United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians

United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians
1
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians
United Keetoowah Band
of Cherokee Indians
Flag of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians
Total population
14,300
[1]
Regions with significant populations
United States (
Oklahoma)
Languages
English, Cherokee
Religion
Christianity (Southern Baptist), Kituwah,
Four Mothers Society
Related ethnic groups
other Cherokee tribes
The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma (ᎠᏂᎩᏚᏩᎩ ᎠᏂᏣᎳᎩ or Anigiduwagi
Anitsalagi, abbreviated UKB) is a federally recognized tribe of Cherokee Indians headquartered in Tahlequah,
Oklahoma. According to the UKB website, its members are mostly descendants of "Old Settlers", Cherokee who
migrated to Arkansas and Oklahoma about 1817, before the forced relocation of Cherokee from the Southeast in the
1830s under the Indian Removal Act. Many of its members are traditionalists and Baptists.
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians
Government
Today the UKB has over 14,300 members, with 13,300 living within the state of Oklahoma. Their elected Chief is
George G. Wickliffe, serving a four-year term.[1] Charles Locust is the Assistant Chief.[2] Tim Goodvoice is their
executive director of tribal operations.[3]
Economic development
The tribe owns and operates Keetoowah
Construction in Tahlequah, and the
Keetoowah Treatment Center in Tulsa,
Oklahoma.[1] They have an arts and crafts
gallery, showcasing members' work. They
run the Keetoowah Cherokee Casino, with
UKB Tribal Complex, West Willis Road, Tahlequah
over 500 gaming machines, in Tahlequah.[4]
The UKB issue their own tribal vehicle tags.
Their estimated annual economic impact is $267 million.[1] They host an annual homecoming festival over the first
weekend of October.[3]
Origins
The word Keetoowah (Kituwa) is the name of an ancient Cherokee mother town and earthwork mound in the eastern
homeland of the Cherokee. Kituwah also is considered to be the original name of the Cherokee people.[5]
History
According to the UKB website, its members are composed primarily of the descendants of the "Old Settlers,"
Cherokee who settled in present-day Arkansas and Oklahoma around 1817, before the bulk of Cherokee were
forcibly relocated to Indian Territory in the 1838 Trail of Tears,[5] as well as Cherokees who walked the Trail of
Tears.
By the 1880s all Cherokee people faced increased assimilation efforts by the US government. During the late 19th
and early 20th centuries, Cherokee and other Native American children were sent to Indian boarding schools away
from home for their education: they were expected to speak only English, were generally prohibited from speaking
their own languages, and were expected to adopt Christianity rather than practice native spirituality. The US federal
government unilaterally closed and seized Cherokee and other Native American governmental and public institutions
through the 1898 Curtis Act, the Dawes Act and the 1906 Five Civilized Tribes Act, by which they broke up
communal tribal holdings and allotted plots of land to individual households.[6]
The Dawes Commission was tasked to forced assimilation and break up tribal governments by instilling the concept
of land ownership with individual members of the Five Civilized Tribes. The commission divided large sections of
land into tribal allotments in an effort to eliminate the traditional governments of the Cherokee, which at that time
were based on a communal form of government with the lands being controlled by the tribal government. The US
government appointed Cherokee chiefs to administer tribal lands and holdings.
2
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians
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Federal recognition
Under the Curtis Act of 1898, the government of the Cherokee Nation
was dissolved in 1906, in spite of the resistance of many of its
members. The only remnant left was the office of the Principal Chief,
held by William Charles Rogers, who had earlier been deposed by the
National Council in 1905 for cooperating on the tribe's dissolution and
replaced with Frank J. Boudinot (who was also the leader of the
Keetoowah Nighthawk Society); Rogers was re-imposed upon the
Cherokee Nation by the federal government the next year in order to
carry out land sales and held office until 1914, after which the position
was dormant.[7]
The Indian Reorganization Act (1934) and Oklahoma Indian Welfare
Act (OIWA, 1936) were passed in the 1930s, under the Indian New
Deal to facilitate tribes reorganizing their governments. Many of the
more traditional members of the former Cherokee Nation began to
organize under their terms. In the meantime, the President of the
United States started Principal Chiefs for the Cherokee. The UKB was
approved in 1950 under the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act. Early
elected leaders of the UKB were Levi Gritts, followed by John Hitcher
and the Reverend Jim Pickup, who served in the post-World War II
era.[8]
Virginia Stroud, enrolled UKB member, accepts
an award for her artwork, Cherokee Heritage
Center, Park Hill, Oklahoma, 2007
Conflict with the Cherokee Nation
The UKB was the federally recognized organization by which all the Cherokee people received federal assistance
and were dealt with on federal programs. The UKB was able to secure federal funds for the Cherokee Nation
Complex, which today houses the Cherokee Nation government. The UKB also started the Cherokee National
Holiday, in conjunction with the Principal Chief's office. The Cherokee Nation Housing Authority was begun using
UKB's federal status.
After the Cherokee Nation received approval of their constitution in 1975, their relationship with the UKB soured.
They evicted the UKB from the offices at the tribal complex in Tahlequah.
The Wilma Mankiller and Chad Smith administrations have had many conflicts with UKB leadership. Smith was a
member of the UKB, but due to these issues, the tribe revoked his membership in 2005.
UKB membership
The United Keetoowah Band maintains a one-quarter-blood requirement for members.[1] The United Keetoowah
Band requires all members to have verifiable Cherokee descent either from a person or people on the Dawes Roll or
the UKB Base Roll of 1949.[9]
The UKB, beginning in the 1970s, gave some people honorary associate members, to recognize their services to the
nation. Such memberships did not entitle the persons to voting or any other tribal rights, and had nothing to do with
claims of Cherokee ancestry. Associate memberships were given in honorary appreciation to several people, but the
tribe ended this practice in 1994. While some such recipients were given a tribal enrollment card with a number, they
were never considered official members of the tribe, and did not receive tribal benefits. They no longer appear on
official tribal rolls. Former President Bill Clinton is a notable associate member.
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians
4
Ward Churchill
Ward Churchill, a former Professor of Ethnic Studies at the University of Colorado, has long claimed to be of Indian
descent."[10][11] In 1992, Churchill wrote elsewhere that he is one-eighth Creek and one-sixteenth Cherokee.[12] He
was granted honorary associate membership in the UKB.[13] His public statements that he was a member of the UKB
created controversy, because Churchill failed to distinguish tribal enrollment from honorary associate membership.
He has made a career in writing and speaking about issues related to Native Americans, and has contended that he
has varying amounts of Indian ancestry. During an intense period of controversy, news organizations were unable to
find any evidence of any Indian ancestry.
Churchill does not possess an issued Certificate of Degree of Indian Blood (CDIB); he is not eligible for any federal
benefits reserved for Native Americans. The UKB stated in 2005 that he is not eligible for official membership in the
tribe because he cannot satisfy the blood quantum requirement.[14]
Legal issues
The State of Oklahoma sued the UKB
in federal court for operating illegal
gaming facilities off Bureau of Indian
Affairs-approved tribal trust lands.
According to briefs submitted by the
Cherokee Nation, the UKB own no
tribal lands in federal trust. The lawsuit
is currently pending in the federal
courts in Oklahoma and has been
recently remanded to the National
Indian Gaming Commission for
review.[15]
UKB Jim Proctor Elder Community Center, Tahlequah
During the State of Oklahoma lawsuit pertaining to the UKB's alleged illegal casino operations, an Indian casino that
has been operating for approximately 19 years[16], the UKB was accused of attempting to sue the Cherokee Nation.
The Cherokee Nation said the UKB had sued to demand cession of tribal land allotments to them in order to build
casinos. These lawsuits were also dismissed.
The UKB has sued the United States for a share of the proceeds under HR-3534, a bill that required the United States
to compensate the Cherokee Nation and two other Oklahoma tribes with claims to the disclaimed drybed lands of the
Arkansas River. The legislation set aside ten percent of each tribe's share of the settlement for other claimant tribes;
it afforded other claimant tribes an opportunity to file claims within 180 days of the legislation. The UKB filed suit
against the United States. The Cherokee Nation moved to intervene and to dismiss the UKB suit. It contended that
the Cherokee Nation is an indispensable party and that it cannot be joined in the litigation because of its sovereign
immunity. The Court of Claims granted both of the Cherokee Nation's motions. On April 14, 2006, on appeal, the
United States sided with the UKB against the Cherokee Nation's request for dismissal. The Court of Federal Claims
heard the appeal on November 8, 2006.[17]
In June 2004, the UKB requested that the BIA take into trust land which it owned on a fee basis, a 76-acre
Community Services Parcel. The case has been studied and the request was originally denied, but the UKB appealed.
In May 2011, the BIA finally announced its decision to take into trust for the UKB 76 acres of land in Tahlequah,
which include several of its community centers and the sacred dance ground. The tribe will no longer be landless.[18]
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians
5
Notable UKB members
• Robert J. Conley (United Keetoowah Band-Cherokee Nation), historian and novelist, b. 1940
• David Cornsilk (United Keetoowah Band-Cherokee Nation), legal activist and genealogist
• Virginia Stroud (United Keetoowah Band-Muscogee Creek), artist and former Miss Indian America, b. 1951
Notes
[1] 2011 Oklahoma Indian Nations Pocket Pictorial Directory. (http:/ / www. ok. gov/ oiac/ documents/ 2011. FINAL. WEB. pdf) Oklahoma
Indian Affairs Commission. 2011: 37. Retrieved 8 Feb 2012.
[2] United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma. (http:/ / www. keetoowahcherokee. org/ ) (retrieved 8 February 2009)
[3] Goodvoice, Christina. "United Keetoowah Band holds annual celebration". (http:/ / www. cherokeephoenix. org/ 20780/ Article. aspx)
Cherokee Phoenix. (retrieved 2 Nov 2009)
[4] Keetoowah Cherokee Casino. (http:/ / 500nations. com/ casinos/ okKeetoowah. asp) 500 Nations. (retrieved 2 Nov 2009
[5] Clough, Josh. United Keetoowah Band. (http:/ / digital. library. okstate. edu/ encyclopedia/ entries/ U/ UN006. html) Oklahoma History
Center's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. (retrieved 2 Nov 2009)
[6] Bruce, Louis R. "Powers, Rights and Limitations of the UKB under Federal Law." (https:/ / docs. google. com/ viewer?a=v&
q=cache:jd7gLDM_6a0J:www. ukb-nsn. gov/ documents/ 07-11. pdf+ & hl=en& gl=us& pid=bl&
srcid=ADGEESgl2Zvy-VXG57Wz59QgPfnRTH4I-WaGQ-hEnjtJ8eqcun4Lc6wm4kI37fyL7K42g0dXBqmUlJBTy8FFX1HTB9mWlm1Pkzh6TOBaVVY8vQcW
sig=AHIEtbRT6gOZvm3VMkyVBJAon-EemGAkwQ) Gaduwa Cherokee News. July 2011: 2. Retrieved 21 Dec 2011.
[7] Chronicles of Oklahoma Volume 15, No. 3 http:/ / digital. library. okstate. edu/ Chronicles/ v015/ v015p253. html
[8] Meredith, 97-8
[9] "Enrollment." (http:/ / www. ukb-nsn. gov/ enrollment. html) United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma. Retrieved 21 Dec
2011.
[10] Ward Churchill (2003). "An American Holocaust? The Structure of Denial" (http:/ / www. sdonline. org/ 33/ ward_churchill. htm).
Socialism and Democracy 17 (2): 25–76. doi:10.1080/08854300308428341. . Retrieved 2011-12-21.
[11] "Ward Churchill" (http:/ / www. colorado. edu/ EthnicStudies/ faculty/ churchill. html). Ethnic Studies (http:/ / www. colorado. edu/
EthnicStudies/ ). University of Colorado. . Retrieved 2011-12-21.
[12] Jaimes, M. Annette (1992). "Federal Indian Identification Policy: A Usurpation of Indigenous Sovereignty in North America" (http:/ /
books. google. com/ books?as_isbn=0896084248). In Jaimes, M. Annette (ed.). The State of Native America: Genocide, Colonization and
Resistance. Boston: South End Press. pp. 123–138. ISBN 0-89608-424-8. . Churchill told the University of Colorado investigative committee
that he wrote this essay in its entirety.
[13] Charlie Brennan (2005-05-18). "Tribe snubs prof: Cherokee band says Churchill's claim of membership a fraud" (http:/ / www.
rockymountainnews. com/ news/ 2005/ may/ 18/ tribe-snubs-prof/ ). Rocky Mountain News. .
[14] Brennan, Charlie (2005-05-21). "Tribe clarifies stance on prof" (http:/ / www. rockymountainnews. com/ news/ 2005/ may/ 21/
tribe-clarifies-stance-on-prof/ ). Rocky Mountain News. . Retrieved 2009-03-10.
[15] Official Site of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians - Federally Recognized (http:/ / www. unitedkeetoowahband. org)
[16] http:/ / www. unitedkeetoowahband. org/ Documents/ Newspapers/ 7-05. pdf
[17] (http:/ / www. unitedkeetoowahband. org/ Documents/ Newspapers/ 5-06. pdf)
[18] United Keetoowah Band has reasons to rejoice on its 61st anniversary" (http:/ / www. unitedkeetoowahband. org/ ), United Keetoowah Band
Website, accessed 22 November 2011
References
• Leeds, Georgia Rae. "The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma." American University
Studies. Series IX, Vol. 184, 199.
• Meredith, Howard L. Bartley Milam: Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. Muskogee, OK: Indian University
Press, 1985. ISBN 978-0-940392-17-5
External links
• United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians (http://www.unitedkeetoowahband.org), official website
• United Keetoowah Band (http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/U/UN006.html), article on
the Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture
• Burning Phoenix by Allogan Slagle (http://www.thepeoplespaths.net/articles/BurningPhoenix.htm)
• Corporate Charter of the United Keetoowah Band (http://thorpe.ou.edu/IRA/keechrtr.html)
Article Sources and Contributors
Article Sources and Contributors
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=496966748 Contributors: Aaron Walden, Antandrus, Appraiser, Aristophanes68, Asarelah,
BigHaz, Biruitorul, Briaboru, BrokenSpectre, Civil Engineer III, Climent Sostres, Davidlroot, DragonHawk, Edward321, Erik9, Evans1982, Flewis, Gaius Cornelius, Getaway, Gjs238, Gurch,
Harmil, Himasaram, InaMaka, Jcornsilk, Jeffrey Vernon Merkey, Jisdu, Kelly Martin, Khatru2, Khoikhoi, LightingBug, LilHelpa, Lulu of the Lotus-Eaters, MECU, Mild Bill Hiccup, Muspud2,
Natty4bumpo, Odestiny, Onopearls, Parkwells, Paul A, PeyoteMan, PoccilScript, Pokey5945, Reedy, Rjwilmsi, SEWilco, Skeele, Skylark48, Sogospelman, Stephenb, Swatjester, Tangotango,
UKB Historic Preservation, Uyvsdi, Vis-a-visconti, Waya sahoni, Whosear, WillOakland, 56 anonymous edits
Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors
File:UKBflag (bordered).png Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:UKBflag_(bordered).png License: Public Domain Contributors: Jim May
File:Flag of the United States.svg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg License: Public Domain Contributors: Anomie
File:Flag of Oklahoma.svg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_Oklahoma.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Anime Addict AA, Denelson83, Dzordzm,
Fry1989, Homo lupus, Pagrashtak, Rocket000, Svgalbertian, Trijnstel, Xenophon, Zscout370, 5 anonymous edits
File:Ukb tribal complex.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Ukb_tribal_complex.jpg License: Public Domain Contributors: Uyvsdi
File:Virginia stround ukb.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Virginia_stround_ukb.jpg License: Public Domain Contributors: Uyvsdi
File:Ukb elder center.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Ukb_elder_center.jpg License: Public Domain Contributors: Uyvsdi
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