Another tribal nation in Wisconsin is looking for a way to get into the cannabis business to diversify revenue, despite it still being illegal in the state.
The Sokaogon Chippewa Community, or Mole Lake Band of Ojibwe, in Forest County recently partnered with the Wisconsin-based national organization Indigenous Cannabis Industry Association, which seeks to help Indigenous entrepreneurs and entities enter the cannabis industry.
“With the plant’s healing medicinal properties and the economic opportunities that the industry provides, we’re optimistic about the impacts on our community,” Robert Van Zile, chairman of the Sokaogon Chippewa Community, said in a statement. “With ICIA in our corner, we’re poised to take a strategic and phased approach to entering this emerging industry.”
It’s no surprise that Van Zile would be leading his tribe toward the cannabis industry. As a speaker at this year’s State of the Tribes Address in Madison, he urged lawmakers to legalize cannabis in the state.
He told the Green Bay Press-Gazette that the Hannahville Potawatomi Tribe, about 100 miles east of Mole Lake in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, earns about 90% of its $5 million annual cannabis business from Wisconsin residents.
Van Zile said Wisconsin is losing tens of millions dollars to surrounding states where cannabis is legal, including Illinois, Michigan and Minnesota.
He blames the Wisconsin Tavern League and its lobbyists for holding up a cannabis bill out of concerns that many customers would prefer cannabis over alcohol and hurt business at bars.
The Indigenous Cannabis Industry Association was launched by Rob Pero last year as a way for him to give back to tribal communities to show how a business in cannabis can be done.
The ICIA would create a “safe space” for interested tribal citizens and organizations to talk to each other to explore what can be done legally in Wisconsin and elsewhere, Pero said.
In 2021, Pero became the first Native American to launch an independently owned CBD and hemp business in Wisconsin.
Earlier this year, officials with Pero’s tribe, the Bad River Ojibwe, announced it was pursuing a retail cannabis business on their reservation in northern Wisconsin.
The tribe posted a job application for a legal consultant to assist the tribe with opening the business, noting that cannabis wasn’t yet legal in Wisconsin.
Yet, tribes are sovereign nations and it’s unclear legally how far tribes can take their potential cannabis business in Wisconsin.
“Each tribe has its own constitution for what they can do, so it’s all really nuanced and on a case-by-case basis,” Pero said. “Can tribes utilize sovereignty in Wisconsin and go legal on reservations (with potent THC products including marijuana)? We can’t say, right now.”
The Mole Lake Ojibwe Nation is the first tribe to join the Indigenous Cannabis Industry Association.
“We’re so excited to welcome the Sokaogon Chippewa Community to our growing organization,” Pero said. “Tribal cannabis is in a unique position within the national hemp and cannabis industry. … Ahead of federal cannabis legalization, we’re using our sovereignty to take a leadership position in the industry and penetrate markets before anyone else can.”
Frank Vaisvilas is a former Report for America corps member who covers Native American issues in Wisconsin based at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Contact him at fvaisvilas@gannett.com or 815-260-2262. Follow him on Twitter at @vaisvilas_frank.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Mole Lake Ojibwe joins tribes looking to sell cannabis in Wisconsin
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