I had the experience today to attend the oral arguments of the case that may finally decide the issues of Cherokee Freedmen and their status in their nation, the Cherokee Nation. The issue pertained to the Treaty of 1866 where the Cherokee Freedmen, as was stated in Article 9 of the Treaty of 1866, were given all rights as Cherokee citizens, were to retain those rights of citizenship given to Freedmen and their descendants.
Cherokee Freedmen enjoyed rights as citizens and were allowed to vote during most of the 20th century until the 1980s when elder Freedmen came to cast a vote in an election and learned that they were no longer citizens and their rights had been removed by the tribe. This began a series of cases over the years from the Nero Case, to the Riggs Case, to the Vann Case. In turn the tribe has counter-sued the Freedmen claiming a conflict between the tribe having to adhere to Article 9 of the Treaty, and their right to sovereignty and to decide who belongs in the tribe.
The arguments were presented by Diane Hammons for the Cherokee Nation, pointing out that the Treaty was already upheld when Freedmen were given citizenship. They had citizenship, and voted, and therefore the treaty was honored. The concern was that forcing the tribe to continue to admit Freedmen "and their descendants" meant that the tribe had no rights to determine who their members should be. She stated that he conflict between the continued status of Freedmen and the tribe having to uphold this part of the treaty was in conflict with tribal sovereignty.
The arguments on behalf of the Freedmen was presented by Jon Velie were clear and he pointed out that the Treaty itself was made by a party that was at one time an enemy of the United States, having fought with the South in the Civil War. He pointed out that this was not the story of a "few slaves held by a few people." The leaders of this very sophisticated tribe, were principal slave holders, including the last Confederate general to surrender, who was Cherokee slave holder, Stan Watie.
Velie continued to address the southern history and the southern biases toward the former slaves, and he spoke fact after fact about the participation of Freedmen leaders who served on the tribal council in the 19th century, and pointed out that this was not a case of a simply unknown alien people trying to join a tribe. This was an act where the history, heritage and cultural ties of a people who were part of the tribe, were having their role, their history and their identity stripped from them.
The judge asked poignant questions and both parties answered them. Of particular interest was the issue of the future of Freedmen as citizens of the tribe. On side from the tribe, there was the concern expressed that by granting continued citizenship rights to the Freedmen, there was the act of making the "rights" to extend into perpetuity. Velie responded by pointing out the key word "descendants". Nothing is ambiguous about the wording of the Treaty. He also pointed out that the efforts to exclude people, seem to be focused on this one class of people in the tribe.
The significant point of his argument came as he addressed the history and the treatment of Freedmen during the hearings on the Dawes Rolls. In response to the issue of Freedmen and the "inability" to determine blood quantum today was also addressed. He then explained the history of the "politics" of blood. He pointed out that in the cases where a Freedman who was half Cherokee and half black, the policy was simple---"your blood does not matter" and they were thus put on the Freedman roll. And now after over 100 years the effort is made to cast out people based on blood when their blood was never worth being addressed no matter how high it was at the time.
Clearly, history was the most important factor emphasized. There was also the discussion of what was meant when the treaty of 1866 was actually signed.
The presentation by the tribe was that extending rights to the Freedmen under Article 9 did not mean into perpetuity.
And the response was simple, the fact is that there is nothing unclear and nothing ambiguous about the Treaty and about Article 9.
Article 9 of the Treaty of 1866
The hearing lasted for approximately 1 hour, 10 minutes and adjourned at approximately 10:52 am. It is expected that the judge will make a ruling within a short period of time.
Being a witness to this case was significant for me.
In 1998, I was an expert witness as the genealogist and historian for the Bernice Riggs Case. This was held in Cherokee Supreme Court, and took place in Tahlequah Oklahoma. To be a witness to the oral arguments today was part of a major event, for should the Freedmen win this case, this may be the end of a 100+ year saga of determining the status of the former slaves of this former slave holding tribe.
It was interesting to see the persons who were there in attendance, from California, to Oklahoma, to the greater Washington DC region. This issue has gone through several stages, and within the Cherokee Nation, it is hoped that finally a era of Jim Crow sentiments left over from a southern former slave holding community, may finally come to an end. When some bad practices, based on old biases end, the entire community moves ahead to a better future. And when all of the components of the society being allowed to participate everyone makes that same community a better entity.
As the Cherokee attorney Diane Hammond pointed out, the Cherokee Nation is no longer "a geo-political entity with one contiguous geographic community" and it was also pointed out that the Cherokee Nation is the largest Indian tribe in the US. Well, I can only hope that the largest tribe, will emerge stronger and better, when all of the people that make up the tribe are allowed to not simply exist, but to contribute to the nation. When all of the people work together the outcome can only be for the better.
This was a historic day in Cherokee history, but also for the Freedmen of all of the tribes. I, as a Choctaw Freedman descendant find that there is hope for the other nations where the Freedmen are disenfranchised, to also be addressed someday.
But today, was a day in which I was there as an eyewitness to history, and I am proud of what I saw.
I hope that Bernice Riggs, was there in spirit, today, and Rev. Nero, and the Whitmires and the spirits of so many others who had the courage to address the wrongs they saw, and I hope that their spirits were all there today.
And so were the spirits of the Freedmen leaders who once served on the Cherokee tribal council and their names deserved to be mentioned: Joseph Brown, Frank Vann, Ned Irons, Stick Ross, Samuel Stidham, Jerry Alberty. They should never be gotten and their history is a rich one, though seldom mentioned by the tribe, it should be mentioned by all who cherish history and truth, for these were men of Cherokee soil, and life and culture.
The hearing adjourned at approximately 10:52 am. Afterwards a few who were in attendance gathered to have lunch in a nearby cafe, before departing in many directions
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Group of Cherokee Freedmen and Attorneys after hearing
Front Row: Cynthia Cook Robertson, Attorney, Jon Velie, Attorney, Marilynn Vann Cherokee Freedman, Dexter Ruffin Cherokee Freedman, (2nd from left back row) Sam Ford, Cherokee Freedman, David Cornsilk Cherokee By Blood, Mark Harrison, Cherokee Freedman.)
(Photo courtesy of Sam Ford)
Ron Graham (Creek Freedman) and Marilyn Vann (Cherokee Freedmen) outside courthouse
Cherokee Freedmen from California at lunch
Journalist Sam Ford, (Cherokee Freedman), Mrs. Ford, and Marilyn Vann (Cherokee Freedman)
Mark Harrison (Cherokee Freedman) & Mark West of No. Carolina
California based Cherokee Freedmen who were also in attendance.
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This is wonderful, Angela. I'm so glad that you were able to be in attendance during this historical moment!
ReplyDeleteRenate
Thank you Renate! It was indeed a special day.
ReplyDeleteYou've captured the historical event, and shared prior history events in a clear and concise manner. Thanks for your overview, now await the judges decision.
ReplyDeleteMatilda
One thing to remember there were those who, like Jesse Chisolm, had slaves of Native American, African, and Mexican descent.
ReplyDeleteYou had made mention of the Cherokee supporting the South during the Civil War. But since they supported the British during the Seven Years War while the northern Native groups supported the French, do you think that it was more along the lines of supporting the people who lived among them on Southern soil than supporting a slave system? Just wondering.
ReplyDeleteDebra, there are many people including neo-Confederates who try to mask the ugliness and the heinous existence of slavery and try to "defend" it as an effort to fight to preserve "culture". No one prevents culture from being expressed--whether from food to speech to literature to dress.
ReplyDeleteBut oppression is not culture. Slavery is not culture. Bigotry is not culture. No one gets a pass when they fight for their continued practice of others.
The story of rights to people once enslaved in the only land that they knew and still know as home, is a serious one, sadly based on color and race. But hopefully all things can improve. This saga has a long history and continues to this day, and hopefully this fight in recent years will end in the near future.
It was an honor and privilege to be in attendance at the oral arguments in Washington DC on Monday, May 5, 2014 with other Freedmen Descendants where the Honorable Judge Thomas Hogan presided. Attorney Jon Velie for the Freedmen descendants did an outstanding job and presented a compelling case in the courtroom. I am confident that Judge Hogan will do the right thing and rule in favor of the Freedmen. It is clear that the Cherokee Nation (CN) are racist and want to continue past practices apartheid and of exclusion of Freedmen Descendants, robbing us of our heritage and birthrights. The Treaty of 1866 means what it says in Article IX; "The Freedmen shall have all rights of Native Cherokee." This is not confusing. This is not about blood quantum's; after all, most so called Cherokee are White People and the Cherokee adopted the Shawnee and Delaware tribes, who have no Cherokee blood.
ReplyDeleteWell Folks I am a Cherokee born in 1935 in Oklahoma, at a time when there was no Cherokee Nation simply because by simple fact of the law of a Congressional Act known as the 1898 Curtis Act, this can be seen @ http://digital.library.okstate.edu/kappler/Vol1/ht... and all one needs to read Section 28 to know this simple fact. Now prior to this after the civil war, in which the Cherokee Nation, as has been said joined the South and lost the war, much of what I am saying can be seen as documented @ my website www.cornsilks.com...It will be nearly impossible to get the total fact of the matter as to what's what with the Cherokee Nation, and its non existences today, with the limitation of 2000 characters, but if I generate any interest it can all be seen at my website, with just a little effort! As the topic that has came about with this case is the fact of law of the rights of citizenship for the freed slave of the Cherokee Nation by the Treaty of 1866 between the Cherokee Nation and the U.S. Government, this in it self tells us the conqueror the USA in its benevolence is allowing the Cherokee Nation as a nation of people to live on, and the Cherokee People demonstrated their understanding of this fact and agreeing to it by amending their 1839 constitution in the same year of the treaty signing, see it at http://www.cornsilks.com/1839constitutionofthecher... see Article III Section 5. then in 1893 came the beginning of the Dawes era for the making of Oklahoma, and the striping the Cherokee of their land one more timed, for those that object came the mentioned 1998 Curtis Act, thus no more Cherokee Nation: Thus by this action and the 1906 five tribes act, the Cherokee Nation rolls permanently closed by the feds in 1907 and remained so up 1975 and actually remains so today, in 1975 came the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma (CNO) usurping the Cherokee Peoples Sovereign rights acting as the Cherokee Nation...Come to John's Place on facebook.
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