Frank Bibeau
Tribal Lawyer
A self-described free-range tribal attorney, Frank Bibeau is a member of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, is enrolled at the White Earth Chippewa Reservation, and lives on the Leech Lake Chippewa Reservation. After earning his law degree, Frank worked extensively with Chippewa treaty rights, civil rights, and sovereignty law on and off the reservation. More recently, Frank has worked closely with the Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights to develop the "Rights of Manoomin," a Rights of Nature-based law for the White Earth Reservation to protect a native species of wild rice that holds special cultural and environmental significance to the Chippewa.
Oct. 12, 2023
A Tribal Lawyer Who Champions the Rights of Nature
Frank Bibeau’s life as a member of the Anishinaabe or Ojibwe people in northern Minnesota has largely been governed by his reservation’s tribal laws and customs. And manoomin—or wild rice—plays a central role in his culture …