On the open plains of the Fort Peck Reservation, Robert Magnan leaned out the window of his truck, set a rifle against the door frame and then “pop!” — a bison tumbled dead in its tracks.
TL;DR
- Native American tribes culled bison herds due to government shutdown disrupting food aid.
- Fort Peck Assiniboine & Sioux Tribes distributed buffalo meat after SNAP payments were reduced.
- Other tribes like Blackfeet, Cheyenne River Sioux, and Crow also used bison for food.
- Mi’kmaq Nation and Comanche Nation utilized other natural resources for food distribution.
Magnan and a colleague harvested two additional bison, also referred to as buffalo, and promptly prepared the carcasses in the field before transporting them to be transformed into ground beef and various meat portions for distribution to members of the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes located in northern Montana.
While Washington, D.C. Lawmakers slowly worked to settle the unprecedented government shutdown that disrupted food aid for a vast number of citizens, tribal chiefs on remote Great Plains reservations were reducing their cherished bison herds to assist in covering the shortfall.
Chairman Floyd Azure stated that approximately one-third of Fort Peck's tribal members residing on the reservation rely on their monthly benefit payments. This figure is nearly three times the national average for the U.S. In November, they only received partial payments after President Donald Trump's administration restricted funding to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program during the shutdown.
Fort Peck authorities had foreseen this situation for years, particularly when they were reinforcing their bison population using animals from Yellowstone National Park, despite opposition from cattle ranchers worried about animal disease.
“We were bringing it up with the tribal council: What would happen if the government went bankrupt? How would we feed the people?” Said Magnan, the longtime steward of Fort Peck’s bison herds. “It shows we still need buffalo.”
Treaty obligations
The tribal government approved the slaughter of 30 bison in October, yielding approximately 12,000 pounds (5,440 kilograms) of meat. By Tuesday, half of them had been killed. Magnan stated that a proposed agreement to end the shutdown arrived too late for the remaining animals. Given that Montana was one of the states that issued only partial SNAP payments, Azure indicated that Fort Peck would continue distributing buffalo meat for the foreseeable future.
In reaction to Washington's inaction, tribes such as the Blackfeet, Lower Brule Sioux, Cheyenne River Sioux, and Crow have likewise provided meals for thousands, utilizing bison from herds that have been re-established over recent decades, following the near extinction of these animals due to hunting in the 19th century.
Federal food and nutrition aid programs fulfill the government's trust and treaty responsibilities— its ethical and legal duty to finance tribal health and welfare in return for the lands and resources confiscated from tribes.
“It’s the obligation they incurred when they took our lands, when they stole our lands, when they cheated us out of our lands,” said Mark Macarro, president of the National Congress of American Indians. “It lacks humanity to do this with SNAP, with food.”
Miki Astogo and Dillon Jackson-Fisher, unemployed members of the Fort Peck tribe, reported borrowing food from Jackson-Fisher’s mother recently because their SNAP payments had not arrived. Agosto mentioned that on Sunday, they received a partial payment of approximately $196, a reduction from their usual monthly amount of $298.
The couple, responsible for feeding four children, stated the funds wouldn't suffice. Consequently, they journeyed 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) to town on Monday to collect a food parcel from the tribes, which contained 2 pounds (0.9 kilograms) of bison.
“Our vehicle’s in the shop, but we have to put food on the table before we pay for the car, you know?” Jackson-Fisher said.
Moose in Maine, deer in Oklahoma
Other Native American communities across the U.S. Are also utilizing natural resources to compensate for reduced federal funding. The Mi’kmaq Nation in Maine, for instance, supplied a food bank with trout from their hatchery and meat from locally hunted moose. In southeastern Oklahoma, the Comanche Nation is collecting deer meat for their food banks. Meanwhile, in the southwestern region of the state, the Choctaw Nation established three meat processing facilities.
Another program that provides food to eligible Native American households, the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations, has continued through the shutdown.
The Mi’kmaq tribe, despite being eligible, is one of the groups without the program. Tribal Chief Sheila McCormack stated that the Mi’kmaq also receive financial support for food pantries via the federal Emergency Food Assistance Program, but this funding was also delayed due to the shutdown.
Roughly 80% of Mi’kmaq tribal members in Aroostook County are SNAP recipients, said Kandi Sock, the tribe’s community services director.
“We have reached out for some extra donations; our farm came through with that, but it will not last long,” Sock said.
The demise of bison, onset of starvation
Buffalo played a central role for Plains tribes for centuries, providing meat for food and hides for clothing and shelter.
The situation changed suddenly in 1879 with the arrival of white “hide hunters” in the Upper Missouri River basin near Fort Peck. This area held some of the final remnants of buffalo herds that had previously numbered in the millions, according to Assiniboine historian Dennis Smith. Smith, who is also a retired history professor from The University of Nebraska-Omaha, stated that by 1883, the animals had been almost entirely wiped out.
He stated that the buffalo's extinction, due to their inability to feed themselves and the government's refusal to provide sustenance, signaled a period of famine for The Assiniboine. Numerous other tribes on the Plains also faced difficult times.
West of Fort Peck by many miles, the Blackfeet Nation took 18 buffalo from their herd and conducted a special elk hunt to share meat among tribal members. The tribe had previously distributed buffalo meat regularly to elders, the infirm, and for ceremonial and social gatherings. However, they had never before culled such a large number, 18, from their 700 animals simultaneously.
“We can’t do that many all the time. We don’t want to deplete the resource,” said Ervin Carlson, who runs the Blackfeet buffalo program.
The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe in South Dakota has provided meat from approximately 20 of its buffalo. The tribe focused on enhancing its ability to provide food for its members after facing scarcity during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Jayme Murray of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Buffalo Authority Corp., they now operate a meat processing facility capable of processing 25 to 30 animals weekly. Murray mentioned that tribes from Minnesota to Montana have requested to utilize the facility, though some requests have been declined.
A former ‘food desert’ leans on its own herds
The Lower Brule Sioux Tribe in central South Dakota recently got its first full-fledged grocery store, ending its decades-long status as a “food desert” where people had to drive 100 miles (160 kilometers) round trip for groceries. The interruption to SNAP benefits stoked panic, tribal treasurer and secretary Marty Jandreau said.
Benefits for November were reduced to 65% of the usual amount.
The Lower Brule possess abundant buffalo, cattle, and elk across over 9 square miles (25 square kilometers). On Sunday, the tribe distributed more than 400 pounds (180 kilograms) of meat to over 100 tribal members, according to council members.
“It makes me feel very proud that we have things we can give back,” tribal council member Marlo Langdeau said.
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Schafer reported from Lower Brule, South Dakota, and Brewer from Oklahoma City.
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