PONSFORD, Minn. — Honor the Earth co-founder and executive director Winona LaDuke announced Wednesday that she is stepping back from her role with the organization.
In a lengthy Facebook post, LaDuke explained that the decision comes after a Becker County court recently ruled against the Indigenous organization in an eight-year-old sexual harassment case.
In 2014 and 2015, a contract employee named Margaret "Molly" Campbell raised a sexual harassment claim while working for Honor the Earth. "At the same time, our community was facing Enbridge's Sandpiper, a large oil pipeline that would run between our two largest wild rice lakes. I and others were working around the clock to stand up to the outside threat posed by Enbridge... As a result, I did not rapidly and adequately act on the complex personnel and sexual harassment issues our organization faced internally," LaDuke said in the post.
LaDuke, who was serving as the organization's executive director at the time of the allegations, went on to say that she "deeply" regrets not responding to Campbell's claims "with the appropriate level of care and urgency."
Campbell eventually took her case to the Minnesota Department of Human Rights, which determined Honor the Earth did not engage in discriminatory practices.
However, last week a Becker Country Court found Honor the Earth guilty and ordered the organization to pay $750,000 in punitive damages.
"I am disappointed that Honor the Earth was forced to address these issues through litigation in the State court system. I do not believe that Honor the Earth is an enemy of Gender Justice or Molly Campbell, and I believe there are many better forums for conflict resolution than those prioritized by a colonial system of justice," LaDuke wrote.
LaDuke submitted her resignation letter to Honor the Earth's Board of Directors on Monday, April 3. Krystal Two Bulls began transitioning into the role last fall after joining the organization as Executive Co-Director and will assume the sole leadership role in Honor the Earth.
Honor the Earth was established by LaDuke and Amy Ray and Emily Saliers of the Indigo Girls in 1993. The organization says its mission is to "create awareness and support for Native environmental issues and to develop needed financial and political resources for the survival of sustainable Native communities."
LaDuke has been a vocal leader and environmental activist in protests against the Enbridge pipeline projects.
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