2005 Senate Joint Resolution 74
ENROLLED JOINT RESOLUTION
Relating to: the life and public service of James H. Schlender.
Whereas, James H. Schlender, Sr., was born March 5, 1947, was a member of the Lynx clan of the Lac Courte Oreilles band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, and was also known by his Ojibwe name, Zaagajiiwe, meaning "man cresting the hill"; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender grew up in Milwaukee and on the Lac Courte Oreilles reservation; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender earned a bachelor of arts degree with honors from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee in 1974 and a juris doctor degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1978; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender served the Lac Courte Oreilles band as tribal attorney from 1978 to 1981 and was elected to the Tribal Governing Board for 4 consecutive terms from 1981 to 1987 serving as vice chairman and secretary/treasurer; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender played a leading role in litigation and negotiations regarding hunting, fishing, and gathering rights retained by the Chippewa in treaties with the United States, as tribal attorney and later as the first chair of the Voigt Intertribal Task Force; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender served as executive administrator of the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission from 1986 to 2005, in which capacity he negotiated with the department of natural resources the implementation of court rulings regarding tribal natural resources rights; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender was a moderating influence in resolving conflicts with the state and with private citizens surrounding the exercise of those rights; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender worked closely with state officials to forge cooperative programs by which the department of natural resources and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission manage natural resources and conduct law enforcement in the ceded territories; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender was instrumental in building the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission into a highly professional agency providing biological, regulatory, legal, and other services to the Chippewa bands; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender ensured that the commission acknowledged its unique tribal identity by infusing Ojibwe culture and values into all aspects of its work; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender served from 1982 to 1989 as vice chair of the joint legislative council's American Indian study committee and as chair of 3 separate subcommittees of that committee; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender served on the Wisconsin Supreme Court's board of bar examiners, the Wisconsin Supreme Court's appointment selection committee, the board of directors of the Indian law section of the Wisconsin State Bar, and the board of directors of the Environmental Health Laboratory of the Lake Superior Research Institute, University of Wisconsin–Superior; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender was the first recipient of the Wisconsin Law Foundation's Belle Case LaFollette Award for Contributions to the Advancements of the Profession in 1992, earned a Bush Foundation Fellowship in 1992 for continuing legal education, and was named Tribal Leader of the Year in 2001 by the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender was a frequent presenter to diverse audiences on principles of Indian law, tribal sovereignty, and the rights retained by American Indian nations in treaties with the United States; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender was a tireless advocate for the rights of American Indian nations and the exercise of tribal sovereignty, cresting many hills in his service to the Lake Superior Chippewa bands and the 3 states in which they are located; and
Whereas, Mr. Schlender suffered an untimely death on August 30, 2005, at the age of 58; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the senate, the assembly concurring, That the members of the Wisconsin legislature commend the life and public service of James H. Schlender, also known as Zaagajiiwe; and, be it further
Resolved, That the senate chief clerk shall provide a copy of this resolution to Mr. Schlender's wife, Agnes Fleming, of Lac Courte Oreilles, and their children, Tammy Barber and Valerie Tribble, of Lac Courte Oreilles; James Schlender, Jr., of Madison, Wisconsin; Mary Tribble, Justin Schlender, and Melissa Crow, of Lac Courte Oreilles; Jason Schlender, of Red Cliff, Wisconsin; and Jenny and Margaret Schlender, of Lac Courte Oreilles.
