Midwest Treaty Network (MTN)

The Midwest Treaty Network has an impressive history of bringing together Native and non-Native people to fight for tribal sovereignty. Their history of non-violent organizing began in the 1980s when they formed an alliance between Native American nations, sport fishing groups, local grassroots environmental groups, students, labor unions and others opposing the proposed Crandon copper-zinc shaft mine in northeastern Wisconsin. A newspaper headline said it all: “Old Foes Now Allies”. The alliance was in battle with two of the largest resource development companies in the world. Despite the odds MTN convinced the state to require companies to prove that metallic sulfide mining had been done safely and the companies finally decided the Crandon mine project was too financially risky to pursue. In 2003, MTN helped create a final solution to the risk the site posed to the surrounding environment—the Forest Lake County Potawatomi Community and the Mole Lake Band of Sokaogon Chippewa purchased the proposed mine site. After 28 years of fighting the development of the Crandon mine, both Native and non-Native residents now can rest assured that the 5000-acre site’s natural and cultural resources, and the Wolf River downstream, will be protected for generations to come.