Here is that order: 2010-07-02 Order transferring Oklahoma case to DC
Cherokee Nation Suit against Freedmen Transferred to D.C. District Court
Here is that order: 2010-07-02 Order transferring Oklahoma case to DC
Cherokee Freedmen
Article on Applying International Law to Freedmen Disenrollment Cases
Greg Rubio published “Reclaiming Indian Civil Rights: The Application of International Human Rights Law to Tribal Disenrollment Actions” in the Oregon Review of International Law.
An excerpt:
A more detailed description of this Article’s warp and woof is in order. Part I highlights the substance and nature of the injury that forms the basis for potential international human rights claims. It describes the history and background of the Cherokee Freedmen, details the events of their disenrollment by the Cherokee tribe, and briefly considers the stakes that attend Indian membership determinations in the present political and economic context. Part II examines the body of domestic law under which an Indian plaintiff might normally seek redress: federal Indian law. This critical section concludes that through the current ascendancy of tribal sovereignty and self-determination in federal and congressional policy and the strict application of the common law doctrine of tribal sovereign immunity in federal courts, federal Indian law as presently constituted leaves the Cherokee Freedmen without any domestic remedy for the allegedly racially discriminatory action. Part III then turns to a discussion of two potentially applicable provisions of international human rights law. After describing the present status of indigenous peoples under international human rights law, Part III considers the two provisions, detailing how the disenrollment action implicates each. This Part finally outlines the relevant characteristics necessary to hold the United States accountable for the tribal disenrollment action under its international human rights obligations. After describing how the United States might find itself answering in an international forum for the allegedly discriminatory acts of the Cherokee, Part IV ponders the potential ramifications of this reality for Indian tribes and for the federal government. This Part suggests that these conclusions may imply a potential shift in the present status of federal Indian policy and portend a new and sober dimension in the ongoing dialogue over that most familiar ground in federal Indian law: the reach of tribal sovereignty.
Cherokee Freedmen Cases Discussed at FBA Annual Meeting
From ICT:
OKLAHOMA CITY – Cherokee Chief Chad Smith wonders why the push to preserve tribal sovereignty by removing the descendants of freed slaves from his tribe was regarded as immoral at a Federal Bar Association meeting Sept. 10.
“We certainly want to be included in the fabric of this United States, but we always maintained that we are domestic dependent nations. The idea is why something is wrong when a tribe wants to be a tribe of Indians.”
Smith made the comments to around 150 onlookers at a discussion on the issue that included Harvard University law scholar Charles Ogletree, and Oklahoma Western Federal District Judge Vicki Miles LaGrange as moderator.
Ogletree and Smith each made 10 minute presentations summarizing viewpoints on the controversial issue. Panelists then fielded questions that went 20 minutes beyond the session’s scheduled time.
The discussion centered on the Cherokee Nation’s push to remove freedmen descendants from its rolls in March 2007. The freedmen ascertain that removal violates an 1866 treaty and has taken their case to federal court. No decision has been made on the federal level.
Meanwhile, Ogletree called the freedmen issue a “moral dilemma” and not one entirely of tribal sovereignty, while Smith outlined a history of case law precedent preserving the tribal right to define who qualifies for citizenship.
FBA Annual Meeting Agenda — Indian Law Highlights
Here is the agenda for the FBA’s Annual Meeting in Oklahoma City (website). Indian Law is prominently featured:
Thursday, Sept. 10
9:30–10:30 a.m. Session 1A: Criminal Jurisdiction in Indian Country
Speakers: LAWRENCE BACA; ROBERT DON GIFFORD; ARVO MIKKANEN
10:45–11:45 a.m. Session 2A: The Cherokee Freedmen
Speakers: HON. VICKI MILES-LAGRANGE, Moderator; CHARLES J. OGLETREE JR.; PRINCIPAL CHIEF CHADWICK “CORNTASSEL” SMITH
1:45–2:45 p.m.Session 3A: Issues and Ethics for Lawyers Working with Corporate and Tribal General Counsel
Speakers: SUSANNA M. GATTONI, Moderator; PAIGE S. BASS; MATTHEW L.M. FLETCHER; DEANNA HARTLEY-KELSO; HENRY J. HOOD; KERI C. PRINCE; LYNDON C. TAYLOR; GLORIA VALENCIA-WEBER
3:00–4:00 p.m. Session 4A: Issues and Ethics for Lawyers Working with Corporate and Tribal General Counsel (Continued) (see speakers above)
4:15–5:15 p.m.Session 5A: Delivery of Veterans Services in Indian Country
Speakers: JENNIFER WEDDLE, Moderator; PAUL HUTTER; DOUG ROSINSKI; CAROL WILD SCOTT
Friday, Sept. 11
9:45–10:45 a.m.Session 6A: The Roberts Court on Indian Law
Speakers: MATTHEW L.M. FLETCHER (paper here); JOHN DOSSETT; HON. D. MICHAEL McBRIDE III
Please be advised that the Federal Bar Association selected Walter Echo-Hawk for this award, one of its highest honors. The FBA will honor him on the evening of Sept. 12, 2009 in Oklahoma City at the installation banquet. Lawrence Baca will assume the Presidency of the FBA at this dinner as well.
Cherokee Trial Court Holds Hearing on Freedmen Case
From the Cherokee Phoenix (via Pechanga):
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Cherokee Nation District Court held a July 17 hearing for the case of Raymond Nash v. CN Registrar as attorneys for both parties presented arguments for their motions for summary judgment.
A summary judgment is a decision based on statements and evidence presented for the record without a trial. It is used when there is no dispute regarding facts and one party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.
The Nash case is a class action lawsuit involving 386 Freedmen descendents claiming they were illegally removed from the CN citizenship rolls by a voter-approved constitutional amendment in March 2007.
Alistair Bonnett on Black Indians
Here is a short article about black Indians called “Shades of Difference,” published in the Dec. 2008 issue of History Today.
Podcast on Indian Freedmen Panel at AALS
The podcast is here. Speakers included:
Bell Jeannine – Speaker
Kathryn Fort – Speaker
Kevin Maillard – Speaker
Carla Pratt – Speaker
G.W. Rice – Speaker
Sherri N. Thomas — Speaker
Matthew L.M. Fletcher — moderator
Ebony on the Cherokee Freedmen
It’s a little old, but an interesting read. Here is Ebony Magazine’s “What Does Indian Blood Look Like?”
D.C. Circuit Decides Freedmen Case
Congrats to Stacy Leeds
From Indianz:
Stacy Leeds, a professor at the University of Kansas School of Law, will develop a comprehensive history of the Freedmen of the Cherokee Nation for a fellowship she was awarded by the Fletcher Foundation.
Leeds, a tribal member, was a former justice for the Cherokee Nation’s highest court. She wrote the decision that said the Freedmen were entitled to citizenship. Leeds subsequently ran for chief but lost to incumbent Chad Smith. Smith believes the tribe has a right to deny citizenship to the Freedmen. Leeds was awarded $50,000 fellowship and must complete her project within a year.
Get the Story:
Kansas Law Professor Named Fletcher Fellow (DIVERSE 7/10)
Friend of CAHC awarded Fletcher Fellowship (The Muskogee Phoenix 7/10)
Cherokee Nation Judicial Appeals Tribunal Decision in Freedmen Case:
Allen v. Cherokee Nation (March 7, 2006)
Turtle Talk 
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