The original plan was to make it deep into the North Country by the late '80's. i had spent-not-enough time up the Shore in the summers as a kid and, later, on camping trips to the remote Trout Lake off of Mineral Center Road at the Grand Portage Rez. My namer lived there, as well, and i knew some of the people well. i felt at home there. While my meeting with Gilbert Caribou went well, it was Bois Forte who came calling first with a job offer in the social services department. So, in January of 1991, i rented an apartment in Cook, above the old Post Office that has since burned down, and began life anew .
After living over a year on the second floor of a west-facing cinder block building with but one window on the world, way too hot in summer and only one tree to look at, i did what my dream told me to do...go find a home in the country where i could breathe. Having checked the ads in the Free Press on Friday, by Tuesday i had an appointment to look at my current place. The door faced east, the sauna bench in the basement faced east, and there were two bald eagles flying overhead high above the field and forest on forty acres. i knew this was the spot...my spot...to rebuild a life.
Being a curious person and a once-upon-a-time history major, i made it my business to learn about the people who had occupied this space before me. It turned out that one of my friends and colleagues at Bois Forte was the ancestor of Ogemaa Wakemup, a powerful leader of the People who lived, fished, hunted, and raised families near the western end of Lake Vermilion until the signing of the Treaty of 1857. The 'raw' land belonged to the State of Minnesota. In 1892 Henry Oliver, a speculator came west from Pennsylvania and purchased land from the Merritt Brothers to begin an iron ore mining operation; he then sold half his extractive earnings to Andrew Carnegie so that AC could compete with John J. Rockefeller, an oil and railroad magnate, and by early 1900's the three corporate giants agreed to work together to transport ore for steel making. Much in the way of labour was required to feed their ambitions. Newly arrived immigrants worked hard for little pay so that by 1916, the workers went on strike against the company; the bosses broke the strike by sailing immigrants directly from Europe, taking advantage of the hardships brought about by WWI and the political upheaval also present...non-English speaking peoples who were willing to work for the wages the Companies offered. The company pealers ran the unionists out of the company and the State of MN offered forty acre plots of land to those who were willing to homestead them. Mr. Apo, a Finnish immigrant, was one of those who were black-balled from the mines. The Apo's were the first Europeans to live on this land i now steward.
The first thing the Apo's did in early 1917 was clear a space to build a sauna house, their first structure, which served as shelter, kitchen, and bathhouse, then cleared another spot for a barn. The trees were thick, the soil was poor for farming, so raising cattle was the only option. The trees they cleared for forage for their cows served as building material for the larger home that would come later. But, the Apos were wrung out by the harshness of this land, their labours spent in attempting to build a viable living and future, and they were disillusioned by 'the promise of America'; they were homesick for Finland. They returned to their country of origin after selling this place to the Koski's.
— jester
Training Opportunities ^
Protecting Our Wetlands
From Federal Cuts to Minnesota's Moment
- When:
- May 20, 12:00pm
- Where:
- Online
Wetlands are Minnesota’s unsung heroes - filtering our water, storing carbon, buffering floods, sheltering wildlife, and quietly providing the backdrop for some of our most cherished outdoor experiences. Right now, they need our protection.
This is Minnesota’s chance to step up and protect our wetlands for future generations in the face of aggressive federal rollbacks.
Post MN Legislative Session Debrief Webinar
from Rise & Repair
- When:
- May 26, 6:30–7:45pm
- Where:
- Online (RSVP required)
We'll be hosting a "Post-Session Debrief" to help us unpack the outcome of the 2026 session and take a look at the roadmap over the summer through elections & next session.
Special topics
Democracy Defenders
We gather information on a variety of
issues that come across our desk. You can read these online
and we welcome your additions. We build our knowledge & resources together.
Recent additions:
Freedom Trainers
Register for free online trainings
Today, Freedom Trainers is a decentralized network of experienced educators and organizers, including leaders from the Horizons Project, Beautiful Trouble, and Free DC. Together, we work to counter democratic backsliding by equipping people with the skills and strategies of strategic noncooperation.
Our trainings are grounded in three core pillars:
- Know the authoritarian playbook — Understanding how authoritarians consolidate power.
- Understand the pillars of support — Develop a sense of how authoritarian power is vulnerable.
- Build noncooperation skills — Developing the noncooperation practices that fracture authoritarian support.
New podcast!
Stories & Conversations
We take our maiden voyage
We at Northern Civil Defense Network and Democracy Defenders are introducing a new podcast. Our goals are to reach a wider audience of like-minded people in Northern Minnesota, to offer another way for people to be informed about news that matters, and to serve sight-impaired people and non-readers who prefer audio communications to those that are visual. It is becoming clearer every day that mass media doesn't cut it anymore; many media outlets have been taken over by Big Brother and corporate interests. Many small town and local newspapers have gone out of business, as well.
We aim to present our take on what's happening in our country as well as to offer new ways forward through action and thoughtful insights by people who live, work, and recreate in our Great North Woods. Because we are a grassroots and amatuer endeavour, we will begin with a lot of experimentation which includes interviews with community members and local newsmakers alike, story telling, events calendars for folks who are looking for ways to be in community and to make some noise, deep dives into topics that affect Northlanders, and things we haven't thought of yet. And, that's where you come in! You will have an opportunity to suggest topics and people you'd like to hear from. We will need your feedback to make each show better than the last one; we welcome your constructive comments, ideas, and questions.
Check out our first episode!
Inspiration ^
All Roads Lead to the South
"On March 7th, 1965, a few innocent children of God, some carrying only a bedroll, a few clutching a simple bag, a plain purse or a backpack, were inspired to walk 50 dangerous miles from Selma to Montgomery to demonstrate the need for voting rights in the state of Alabama.
"
— John Lewis
from a speech he delivered March 7, 2015 to commemorate
the 50th anniversary of the Selma March
Yesterday, a broad coalition of organizations converged on Selma & Montgomery
for "All Roads Lead to the South: National Day of Action for Voting Rights."
Thousands & thousands of people showed up from all over the country.
Get inspired. Take a look at some news clippings from the day that we posted on our bluesky channel.
Cook library returns home after long recovery
from the TimberJay
"Building reopens after flood repairs, restoring space to gather, read, and connect."
We have the power. We have had it all along.
If we want candidates to reject big money, we have to provide a better way for them to get votes. We can do that.
"Demonstrations and strikes and calls to elected officials use our voices to influence the actions of people currently in power. This is about using our voices and skills to determine who gets put into power in the first place. If every volunteer generates (at least) ten votes, we could set as our goal the recruitment of enough volunteers to equal ten percent of our vote goal. Zorhan Mamdani had about 104,000 volunteers and received about 1,036,000 votes. That’s about one in ten.
"We have had somewhere between 8 and 9 million participants in #NoKings rallies. The largest number of votes ever received by a presidential candidate was just over 81 million (Joe Biden in 2020). If every participant in a #NoKings rally generated 10 votes, we could win the biggest election in the country. I know that this doesn’t automatically translate to winning elections in particular states or districts, but it does give you a sense of the scale. We have reached critical mass. Now, we just have to develop our political capacity: the best way for each of us, individually and collectively, to help generate votes for the candidates we support."
Malcolm X: Our Black Shining Prince
(a film viewing tribute)
- When:
- May 19, 6:30–8:00pm CT
- Where:
- Online
Please join DC photographer, film producer and social justice activist Phil Portlock and his wife Pat Sloan
(Via Zoom) as they present, “Malcolm X (El Hajj Malik El Shabazz) Our Black Shining Prince” a film tribute to Brother Malcolm on his 101 birthday.
