Posted on 10/27/2007 8:46:20 AM PDT by Brilliant
Dennis Champlain's grandfather helped win federal recognition for the Narragansett Indian Tribe. Champlain himself has danced in tribal powwows and teaches his children that they are Narragansetts. Yet the Narragansetts say he is no longer a member of the tribe. Champlain and his extended family are among thousands of people removed from American Indian tribes in recent years, often amid tribal squabbles or when a casino comes to town. In Rhode Island, the Narragansetts' removal of about 140 of roughly 2,400 members has become an issue in Saturday's election for the tribe's chief sachem, or leader. Tribal officials say they have the right to decide who is a member and to prevent fraud by people angling for a share of gambling money. But many of those kicked out complain they have little recourse to fight what amounts to an attack on their identity. "We're in the process of a redefinition of tribal identity at its core," said David Wilkins, a political scientist at the University of Minnesota and a member of North Carolina's Lumbee Tribe. "It's ramping up in a way that's really quite frightening to a lot of Native people." Wilkins traces most purges to four factors: internal political squabbles, stricter racial requirements for membership, punishment for gang or drug-related crime and, most often, during debates over sharing casino profits. A 1978 U.S. Supreme Court ruling said the federal government should not intervene in most tribal membership disputes, leaving appeals up to the tribes. Tribal casinos generated $25 billion in revenue last year...
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Well d'oh...
FReepers are good. It only took one post to point out the “need behind the need.”
I don't believe in reparations for descendants of slaves or for that matter what my great-great granddaddy did to yours out west either.
If you want to be your own nation then fine, just don't ask for all the other rights and benefits to go along with them then claim special privileges on top of it.
We should call in the ambassador of this foreign country, read him the riot act, demand they repatriate refugees. Or faling that, they should compensate the U.S. for the cost of assimilating them, double to their share of casino profits. Or better yet, tax the casino profits up-front. /sarc.
It is kinda weird seeing a Bentley toodling along, driven by a guy with braided pigtails and lots of turqoise jewelry.
Indian casinos frequently refuse to pay off big jackpots, negotiating a lesser settlement.
A friend stopped at a gas station alongside Highway 17, 25 east of Jamestown, NY at 6:30 PM. He was robbed at gunpoint, shot and killed. There were 40 witnesses who all positively identified the killers. 4 separate witnesses got the plate number of the car they escaped in. Two of the witnesses were former co-workers of the perps and a witness taught one of the perp in 11th grade! All provided witnesses statements, both written and videotaped for the NY State Police.
The gas station was owned by Whites, but was determined to be on an old Indian Reservation. They were 1/8 Indian. Nothing was done. The perps said they needed his money for beer......
Unfortunately, there are countless treaties, executive orders, and laws that guarantee the tribes all of the extras. They were part of deals made back in the 19th century for land, and are bound for "perpetuity." Now, the tribes are laughing all the way to the bank, and ultimately, it was Uncle Sam's fault. Nothing can be done about it now, except with tribal permission.
Some people are more racially pure than others.
I would put up billboards of the attackers with their latest pictures across the county.
Of course, the remaining Indians (such as they are) would like tribal recognition, so they can have a casino, just like any other self-respecting tribe. The latest try is the revival of the Susquehanna Tribe, HQ'd in Erie, PA, which was apparently wiped out (wrongly of course, as they were peaceful Christians) around 1710.
When the latest group appealed to NY State Mohawks for some back-up, they were told to "get lost."
No one cared.....
However, with that said, there are no original reservations west of the Mississippi, excepting perhaps the various Iroquois reservations in New York. And, there is an ongoing struggle among the "have" tribes and the "have not" tribes for treaty-mandated government benefits.
Also, as you've picked up on, the well-established tribes vociferously oppose the recognition of new tribes since that means funding and benefits to support the new tribes that will be coming out of their pies. Tribal politics can be quite vicious, and with 562 small governments playing "Axis & Allies" among each other, the complexities are great.
I saw it too. I moved to TX from So Cal about a year ago.
Ward Churchill springs to mind.
I hope one of them was the 3rd base coach for holding up Lofton the other night.
The Donald, Trump i.e., said he had more Indian Blood than any of the Connecticut "Indians" he was dealing with, and could prove it.
But I personally take a wide stance on their "Indian Blood" claims. After all, hanging around those smoky wig-wams for hundreds of generations could have darkened them, no?
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