Tuesday, Sept. 17, Felzkowski responded to her banishment, calling out both the Tribal Council and Johnson.
“What an overly dramatic move by the Tribal Council,” Felzkowski stated. “Considering that the tribe has been wholly unwilling to facilitate, attend or even acknowledge attempts at mediation or negotiation – I currently have no scheduled trips to the reservation.”
Felzkowski said that when she made the comment that led to her banishment, she was “advocating for (her) constituents, who are, for all intents and purposes, physically trapped by this conflict.”
“This prolonged dispute has led to emotional turmoil, financial uncertainty and even exasperated medical issues brought on by stress for my constituents,” she stated. “I would have hoped that the Tribal Council could understand that we can all get emotional when we speak on behalf of our constituents who are in despair, given that several members of the Council had emotional outbursts directed at me when I met with them last December. Had I let those remarks get under my skin, I would not have been serving my constituents to the best of my ability.”
Felzkowski said the regrets that she “contributed to the narrative of division in this muddy conflict,” but noted that she doesn’t regret “speaking up for (her) constituents, who the Council continues to dismiss.”
“I do find it laughable that Tribal President Johnson is insinuating that my comments are damaging to negotiations when there are no negotiations taking place to speak of – because the Tribe refuses to participate in good faith discussions or mediation with the other parties, including, most recently, declining to attend the public meeting at which I spoke,” Felzkowski stated. “As always, I want to reiterate to President Johnson that he has my cell phone number, and if he is ever interested in a productive conversation instead of a splashy headline, I am available to discuss solutions. P.S. I find it interesting that the Tribal Council has time to meet and pass resolutions like this, yet I hear from multiple homeowners that the tribe hasn’t responded to their letters and inquiries for months.”