The Wealth of the Introduction Why Are Some

Shakopee Mdewakanton

The people of the Shakopee Mdewakanton

tribe gain one million dollars each year per
person from the tribe itself, not even counting
their personal income. Sounds strange, right? In
the beginning the Shakopee Mdewakanton
started out like most tribes. They lived in trailers
and lacked plumbing. This all changed as soon
Shakopee Mdewakanton
Native American
The Shakopee Mdewkakanton tribe is a
Native American tribe that currently resides Tribes Wealthier
Than Others?
in Minnesota. They are a branch of the Sioux
tribe. We will be looking into what makes
them different from most tribes and why they
are so wealthy compared to others,
including other Sioux branches.

as the tribe decided to run a casino on their land

- the Mystic Lake Casino.

Lakota

The Lakota tribe is also a Native American

tribe that branches off of the Sioux tribe.
They currently reside in areas both in North
and South Dakota. We will be looking into
what happened in their past and how that
shaped their present.

Scan this QR Code to learn more about the tribes!

Photograph of the Mystic Lake Casino

While it’s hard to believe that the casino pictured

above is not in a large, urban city like Las Vegas,
it’s even harder to believe that the casino is
located on the land of a Native American tribe.
Along with the casino, the tribe runs another
casino, a 600-room hotel, a golf course, and
even a concert hall. These venues lead to over
one billion dollars for the Shakopee
Mdewakanton people. And considering there are
only 480 members of the tribe, the money is
distributed fairly generously. Each adult member
of the tribe gets a monthly check of $84k
averaging $1.08 million a year per person. Now
let’s compare that to a less fortunate tribe.
 Poverty vs. Wealth
The Poverty of the Lakota
Works Cited At this point, it is obvious that the Lakota Tribe is far Tribe
poorer than the average American. But what sets
“ THE LAKOTA SIOUX TRIBE: A LOOK AT THE STATISTICS.” True Sioux Hope
them apart?
You may be thinking at this point - ‘Wow, Native
Americans might be rich!’ But Native Americans
Foundation, 10 Feb. 2015, www.truesiouxhope.org/single-post/2015/02/10/THE-LAKOTA- aren’t all one big group. The Lakota tribe is a
poverty struck tribe located in North and South
SIOUX-TRIBE-A-LOOK-AT-THE-STATISTICS. Dakota. Here are some statistics to get us started.

Eight out of ten families are affected by

Bear, Rob. “The Casino-Rich Whales of Minnesota's Shakopee Tribe.” Curbed, Curbed, 29 Jan.
Alcoholism

2013, www.curbed.com/2013/1/29/10279530/the-casinorich-whales-of-minnesotas-shakopee-
The death rate is three times higher than
the national average

tribe.

97% of the population lives below the

Huey, Aaron. TED: Ideas worth spreading, www.ted.com/talks/aaron_huey#t-907539.
poverty line

Photograph of Lakota Tribe residents bathing in a plastic tub

Reporter, Daily Mail. “Inside the richest native American tribe in the U.S. where casino profits The median household income is a mere
$2,600 to $3,500 a year

pay $1m a year to EVERY member.” Daily Mail Online, Associated Newspapers, 12 Aug. 2012, By looking into the Lakota Tribe’s history, we are
able to recognize differences and figure out the
source of the poverty. In 1890, a tragedy occurred in
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2187456/Shakopee-Mdewakanton-Tribe-Casino-revenue-
the Lakota community. US troops massacred over
300 people of the Lakota tribe in what is now called
pays-member-1million-year.html.
The Wounded Knee Massacre. This tragic event
lead to the poverty in the Lakota Tribe. With the
Rige, Joe. “Casino wealth and well-Being: The tale of two tribes.” Star Tribune, massacre came legal battles, seizure of land,
money, and more. This poverty from what happened
www.startribune.com/casino-wealth-and-well-being-the-tale-of-two-tribes/392089461/. in the 1800’s had eventually crossed over to the
21st century.

Brochure created by Will Everett and Greta Daniel

Photograph of residents in the Lakota Tribe