February 13, 2009
The Descendents of the Cherokee Freedmen: Victims of Sovereignty?"
12pm at the Eigenmann 6th Fl Room 621
Talk by Delphine Criscenzo (African American and African Diaspora Studies)
"The descendents of Cherokee black slaves have been faced with several
actions on the part of the Cherokee Nation to revoke their citizenship.
These efforts climaxed in March 2007 and have given birth to an important
wave of resistance. The Cherokee Nation says that their sovereignty as an
Indian Nation gives them the right to decide who gets to be Cherokee. On the
side of the descendents of the Cherokee Freedmen, they did not choose to be
involved with the Cherokee Nation, nor did their ancestors. Is history still
relevant or are the descendents of the Freedmen the victims of an Indian
struggle to maintain their sovereignty?"
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3 comments:
i feel that these people are being ostracized from other members of their own culture and heritage due to racism/colorism. Not only are these people descendants of Cherokee freedmen, but they are descendants of Cherokee Indians also. Problem is, everything that happened never got documented, so the Freedmen have this great burden of proof upon them. I myself, for example, am a descendant of Cherokee, so I am part Cherokee by blood, however,I have identified ethnically and culturally as "black". This being said, each person has a right to claim all parts of his or her heritage, no matter if others perceive them a certain way due to appearance
In a way, I do believe that the Freedmen descendents have been victims of this struggle to maintain sovereignty. Even if the tribal leaders did not want to make such decisions, they may feel pressure from the government to do certain actions, such as revoke the Freedmen citizenship.
This is just history repeating itself. One of the main reasons I believe that many Cherokee owned slaves in the first place is because they felt they had no other choice than to be assimilated, acculturated and meet the demands of the powers that be. And even after all this, the Trail of Tears still happened. And these Freedmen ancestors traveled the same trail. Just as they were victims then, they are being victimized now. How do you tell someone "we're expelling you from this culture and revoking your identity", when that culture is a part of who you are, and shaped how you were raised?
Congressional Black Caucus Attacks Sovereign Status of Indian Nations
Read More: Politics News
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.
In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, the CBC, of which Presidential Candidate Barack Obama is member, demanded that he support their efforts to deny federal funding to the Cherokee Nation. The letter reads:
When H. R. 2786, the Native American Housing and Assistance and Self-Determination Reauthorization Act of 2007, was considered and passed the House Members of the Congressional Black Caucus and others insisted that the bill include a provision that would prevent the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma from receiving any benefits or funding under the bill until the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma is in full compliance with the Treaty of 1866 and recognizes all Cherokee Freedman and their descendants as tribal citizens.
We understand that the Senate may be considering a version of this bill that does not include these critically important requirements. We are writing to advise you that the members of the CBC will not support, and will actively oppose, passage of a NAHASDA bill that does not include this limitation. We must send the unequivocal message to the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma that failure to provide full citizenship rights to the Cherokee Freedmen will have severe consequences.
This is probably the first time in history that a Congressional Black Caucus, or any other Black organization for that matter, has severely threatened not only the sovereign status of an Indian nation, but also the withholding of funds that could cause widespread damage to the citizens of an Indian nation.
The people of the Cherokee Nation exercised their democratic rights when 70 percent of them voted to extinguish the tribal citizenship to the Cherokee Freedmen. The Freedmen are former Black slaves that became a part of the Cherokee Nation under the provisions of the Treaty of 1866.
The bill was introduced by Representative Diane Watson (D-CA). Tribal leaders across America feel that this bill could threaten Indian housing nationwide. They also believe that this action by the Congressional Black Caucus could set a precedent where any Indian legislation could be threatened by any special interest group.
In a memo sent out by Indian activist Ron Andrade it was noted that Obama is also a member of the CBC. "Someone needs to ask him how he can reconcile his support of the Congressional Black Caucus and his rhetoric about supporting the sovereign status of tribal governments," Andrade wrote.
The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians of North Carolina met on Wednesday of last week in a joint tribal council meeting. At the meeting they denounced legislation that would cut federal funds to the Cherokee Nation unless the Freedmen are restored to citizenship. The Eastern Band of Cherokee would not be affected by the legislation.
A joint resolution issued after the meeting reads, "This alarming, inappropriate and unacceptable overreach could set a precedent that undermines the sovereign tribal governments throughout Indian country. These proposed legislative actions threaten to turn back the clock on hard-won rights and to cease a nation's right to exist."
It should be noted that California is one of the worst states in the Union where tribes are systematically removing and denying citizenship to members.
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