A group of veterans who want American Indian history taught in all Minnesota schools plans to walk from Cass Lake to the state Capitol to deliver a petition to the governor's office.
The Native American Veteran's Walk of Honor will start this morning at the Leech Lake Veteran's Memorial Grounds with a pipe and drum ceremony. Then the group will begin the 236-mile trek to St. Paul, said Feather Rock, co-director of the North Central Minnesota Native American Veterans Outreach and Resource Center.
A core group of six people plan to make the entire walk, and others will join for a portion of the trip, Rock said.
When they reach the Capitol, walkers plan to deliver a 2,000 signature petition asking the state to make educating students about American Indian history and treaties mandatory in all schools.
The change would help eliminate prejudice in Minnesota schools, Rock said.
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"We see our kids face some real hurdles when it comes to understanding that Indians aren't getting a free ride, that the American dream was built on territory that was our territory," she said.
This is the second year the group has held the walk. Last year, a group of disabled veterans made the trip to raise money for a national memorial, Rock said. Last year's walk took one week and one hour, but because many of those walkers were disabled, the walk may take a different amount of time this year, she said.
Once the group arrives at the Capitol, the state may not be able to help, said Yvonne Novack, state supervisor of Indian education for the Department of Education and a White Earth enrollee.
Education department officials would be glad to meet with the walkers, but the state has never told Minnesota school teachers they had to teach anything, Novack said.
"There's no precedent for it at all -- school districts in Minnesota are really independent organizations, and they set their own curriculum," Novack said.
Already, the state has several programs that encourage schools to teach American Indian history, Novack said. The education department holds teacher training sessions throughout the state, and some schools have received a state grant to fund culturally based teaching for American Indian students.
But Rock said that won't deter the group. She's already planning next year's walk.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Joy Anderson at (701) 241-5556
