Cherokee Nation Courts Allow Temporary Citizenship for Non-Indians, Including Freedmen Descendants

TAHLEQUAH, Okla.—Cherokee Nation Attorney General Diane Hammons today agreed to a temporary injunction in tribal court that allows descendants of Freedmen to keep their citizenship while their citizenship appeals work their way through the tribal court system.

“I agreed to the injunction because I believe that, although the Cherokee citizens who voted to change the citizenship requirements on March 3rd have a right to have their determination implemented, those individuals who lost their citizenship status as a result of that election also have the right to have our Cherokee Nation courts consider the legality of the Amendment,” said Hammons. “In the interest of fairness and as a legitimate exercise of a reasoned democratic government, I believe that an injunction staying the effect of the March 3rd election is proper from the Cherokee Nation court until that tribunal has the opportunity to fully review and decide the plaintiffs’ claims.”

“For decades our people understood that you have to be Indian to be in our Indian tribe,” said Chad Smith, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. “I think the will of the people is very clear. I understand, however, that the rights of citizenship should be taken very seriously, and we take our court’s orders very seriously. We will abide by the order and restore citizenship while the case is pending.”

In March 2006, the Cherokee Nation’s highest court reversed a previous decision and ruled that the Cherokee Nation’s Constitution allowed citizenship for non-Indian descendants who were listed on the Dawes Rolls of the Cherokee Nation. Until that time, citizenship had been restricted to those who had a Cherokee, Delaware or Shawnee ancestor on the Dawes Rolls. On March 3, 2007, Cherokee voters approved an amendment to the Cherokee Nation Constitution that mirrored the previous policy, requiring citizens be a descendant of either a Cherokee, Delaware or Shawnee Indian listed on the Dawes Rolls.

Since that vote, more than 250 descendants of Freedmen and other non-Indian citizens appealed their citizenship status in the Cherokee Nation court system. The Cherokee Nation is paying for the services of an appointed attorney for those wishing to appeal.

“We are really making every effort to be fair in this situation,” said Mike Miller, spokesperson for the Cherokee Nation. “We know this is a serious issue, and we wanted to make sure that their interests were adequately represented in tribal court.”

In the order, Cherokee Nation District Court Judge John Cripps wrote that the Cherokee Nation should “immediately reinstate to full citizenship within the Cherokee Nation the Plaintiffs and all similarly situated persons, commonly known as ‘Cherokee Freedmen.’”

Cripps’ order is to remain in effect until the Court reaches a decision on the merits of the citizenship appeals, or until a further order of the Court.

To see the court order, or read a full statement from the Cherokee Nation’s Attorney General, visit the Cherokee Nation’s Web site at www.cherokee.org