REMEMBER when the big tribes that Democrat Senator Dianne Feinstein is trying to protect PROMISED Californians that Indian Gamings would benefit all tribes. It didn't work out that way. And now is looking even WORSE for small tribes as the larger tribes work to keep them from sharing in gaming success.
Showing posts with label Diane Watson; Cherokee Freedmen; tribal corruption; Civil Rights. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Diane Watson; Cherokee Freedmen; tribal corruption; Civil Rights. Show all posts
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Will President Obama's Government Look into Tribal Disenrollments?
There is great hope that this new Congress will look into disenrollments, such as those perpetrated on their people by Pechanga, Redding, Picayune, San Pascual here in California. Will Rep. Diane Watson finally look into what's happening in her own back yard?
Capitol Weekly has a story up.
American Indian activists have high hopes for the new Barack Obama administration-including the hope that the issue of tribal disenrollments could finally be on the president's radar.
Many say they are closely watching who Obama will appoint to head the Department of the Interior, which overseas the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). Meanwhile, the inclusion of disenrollment and other issues of importance to tribes have made it into a list of recommendations for question to ask potential Interior appointees issued by the federal General Accountability Office.
OP: We have letters posted to the candidates. PLEASE send one for each of your family members.
Last month, he named Harper and five other American Indians to his transition team. Harper was an plaintiff's attorney on the Cobell vs. Kempthorne case. This was a massive class action case charging Interior and Dick Kempthorne, the agency's director since 2006, with massive mismanagement of assets they held on behalf of American Indians.
Harper is also on record taking on some tribes that have disenrolled members, said activist Cathy Corey. In one memorable exchange on the Indian-themed radio show, he said that tribes that kicked out members were "not acting like nations."
While Harper is likely to get an appointment at Interior of elsewhere, he is not among the names being floated as director of the department. The two names that come up most often in connection to that job are Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Napa, and Kevin Gover, director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian. Thompson has long been considered friendly to tribal issues; he has already been endorsed for the job by one California tribe, the Karuk
Read MORE at the link above.
Related Stories:
Tribal Flush
All that Glitters
Without a Tribe
Capitol Weekly has a story up.
American Indian activists have high hopes for the new Barack Obama administration-including the hope that the issue of tribal disenrollments could finally be on the president's radar.
Many say they are closely watching who Obama will appoint to head the Department of the Interior, which overseas the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). Meanwhile, the inclusion of disenrollment and other issues of importance to tribes have made it into a list of recommendations for question to ask potential Interior appointees issued by the federal General Accountability Office.
OP: We have letters posted to the candidates. PLEASE send one for each of your family members.
Last month, he named Harper and five other American Indians to his transition team. Harper was an plaintiff's attorney on the Cobell vs. Kempthorne case. This was a massive class action case charging Interior and Dick Kempthorne, the agency's director since 2006, with massive mismanagement of assets they held on behalf of American Indians.
Harper is also on record taking on some tribes that have disenrolled members, said activist Cathy Corey. In one memorable exchange on the Indian-themed radio show, he said that tribes that kicked out members were "not acting like nations."
While Harper is likely to get an appointment at Interior of elsewhere, he is not among the names being floated as director of the department. The two names that come up most often in connection to that job are Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Napa, and Kevin Gover, director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian. Thompson has long been considered friendly to tribal issues; he has already been endorsed for the job by one California tribe, the Karuk
Read MORE at the link above.
Related Stories:
Tribal Flush
All that Glitters
Without a Tribe
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Rep. Diane Watson's Meeting With The Cherokee Freedmen
Rep. Diane Watson was at the Cherokee Freedmen's Meeting this past weekend.
The Honorable California Congresswoman Diane Watson of California was the keynote speaker at the Descendants of Freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes Association annual conference which was held at the Oklahoma City Langston University campus on June 7th 2008. The Congresswoman exhorted the freedmen people to continue to fight on for their treaty rights. She spoke of the oversight role of Congress in determining how federal funds are spent. Her speech pointed out that the leadership of the Cherokee nation of Oklahoma has spent more than $10 million dollars in lobbying and legal costs to remove the tribal citizenship of the 2800 Cherokee freedmen tribal members whose ancestors were enslaved by Cherokee Indians.
She also spoke of how the tribe has shut down enrollment of Cherokee freedmen tribal members and how the descendants of the recognized black Cherokee freedmen tribal members are unable to access benefits. She spoke of her concern for elderly freedmen such as Mrs. Riggs, a relative of Cherokee Will Rogers who are currently being denied benefits available for other Cherokee citizens due to her status as a Cherokee freedman.
Congresswoman Watson discussed the bill which she introduced in Congress in June 2007, HR2824 which if passed will deny federal funding(which is currently about 300 million ) to the Cherokee nation of Oklahoma until the tribe comes into legal compliance regarding the continuation of the tribal membership of the freedmen tribal members who have a treaty right to tribal membership. She spoke of her support for hearings to be held on the bill by the House Judiciary and the Natural Resources Committees. She emphasized the fact that the bill HR 2824 is not a termination bill of the tribe’s government to government relationship with the United States.
She also discussed why myths which have been put out as fact by the Cherokee nation are not true – such as the tribal administration statements that Cherokees did not own slaves.
She spoke of the Cherokee tribe’s passing of brutal laws encouraging the oppression of people of African ancestry, of tribal laws passed protecting the institution of slavery during the 19th century and the brutal suppression of a slave revolt in 1842 by the tribal government.
She exhorted the freedmen people to continue to lobby members of Congress, tribal leaders, and local legislators for support of freedmen rights and warned the freedmen that the Cherokee leadership’s goal is to just outlast the freedmen and their allies.
The Honorable California Congresswoman Diane Watson of California was the keynote speaker at the Descendants of Freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes Association annual conference which was held at the Oklahoma City Langston University campus on June 7th 2008. The Congresswoman exhorted the freedmen people to continue to fight on for their treaty rights. She spoke of the oversight role of Congress in determining how federal funds are spent. Her speech pointed out that the leadership of the Cherokee nation of Oklahoma has spent more than $10 million dollars in lobbying and legal costs to remove the tribal citizenship of the 2800 Cherokee freedmen tribal members whose ancestors were enslaved by Cherokee Indians.
She also spoke of how the tribe has shut down enrollment of Cherokee freedmen tribal members and how the descendants of the recognized black Cherokee freedmen tribal members are unable to access benefits. She spoke of her concern for elderly freedmen such as Mrs. Riggs, a relative of Cherokee Will Rogers who are currently being denied benefits available for other Cherokee citizens due to her status as a Cherokee freedman.
Congresswoman Watson discussed the bill which she introduced in Congress in June 2007, HR2824 which if passed will deny federal funding(which is currently about 300 million ) to the Cherokee nation of Oklahoma until the tribe comes into legal compliance regarding the continuation of the tribal membership of the freedmen tribal members who have a treaty right to tribal membership. She spoke of her support for hearings to be held on the bill by the House Judiciary and the Natural Resources Committees. She emphasized the fact that the bill HR 2824 is not a termination bill of the tribe’s government to government relationship with the United States.
She also discussed why myths which have been put out as fact by the Cherokee nation are not true – such as the tribal administration statements that Cherokees did not own slaves.
She spoke of the Cherokee tribe’s passing of brutal laws encouraging the oppression of people of African ancestry, of tribal laws passed protecting the institution of slavery during the 19th century and the brutal suppression of a slave revolt in 1842 by the tribal government.
She exhorted the freedmen people to continue to lobby members of Congress, tribal leaders, and local legislators for support of freedmen rights and warned the freedmen that the Cherokee leadership’s goal is to just outlast the freedmen and their allies.
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