JANUARY 29, 2001 When members of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma last summer voted to change their membership requirements, they effectively excluded future descendants of African members of the tribe, underscoring a dispute many say is centered on race. In a treaty negotiated with the United States after the end of the Civil War, the tribe agreed to make Africans and descendants of Africans members of the tribe. But one issue separating the "Black Seminoles" from the other members is access to certain federal funds -- only those who can prove they have Indian blood can receive money from a judgement fund the tribe won as a result of their removal from Florida. A lawsuit has been filed against the Department of Interior by some Black Seminoles and a separate one has been filed by the tribe. Get the Story:
Who Is a Seminole, and Who Gets to Decide? (The New York Times 1/29)
You may have to register to read New York Times stories. If you do not wish to register, login with username indianz.com and password indianz.com. Related Stories:
Seminole voters approve changes (Tribal Law 7/7)
Seminole vote may affect Freedmen (Tribal Law 7/7)
2 'An Indian is an Indian is an Indian': Tribes defend sovereignty amid attack on Indian Child Welfare Act
3 Tule River Tribe getting ready to join cannabis business
4 Tim Giago: Who are these ‘fanatics’ honoring?
5 Native American veterans still struggling to get the health care they were promised
About This Page
You are enjoying stories from the Indianz.Com Archive, a collection dating back to 2000. Some outgoing links may no longer work due to age.
All stories are available for publishing via Creative Commons License: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)