COVID-19 pushes Wisconsin tribal tourism from casinos, pow-wows to outdoor recreation

COVID-19 pushes Wisconsin tribal tourism from casinos, pow-wows to outdoor recreation

Article brief provided by Green Bay Press-Gazette
  • Frank Vaisvilas, Green Bay Press-Gazette
January 13, 2021 1:30 AM
  • Frank Vaisvilas, Green Bay Press-Gazette

From golfing, outdoor recreation and agricultural tourism, the Indigenous nations and their more than a half million acres of land in Wisconsin have more to offer visitors than casinos and pow-wows.

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That’s what Suzette Brewer knew she had to emphasize when she started her role as the executive director of Native American Tourism of Wisconsin in March 2020.

For many, that might have been a bad time to start that position because that’s when the pandemic hit and everything started shutting down and large summer gatherings started being canceled.

But Brewer saw it as an opportunity.

“We had to come up with something,” she said. “We’re asking people to think differently about the tribes. They’re more than pow-wows. They’re more than casinos.”