To begin to understand treaties, one must consider the origins of colonization and land claims by foreign governments in what today is the United States.

The relationship between Christendom’s principle of discovery and the laws of the United States actually began in 1452 with Pope Nicholas V, when he issued King Alfonso V of Portugal the papal bull Romanus Pontifex, which was basically stating the papacy’s lordship of the whole world, and thus effectively declaring war against all non-Christians.

What does it mean when we learn that in the papal bull, Pope Nicholas V directed King Alfonso to “capture, vanquish, and subdue the Saracens, pagans, and other enemies of Christ,” and to “put them into perpetual slavery,” and “to take all their possessions and property,” according to the 1917 book “European Treaties bearing on the History of the United States and its Dependencies to 1648” by Frances Davenport.

For Indigenous peoples it meant that from this point on the Doctrine of Discovery (and Dominion) and the Manifest Destiny laid the path for a total colonization effort that took millions of acres of land from most if not all Indigenous Nations throughout the Americas.

It also meant that Indigenous peoples must rely on the agreements they entered into with the United States government as treaties and utilize the United Nations Declaration for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, as well as inform the public why these agreements matter. Indigenous peoples know that building community, education, and opening lines of communication for all people can and will benefit Bemidji.

The Federal Indian Law class at BSU is currently working on a project regarding treaties. Typically, this class reaches out to the three local tribal communities but this semester decided to focus on the city of Bemidji. Working with the local Bemidji government was a new experience for this class, who went before the City Council on March 9 and asked the city to annually recognize Oct. 10 as “Indigenous Treaty Day” instead of Columbus Day. We are optimistic this acknowledgement is forthcoming.

Here’s what the Federal Indian Law class students had to say:

Ryan Enger: With direct interaction with treaties we learn that they are an important part of the past that encompasses who Indigenous people are today. The rights that were supposedly promised were never honored and thus stripped away. Those rights continue to be argued in federal and state court and shouldn’t have to be argued in a court of law. Even though treaties were made a long time ago, like the U.S. Constitution they should be honored in today’s legal system. Treaties were peace agreements between nations, and all treaties should be upheld, honored and interpreted in their original context in all circuits of legal systems in the United States.

Tammy Shoots: Treaties are important for Indigenous People because they protect the rights of our future generations. Let it be known that our ancestors fought hard to keep their vision, and their rights to land, culture and languages, including freedom of religion, alive.

Daniel De Vault: Furthermore, treaties are a way for Indigenous people to educate America about our inherent rights given to us by birth. Treaties are part of those inherent rights, they were written during the time of colonization. Indigenous nations were coerced to give up most of their land for further expansion of the United States. Those lands would later become our home state of Minnesota.

Nicole Buckanaga: We, the Indigenous students and our supporters, believe that treaties are the essential protection of the Indigenous people and the land, which in turn protects our identities. These protections came with one of the heaviest prices that any nation could pay, the threat to loss of identity and spiritual direction. Indigenous people are a people with a history, not a people of the history. Treaties allows us to continue to be who we are as Indigenous people, that is why they matter, and that is why they must be honored.

Jonathon Mountain: Historically, and currently, Bemidji has been an Indigenous village. There have been many historical events that have shaped the relationships from the past to the present between the Indigenous people and the settlers. As technology advances, the past is soon forgotten, that is why treaties must continue to be present in the Bemidji area so the people will remember how the past forms this community.

Melanie Childrey: We ask the city of Bemidji, Bemidji Area Schools and all Bemidji businesses to show support and acknowledge the treaties between the U.S government and the Minnesota Ojibwa and Dakota Nations. It would be a great way to a bright future.

Cody Lorentz: We, the Indigenous students and our supporters, believe that communicating the feelings of understanding and respect is just a small step, but it is heading in the right direction to provide passage from the dark and into the light. The importance of the treaties is that they are representative of contracts that are used nation to nation, to establish the common rights of its people.

Shianne Auginash: According to Article Six of the U.S. Constitution, like the other treaty obligations of the United States, Indian treaties are considered to be “the supreme law of the land,” and they are the foundation upon which Federal Indian law and the Federal Indian trust relationship is based.

Delgado is a professor of Native American studies at Bemidji State University.