Indians suffer prejudice against blacks

Racist tendencies common in too many tribes

By Cedric SunrayProfessor Don Rankin from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama has recounted by letter a disturbing incident occurring during a June 1995 genealogy seminar conducted by Sharon Scholars Brown at Samford University. His letter states,

“Someone brought up the MOWA Choctaw and their attempt at federal recognition. At this stage, several people had gathered around as we were talking. Ms. Brown responded in an even professional tone of voice that she felt that they would not be successful. When asked why, she responded that they had black ancestors and in her opinion were not Indian. Mr. Lee Fleming, who was at the time the Tribal Registrar for the Western Band of Cherokees and one of the lecturers, agreed with her. I was shocked at their statements.”

Lee Fleming, a Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma citizen, is now the Director of the Office of Federal Acknowledgment and was the responsible party for the denial of the MOWA Choctaw petition.

Another CNO tribal member, Darrin Buzzard, remarked in an email in referencing the Cherokee Freedmen, “..they will suck you dry. Their children will suck you dry…protect Cherokee culture for our children. For our daughter, for the American people as a whole. Fight against the infiltration.”

Some tribal members attempt to disassociate their own ancestry from any Black connection. At a conference a few years back I was speaking with a member of a federally recognized Northeastern tribe who told me he had no Black ancestry, his afro hairstyle not withstanding I assumed.

In 2005, my wife was invited as a judge overseeing the annual Mississippi Choctaw princess pageant. The only entrant of mixed Indian and Black heritage amongst the 20 competitors was crowned, much to the dismay of many in attendance. Radmilla Cody, the first Miss Navajo Nation of mixed Indian and Black ancestry has relayed the reality of the racial prejudice she experienced from her own people as well.

Aside from perceived gaming competition is the primary reason why historic “non-federal” tribes such as the Lumbee, Chickahominy, MOWA Choctaw, Nanticoke, Houma, Haliwa-Saponi, Unkechaug, and others in the eastern and southern US regions remain without recognition. They all share the “burden” of being either of some or presumed to be of some Black ancestry. On the contrary, many federal tribes who are of predominantly white ancestry are never questioned as to their racial reality.

Black ancestry within Indian communities does not nullify or lessen Indian social, cultural, and familial fabrics. Black people, Indian people, poor whites, and others have endured great atrocities throughout history.Comment:  As the article notes, "Cedric Sunray is one of four generations of enrolled family members of the MOWA Band of Choctaw Indians in Alabama." That makes his stance on the recognition of the MOWA Choctaw a little suspect.

After all, the largely black Mashpee Wampanoag got recognized. The MOWA Choctaw may have other problems besides prejudice against its black members.

For more on black Indians, see "Queen Chief Warhorse" and Indian Blood = Black Myth?

"Queen Chief Warhorse"

Along with Elizabeth Warren, another questionable is in the news. Two Native bloggers comment on "Queen Chief Warhorse," a woman who spoke at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Second Annual America Healing Conference.

“Queen Chief Warhorse, Tchefuncta Nation, Chahta Tribe”

By Debbie ReeseI registered for the Healing for Democracy conference yesterday, found a place to sit, and pulled out the conference program. Among the speakers for the Welcome was "Queen Chief Warhorse, Tchefuncta Nation, Chahta Tribe."

"Queen" gave me pause right away and its use cast doubt on the rest of the information provided. "Tchefuncta" and "Chahta" are not nations or tribes I have heard of before, but there are over 500 federally recognized tribal nations and I don't pretend to know about all, or even most, of them. Still, "Queen" made me uneasy.

That unease was confirmed when "Queen Chief Warhorse" took the stage and began delivering her remarks. She was wearing a necklace that was supposed to suggest Pueblo Indian or Navajo turquoise and silver. To most, it probably looked like the real thing. To me, it screamed imitation. I wondered where she got it.

Right away, she had most of the audience eating out of her hand. Working with the theme of "healing," her opening remarks began with calling out the limits of a black/white paradigm. That was fine, but then--for me--her train went off a cliff.

She started using "we" in ways that demonstrate she doesn't know much about tribal nations and our reservations. One statement after another was problematic. It was a "poor Indians" narrative, living on our "prison camp" and "the projects" reservations.

Her remarks were, in short, a mess for lot of reasons.

Her use of "we" was wrong. Using "we" as a keynote speaker to an audience who, I hazard to say, is fairly lacking in knowledge of American Indians, only added to the already-too-big body of misinformation about American Indians.

I did a quick bit of research and found photos of her in a Plains style headdress. Why was she wearing that?! When I have more time, I'll do some research on her and the "Tchunfuncta Nation, Chahta Tribe." Will I learn that the "Chahta Tribe" or the "Tchunfuncta Nation" are Plains people?(Excerpted from Debbie Reese's American Indians in Children's Literature, 4/25/12.)



Don’t Know Much About Indians (but i let non-indians speak for them anyways) [Point]

By Gyasi Ross[T]wo champions of racial equity, W.K. Kellogg Foundation and Racialicious reporting from the Racial Equity conference, do not show the same respect for the Native ethnic discourse. They’re not alone—nobody else does either. It’s typical.

See, a woman that looked phenotypically black spoke on behalf of Native people at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Second Annual America Healing Conference. No big deal—there are plenty of Native people who are mixed with black, white and every other ethnicity. Still, she claimed to be a member of a Tribe that is not federally recognized, nor is there much of a historical record of such a Tribe’s existence.

Still, despite her lack of Native credentials, the W.K Kellogg Foundation and Racialicious treated her speech as if she was a worthy speaker for Native people. Now, when a phenotypically black woman claims to come from a Tribe that hardly anybody (including other Natives) even seems to know about, purports to speak for Native people, it should raise some initial questions in people’s minds about her legitimacy as a spokesperson. It should raise some questions just like it would raise questions if she were phenotypically white or phenotypically Asian and spoke as a representative of Native people. Although “looks” aren’t the only criteria to be able to speak for Native people, someone that looks distinctively like a member of another ethnic group should still raise some reasonable questions.

Native people do, after all, have criteria. We are not an all-inclusive club that only requires a few feathers and/or a cool sounding “Indian Name” for membership.

Some of those questions might look like this: “Is she a member of a federally recognized Indian Tribe?” Being a member of a federally recognized Indian Tribe is definitely not the only criteria for authenticity, but it holds a certain level of presumptive validity. In this case, the answer is a resounding “no,” and in fact, the Tribe she purports barely anyone has ever heard of before. Importantly, that question might lead to another reasonable question such as, “If he or she is not a member of a federally recognized Indian Tribe, do other Native people recognize that purported Native person as a leader or spokesperson (or even a Native)?”Evidence for the Tchefuncta Nation

For once I think the critics are being a little harsh on an alleged Native. A fair amount of info is available on "Warhorse" and her tribe.

White House pays Tchefuncta Nation visit in its 'White House'

By Sharon EdwardsThe piney woods of St. Tammany Parish was the setting for a recent White House Constituency Roundtable. Director Gail Adams of the Department of Interior’s Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs convened the meeting Thursday at the Tchefuncta Nation headquarters in Bonfouca, a historic American Indian village near Slidell.

Chahta Chief Elwin “Warhorse” Gillum of the Tchefuncta Nation presented a 25-page packet, which covers the economic development programs of the nation whose members, according to the 2010 census, are in 30 states. Gillum welcomed Adams to what she called “my nation’s White House.” She said she felt proud to be able to tell her elders that “today, the White House came to the woods.”

Chahta Indians coming out of exile

By Ronni ArmsteadQueen Chief Warhorse (Ms. Elwin Green Gillum) organized a Pow Wow at 61357 Dixie Ranch Road, Slidell, Louisiana 70460; Historical Bonfouca, West Florida. The Pow Wow was preceded by a procession taking place at 10am on Northshore Blvd in Slidell. In her invitation Warhorse says: 'We will be coming out of 201 years of exile as prisoners of war and would like to extend this invitation to you, come and share this historical event and celebration. Coming out of exile is the beginning of another level that will give me the ability to fight further to save my NATION, our BURIALS, our HISTORY, our CULTURE and our LAND from being given to other tribes.' By other tribes, Queen Chief Warhorse may be referring to the white settlers and their children who have since laid claim to St. Tammany Parish. In her efforts to gain visibility and cultivate a larger network of friends and supporters, Queen Chief Warhorse has announced 'the selection of my Ambassador of the Tchefuncta Nation, Cousin and chief aide Cyril Neville.'

Ms. Elwin Gillum is a Black Indian who is working with historians to document the history of the Chahta Indians--cousins to the Choctaw. Ms. Gillum has unearthed documents from the days of the Louisiana purchase detailing the history of her people well before statehood. She is the direct descendent of the last Queen of the Tchefuncta Nation, who ruled over the nation when, as a part of the Florida Territory, they lived under treaty with Spain. Like the Seminole, who harbored Black people seeking to escape enslavement, Chahta bloodlines are now thoroughly intermixed. Because of generations of racial and ethnic admixture, the process of applying for federal recognition remains an uphill battle.

Chahta tribe's work for 2010 census is rewarded

By Sharon EdwardsThe Chahta tribe of American Indians in St. Tammany Parish have won an award for their efforts in the 2010 census. But members are not resting on their laurels. They are already making plans for the 2020 count.

The Chahta tribe received recognition from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census, for its support in ‘raising awareness of and inspiring participation in the 2010 census.’Sure, the "Queen Chief Warhorse" and stereotypical Plains headdress are ridiculous. I'm guessing Gillum has a big ego and is largely responsible for the tribe's existence.

Her people seem to wear equally ridiculous Mardi Gras-style costumes at events. These costumes don't come from any pre-contact Indian culture. People invented them because they didn't have any traditional clothing of their own.

On the other hand, the BIA visit and Census recognition are evidence that the government takes the tribe seriously. Either the tribe is manipulating the feds or the feds are aware of the tribe's history and consider it legit.

Critics of Ross's column

The commenters on Ross's column identified some problems with it:Willow

When did "wigger" become an acceptable term to use? You set up an argument, and then nullify it. Why mention this woman's phenotypical looks at all if it doesn't matter in the assessment of her authenticity? You try to downplay that her blackness should make us "suspicious," but that's exactly what you mean. Why not just say it? I think maybe you should examine some of your own internalization of dominating ideas of race and heritage before you write article accusing others of a lack of respect. Seriously, you lost me at WIGGER.

Guest

A very disappointing article/argument from an author whose work I usually enjoy reading because he challenges the safety blankets that we Native people often retreat to. The presumptuous (assuming the organizers did not consider issues of authenticity) and passive-agressive (throwing into the mix phenotype and federal status and then taking it back) tone of this article was jarring. I personally feel that we as Native people need to sincerely acknowledge that none of us as a singular person or a tribe/nation is an arbiter of authenticity. We often criticize non-Natives for essentializing us, but we too often do it to ourselves to our own detriment. We have a multitude of perspectives, phenotypes, political statuses, histories, and "traditions" We say that Native identity is not a club, but we often treat it as such, like there is a some sort of universal litmus test that will completely affirm or deny membership. Perhaps Chief Warhorse's message, which the author does not elucidate, resonated with some Native and non-Native people.

kia ahatia

I really disagree with the reasons you oppose her, without wanting to defend her because I have never heard of her before and I don't know anything about her.. but first, regarding federal recognition, you say yourself that the state appoints comprador leaders to serve their own agenda, it is true and they also define Indigenous nations to suit themselves too, why is federal recognition of leaders a problem if federal recognition of nations isn't?On the other hand:Sarah

I've been watching videos of interviews with Queen Chief Warhorse. She comes across dismissive of actual federally recognized tribes. She regularly says she's done a lot of historical and genealogical research but unfortunately the specifics are not shared.

Her story has changed over time, back in 2002 she said her heritage was Cherokee from an ancestor named Andrew Green who came to Louisana from Georgie.

I think it would be fine for her to form a heritage interest group, to research, and encourage pride in heritage. But calling her group a Tribe (one that rightfully should be in nation to nation negotiations with the USA) is really problematic.Overall I'd say the Tchefuncta Nation is borderline--in a gray area between Indians and wannabes. It has some continuity with the past, but it's also "borrowing" things to fill in the gaps.

I wouldn't invite "Queen Chief Warhorse" to be the sole or primary Indian for an event. But she could be one among many speakers, giving the perspective of black Indians and other multiracial people. Unlike Reese and Ross, I wouldn't automatically dismiss her as a non-Native.

For more on black Indians, see Indian Blood = Black Myth? and Is Chris Brown Native?

Indian blood = black myth?

Doubling Down on DNA

By John JurgensenWith a series of specials for PBS starting in 2006, Mr. Gates used a combination of DNA sequencing, genealogical records and celebrity sizzle to "give African-Americans their 'Roots' moment," he says, referring to the Alex Haley novel that cast ancestral identity in a new light. Since his original "African American Lives" miniseries, which explored the heritage of black stars such as Oprah Winfrey and Quincy Jones, Mr. Gates has developed a broader approach—and a TV franchise. Featuring 25 guests ranging from Robert Downey Jr. to Condoleezza Rice, his new series, "Finding Your Roots," premieres Sunday.And the key fact:Mr. Gates says that reveal "always gets an emotional response, positively or negatively." For example, African-American guests are often surprised at how much European blood they carry and their lack of significant Native American ancestry. "It's the biggest myth in African-American genealogy: 'My great grandmother was a Cherokee princess,'" he says, adding, "The average slave and the average Native American didn't even see each other, which makes it very hard to mate."Comment:  I wonder if the myth is equally true for whites who think they have a Cherokee princess in their background. Could be.

For more on black Indians, see Thoughts on IndiVisible and People Can't Be Black and Indian?

Below:  "Henry Louis Gates Jr., left, with actor Samuel L. Jackson on 'Finding Your Roots.'"

Is Chris Brown Native?

Chris Brown, platinum-selling singer and girlfriend beater, recently tweeted:Just found out I'm from the Pamunkey Indian tribe! Wow, thats awesome!Source: Is Chris Brown Native American? Grammy-Winning Singer Tweets Heritage, Names Tribe

I assume that means Brown found a "Pamunkey princess" or the equivalent in his family tree. The situation is probably similar to this one:

Debating Alesandra Nicole's background
Inked model is Pamunkey?

Indians respect women

A Native columnist weighs in on Brown's identity:

Chris Brown--Your Actions Will Show If You Are Really Indian

By Ruth HopkinsIn 2009, Chris Brown physically assaulted his then-girlfriend, pop superstar Rihanna. Following the beating, pictures of a battered, emotionally-devastated Rihanna were plastered everywhere- online and off. After he pled guilty to felony assault, Brown was sentenced to five years of probation and six months community service. Ostensibly, the public’s memory is short because Chris’ proclivity for woman beating appears to have been all but forgotten--or even worse yet, celebrated. He’s at the top of the charts again, and he’s being hailed a comeback kid.

Is Chris Brown really Native? Who knows. He wouldn’t be the first non-Native person I’ve heard claim that their great-grandmother was a ‘Cherokee’ Princess, and he won’t be the last. I hope his claim of Pamunkey heritage isn’t just another ploy to get him more attention and sympathy. In pop culture, Native stereotypes are ‘in’ right now. One only need watch a music video with some non-Native trollop dancing around in a fake warbonnet, or browse the latest ‘Native inspired’ apparel at a local Urban Outfitters to realize that.

If he is, I’d like to see him sincerely embrace his new-found indigenous heritage. We’re more than beads and feathers. I wonder if Chris knows that one of the most famous members of the Pamunkey Tribe is a woman? Cockacoeske (ca. 1640–ca. 1686) was chief of the Pamunkey Tribe for more than 30 years. She was known for maintaining unity, and led several other Tribes besides her own. She played an active role in the Bacon Rebellion, and negotiated with the British crown as well as European colonists. If fact, she was one of the first of the tribal leaders to sign the Virginia-Indian Treaty of 1677 and 1680. If Cockacoeske were alive today, I bet she’d give Mr. Brown the scolding of his life.

Today the Pamunkey people are highly involved in preserving their culture and natural resources. If Chris genuinely possesses Pamunkey ancestry, it is his duty to support his people in their endeavors. Additionally, Native women experience the highest rate of violence among any other group in the United States. I suggest that Chris find the true road to redemption by turning attention to the plight of native women, as well as women everywhere, who fall prey to domestic violence.Comment:  Answer to the title question: No, Brown isn't Native. He's not an enrolled member of a tribe. He wasn't raised Native. And he would've said something before now if he had a significant amount of Native "blood"--a quarter or more.

For more on Native identity questions, see Winddancer Called a "Cultural Thief" and Natives Aren't Vanishing in Census.

Cody wins black history award

Navajo recording artist and anti-domestic violence advocate wins Initiative Radio Award

Cody named National Treasure and Icon of Cultural Unity for proudly embracing both her rich culturesEvery February "Initiative Radio with Angela McKenzie" observes Black History Month, with the month-long "Salute to Black History Makers" series and the presentation of the Initiative Radio Black History Makers Award to a noteworthy person whose life journey represents black history in the making.

This year, Radmilla Cody takes home the honor for having survived harsh racial discrimination since early childhood, to become a leading voice for the Navajo Nation and for women who are dealing with domestic violence on Navajo and for raising awareness of the existence of Black Native Indians in our society. In 1997 Cody became the 46th Miss Navajo Nation and was the first and is thus far the only Miss Navajo Nation who is part black. Winning the crown was a bittersweet victory for Cody because Navajo purists believed that being part black disqualified her from being a legitimate ambassador for the Navajo people--regardless of the fact that Navajo is her native tongue and she is exceptionally skilled in the traditional practices of her tribe.Comment:  For more on Radmilla Cody, see Black/Red: Related Through History and Documentary About Hearing Radmilla.

Cherokee Supreme Court expels Freedmen

Cherokee Tribe Kicks Out Slave Descendants

Court stands by native American tribe's decisionThousands of black slave descendants who had the rights of Cherokee tribe members have now been stripped of these rights.

Their rights, received because the native American tribe had owned their ancestors, were revoked on Monday (August 22) when the Cherokee Indian Supreme Court in the US upheld the tribe's decision to formally remove their membership.

The court sustained the 2007 regulation made by the Cherokee nation to kick the so-called 'Freedmen' out of the tribe, overruling a previous vote made after the Civil War, which allowed the Cherokees to admit nearly 3000 African American slave descendants to the tribe.

In the 1830s, the Cherokee nation, which was driven out of much of the east coast by land grabbing white settlers, headed south in what is known historically as The Trail of Tears. Many of the tribe brought their slaves with them on the commute.

The news comes several months after a district court gave equal tribal citizenship rights to descendants, reportedly allowing the "Freemen" to be eligible for free health care and education in the US, amongst other benefits.

Reacting to the ruling, Freedman leader and plaintiff, Marilyn Vann, told the Daily Mail : "This is racism and apartheid in the 21st Century."

A spokesperson for the Cherokee's has not yet responded to the ruling.This issue probably isn't over yet. Besides a federal lawsuit and an act of Congress, there are other potential challenges.

‘Preparing for the worst’

The Cherokee Nation is unsure whether Freedmen will sue to counter a ruling that strips their voting rights.

By Teddye SnellCouncilor Tina Glory-Jordan said she’s concerned that in the past, when the court disenfranchised Freedmen, the federal government triggered an automatic stoppage of housing funds.And:Cowan-Watts asked Stewart about the covenants the tribe holds with a number of banks, specifically the Bank of America, and asked what sort of impact the act could have on those covenants.Comment:  For more on the Cherokee Freedmen, see Court Grants Freedmen Citizenship and IndiVisible Responds to Freedmen Issue.

Thoughts on IndiVisible

As I said, I saw IndiVisible at the California African American Museum Tuesday. The exhibit consisted of a 1) smallish gallery with a couple dozen vinyl panels supplemented by paintings, photos, newspaper clippings, and works of art, and 2) a side room noting some joint civil-rights struggles.

I didn't know what to expect, but IndiVisible was a comprehensive survey of black-Indian relations since 1492. If the exhibit omitted anything significant, I didn't notice it. You could've picked up a lot of the information by reading Newspaper Rock or a good book, but IndiVisible provided an excellent introduction to the subject.

Here are my notes on what you can see and learn from IndiVisible:

Prefacing the exhibit were photos of black Indians living in California and the West. They were taken by Valena Dismukes, an aquaintance, and included James Howard Scott, another acquaintance.

A drawing titled An Account of the Regular Gradation in Man (1799) by Dr. Charles Wright, which sought to prove that blacks and Indians were more animal-like.

Bartolomé de las Casas, who championed the Indians against Columbus, thought the Spanish should replace Indian slaves with African slaves. Until he actually saw the Portuguese slave trade in action, that is. Wow...talk about your blind spots. If you have to see the cruelty of slavery to realize it's wrong, you're not exactly a deep thinker.

Estevanico, the black slave who was one of the first non-Indians to cross America.

Mo'Pak, a painting that represents the union of Native and African themes, by Maceo Leatherwood.

Illustrations showing the marked similarity between a Fulani village in Guinea, Africa, during the 1500s and a Timucua Indian village in Florida, 1564.

A photo of an Olmec head suggesting that Africans visited America before Columbus. With a note saying this theory is widely disputed.

A panel on identity featuring Crispus Attucks, Radmilla Cody, and Jimi Hendrix.

Lots of potential controversies

Mildred Loving, a black woman with Indian blood married to a white man. Her case went to the Supreme Court and led to the legalization of interracial marriage.

Info on tribal blood quantum and the "one drop" rule that classified blacks.

The Shinnecock, Pequot, and Wampanoag tribes and their struggles because people often see them as blacks rather than Indians.

The Cherokee Freedman controversy: Chief Chad Smith vs. Marilyn Vann.

The Walter Plecker letter that reclassified Virginia's Indians as Negroes.

A 1913 letter requesting separating waiting rooms at a train station in Pembroke, North Carolina, for whites, Negroes, and Cherokee Indians.

The Lumbee Indian rout of the Ku Klax Klan in 1958.

"Chief Buffalo Child Long Lance," an actor who starred in the movie The Silent Enemy. He only pretended to be a Blackfoot chief but, ironically, he was qualified to be a Lumbee Indian.

Two versions of a Kickapoo delegation petitioning Emperor Maximilian for land grants in Mexico. A photograph shows a dozen people with clothes ranging from cowboy- to Indian-style and dark features indicating their black/Indian heritage. A painting of the same delegation shows only six people wearing traditional Indian clothes with pale skins and almost Caucasian features. The African influence is completely missing.

The Buffalo Soldiers.

Modern-day issues

Mary Ann Martin Green, a Californian who was raised as an African American but eventually embraced her Native heritage. She became the only adult member of the Augustine Band of Cahuilla Indians and, the text blandly notes, opened a casino. What the text doesn't mention is that this is the prototypical case of someone's "discovering" he or she is an Indian and becoming wealthy on that basis.

Professor Jack Forbes, now deceased, who was a pioneering academic on black/Indian relations.

The 1960s: "United in common struggle...risen up together to fight oppression." And "Civil Rights, Sovereign Rights."

A photo of "Barack Black Eagle," Obama's name as an honorary Crow Indian.

A Black Panther newspaper featuring articles on Indians titled "Persecution of Nevada Indians" and "Rebirth."

A panel on black/Indian issues elsewhere in the Americas: Afro-Bolivians, the Taino resurgence, and the Miskito struggle.

"Native Resistance and African American Solidarity"

As the title indicates, this room covered black and Indian protests of the last few decades. It contained the following displays:

The Alcatraz Proclamation of 1969 and the Black Panther Party's Ten Point Plan side by side, showing the two documents' similarities.

The Longest Walk in 1978 with an appearance by Muhammad Ali.

The Longest Walk 2 in 2008 with Congressman John Conyers Jr., Dennis Banks, Harry Belafonte, Dick Gregory, Danny Glover, and Darryl Hannah.

Fasting for Freedom in 1984: Three Native prisoners fasted for 50 days for the right to practice their religion. Angela Davis spoke for them.

Wounded Knee II in 1973: Ralph Abernathy joined Russell Means and Dennis Banks, with a visit by Angela Davis.

The No Extradition Rally for Dennis Banks in 1976, with Kathleen Cleaver of the Black Panther Party speaking.

Conclusion

All in all, IndiVisible was an illuminating exhibit, especially if you think blacks and Indians are distinct peoples with distinct histories. I can see how this exhibit would be controversial if your image of an Indian was a pure-blooded Lakota. Even some Indians reject black Indians because they're prejudiced against blacks.

Fortunately, as most Indians do, I've tried to be inclusive. As I said in Separate Nations for Blacks, Indians? when I disputed the great Vine Deloria Jr., the two groups have much in common. As I said in Indians "Win" Oppression Olympics, everyone concerned with social justice should fight racism and stereotyping together.

For more on IndiVisible, see IndiVisible Is "Long Overdue" and IndiVisible Causes Divisions. For more on black Indians, see People Can't Be Black and Indian? and Powwow Dance Excludes Unregistered Indian.

Below:  Marilyn Vann, the Cherokee Freedmen, and Chad Smith.

IndiVisible at CAAM

I saw this exhibit at the California African American Museum Tuesday:

IndiVisible: African-Native American Lives in the Americas
March 17-May 15, 2011From the Smithsonian comes an important and enlightening traveling banner show about the intersection of American Indian and African American people and cultures. IndiVisible: African-Native American Lives in the Americas explores historical and contemporary stories of peoples and communities whose shared histories are woven into the fabric of American identity, but whose presence has long been invisible to many in the U.S. The exhibition sheds light on the dynamics of race, community, culture and creativity, and addresses the human desire to belong. With compelling text and powerful graphics, the show includes accounts of cultural integration and diffusion as well as the struggle to define and preserve identity. CAAM will supplement this traveling banner show with objects.

IndiVisible: African-Native American Lives in the Americas was developed, produced, and circulated by the National Museum of the American Indian, the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, with generous support from Akaloa Resource Foundation and the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center.

Sampling of works on display.

Adolphus “Doc” Cheatham
Of Cherokee and Choctaw heritage, Doc Cheatham was a journeyman trumpeter and vocalist who received many awards in recognition of his remarkably long career. Here, he joins trombonist Vic Dickinson and alto saxophonist Earle Warren during an appearance at the Overseas Press Club in New York.

“Edmonia Lewis: Wildfire,” by America Meredith (Cherokee), 2007
Born in New York to an Ojibway mother and a Haitian father, Edmonia Lewis ca. 1844-1911) was the first African American woman to gain international acclaim as a sculptor. Finding the racial climate in America unbearable, Lewis moved to Rome in 1866.

Jimi Hendrix, The Royal Hall, London, February 18, 1969
Hendrix, who spoke proudly of his Cherokee grandmother, was one of many famous African Americans in the 1960s who cited family traditions linking them to Native ancestry.

Radmilla Cody, Miss Navajo Nation, and her grandmother, 2006
Radmilla Cody became Miss Navajo in 1997. Although she proved her cultural knowledge, her selection was controversial in the Navajo community because of her heritage.I also walked around Exposition Park and its collection of museums and other attractions. For some photos of my excursion, see:

Exposition Park--May 10, 2011

For more on IndiVisible, see IndiVisible Is "Long Overdue" and IndiVisible Causes Divisions.

Below:  Radmilla Cody.

Court grants Freedmen citizenship

Freedmen granted tribal citizenship

By Gavin OffA Cherokee Nation district court judge granted tribal citizenship to about 2,800 non-Indian freedmen Friday.

Freedmen, who are typically African-Americans and descendants of Cherokee slaves, had been denied citizenship in a 2007 amendment to the Constitution of the Cherokee Nation.And:Diane Hammons, attorney general for the Cherokee Nation, said that the tribe is considering its options, including an appeal to the Cherokee Nation Supreme Court.

"We have received the district court decision with which we respectfully disagree," said Hammons in a press release.

"We believe that the Cherokee people can change our constitution, and that the Cherokee citizenry clearly and lawfully enunciated their intentions to do so in the 2007 amendment."

But being Cherokee isn't about being a certain ethnicity, said Marilyn Vann, a Cherokee freedman who has helped lead the fight for recognition. She said being Cherokee is about being a part of a government and added that slaves of white Americans were considered Americans after they were freed.

In addition to the roughly 2,800 freedmen who already have Cherokee membership, an estimated 25,000 more could apply, Vann said.And:Payton, a disabled U.S. Army veteran, said the fight to prevent freedmen citizenship was always about benefits and money.

"It's not red or brown," Payton said. "It's green."Comment:  For more on the subject, see IndiVisible Responds to Freedmen Issue and Investigate Tribes for "Oppression"?

People can't be black and Indian?

Charles Trimble responds to an e-mail about the controversy noted in Powwow Dance Excludes Unregistered Indian. To be specific, he debates whether Professor Shonda Buchanan can be both black and Indian:

Charles Trimble:  Racism still alive and growing in Indian CountryBoyden:  “Dr. Shonda's web page and profile at where she teaches expresses ZERO INDIANNESS! In other words...she chooses to be BLACK...NOT Indian. Her writings and what she teaches is ALL BLACK!”

Response:  First of all, Dr. Shonda teaches English. There are Native Americans, I’m sure, who teach English or American history, which itself if mostly about European colonizers of the continent. I don’t think that one can deduce that these people prefer to be whites over Indians because they are teaching white language or history--they are scholars, and generally not racists.

Boyden:  “So tell me...what in the black culture is there that is compatible with Native American culture? And in spirituality? Curious what you can share with me and educate me so that I can see the ‘light’!”

Response:  I think that there is much in American black culture and modern American Indian or indigenous culture that are mutually compatible. First of all, there is tragic history: both peoples were enslaved, and both peoples were considered sub-human, or even non-human. Both peoples had their traditional cultures stripped from them, and both suffer from being deprived of the cultures, as is shown in the societal disarray in both cultures. Eradication and removal policy options were considered for both peoples. But, of course, the most important “compatibility” is that of the brotherhood of their humanity.Comment:  For more on the subject, see IndiVisible Is Long Overdue and Native Roots of Hendrix and the Blues.

Below:  The opposing sides in the Cherokee Freedmen conflict.

Powwow dance excludes unregistered Indian

An unregistered Indian describes what happened when she tried to dance at a Chickahominy powwow for registered Indians only.

Being a black Indian at a Chickahominy pow wow

By Shonda Buchanan[T]he angry man, and the other two flanking me, one in regalia with patient, sad eyes, and the other in street clothes, yellowish skin and dark sunglasses, made me suddenly realize that this was an Indian shake down.

“Didn’t you see our signs?”

“Where I come from,” I touched my heart in earnest, “everyone can dance during intertribal.”

“No,” he said. “You cannot.”

“Who are your council people?” I said. I could feel my chest tightening, and the tears came. “What are your names?” They said their names but in the heat and frustration, their names fell away.

“We are the council,” Tall Dark Sunglasses Yellow Skin said. “He’s on the council. I’m on the council. These are just our rules.”

“But those rules were set up by a white government that wanted to count and classify Indians. You’re holding me to the same standard?”

“This is what we do because the government tells us to,” Dark Sunglasses said.

“Wait.” I said. “You’re saying the government is here counting the Indians dancing in that circle?”

“Look,” Mr. Gruff Brown Skin said. “Everyone in that circle has registered and has their cards.”

None of my friends had tribal enrollment cards either. Were these Virginia Indians racist? Was I carded because I was the most visibly black, despite being adorned in a buckskin dress?

I felt my heart moving up into my mouth, swallowing the feeling that women from the tribe should have approached me, not men. Yet to be fair, I saw these council members’ point. I understand how this could be as frustrating for them as it was for me, an unknown woman who didn’t register as a dancer in their circle. Their fight to maintain their Indianness, to them, is on one level a way of protecting their heritage and culture, but on another level, it is highly exclusionary of those who are Indian without cards: black, white, Mexican.Some comments on this column:SC said yesterday at 5:17 AM

Those who are close to our Creator never behave that way. It says a lot about them.

PlainsNative said yesterday at 4:29 AM

Why is this Chickahominy tribe on the east coast having a powwow anyway? If they are so traditional they should really ban these powwows from their area and go back to whatever it is their ancestors used to do in the first place. I bet these guys have sweat lodges and are probably trying to get a sundance going and they probably think this makes them traditional. It doesn't. It makes them misguided and foolish.

risingsun-phillips said yesterday at 11:32 PM

I've lived on the East Coast for 27 years. When I first came here there were hardly any Native Americans. Now everywhere I look there are Natives or "Natives" trying to prove their "indian-ness" to the government. Yes a lot of them have a "verbal" history but no documentation. I was always told if they look black then they are black. In order to be recognized as a Native American you have to be able to prove your affiliation with a federally recognized tribe. I am a "card carrying" Native American and very proud to be one. If you can not prove your blood line, then sorry you will not be accepted as an Indian. That is just the way it is and it will probably stay that way. Get over it, and accept your own ethnic background. The African American heritage is just as rich with history, and traditions. Be glad of who you are, quit trying to take something that is not yours to take.

Quite One said yesterday at 8:01 PM

Welcome to the politics of the powwow arena. A lot of powwows are requesting for verification with enrollment cards. Why? Perhaps to keep out the “hobbyists,” the born again NDNs, wannabe NDNs, the white skinned NDNs, black skinned NDNs, and the NDNs of Latin America, out of the powwow arena. Stick to your own tribal culture, stomp dances and green corn ceremonies.

Winnebago Indian said yesterday at 7:59 PM

The Sioux people have a saying: "Mitakouye Oyasin. All my relatives. I would never prevent you from participating. We are all related.

Kish Beh said yesterday at 7:33 PM

Oh yes I am tired of the "I'm more NDN than you" BS. I have to say that I am two tribes and adopted into a third. My daughter is of three tribes and cannot "register" for none of them. Not even blood to declare for any. We are proud of our ancestry. We can trace my family and have photos. It is not right to deny a proud Native American. Whether or not they are mixed.

you find trouble if you look for it said yesterday at 7:16 PM

If you read the rules of the "powwow" they clearly state dancers must have a tribal ID. I would think since the author has a PhD in English she would be fully aware of the implications of her dancing without providing a tribal ID and was just trying to start trouble. The organizers of the powwow seem to be a rogue group of Indians that must have an issue with non tribal members coming to powwows. It doesn't seem to have anything to do with the author being black but her not following the rules. Both sides seem to have some identity issues.

Lupa said yesterday at 5:27 PM

Yeah, all that's well and good but are those claiming NDN blood willing to go to a reservation and experience the results of white genocidal policies. Usually, these Johnny come latelys are not willing to fight for treaty rights, nor help with historical trauma that results in the most important issues as domestic violence, substance abuse, the overwhelming poverty and unemployment that is part of reservation life. They don't seem to want to know that part of being NDN, or do much of anything else that goes beyond vague, sentimental ideas of being NDN and just play dress up.Comment:  PlainsNative makes a good point about why the Chickahominy are holding a Plains-style powwow. True, it's a pan-Indian event, but sometimes it's a substitute for developing one's unique heritage. Don't hold a powwow to proclaim your "Indian-ness" when you could be working on your own culture instead.

Irony department: The Chickahominy may have CDIB cards proving their Indian blood--which is what we mean by registration. But they're not federally recognized, although they're trying to earn that status. Another tribe could hold a powwow allowing only enrolled Indians of federally recognized tribes. That would leave the Chickahominy out.

Of course, the Chickahominy shouldn't have singled her out because of her black skin. That's called racial profiling. If you're going to insist on cards, check everyone's card, not just the people who don't look "Indian."

The main issue

On to the main issue: whether to let Buchanan in. Buchanan may say she understands the tribe's position, but it's not clear that she really does. Alas, I'll have to side with the Chickahominy over her on this point.

I think Quite One and Lupa have the best arguments. Would any tribe accept me if I walked in and said my great-great-grandmother was a Cherokee princess? Then why should they accept Buchanan? Because she's more sincere than I am? Not a good basis to make decisions on.

Buchanan says she's assistant professor in the Department of English at Hampton University, of North Carolina and Mississippi Choctaw Indian ancestry. Okay, so go live and work with those Indians for a decade or two. Prove your interest in their lives and lifestyles. Then humbly ask if you can participate in an intertribal dance without a card and someone may say yes.

That's roughly what Tony Hillerman did before writing his Leaphorn/Chee mysteries. He proved his interest in his Navajo neighbors and earned their respect over time. He didn't just start writing about Indians because he felt it in his blood or whatever.

PlainsNative's statement about the Chickahominy applies to Buchanan too. If you feel the need to participate in a vision quest, sweat lodge, or powwow, what does that say about you? That you don't belong unless you look and act like a stereotypical Indian? I know many Indians who (probably) haven't been within miles of these "Indian" things, but they don't doubt their identity. They don't feel the need to dance to prove themselves.

For more on the subject, see my postings on black Indians and identity.

IndiVisible is "long overdue"

Exhibition on African-Native Americans long overdue

By Edith BillupsBooks like “Africans and Native Americans: The Language of Race and the Evolution of Red-Black Peoples” by Jack D. Forbes, pointed out that free Africans reached the shores of the Americas as traders and settlers long before Europeans brought African slaves to the Americas in chains. Noted scholar Dr. Ivan Sertima’s “They Came Before Columbus” argues that historical, archaeological and even botanical evidence shows proof of African contact with the New World in Pre-Columbian times.

More recent evidence depicts how the relationships become more complex with the institution of slavery and the Indian Wars that pitted black soldiers against Indian tribes. While documents show the intermarriage of blacks and American Indians, African-Native slave narratives tell the stories of slaves held captive by American Indian tribes. Other times, white settlers held both American Indians and blacks captive.

However, according to Rex Ellis, associate director for cultural affairs for the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and a co-collaborator with NMAI, “While there has been excellent scholarship on the subject, the story of African-Native people is one that has not been fully explored in a wide public forum, until this exhibition. It is a story that while painful at times, needs to be told.

“African-Native Americans are inextricably bound, and they no longer wish to hide. Whatever the consequences, they want people to know who they are.”Comment:  For more on the subject, see IndiVisible Causes Divisions and IndiVisible Responds to Freedmen Issue.

Below:  Penny Gamble Williams and Thunder Williams.

IndiVisible causes divisions

Indivisible:  Exhibit re-ignites Indian Wars in Boston

By Winchin ChalaLate last year, the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) opened an exhibit “Indivisible.” As with the museum itself, the reaction is mixed. One unexpected result is the animosity and controversy it has created among the Massachusetts tribe, the Chappaquiddick of the Wampanoag Nation.And:There are no longer any full-blooded Chappaquiddick. Among the actual roll of about 200, each member can claim to be Chappaquiddick or part this or that, thus it is impossible to label the Chappaquiddick Tribe as a whole as “African-Native-American” as the exhibit “Indivisible” does. The Sagamore Seawolfe reports, “We embrace all of our members. And we do have some members who we know have African roots, but no one has ever mentioned being African-American-Indian until recently, after the Indivisible exhibit went up. My family and I and many other members of the Chappaquiddick do not have any connection to being African or share in the dual experience of being ‘African-American-Natives.’ Many of us do not know why we are included in the exhibit ‘Indivisible.’ We were never approached about it.”Comment:  For more on the subject, see Native Roots of Hendrix and the Blues and IndiVisible Responds to Freedmen Issue.

Native roots of Hendrix and the blues

Roots of the blues go deep into shared Native and African American history

By Kara BriggsHendrix—who not only identified himself as Cherokee but also performed at Woodstock in buckskin, and elsewhere wearing a hand-beaded jacket—is featured in an exhibition at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian called “IndiVisible: African-Native American Lives in the Americas.”

Ron Welburn, a Native poet and English professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst who contributed a chapter to the book accompanying the exhibition, explains that the roots of the blues lie deep in Native America. It was the blues guitar that Hendrix taught himself as a young man.

The blues were born at a unique moment in history when the slave trade and colonization of the American South forced people and their musical traditions together, he said. The blues came to life on the Tuscarora Indian trails that the Underground Railroad followed across the Niagara River to the Six Nations and freedom, said Elaine Bomberry, host of “Rez Bluez,” a show on the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network in Canada.

The blues peculate up from the soil of the experience of stolen peoples and stolen lands.

“There are things (in blues music) that say to me that someone knows something about stomp dancing,” said Welburn, who is Gingaskin and Assateague, Cherokee and African American. “It’s the call-and-response phrasing, and the length of the statement, which may be longer than the response.”

The chika-ching syncopation, pioneered in jazz by innovative Mohawk and African drummer Jesse Price, sounds much like the bells or deer hooves that Native dancers wear. As Oscar Pettiford, the Cherokee, Choctaw and African-American bandleader, told Jazz Times in 1960, it’s jazz attempting over and over to render an American Indian beat.

Or as Carlos Santana said in 1995 to “UniVibes,” a Hendrix fanzine, “Most music comes from Indian reservations,” from cultural and spiritual practices interpreted by “just two people—Jimi Hendrix and Bob Marley, you know.”Comment:  For more on the subject, see Natives Sing It Their Way.

IndiVisible responds to Freedmen issue

Maybe Your Great-Grandmother Really Was Cherokee

A new exhibit at the National Museum of the American Indian traces black-Native American relations from the 1500s to the present.

By Kenneth J. CooperOverall, African-Native American relations are cast in positive terms, a perspective that feels right. It’s certainly the view of most black folks, based on all those family stories, true or not. The Cherokees of today are out of step with the tolerant, humanist traditions of Native Americans who historically “adopted” people of other races and treated them as equals.

The exhibit traces the contacts between African Americans and Native Americans from the 1500s to the present, leading to the interracial unions that produced “Black Indians.” Some big-name people with that mixed heritage pop up: Crispus Attucks, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Jimi Hendrix and John Hope Franklin.

On a broader scale, so much mixing of red and black occurred that the bloodlines of some tribes became racially “indivisible.” They include the Lumbee of North Carolina, the casino-owning Mashantucket Pequot of Connecticut, the Mashpee Wampanoag of Massachusetts, the Seminole of Florida and then Oklahoma. “Most Native peoples on the Atlantic seaboard,” the curators conclude, “have African-American and white ancestry.”

A visitor gets a clear sense that the leaders of the National Museum of the American Indian, which collaborated with the Museum of African American History and Culture, wanted to put the conflict over the tribal rights of Cherokee Freedmen into a broader perspective.Comment:  For recent news on the Freedmen issue, see Glover Supports Freedmen, Cherokee PR or Propaganda, and Obama Opposes Punishing Cherokees. For more on the IndiVisible exhibit, see Preview of IndiVisible and IndiVisible at the NMAI.

Afro-Aboriginal in chief's headdress

Black American Indians reach for untold story

Afro-Aboriginals reclaiming rich multi-ethnic roots

By Judy MastersonA group of black Americans interested in exploring their American Indian roots has formed a group called the Northern Illinois Afro-Aboriginals.

"The African Native American is a story that's not told," said Ali Albakri, a founding member and managing editor of Lake County Arts magazine, who heard from a cousin that his family tree includes members of the Blackfoot tribe.

The idea for the group came from Joe Russell, 54, of Waukegan, a substitute teacher. Russell's birth mother, Tienna Evans, was a full-blooded Arapaho, he said, and his birth father was black. Russell, who was adopted, has struggled to learn the facts of his heritage, and he has struggled for acceptance as a bi-racial, multi-ethnic person in a culture that is just beginning to embrace multiculturalism.

"Being racially mixed means, to some groups, that I'm diluting blood lines," he said. "But I'm equal parts both.

The Afro-Aboriginals sponsored a booth during a downtown Waukegan Juneteenth celebration last summer, and members have attended the annual end-of summer powwow in Zion organized by a committee of Potawatomi.

In celebration of his Arapaho heritage, Russell has taken the tribal name Angshe B'neshe Tienna, or Lone Hawk Touched by the Sun. Elders from the Northern Arapaho band recently presented him a warrior's bonnet, and he has been declared a Winkta, a "two-spirited" tribal "mediatrix between the voice of the people and the ear of the divine."Comment:  If the Northern Arapaho gave Russell the name and the warbonnet, I guess he has the right to use them. But this use smacks of insecurity to me. If you're sure of yourself, what does it matter if you're named "Joe Russell" or "Lone Hawk Touched by the Sun"? Unless you're receiving an award or meeting the president, why do you need to wear a headdress?

Regardless of the external trappings, you either are or aren't an Indian. If you aren't one, the impressive name and headdress won't make you one. Therefore, don't emulate someone's (stereotypical) idea of what it means to be an Indian. Just be yourself.

For more on the subject, see Preview of IndiVisible and "Actual Indian" Defined.

Below:  "Joe Russell of Waukegan, wearing a war bonnet, is a member of the Northern Illinois Afro-Aboriginals, which promotes black-American Indian identity reclamation." (Thomas Delany Jr./News-Sun)

Preview of IndiVisible

Story of Americans with Native and black ancestry stirs deep emotions

By Kara BriggsAn exhibition opening this fall at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian explores the identity of people whose ancestry is both African American and Native American.

“IndiVisible: African-Native American Lives in the Americas” is an exhibition of 20 banners bearing photographs and text. It will be shown at the museum in Washington from Nov. 10 through May 31, 2010. A symposium on the topic of the exhibition will be held at 3 p.m. Nov.13 at the museum.

Guest curator Thunder Williams, a Washington, D.C., radio talk show host, is Carib Indian, African and European. “The exhibition touches a deep interest in African American communities because of their links with Native America,” he said. Published accounts estimate that 60 percent of African Americans may share Native American ancestry, he said.

“People in the U.S. tend to be black or white, linear thinkers,” Williams said. “We have been indoctrinated by a race-centered system where vestiges of the ‘one-drop’ of black blood rule persist. When I acknowledge my Carib Indian and European ancestors, it is not a disclaimer of my African heritage. I am all of them, my blood is indivisible.”Comment:  For more on the subject, see Black-Indian History on Display.

Below:  "Relatives and friends celebrate the 21st century wedding of Jessie Little Doe, a member of a family from the Mashpee Wampanoag Nation of Cape Cod, Mass. At Mashpee, age-old family ties determine tribal identity, which transcends skin color." (Photo courtesy Jessie Little Doe)

IndiVisible at the NMAI

Upcoming Exhibitions in Washington, DCThis 20-panel banner exhibition focuses on the interactions between African American and Native American people, especially those of blended heritage. It also sheds light on the dynamics of race, community, culture, and creativity, and addresses the human desires of being and belonging. With compelling text and powerful graphics, IndiVisible includes accounts of cultural integration and diffusion as well as the struggle to define and preserve identity. Stories are set within the context of a larger society that, for centuries, has viewed people through the prism of race brought to the Western Hemisphere by European settlers.

By combining the voices of the living with those of their ancestors, IndiVisible provides an extraordinary opportunity to understand the history and contemporary perspectives of people of African and Native American descent. The exhibition is accompanied by a 160-page publication and 10-minute media piece.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Black-Indian History on Display and The Feel-Good National Museum.

Below:  "Portrait of Jimi Hendrix in Seattle, 1967." (Douglas Kent Hall/ZUMA/Corbis)

Investigate tribes for "oppression"?

Dems call for DOJ probe of Indian tribesA civil rights controversy surrounding several Indian tribes could pit President Obama against some of Capitol Hill’s most prominent liberals and black lawmakers.

Reps. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.), John Lewis (D-Ga.) and others asked Attorney General Eric Holder in a letter dated last Thursday to initiate a “full-scale investigation” of five Indian tribes for allegedly abusing the rights of the Freedmen: African-Americans descended from freed slaves once owned by Indians.

Also signing onto the letter were other senior lawmakers from the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), including Reps. Diane Watson (D-Calif.), Shelia Jackson Lee (D-Texas) and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), the caucus’s chairwoman.

“Over forty years after enactment of the landmark Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts, there is a place in the United States that African Americans cannot vote or receive federal benefits as a matter of law,” the letter states. “The victims of this racial oppression are known as freedmen, who are descendants of African slaves owned by Indians. They are called freedmen, but they are anything but free.”

The call for an aggressive investigation of the tribes by Congress could force Obama to contradict a position he took on the campaign trail last year.

In the spring of 2008, the then-Illinois senator helped solidify his Native American support by arguing against Washington intervening in a dispute involving a group of Freedmen and the leaders of the Cherokee Nation. The Freedmen had been expelled from the tribe after it amended its constitution in March 2007.Comment:  The letter obscures the facts of the case. A more accurate statement would go something like this: "Many African Americans of Cherokee descent can no longer vote or receive benefits because they're no longer citizens of the Cherokee Nation."

The letter may or may not accurately state the motivation behind the facts--that it's based on racial "oppression." That remains to be determined.

Obama's position was that the courts should decide. That still seems to be the best remedy. Until then, I don't think a DOJ investigation is justified.

For more on Obama's position, see Obama Tackles Tough Issues and Obama Opposes Punishing Cherokees. For more on the underlying issues, see Cherokee PR or Propaganda and Blacks vs. Cherokees.

Glover supports Freedmen

Actor touts freedmen rights

He says black people and American Indians have a pivotal past.Actor Danny Glover on Friday called on the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma to allow freedmen descendants into the tribe with full citizenship rights.

Speaking at a forum hosted by members of the Congressional Black Caucus, Glover said other tribes will take similar action if the Cherokee Nation succeeds in blocking freedmen descendants' tribal citizenship.

The issue is in court after a March 2007 vote by the Cherokee Nation to remove freedmen descendants from tribal rolls.

Glover described the relationship linking American Indians and black people as one of the most pivotal in the nation's evolution.

"I've always embraced that relationship," he said. "My own grandmother was part Choctaw."

He cited the history of black people who escaped their captors and found refuge among the Indian tribes, as well as the strategic help black people offered the Seminoles in their war against the tyranny of the colonies.

Both groups, Glover said, have seen genocide and exploitation.

"But I am disturbed by what I see," he said, calling on black people to serve as the moral compass on such issues as the freedmen descendants' quest to have full citizenship rights in the Cherokee Nation. "These are very important decisions that we have to make. They are moral decisions."Comment:  For more on the subject, see Cherokees Vote Freemen Out.