Speaking of Ourselves

Ni-mi-kwa-zoo-min, later Speaking of Ourselves = Ni-mah-mi-kwa-zoo-min, was the official newspaper of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe from 1974-1997. It was a monthly publication headquartered in Cass Lake, Minnesota, that primarily served the nearby Leech Lake Reservation. Established by the 1855 Treaty of Washington and the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, Leech Lake is the second largest reservation in Minnesota and is located on Chippewa National Forest lands. 

As the primary Indigenous newspaper for Leech Lake, Speaking of Ourselves contained information on tribal legislation, elections, infrastructure projects, upcoming events, education, and more. Some issues include separately paged and numbered reservation news sections. Significant also is its inclusion of original art and poetry by members of its communities. Additionally, like many local newspapers, Speaking of Ourselves often reprinted articles and stories from other publications. David Beaulieu’s occasional column, “Curly Hair and Big Feet: Physical Anthropology and the Implementation of Land Allotment on the White Earth Reservation,” was one such story. It appeared in a variety of popular Indigenous publications, and recounted the relationship between the field of anthropology and the representation of Indigenous peoples. Beaulieu describes the column as “an attempt to describe an unusual, little known, but important aspect of the development and implementation of public policy toward American Indians…” (Speaking of Ourselves, February 1, 1991). Speaking of Ourselves often featured pieces, like Beaulieu’s, that forefronted the strength of Indigenous scholarship.