The Office of General Council faces a unique, unprecedented
situation with planning the 2020 General Council amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. A volunteer General Council Planning
Workgroup debated meeting in person versus a virtual meeting for the December 5
event.
The annual meeting of the General Council is the largest and
most significant event of the Ho-Chunk Nation.
Each year the tribal membership convenes to set policy for the Ho-Chunk
Nation.
As of an August 26, 2020, Enrollment Office query, there are
a total of 7,881 enrolled Ho-Chunk Nation members. Total voting-age members are 6,143. Twenty percent of the eligible voters
constitute a quorum. The quorum for
General Council 2020 is approximately 1,229.
The workgroup moves forward, planning a virtual meeting and
labeling it the GC2020 E-Meeting to ensure the safety and well-being of all
tribal members.
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) is an illness caused by a virus
that spreads from person to person. This
virus has spread throughout the world, and everyone is at risk of getting
COVID-19.
Persons can become infected by coming into close contact
with a person who has COVID-19 or by touching a surface or object with the
virus on it and then by touching their mouth, nose, or eyes. Infection spreads through respiratory
droplets from when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or speaks.
There is currently no vaccine or treatment to protect
against COVID-19. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
the best way to protect yourself is to avoid being exposed to the virus that
causes COVID-19. This means, stay home
as much as possible, avoid close contact with others, wear a mask that covers
your nose and mouth in a public setting, disinfect frequently touched surfaces,
wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, and practice
social distancing by staying at least six feet away from others in public
settings.
Elders and those with underlying severe medical conditions
like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer
may be at higher risk of developing more severe illnesses.
There are approximately 980 enrolled Ho-Chunk Nation elders,
age 60 plus.
Native American adults are almost three times more likely
than non-Hispanic white adults to be diagnosed with diabetes (Minorityhealth.hhs.gov). In 2018, Native Americans were 50% more
likely to be diagnosed with coronary heart disease than their white
counterparts (Minorityhealth.hhs.gov).
The World Health Organization states that to prevent
infection and slow transmission of COVID-19, practice physical distancing by
avoiding unnecessary travel and staying away from large groups of people.
Approximately thirty percent of the enrolled Ho-Chunk Nation
population resides outside the state of Wisconsin. Minnesota, California, and Illinois top
states with the next highest Ho-Chunk Nation populations.
Per the CDC, the more people an individual interacts with at
a gathering and the longer that interaction lasts, the higher the potential
risk of becoming infected with COVID-19 and COVID-19 spreading.
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) issued a media release
stating, “Wisconsin is seeing significant COVID-19 activity, and data show that
this is at least partly due to activities like gatherings. Data obtained from contact tracing calls
indicate that the percent of people with confirmed cases of COVID-19 who
reported attending a gathering, party, or other meet up with people outside
their home in the past two weeks grew from 7% of cases in May to 21% of cases
in July.
DHS urges residents to consider how individual actions like
the decision to attend a gather may contribute to community spread.”
In March, when COVID-19 was upgraded to pandemic
classification, the Ho-Chunk Nation Department of Health urged elders and
people with severe chronic medical conditions to avoid crowds and travel. Additionally, they requested “organizers of
meetings and gatherings should consider video or teleconferencing as an
alternative” in a
letter.
The Ho-Chunk Nation President Marlon E. WhiteEagle issued Administrative
Order Mar. 20, 2020-1, which states, “In response to the State of Emergency
declaration, I, Marlon WhiteEagle, President of the Ho-Chunk Nation, order a
Nation-wide moratorium on mass gatherings of 10 people or more to mitigate the
spread of COVID-19.
Effective at 11:59 PM on Friday, March 20, 2020, all public
and private mass gatherings are highly discouraged, specifically when involving
Ho-Chunk Nation tribal trust land, including all executive branch, governmental
buildings and/or if involving executive branch personnel.”
The Legislative Branch has recently been conducting their
meetings virtually through WebEx. A few
Area Meetings are also being conducted virtually.
The General Council Planning Workgroup considered all this
information.
The workgroup is also planning a mock e-meeting to be held on
November 21, 2020. Participants learn to
navigate the E-Meeting by practicing logging in, raising your hand, using the mic,
and voting.
Those that are not tech-savvy or have difficulties with
virtual meetings can contact the Office of General Council at 715-284-7891, GCB@ho-chunk.com,
or by mail at 17374 Hwy 21-Suite 2, Tomah, WI 54660.
Hotspots and free WiFi locations will be posted later for
those with inefficient Wifi or no internet connection.