Showing posts with label #TribalDisenrollment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #TribalDisenrollment. Show all posts

Thursday, April 6, 2023

From the Government to Corrupt Tribal Councils: Disenrollment and the Continued Marginalization of Indigenous Communities

 



Disenrollment , the STRIPPING of tribal citizenship/membership has far-reaching consequences for individuals and communities.

For many Indigenous people, being a member of a tribe is not just a legal status, but an important part of their identity and cultural heritage. When tribes engage in disenrollment, they are adopting the same exclusionary tactics used by the U.S. government to divide and conquer Indigenous communities, which can lead to historical trauma.

Historically, the U.S. government has used a range of tactics to undermine Indigenous sovereignty and cultural identity. These tactics include forced removal from ancestral lands, boarding school education aimed at assimilating Indigenous children into mainstream American culture, and policies that restricted Indigenous people's access to their cultural practices and spiritual traditions.

Disenrollment can be seen as another manifestation of these tactics, as it often involves the exclusion of individuals who may have ties to multiple Indigenous communities or who do not meet certain tribal criteria. This can create a sense of isolation and displacement, as individuals are cut off from the very communities that provide them with a sense of belonging and cultural identity.

Disenrollment without review is wrong

In addition to the emotional toll of disenrollment, there are also practical consequences for native Americans. Disenrollment can lead to the loss of access to important tribal resources such as healthcare, education, housing, and economic opportunities. It can also affect the ability of individuals to participate in tribal governance and decision-making, including adopting native children.

Disenrollment leads to elder and ancestor abuse within Indigenous communities, as we have seen in the Nooksack Tribe in Washington State. Tribal councils have used disenrollment as a tool to silence elders or other community members who may speak out against corruption or other forms of misconduct. This can create a climate of fear and intimidation, where individuals are afraid to challenge the status quo for fear of losing their tribal citizenship or being ostracized from their community. Elder and ancestor abuse is a serious issue that needs to be addressed by tribes and Indigenous organizations in order to create safe spaces where all members can share their experiences and perspectives without fear of retaliation.

The practice of disenrollment can create a legacy of historical trauma that can be passed down through generations. When tribes engage in exclusionary tactics, it can undermine the sense of solidarity and unity among Indigenous peoples, which is essential for addressing the ongoing impacts of colonization and systemic oppression.

Disenrollment from tribal citizenship or membership perpetuates the same exclusionary tactics used by the U.S. government to divide and conquer Indigenous communities, creating historical trauma. It is important for tribes to consider the long-term consequences of disenrollment and work towards more inclusive practices that prioritize cultural identity and community wellbeing.

Sunday, March 26, 2023

Native Advocacy Groups' Failure to Address Disenrollment Amounts to Complicity in the Destruction of Indigenous Communities. NCAI, NARF, ACLU ALL ABJECT FAILURES on Disenrollment



                      


It is understandable that not everyone is fully informed or consumed by the issue of tribal disenrollment in Native American communities. It is a completely different matter when individuals attempt to virtue signal by pretending to be concerned without taking any meaningful action to address the issue.

To feign concern and do nothing to combat the injustice of disenrollment is to be complicit in the harm that is being caused to indigenous communities. It is a dereliction of our moral duty to stand up for what is right and to speak out against injustice, no matter how far removed we may be from the issue at hand.

While it is certainly commendable to acknowledge the issue of disenrollment and express concern, it is imperative that we take meaningful action to combat this shameful practice.

Makes you wonder WHAT is bad enough to get our so-called NATIVE ADVOCATES involved?  THIS isn't enough?

•Stripped tribal members of their citizenship
•Denied voting rights to members
•Taken away rightful healthcare to seniors
•Blocked access to land on the reservation
•Denied members due process of law, including legal representation, even writing tools.
•Prohibition of practicing religion, including the right to pray at their ancestor's graves.
•Threatened others if they speak out
•Subjected some to ex post facto laws.
  

We must keep educating ourselves and others on the issue, advocating for policy changes, and supporting the disenfranchised members of these communities.  Sitting on the sidelines simply will not work.  We must work to support the elders, children and honor our ancestors.


We must move beyond mere performative gestures and take concrete steps to support the indigenous communities that are being torn apart by this egregious practice. 

Failure to act is not only a reflection of our own moral character but also a continuation of the long-standing injustices that have plagued Native American communities for generations.  




TRIBAL LEADERS ACCUSED OF VIOLATING TRIBAL, CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS THROUGH DISENROLLMENT, CAUSING IRREPARABLE HARM TO NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITIES

 It is a travesty that there are still individuals and groups within Native American tribes who continue to horrifically violate the tribal, civil, and human rights of their own people.

These chieftains and councils that shamelessly engage in practices such as disenrollment, disenfranchisement, moratoriums and dismemberment, tearing apart the very fabric of their communities. They shame the ancestors to which they profess to hold dear


It is simply unacceptable that these individuals and groups work towards furthering the nonrecognition of other indigenous people and tribes, perpetuating the very same colonialist tactics that haveoppressed Native American communities for centuries. Such behavior is not only reprehensible, but it is also deeply concerning and must be addressed with urgency by our federal government.

Equally unacceptable is the lack of significant coverage of this issue by native media.   11,000 victims isn't enough?

We cannot allow the continued oppression and marginalization of Native American communities to go unchallenged.
Those who engage in these practices must be held accountable for their actions and called out for the harm they have caused to their own people. We can do that by exposing these shameful practices to the media, our policians and the tribal casino going public.

We must stand in solidarity with those who have been disenfranchised, dismembered, and disowned, and work together to fight against these injustices. 

It is time for a new era of accountability and justice in Native American communities, where the rights and dignity of all individuals are respected and protected.  And we are NOT here to keep shameful "family secrets" of disenrollment and abuse.

Heed the words of GERONIMO:    "If an Apache had allowed his aged parents to suffer for food or shelter, if he had neglected or abused the sick, if he had profaned our religion, or had been unfaithful, he might be banished from the tribe."  

INSTEAD, politicians like Gavin Newson and Kamala Harris give tacit approval to these horrific acts.

Learn More on Disenrollment, Ethnic Cleansing in Indian Gaming Country at these Links:
Gaming Revenue Blamed for Disenrollment
Disenrollment is paper Genocide
CA Tribal Cleansing
Tribal terrorism
TRIBAL TERRORISM includes Banishment
Nooksack Disenrollment

Tribal Disenrollment: A Betrayal of Native American Culture and Identity, It's An Attack on Human Rights

Tribal sovereignty should be nurtured and cherished, not dishonored by tribes who wield sovereignty like a club to abuse their own people

Tribal disenrollment revokes the citizenship or enrollment of their own members, effectively stripping us of our tribal identity and the rights and benefits that come with it. This practice is often used as a tool for political control, many times it happened just before tribal elections.  


Tribal disenrollment is morally repugnant. 

It's a violation of fundamental human rights, including the right to self-identification and the right to belong to a cultural community.

For many tribal members, their tribal identity is an integral part of their sense of self and their connection to their ancestors, traditions, and cultural heritage. Disenrollment can result in the loss of access to important cultural and spiritual practices, as well as financial and social support.

Monday, February 6, 2023

Tribal Disenrollment Explained. WHAT IS IT? Whom Does it Harm?

 After 15 years in the public fight against my family's disenrollment from Pechanga at the hands of the Macarro brothers, I'm constantly surprised at how many people STILL have never heard the term.  I explain it here for you.

Tribal disenrollment refers to the removal of individuals from the official membership rolls of a tribe, and it can have far-reaching and devastating consequences for both individuals and communities. It is quite simply, a DISASTER to Indian Country.

Disenrollment results in the loss of access to important resources, cultural identity, and political representation, and it is widely seen as a violation of both civil and human rights.  Disenrollment can have a negative impact on tribal unity and cohesion, and undermines the goals of tribal sovereignty and self-governance.

Friday, November 4, 2022

NCAI Must CONDEMN Disenrollment, Not Sacrifice 11,000 on the Altar of Sovereignty

 Rob Capriccioso, of the estimable Indigenous Wire website, has a story up on the National Congress of American Indians Marketplace AND our protest of tribal disenrollment.

Read that Article HERE  

Disenrollment is a HATE crime

We must continue to push our Native Advocacy groups to support Natives who have been harmed by their tribes.  Some by their own relatives.   

Cam Foreman Redding Rancheria Disenrolled
Santana Rabang  Nooksack 306

Cam Foreman:  “The NCAI needs to condemn disenrollment and that it does not align with the beliefs and values of the organization, nor history of any nation since time immemorial until tribal gaming.”

Friday, April 22, 2022

Yolanda McCarter, Architect of Pechanga Disenrollments and Destruction of Families and Ancestors, Dies

 Sad news for her family, to the HUNDREDS of Pechanga people who were disenrolled BECAUSE of her, not so much.

It's hard not to speak ill of the dead, but for McCarter, I'll make an exception.

As I wrote years ago in the post Pechanga Disenrollment Decade.. 
In December 2001, apparently in the holiday spirit, Yolanda McCarter (niece of Irene Scearce and Ruth Masiel  OP: She is the porcine one on the Pechanga infomercial saying she could die happy if she didn't have the casino money. Obviously, a lie, as she was looking to gain more per capita via disenrollment) submitted a letter to Enrollment Committee demanding the Committee research several families including ours.  The request stated that "this (be) straightened up before the next election in July." (So that there would be fewer votes for any opposition, a clear sign that they wanted to disenfranchise "several families" from voting.

Maybe she was loved by her family, but for dozens of Pechanga families, it's a hard NO.  May she rest in eternal damnation.

Sunday, January 2, 2022

Tribal Disenrollment is a HATE CRIME


This is an apt description in many instances of tribal disenrollment:

hate crime (also known as a bias-motivated crime or bias crime)[1] is a prejudice-motivated crime which occurs when a perpetrator targets a victim because of their membership (or perceived membership) of a certain social group or racial demographic.

While stripping the tribal citizenship from perceived enemies and those not following those in power in lockstep is NOT a crime, though the violations of civil and human rights should be,  the results can be the same.   So, would they just be bias incidents that affect 11,000 living?

Elders lose their heritage, their kinship, their health benefits.  Children grow up with no sense of tribal belonging and without the benefits they should have.

Friday, October 22, 2021

Rep. Ruben Gallego: Tribal Disenrollment is Frustrating He Tells Cam Foreman, Disenrolled from Redding Rancheria

 

Rep. Ruben Gallego

Cam Foreman, disenrolled from the Redding Rancheria in Northern California has been doing the heavy lifting in getting politicians to go on record on tribal disenrollment. After getting now Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and NCAI President Fawn Sharp on record the same week, this week, Rep. Ruben Gallego answere Cam’s queries.  (Edited to correct spell check )

Cam tells me “Basically I asked him as a Member of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee of Indigenous Peoples if he was familiar with Tribal Disenrollment?”  He said yes and talked about what he's heard In California etc being an tribal internal issue. I replied I agree with A tribe’s right to determine membership but should Tribes have a right to violate their Constitutions & Trust responsibility and their obligation to protect their citizen’s  rights. Who enforces that protection? I spoke about what happened to my Grandfather. 

Basically they want rights enforced but wouldn't want to infringe on Sovereignty. And how it's frustrating.

OP:  there are a lot of frustrations in this issue of course there is the frustration of the disenrolled and not getting any help from our politicians on the protection of our civil and human rights. 

And for those who purport to care about our issue there’s the frustration about them not being willing to stand up against the rich and powerful corrupt casino tribes.

For those like me who have been fighting to get this issue out onto the front burner for over 14 years there’s the frustration of not having everybody who’s affected by this abuse to continue to fight for their own rights.  It is good to have young warriors fight for their ancestors and their elders like Cam Foreman if I had to say one thing I would say BE LIKE CAM FOREMAN and keep bringing the issue up.


Wednesday, September 2, 2020

PECHANGA YOUNG Get it WRONG TRIBAL SOVEREIGNTY NOT Affected by Correct Tribal Membership Rolls

Disenrollment Strips Tribal Citizenship            Disenrollment Strips Tribal Citizenship          Disenrollment Strips Tribal Citizenship         Disenrollment Strips Tribal Citizenship
The fallacies in this conversation with a young Temecula Indian is staggering. What are they teaching?   In the Pechanga disenrollments of two large families, disenrollment was done SPECIFICALLY to harm those who stood for justice.

BOTH families traced their ancestors back to Original Pechanga ancestors.
SOVEREIGNTY does NOT depend on a correct membership roll. The Feds will allow tribes to SELL memberships.  

The Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians did not ACCEPT the proof their OWN documents and oral history laid out.

Saturday, August 15, 2020

Disenrolling Tribes Please Come home to The NATIVE WAYS of Our Ancestors

 In over 13 years of fighting against tribal disenrollment, starting with the Pechanga disenrollments of two families, I’ve placed all of my time, energy and righteous anger on the nightmare of this paper genocide .
This scourge defames our ancestors, abuses our elders, and rips the heritage from our children. 

 For all of these years, I’ve neglected to speak about what it truly means to be an American Indian. Today, I want to briefly share my experience of the Native Way, with the beautiful native people of Northern New Mexico.

While driving from Upland, California to Chama, New Mexico to visit my brother, who had just relocated to the small New Mexican town, my wife and I experienced that community, and their actions touched me to my core.

I was trying so hard on that trip, to keep our Mazda CX-9 at the speed limit. It was unfamiliar territory and we were visiting in the dead of winter. There was this white stuff everywhere that this Californian was unfamiliar with. I'm certainly not used to driving through snow or ice, so I was trying to keep it safe by keeping under the 55 MPH speed limit.  



One deer damage. 3 seconds sooner
Four deer would have been hit.

East of Bloomfield, New Mexico passing the mile marker 102 sign, I crested a small rise, could not see the road, and quickly came across a herd of deer crossing the road.  I stood on my brakes, they worked well, but one deer was not concerned about her safety. The collision was not catastrophic to my wife or me, but at 100 pounds, the doe wasn’t so lucky. She damaged our nearly new car, rendering it inoperable, and in the process didn’t survive.  Stuck, in what to us a desolate stretch of highway between the Navajo Nation and Jicarilla Apache reservation, other motorists were few and far between.

We got to the side of the road, and my wife had enough cell signal to reach AAA. They promised to have someone out ASAP, but given our location, they warned it might take a couple of hours.  Thankfully, I had supplies in the car, water, snacks, and hand warmers (why are you laughing?).

Sunday, August 9, 2020

Playboy Told the Tribal Disenrollment Story 12 Years BEFORE NCAI released even a STATEMENT

Embarrassing to say the least.  Yes, ladies and gentlemen Playboy beats the National Council of American Indians to the important issue that now affects over 11,000 Native Americans by TWELVE YEARS.  

April 2008 Edition with
Story on DISENROLLMENT
While primarily known has a "men's magazine" Playboy also kept up with the issues of the day.  Playboy's April 2008 included a story on ousted Seminole Chief James Billie, with the article focusing on  Billies' fall from power as Chairman of the Seminole Nation and his eventual banishment by an opposing faction of the tribal council.

As a side bar, page 56 highlights the disenrollments at Pechanga:

Thursday, August 6, 2020

New Mexico Rep. Deb Haaland and National Congress of American Indians FINALLY Bring Tribal Disenrollment UP

cronkite_tribal_sovereignty_10-nations-haaland-full-1.jpg

Premiere Indigenous Law Firm Galanda Broadman has a good capture of yesterday's events with #stopdisenrollment in Indian Country politics.  Both the NCAI and Rep. Haaland spoke/wrote about tribal disenrollment in the SAME DAY, thanks to CAM FOREMAN, grandson of the honorable Bob Foreman, who has been going like gangbusters on social media.  HOW hard?  Well, Fawn Sharp BLOCKED him on Twitter!  LOL

Here's NCAI's statement, the rest of the story you can read at Gabe Galanda's blog


117089087_10158024051432663_5947511352076253060_n.jpg
For our young readers  BE LIKE  CAM FOREMAN, come out swinging

Tuesday, February 11, 2020

Disenrollment is ELDER ABUSE, CHILD ABUSE and ANCESTOR ABUSE

According to the California State Bar Association Elder Abuse:
It is the neglect, exploitation or “painful or harmful” mistreatment of anyone who is 65 or older (or any disabled dependent adult aged (18 to 64). It can involve physical violence, psychological abuse, isolation, abandonment, abduction, false imprisonment or a caregiver’s neglect. It could also involve the unlawful taking of a senior’s money or property.
Matilda Smith 90 years old
Hunter Family Elder
Great Granddaughter of Paulina Hunter 

In short, elder abuse involves various crimes, such as theft, assault or identity theft, that strike victims of all ages. But when the victim is 65 years old or older (or a disabled dependent adult), the criminal faces stiffer penalties.


Matilda was 75 years old when the Pechanga tribal council, abandoned her, unlawfully taking this senior's money, health care, voting rights and her rights as an allottee, and dishonoring a tribal elder.   At that time, yahoos and felons in the back corner of the room were hollering for disenrolled elders to "GET A JOB"

Hunter Elder Matilda Smith, now 90 years old, recalled being on the reservation in the late 1930’s. “It was a long trip to get there, especially in those days”. “But that is where our roots were, my grandmother loved it there.” Her grandmother was Mary Ann Miller, daughter of Paulina Hunter, an original allottee of the Temecula Reservation known as Pechanga.  Up to her disenrollment, she was attending meetings, travelling out from OKLA 'freaking" HOMA to support the tribe and family.

Monday, August 5, 2019

The MORAL Bankruptcy of NARF, NCAI and NIGA Which are ALL Missing In Action on Dismemberment Of Native Americans

Professor David Wilkins, who has written extensively on disenrollment, calls out Native American organizations that we've written about who've buried their heads in the sand to avoid the topic of Indians abused by their own tribes.  If these "interest" groups don't stand up against disenrollment of thousands of Native Americans, that means they are FOR IT, right?

NARF, NCAI and NIGA

Here is an open letter to the leaders of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), Native American Rights Fund (NARF), and National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA):
Dear Native Leaders,
Each of your organizations, founded at critical moments in native history–NCAI in 1944, NARF in 1970, and NIGA in 1985– have and continue to play vital roles in the political, legal, and economic development of Native nations. I write you all now to request that you continue to remain vital and relevant by taking an unequivocal stand against spurious disenrollment practices that destroy the human and civil rights of individual native citizens and threaten the sovereign powers of all Native nations.

Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Tribal Disenrollment: Osage Nation vs Reta Linter Rescheduled

From Osage News:

The Reta Lintner case is slated to be decided by jury trial, which will be the first in the history of the 2006 Osage reformed government. The pre trial portion is rescheduled to Feb. 6

A petition for Lintner’s disenrollment from the Nation was first filed in April 2016. Lintner’s family claims they are descendants of original allottee Paschal Canville through an illegitimate daughter, Lola Brown. According to the ON membership law, a person must be a lineal descendant of an original allottee from the 1906 Allotment Act in order to be eligible for Osage citizenship.

In December 2017, ON Trial Court Associate Judge Lee Stout ordered the Attorney General’s office to collect samples from 11 of Canville’s known descendants, noting the membership office’s use of DNA testing in paternity cases. Although a handful provided non-invasive samples via mouth swabs, none were male. The testing facility contracted by the tribe, Bio-Gene DNA Testing, previously stated it could not complete the testing without a male participant.

If Lintner is found not to be a legitimate tribal citizen, she and her relatives could be ordered to repay any Osage Nation financial benefits received while enrolled with the tribe. 

According to Osage law, jury trials are permitted in both civil and criminal cases.

The law also states: “juries, except for cases prosecuted under special domestic violence criminal jurisdiction, shall consist of six Osage Nation members who reside within Osage County, Oklahoma. The court may, in its discretion, appoint one alternate juror. A verdict may be reached in either a civil or criminal case by the affirmative vote of four of the six jurors.”

Tuesday, September 11, 2018

NCAI SILENT OVER a DECADE on Disenrollment, Instant Comment on Mashpee Wampanoag Ruling by Trump Administration

Interesting how quickly the NCAI came out against the decision by the Department of Interior on the Mashpee Wampanoag people. Days... yet for over a DECADE, they've been completely SILENT on the abuses BY TRIBES on the disenrollment issue in fact MISSING IN ACTION. Over 11,000 Native Americans should have provoked some action, a comment, a discussion at their meetings, but NO. NOTHING.  Please read and share

NARF, NCAI and NIGA

Professor David Wilkins, who has written extensively on disenrollment, calls out Native American organizations that we've written about who've buried their heads in the sand to avoid the topic of Indians abused by their own tribes.


Open letter to the leaders of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), Native American Rights Fund (NARF), and National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA):
Dear Native Leaders,
Each of your organizations, founded at critical moments in native history–NCAI in 1944, NARF in 1970, and NIGA in 1985– have and continue to play vital roles in the political, legal, and economic development of Native nations. I write you all now to request that you continue to remain vital and relevant by taking an unequivocal stand against spurious disenrollment practices that destroy the human and civil rights of individual native citizens and threaten the sovereign powers of all Native nations.
NCAI is the largest (over 250 member nations) and one of the oldest interest groups representing indigenous peoples. The organization was born during the turbulent period when the federal government was aggressively moving to politically and legally terminate over 100 tribal nations. NCAI fought against giving state governments’ greater jurisdiction over tribal peoples and their resources, and fought against relocation policies that compelled thousands of tribal citizens off their homelands and into major urban areas.

Wednesday, February 14, 2018

NCAI TRIBAL NATIONS POLICY SUMMIT: Another Major Event that IGNORES the ABUSES of NATIVE AMERICANS, BY Native Americans

Another year, and the same old story coming from the National Council of American Indians:  DEAFENING SILENCE ON DISENROLLMENT

The NCAI agenda is here with four and a half days of meetings and events and NOT a MINUTE to discuss the civil and human rights abuses OF Native Americans, By tribes such as Nooksack, Pechanga, Pala, Redding Rancheria.  This make a grand total of ZERO minutes the past decade. 

They couldn't even make time to CELEBRATE those tribes that have returned members to their rightful status, like Enterprise Rancheria and Graton, or acknowledge the Cherokee Freedmen gaining their rightful status.



What does it take for the epidemic to reach the heights of this political organization?
 
ELDER ABUSE?   Nope, silence
CHILD ABUSE?    Nuh, uh, quiet
Apartheid?             Never speak of it
Voting abuses?     Shh, family secret
Fraud?                   Not our business

But by all means, let's give a FAKE, undocumented white woman to speak and save the Indian.  

Two years ago, the noted professor David Wilkins spoke about against the absence of the big named Native organizations in our post:  Native American Groups MIA on Dismemberment.....

Have they JUMPED the SHARK?

Thursday, June 29, 2017

What Will Disenrolling Tribal Councils SAY, When they Face Their Ancestors?

What will Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians Chairman Mark Macarro say to HIS ancestor, that called OUR ancestor, aunt? What will Butch Murphy say to our ancestors that took HIS non Pechanga family in?


It's interesting to think about what the tribal members remaining in tribes that have exterminated other members pray and think about when they go to church.

Do they pray that:

1. God won't remember what they have done to their family and ours?
2. I can just give a little more to the collection plate and that will get me off the hook.
3. Please, God, let there be more slot machines.
4. Please, God, I'm not really happy about it, but I didn't do anything about it, WHY didn't you give me strength?

Do they JUSTIFY their Shameful Actions with:

Well, I really didn't believe in the 5th, 8th, 9th or 10th commandments anyway?
Why are they always picking on us? Are civil rights, elder abuse, voting rights that important?

Some questions should be raised:

What has the parish priest talked to his flock about the situation? How much of the catechism have the disenrollers broken?
Are they still taking communion? What penance did they get for ruining the lives of so many?
Should Christian customers patronize a business that treats its family so terribly? Should Christians spend money for dinner at a place that abused their elders and children?
Should churches hold luncheons at a place like this?

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Obama Failure on Tribal Disenrollment Justice Department Avoids Conflicts - Galanda

Here's an excellent indictment of the Obama Administration for avoiding the human and civil rights abuses BY tribes against their own people via tribal disenrollment, by attorney Gabe Galanda.  Failure of the disenrolled to continue to press our  politicians, leads to those same politicians not caring or rather unwilling to expend any political capital against big money Indian tribes.

We will have a letter requesting a policy statement from the Department of Justice later today. Please plan on sending a copy for each of your family members.


MONEY QUOTES:

More problematically, Interior and the BIA fail to appreciate that the tribal power to determine membership—or more traditionally, kinship or belonging—is distinctly different from the power to disenroll. The former is a matter of inherent tribal sovereignty. The latter is a matter of federal delegated plenary power that the Congress delegated to the Secretary of the Interior, and in turn, the Secretary has now delegated to tribal governments. This distinction is critical, and lost on most all of Indian Country due to the mistruths espoused on this topic by the federal government and others.
 

Indeed, the BIA’s Indian Affairs Manual explains: “When enrollees lose their membership they also lose their right to share in the distribution of tribal assets. Since the Secretary is responsible for distribution of trust assets to tribal members,disenrollment actions are subject to approval by the Secretary or his authorized representatives. Any person whose disenrollment has been approved by the Area Director acting under delegated authority may appeal the adverse decision as provided in 25 C.F.R. § 2.”    

Instead of honoring those policies, or federal law, Interior honors a selfish decision made by a few BIA senior bureaucrats during the Bush Administration;

But the Obama Administration has failed to doanythingto help fix today’s federally caused, tribal disenrollment crisis. Not only is it the federal government’s fiduciary obligation to all Indian peoples to do so, but it is the morally correct thing to do.
 
Read more at: Galanda on Disenrollment