Mohegan Tribe

The Mohegan Tribe is a federally recognized tribe and sovereign tribal nation of the Mohegan people. Their reservation is the Mohegan Indian Reservation, located on the Thames River in Uncasville, Connecticut.

In 1997, the Mohegan Tribe's Council of Elders adopted a vision statement reflecting their identity and roots, stating the tribe’s commitment to ancestry, learning, and the environment. This is reflected in the constitution.

Mohegan's independence as a sovereign nation has been documented by treaties and laws for over 350 years, such as the Treaty of Hartford, secured by their Sachem (Chief) Uncas after his cooperation and victory with the English in the Pequot War (1637–1638). Although the Treaty of Hartford established English recognition of the tribe's sovereignty in 1638, after the colonial period and loss of lands, the tribe struggled to maintain recognition of its identity. Legal proceedings started in 1704.

The tribe reorganized in the late 20th century and filed a federal land claims suit, seeking to regain land that the state of Connecticut had illegally sold. As part of the settlement, the Mohegan Nation gained federal recognition by the United States government in 1994. That year the US Congress passed the Mohegan Nation (Connecticut) Land Claim Settlement Act. The US authorized the cleaned-up United Nuclear site for use as Mohegan reservation lands, and the property was transferred to the United States in trust for the tribe.

Gaining a sovereign reservation enabled the Mohegan to establish gaming operations on their lands to generate revenue for welfare and economic development of their tribe. They opened the Mohegan Sun casino on October 12, 1996, near the former Fort Shantok site above the Thames River.

With revenues from the casino, the tribe donates to charitable organizations throughout Connecticut and invests in the development of tribal businesses throughout the United States.

Mohegan Tribe's vision
In 1997 the Mohegan Tribe's Council of Elders adopted the following Vision Statement:


 * We are the Wolf People, children of Mundo, a part of the Tree of Life. Our ancestors
 * form our roots, our living Tribe is the trunk, our grandchildren are the buds of our future.
 * We remember and teach the stories of our ancestors.
 * We watch. We listen. We learn.
 * We respect Mother Earth, our Elders, and all that comes from Mundo.
 * We are willing to break arrows of peace to heal old and new wounds. We acknowledge and learn
 * from our mistakes.
 * We walk as a single spirit on the Trail of Life. We are guided by thirteen generations
 * past and responsible to thirteen generations to come.
 * We survive as a nation guided by the wisdom of our past. Our circular trail returns
 * us to wholeness as a people.

Constitution
In the Mohegan Constitution, the tribe outlines it goals as:

1) To establish and enforce rules of tribal custom…for the management of tribal society, including  but not limited to, the  conduct  of  tribal  ceremonies  and rituals. (Mohegan Constitution, 1996, Article X, Section 2, h)

(2)  To  promote  and  protect  the  health,  peace, morals,  and  general  welfare  of the Tribe  and  its  members,  and  to  establish  traditional  policies  regarding the education of tribal members. (Mohegan Constitution, 1996, Article X, Section 2, h).

History
Before the seventeenth century, the Mohegan were part of the Pequot Tribe, which emerged among Algonquian peoples located in present south central New England. Their life revolved around the outdoors, sustaining themselves through farming what is referred to as the Three Sisters: corn, beans, and squash, as well as sunflowers. As needed, they hunted and gathered various game and wild flora. Mohegan language contains many words related to stones. Stones play a dynamic role in Mohegan culture, including, but not limited to, being a tool to connect one to one's ancestors.

Uncas
The early 1600s were a critical period of change for Connecticut tribes. The pressure from rapidly expanding European settlements created competition for land and resources, while new infectious diseases were decimating Indian populations. Within the Pequot Tribe at that time, a dispute erupted between the Pequot Sachem Sassacus and the leader Uncas.

Uncas left with his followers, who called themselves the Mohegan (Mohics), or Wolf People, like their ancestors. Each tribe had its own idea of how to deal with conflicts with the English and other Europeans. Uncas (1598–1683) became Sachem of the Mohegan Tribe, which favored collaboration with the English colonists. The Pequot under Sassacus chose to fight the colonists, and other local tribes took sides in the Pequot War, which lasted from 1637 to 1638.

Seeing the significant losses brought on by ongoing fighting, Uncas decided to befriend the European invaders. This controversial decision led to an uneasy alliance between Uncas and the Mohegan people with the English in the ensuing war with the Pequot (1637–1638). The Mohegan helped the English defeat the Pequot.

Uncas settled his people in a village at Shantok on the Thames River, which the Tribe defended from a Narragansett invasion. It was sparked by related European as well as Indian conflicts. Finally, the Mohegan Tribe's alliance with the English kept its people relatively safe during the colonists' attacks on Native Americans during King Philip's War and afterward.

Government
The Mohegan Tribe has created and maintained an independent governmental structure since before Europeans arrived in North America. The Mohegan Government has evolved to exercise complete civil and criminal jurisdiction over their lands using the Constitution of the Mohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut, which they wrote in the 20th century.

The Mohegan Nation is governed by the Mohegan people. They elect a Tribal Council of nine Tribal Members and a Council of Elders, composed of seven Tribal Members. All legislative and executive powers of the Tribe not granted to the Council of Elders are vested with the Tribal Council. Marilynn Malerba was named the 18th lifetime chief of the Mohegan Tribe on August 15, 2010, and is the first female chief in modern history to hold this position.

The Council of Elders oversees judicial matters and the tribe's cultural integrity. It also exercises legislative powers with respect to rules governing tribal membership and enrollment. The Tribal Court adjudicates on all non-gaming matters. Historically, the tribe has acted as a democratic representative nation. A constitution was drafted in 1983 and has undergone several revisions and amendments since. The Council of Elders upholds and interprets this document.

Following the Congressional passage of the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, the Mohegan Nation used its cooperative relationship with the State of Connecticut to negotiate a gaming compact. It gained federal recognition in 1994 and received land in the settlement under the Mohegan Nation (Connecticut) Land Claim Settlement Act (1994). The US took into trust the cleaned-up United Nuclear site for use by the Mohegan as a sovereign reservation. Since 1996, the tribe has slowly been buying pieces of their original land back.

The Tribe opened the Mohegan Sun casino in 1996, two years after gaining federal recognition. The compact created between Connecticut and the Mohegan Tribe secured 25 percent of slot revenues to the state to help fund services. It became a model agreement. Connecticut's Native American tribes have generated the highest revenues for the state aside from federal government installations. The government-to-government relationships that have developed between Connecticut and Mohegan have enabled quick resolutions to issues that have been raised, such as regulation of indoor smoking, alcohol service, and state police presence at the reservation.

Community contributions
The tribe provides a large source of revenue to the State of Connecticut, paying more than each corporation in the state combined. The Mohegan Tribe used its own funds to pay for the $35 million access road that enables visitors to reach Mohegan Sun without tying up Montville roads. The tribe has worked closely with its neighbors and provided the funding for an $11 million regional water project in order to ensure safe, clean drinking water.

The tribe has been a strong advocate for ensuring that Connecticut's communities get a greater share of slot revenues. It proposed a successful initiative to modify the funding formula so that communities most affected by the casinos receive additional funds from the Pequot-Mohegan Fund.

In addition, the Mohegan Tribe pays the Town of Montville $500,000 each year in lieu of taxes. The Tribe is a partner in the Community Economic Development Fund, a revolving loan program that will help regional small businesses create jobs. The tribe is the first and only non-bank investor in such a program in Connecticut.

In 2012, the Tribe hosted the annual U.S. Sustainable and Responsible Investing conference. As of 2012, they had invested more than any individual government agency in SRI efforts.

In 2020, the tribe donated more than 50,000 dollars of food and donated other products to Montville Senior Center, the United Way of Southeastern Connecticut, and Gemma E. Moran United Way/Labor Food Bank in New London. They provided 10,000 grocery bags to a food bank in Connecticut during this time, as well as gloves and masks to local medical professionals.

A member of the Mohegan Tribe sits on the board of trustees for the University of Connecticut.

Community Contributions to Other Tribes
In the past, Native American tribes had depended on outside resources to fund new developments for Casinos. In 2004, the Mohegan tribe began to use its 1.3 billion dollar revenue to invest in other tribes. They loaned 3.1 million dollars to the Menominee Tribe and looked into more deals with other tribes. This promotes a tribe-helping-tribe mentality as revenues from Casinos are used largely to support reservation services.

In 2016, the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana and the Mohegan tribe entered a partnership. The Mohegan tribe helped remodel the Paragon Casino Resort business. As of 2021, the Casino is moving towards being debt-free and was able to reinstate employee benefits. The Tunica-Biloxi tribe has assumed full control over the Casino once again while the Mohegan tribe stepped back. Both tribes chairmen have described the positive benefits that had been gained as a result of this collaboration.

Economy
The Mohegan Tribe has used gaming to generate revenue for economic development of the Tribe, its members, and the surrounding communities.

Mohegan company
The Mohegan Tribe operates its casinos and resorts through Mohegan, previously known as Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority and then as Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment until May 2022. The organization develops and manages resorts in the United States, Canada, and Northern Asia.

Mohegan's original casino, Mohegan Sun, directly employs about 10,000 individuals.

As mandated by federal law and the Mohegan Tribe's Constitution and laws, profits from Native American gaming support tribal governments' health, education, welfare, and infrastructure. Although tribes are entitled to certain federal grants, by 1997, the Mohegan Tribe was able to return or reject funds. That year, it turned back $2.2 million in grant funds to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for redistribution to other Native American nations.

Since its opening in October 1996, the Mohegan Sun has generated substantial revenues for Connecticut's economy:
 * Approximately $2.5 billion in slot revenue contributions to the State of Connecticut
 * Over $4 billion is salaries, wages and benefits for employees
 * Over $6 billion in goods and services
 * Over $200 million in state taxes
 * Over $65 million in state services
 * Over $18 million in charitable donations

The tribe is a part owner of the New England Black Wolves National Lacrosse League franchise, and full owner of the WNBA's Connecticut Sun. It is the first Native American tribe to own a professional sports franchise. In 2021, the WNBA introduced new jerseys to reflect the significant role of female leadership in Mohegan tribal tradition. The tribe designed the jerseys in a collaborative effort involving the Chief, Council of Elders, tribal council, and medicine woman. Each symbol on the jersey was chosen to correspond to a part of tribal history and identity.

A tribe-affiliated company also owns Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Inspire Entertainment Resort located in Incheon, South Korea. Additionally, it is affiliated with other resorts throughout Northern Asia and the United States, including New Jersey, Washington, and Pennsylvania.

In 2018, Mohegan Gaming and Entertainment was awarded the management contract for the Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort and Casino Niagara in Niagara Falls, Ontario under a 21-year contract beginning in June 2019. This marked its first properties in Canada. In September 2019, the company was also awarded a contract to operate the casino at the new Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, located on the former Hard Rock Hotel and Casino site. This made them the first Native American tribe to operate a Las Vegas casino. In May 2024, Mohegan and Virgin Hotels Las Vegas announced the end of their partnership, with the tribe expected to have exited by 2025.

Other investments
To promote its environmentally friendly philosophy, the tribe invested in a Wood Pellets facility.

Notable Mohegan

 * Emma Baker, revived the Green Corn Ceremony and served as tribal chairperson
 * Fidelia Hoscott Fielding (1827–1908), last native speaker of the Mohegan-Pequot language
 * John E. Hamilton (1897–1988), Grand Sachem Chief Rolling Cloud, Indian rights activist
 * Samson Occom (1723–1792), Presbyterian minister who helped move the Brothertown Indians to New York state
 * Gladys Tantaquidgeon (1899–2005), anthropologist, herbalist, co-founder of the Tantaquidgeon Museum
 * Harold Tantaquidgeon (1904–1989), sailor, airman, soldier, scout and co-founder of the Tantaquidgeon Museum
 * Uncas (c. 1588–c. 1683), first sachem of the Mohegan
 * Mahomet Weyonomon (c. 1700–1736), a sachem who traveled to England in 1735 to seek better and fair treatment of his people
 * Marilynn Malerba (born 1953), the first Native American to be appointed as Treasurer of the United States and served as senior advisor to the Secretary in areas of community development and public engagement.