Members of the Miami Nation, Illinois land owners and farmers, and others discuss a controversial lawsuit filed in 2000 by the Miami Nation against 15 landowners on ancestral Miami lands in the Wabash Basin in east-central Illinois.

Chief Leonard and Olds, leaders of the Miami Nation of Oklahoma, discuss the history of their tribe, their claim to 2.6 million acres of land in Illinois, disputed treaties, "blood quantums," tribal cultural centers, and the casino controversy. Eaton, Greenburg and Yow, eastern Illinois farmers and landowners, discuss their families' histories on the disputed land, and their opposition to the Miami claim. Bisbee, press secretary to Republican congressman Tim Johnson of Champaign, discusses a proposed bill to shelter Illinois landowners from Miami claims and direct future lawsuits directly to the Federal government. Porter, a former TV news director, discusses his organization of opposition to the construction of a possible Miami gambling casino near Paxton, Illinois. Wilmot, a real-estate and casino developer, briefly responds to questions regarding the merits of the Miami claim.

The Miami Nation dropped the suit in 2001, but may refile it in the future. Cramer conducted the interviews in Oklahoma and Illinois as research for his 2002 UIS history master's thesis, "Nations Divided: The Battle Over the Miami Land Claim in Illinois." (see J54/50/4311).

6 tapes, 270 mins., 80 pp. Interviews by Andrew W. Cramer, 2001 RESTRICTED: No legal releases.