BAY MILLS — Tribal Chairman L. John Lufkins announced Sept. 3 that the Bay Mills Indian Community will file a formal complaint against the newly established U.S. Department of Homeland Security regarding the actions of immigration officers at the border crossing between Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., and Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., according to a news release. According to the complaint, U.S. immigration officers harassed and intimidated volunteers and spectators as they tried to make their way from Ontario to the Bay Mills Open Golf Tournament, a Canadian Professional Golf Tour event.
The event, which recently concluded its second year, relies heavily upon unpaid volunteers and paying spectators from both Michigan and Ontario. More than a dozen volunteers reported being denied entry into the United States after stating their intent to attend the tribally sponsored golf tournament. Several unpaid volunteers were detained at length by immigration officers and told that they were going to be denied entry because they were taking jobs from American citizens. Many also recalled overhearing officers utter racially insensitive remarks regarding the Bay Mills Indian Community.
Tournament participant Michelle Wie, the 13 year-old golf phenomenon from Hawaii, and her parents were also detained by immigration officers while their car was searched. The 13-year-old Wie has been reported as stating, “This guy had a gun in his hand the whole time, and they searched our car.”
Former Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., mayor and current International Bridge Authority Chairman Jim McIntyre was also among the volunteers detained at the customs inspection station.
“We are very upset about the treatment of visiting Canadian volunteers and spectators,” Lufkins said in the release. “Our local economy depends upon visitors coming from both sides of the U.S.-Canadian border and we are worried these incidents may damage the relationship we have built over the years.”
Lufkins also commented on the alleged racially insensitive remarks. “Such comments signify a complete and utter lack of professionalism and responsibility by immigration officers that deal with people of different races and nationalities each and every day,” he said.
Lufkins has planned to meet with U.S. Representative Bart Stupak and U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow to discuss the incidents and attempt to resolve issues with the Department of Homeland Security.
