| Saturday, November 07, 2009
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P.O. Box 948 Tahlequah, OK 74465 |
(918) 453-5000 / Contact Us |
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In the News
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May 7, 2009
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Hay makers: More posturing by Congress over tribes
U.S. Rep. Dan Boren, D-Muskogee, wants the federal government to apologize to American Indian tribes for the wrongs the government has perpetrated against them through the years. There have been many, to be sure. The apology Boren is proposing "doesn’t recognize the complexity of these wrongs,” but would be "an important step in moving forward.”
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May 6, 2009
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(Tulsa World), Jim Myers
WASHINGTON — Influential members of Congress have asked U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to investigate five major Oklahoma American Indian tribes for illegally expelling descendants of freedmen and denying them federal education, housing and health benefits.
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May 5, 2009
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Reps will ask Justice not to investigate Indian tribes
(The Hill), Kevin Bogardus
House members from Oklahoma will call upon the Justice Department not to investigate several Native American tribes for alleged mistreatment of the Freedmen — descendants of freed slaves once owned by Indians.
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Sept. 29, 2008
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Both Houses of Congress Vote to Let Courts Decide Freedmen Issue
(Cherokee Nation News Release)
Washington, D.C. - Both the United States Senate and House of Representatives have passed measures preserving Cherokee Nation's federal funding for housing services, as long as a court order allowing citizenship for non-Indian Freedmen descendants remains in place throughout the tribal court case that will determine their eligibilty for citizenship in the Cherokee Nation.
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June 25, 2008
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June 13, 2008
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BIA action freedmen to await court's ruling
(Tulsa World), Jim Myers
Washington -- The Bureau of Indian Affairs will not take further action on long-running controversy over the Cherokee Nation and the descendants of former slaves until a pending court case is resolved, it was learned Thursday.
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June 12, 2008
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June 11, 2008
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The People Speak: Obama knows what Watson's bill tries to do
(Muskogee Phoenix), Hannah Flanagan-Flores
In a recent opinion piece by Rep. Diane Watson, D-Calif., she criticized Sen. Barack Obama for being "wrong on the freedmen issue. Sadly, it is Watson, not Obama, who lacks a complete understanding.
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June 7, 2008
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Final freedmen bill still pending
(Tulsa World), Jim Myers
Washington -- The fate of provisions to force the Cherokee Nation to drop efforts to deny citizenship to certain freedmen descendants now rests with those expected to hammer out differences between House and Senate versions of an Indian housing bill.
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June 5, 2008
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(Oklahoman), Justin Juozapavicius
TULSA -- The Cherokee Nation is rolling out a public relations campaign in response to federal lawmakers who say the tribe should be denied benefits unless it recognizes descendants of its former black slaves.
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June 4, 2008
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(The Hill), Kevin Bogardus
Democratic presidential front-runner Sen. Barack Obama's support for the Cherokee Nation in its controversial battle with the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) is helping him win support from Native American leaders.
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June 2, 2008
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(Muskogee Phoenix), John Ketcher
At last, a true American has stepped up to confront and challenge the Black Caucus regarding their ambition to force the Cherokee Nation to accept all freedmen who have Cherokee blood quantum as citizens.
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May 22, 2008
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(Cherokee Phoenix), Principal Chief Chad Smith
Recently, presidential candidate and U.S. Senator Barack Obama was asked to reconcile his open support for tribal sovereignty with his membership in the Congressional Black Caucus.
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May 11, 2008
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(Tulsa World), Jim Myers
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sen. and Democratic presidential front-runner Barack Obama has come out against any congressional interference "at this point" in the ongoing controversy over Cherokee Nation citizenship for descenants of former slaves.
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May 9, 2008
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Obama weighs in against CBC legislation on Cherokees
(The Hill), Kevin Bogardus
Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.), the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination, has weighed in against legislation proposed by the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) that would punish the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.
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April 28, 2008
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(The Hill), Ben Nighthorse Campbell
Despite my years in politics, I'm still suprised by Congress's inability to learn from past mistakes and tendency to interfere where it should not.
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April 25, 2008
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(Tulsa World), Jim Myers
Rep. Tom Cole has accused a House committee chairman of "legislative blackmail" by threatening to keep an Indian housing bill from a final vote if it does not include provisions punishing the Cherokee Nation in the long-running controversy over the tribe's freedmen descendants.
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April 16, 2008
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(Huffington Post), Tim Giago
The Congressional Black Caucus, in attacking the sovereign status of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, is placing in question and in jeopardy, the sovereign status of all Indian nations. At least that is the conclusion drawn by many tribal leaders across America.
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April 10, 2008
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(Tulsa World), Clifton Adcock
The Cherokee Nation and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians had a joint tribal council meeting Wednesday at the Cherokee Nation Casino Resort to discuss issues facing both tribes.
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February 13, 2008
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Lisa Trice-Turtle
My first conversation about HR 2824, the proposed bill to terminate the Cherokee Nation, with my daughters was held at the dinner table on the weekend of Nov. 16, 2007.
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November 30, 2007
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(Indian Country Today), Suzanne Jasper
In June 2007, legislation was introduced in Congress that would undermine the collective human rights of an Indian nation, by allowing Congress to determine citizenship in an Indian nation.
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November 4, 2007
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(Huffington Post), Tim Giago
I must take exception to a column by Congresswoman Diane Watson (D-CA) published on the huffingtonpost.com on Oct. 25, 2007.Before anyone starts to complain about the perceived mess in the backyard of their neighbor, perhaps they should clean up their own backyard first.
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November 1, 2007
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(Huffington Post), Chief Chad Smith
In 1770, 5,000 American militiamen rode through the Cherokee Nation burning villages and crops to the ground driving thousands of Cherokees, young, old and infirm, into the mountains. Today, Congresswoman Diane Watson attempts to repeat history with another scorched-earth policy aimed at hurting the most vulnerable Cherokee Indians: the young, old and infirm.
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September 6, 2007
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(Citizen-Times.com), Joe Martin
It’s safe to say that my fellow Cherokees in the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma have a mess on their hands. A referendum to remove membership from descendants of the Freedmen, freed slaves once owned by members of the Cherokee Nation, passed.
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August 24, 2007
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(Indian Country Today), Editorial
The controversy enveloping the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and Cherokee freedmen recently has taken some interesting and unexpected turns. Americans, through the prism of this situation, are growing comfortable discussing Indian issues in dangerous terms of race and exclusion.
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August 23, 2007
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(Indian Country Today), Gayle Ross
I drove from my home in Texas to attend Rep. Diane Watson's public meetings on her bill to terminate the Cherokee Nation's relationship with the United States. It was a difficult experience. Despite her claims that this is about the ''rule of law,'' Rep. Watson appeared not to know or care what the ''law'' really is, since her bill ignores several 10th Circuit and Supreme Court rulings that emphatically state that tribes have a right to establish their own membership.
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August 23, 2007
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Sara Hoklotubee
Diane Watson, a California congresswoman, brought her dog-and-pony show to Tulsa and Muskogee this past week to recruit supporters for her legislation to sever government-to-government relations with the Cherokee Nation.
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August 23, 2007
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(The Oklahoman) Editorial
DAYS after a tropical storm blew through Oklahoma, some parts of the state were hit by Hurricane Diane. We give that nickname to U.S. Rep. Diane Watson, a California Democrat who felt it necessary to spend part of her August recess in Tulsa, Muskogee and Oklahoma City in order to voice her displeasure about goings-on within the Cherokee Nation.
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August 18, 2007
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THE chief of the Cherokee Nation used part of his third inauguration speech to make a not-so-veiled reference to those who would involve themselves in the tribe's business regarding the makeup of its membership rolls. The message: Buzz off.
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August 12, 2007
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Shelley Bluejay Pierce
Questions about tribal sovereignty and who can be a registered citizen of an Indian tribe in the USA became the focus for the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma this past month.
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July 10, 2007
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(Los Angeles Times), Heather Williams
I'M PROUD TO BE a Cherokee citizen who is also descended from black slaves, and the Cherokee Nation I know is one of the most diverse, welcoming societies on Earth.
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April 4, 2007
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(Muskogee Phoenix), Joe Grayson Jr.
In a special election on March 3, 77 percent of Cherokee voters agreed that the Cherokee Nation is an Indian nation, united by blood to Indian ancestors listed on the base roll of our people. The Cherokee Nation sincerely regrets any misunderstandings that have occurred following the vote.
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April 1, 2007
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(Cherokee Phoenix)
In a special election on March 3, 77% of Cherokee voters agreed that the Cherokee Nation is an Indian nation united by our common bond of having at least one Indian ancestor listed on the base roll of our people.
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March 23, 2007
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(The Ottawa Herald), Tom Beaver
As citizens of the United States, we relish news of countries around the world conducting elections. We, the United States and its citizens, do everything we can to ensure elections free from violence and free from outside interference.
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March 22, 2007
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(Native American Times), Gayle Ross
My name is Gayle Ross and I am an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation. I want to respond to the remarks made by Marilyn Vann, but first I want to thank you for the opportunity to speak and to thank those who take the time to listen.
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March 21, 2007
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(Native American Times), Chris Russo
Marilyn Vann's letter to the editor regarding the March 3 vote by Cherokee people misleads readers and is filled with falsehoods through omission of facts.
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March 20, 2007
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(Muskogee Phoenix), Twila Pennington
My three adult children are Black-Cherokee citizens and they have NOT been ‘purged’ from the tribe because of the color of their skin, or with the recent 3-3-07 vote of the Cherokee citizens, which was to amend the Cherokee Constitution to say that we want our citizens to be of Indian blood.
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March 18, 2007
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(Muskogee Phoenix), Don Stroud
I read state Rep. Mike Shelton’s March 12 column in the Phoenix. Although I find it somewhat ironic that the representative would use the same tone used to counter the 1960’s Civil Rights and Black Power movements, I have to agree with his support of our Cherokee treaty rights.
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March 12, 2007
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(Indianz.com), Tim Giago
After she and 2,800 descendants of slaves once owned by the Cherokee Nation were denied membership or disenrolled from the tribe, Marilyn Vann, president of the Descendants of Freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes of Oklahoma said, “We’re not going away.
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March 10, 2007
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(Washington Times), Sara Hoklotubbe
Bruce Fein writes in Resurgent Racism (Commentary, Tuesday) that racism is resurgent and as an example cites a recent election held by the Cherokee Nation. The article not only lacks objectivity, but is full of misinformation.
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March 9, 2007
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(Indian Country Today), Chief Chad Smith
On March 3, the citizens of the Cherokee Nation voted for the third time in the past 30 years on the citizenship clause of our Constitution. This time, the Cherokee people turned out in record numbers and voted overwhelmingly to exclude non-Indian members who had only enrolled in the Cherokee Nation within the past year. The Cherokee people voted to be just like almost every other Indian tribe in the country: an Indian government made up of Indian citizens.
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