Abstract

In this piece, the author uses fiction to tell the stories of individual Indians who are members of the Michigan Indian tribes, particularly the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, through the legal history of the Grand Traverse Band from treaty times to present day. The narrative is an amalgamation of five interrelated short stories featuring five different characters. The author incorporates historical events into the narrative, supported by references and quotations to tribal ethnohistories, trial transcripts, treaty language, and case law and legal scholarship relating to the tribe and federal Indian law generally. The author intends to show how federal Indian law directly impacts the lives of American Indians. The piece is based on the stories told by the author's family and friends - reservation and urban Indians, educated and non-educated Indians, and young and old Indians.