DescriptionLetter from Senator Jon Tester that was shared at the event commemorating a sun dance held at the Lewis and Clark County fairgrounds by the Landless Indians of Montana (their descendants received federal recognition as the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana in 2019). Dan Pocha (Little Shell tribal member) and Nick Vrooman (a historian hired by the tribe) organized the event, which coincided with the launch of the annual Last Chance Pow Wow. Nick wrote the history for the plaque and Dan worked to get it installed on the wall of the fairgrounds (west entry of the Exhibit Hall). It was the first time Lewis and Clark County recognized that Native celebrations had happened in the area even though this sun dance was put on at the request of the governor and chamber of commerce. The sun dance was economic development for the tribe; it was an event at which they could sell arts and crafts and charge admission to help support the tribe. The letter expressed his support for the event and for federal the Little Shell gaining federal recognition. TypeTextCreatorTester, JonGenredocumentsLanguageengDate2016-09-30SubjectLettersCorrespondenceContributing InstitutionHelena Indian AllianceGeographic CoverageWashington, DCHelena, MontanaDigital CollectionMontana Urban Indian CollectionDigital Formatapplication/pdfDigitization SpecificationsScanned with Epson Perfection V800 Photo scanner at 600 dpi.Date Digitized2024
