Leadership and Agency

Chief Leopold Pokagon

The Red Man's Rebuke

Chief Simon Pokagon

Following the Treaty of Chicago 1833 and the cessation of native Michigan lands to the government, the Pokagon  One such leader, Chief Leopold Pokagon (namesake of the Pokagon band), managed to repurchase tracts of his land in Silver Creek Township and keep a small community of the Potawatomi tribe in Michigan. He converted his band to Christianity and made friends with local white settlers (Low, 2011). Leopold's son, Chief Simon Pokagon, would go on to write a book on birchbark, titled The Red Man's Rebuke, which eloquently described the oppression of indigenous people and the detriment that colonization has caused them. In his book, Simon Pokagon highlights the extreme overfishing practices of the white settlers that deplete the resources, rights, and traditions of his people:

"The storm unsatisfied on land swept our lakes and streams, while before its clouds of hooks, nets, and glistening spears the fish vanished from our waters like the morning dew before the rising sun" (Pokagon, 5).

The efforts of these great leaders preserved the presence and voice of the Potawatomi people in Michigan, continuing the struggle for federal recognition of hunting, fishing, and land rights. On September 21st, 1994, the Pokagon Band was officially recognized as a sovereign nation, giving back their power of rights on their tribal land (Rickert, 2019).