American Minute - George Washington and Cherokee & Delaware Indians

American Minute
with Bill Federer

"Beloved Cherokees," wrote President Washington on AUGUST 29, 1796,

"The wise men of the United States meet once a year, to consider what will be for the good of their people...I have thought that a meeting of your wise men...would be alike useful to you...

I now send my best wishes to the Cherokees and pray the Great Spirit to preserve them."

On May 12, 1779, Washington addressed the Delaware Indian Chiefs at the Middle Brook military encampment:

"Brothers: I am glad you have brought three of the Children of your principal Chiefs to be educated with us...Congress...will look upon them as their own Children."

Washington continued:

"This is a great mark of your confidence and of your desire to preserve the friendship between the Two Nations...and to become One people with your Brethren of the United States...

You do well to wish to learn our arts and ways of life, and above all, the religion of Jesus Christ. These will make you a greater and happier people than you are."

Washington concluded:

"Congress will do everything they can to assist you in this wise intention; and to tie the knot of friendship and union so fast, that nothing shall ever be able to loose it...

I pray God He may make your Nation wise and strong."

Smith ‘grandstanding’

Smith ‘grandstanding’

Editor, Daily Press:

I read with humorous, yet serious, interest the articles in the Tulsa World on April 3 and May 29 regarding Cherokee Chief Chad Smith’s reaction and comments as to state Rep. Randy Terrill’s efforts to enact a law making “English-only” the official language in Oklahoma. He alleges forced assimilation and punishment in Indian boarding schools for speaking their native language as his reasons against the bill, and says he will fight any attempt to make “English-only” a law. (It is my understanding that Smith himself cannot speak Cherokee fluently.)

I am not surprised by Smith’s actions. He is an expert at grandstanding to be noticed. As a former tribal councilor with the Cherokee Nation, I remember his antics at various times before he became chief. One instance in particular was during a council session where he began yelling and making such a nuisance of himself that the chair had to have security remove him from the council chambers to conduct business. Instead of leaving the chambers when asked by security, like a distinguished gentleman would do, he lay down in the aisle, and security had to bodily carry him out while screaming and waving his arms and legs. Another instance was his shameful actions at the Cherokee courthouse “take-over” attempt, where he was accused of assaulting a police officer.

Previously, Smith alleged forced assimilation by stating that, as a child, his father had his mouth washed out with soap for speaking Cherokee while at an Indian boarding school.

Well, I don’t know where Smith’s father went to boarding school, but I don’t believe it happened. I went to an Indian boarding school one of the biggest and I never saw any punishment for speaking the native language.

In fact, the Navajos nearly always spoke their language, and many subjects were taught to them in Navajo. Regardless, in most classes except for the Navajo classes, there were members of several different tribes, and it would have been impossible for students to communicate in their own languages because all tribes spoke different languages. When the students were out of class and in their rooms, or at leisure times, they could speak any language they wanted to, if their friends could also speak the same native language. Occasionally, students of the same tribe did speak to each other in their native language. But all of them could speak English, so that is the way most students communicated. In fact, I never knew any student who could not speak English, except some of the Navajo.

Rep. Terrill’s proposal to make English the official language in Oklahoma only makes good sense and has nothing to do with assimilation and, as Terrill emphasized, would not affect the use of American Indian languages. Nowhere do you see instructions written in any Indian language as you now see in Spanish i.e., telephone instructions, ATM machines, medications, assembly directions and many other instances. Now, they even give driver’s license exams in Spanish.

If the driver applicants can’t read a driving manual in English, how do they read road signs in English, or are we now going to have to replace all road signs with both English and Spanish? That would be absurd, and what if they carried it further to include other languages such as many different Indian tribal languages, German, Japanese, Chinese, etc.? That would be ludicrous. This is America, where English is the common language.

If a person wants to speak and read other languages, that is their right. But to demand that other languages be included in all instructions and common usage is ridiculous.

Finally, if Chief Smith wanted to do something productive and worthwhile for the good of his country and his tribe, he would support Terrill’s proposed law to make English the state’s official language. That would also help keep illegal Mexicans from being provided with services and accommodations by eliminating information in languages other than English. Perhaps Smith isn’t aware of all the illegal Mexicans who have saturated the U.S., causing serious social and economic problems and who, I understand, have caused several Cherokee contractors and sub-contractors to go out of business because they could not compete with the “cheap Mexican labor.”

Any observant person cannot help but see the problems caused by the influx of illegals and should be deeply concerned. Besides the illegals being in violation of the law for sneaking across the border, they could also be murderers, drug dealers, rapists or terrorists.

I, for one, strongly support Terrill’s efforts to deal with illegal immigrants and pray that Chief Smith would quit grandstanding and support him also.

Harley Terrell, Cherokee citizen

Tahlequah

Some say Cherokee Chief Chad Smith is a proven racist

Chief Chad Smith is proving that he is proven racist. History will judge him harshly! Chief Chad Smith and his cadre of henchmen are working full-time to see that Black Cherokees are denied their historical rights. This, in spite of the fact, that the Cherokee court system had demanded they be included as citizens and given full and complete rights as tribal members.

Letter to the Muskogee Phoenix Editor: THE PEOPLE SPEAK: Chief doesn’t earn respect with tantrum

THE PEOPLE SPEAK:
Chief doesn’t earn respect with tantrum

Letter to the Muskogee Phoenix Editor, Published April 13, 2008

Cherokee Chief Chad Smith repeated his childish behavior in front of a Oklahoma House Committee just like he did outside the Cherokee Court House during the so-called Cherokee Constitution controversy. This time he was disrespectful and arrogant to the committee chairman during a meeting over a “bill’s goal of forcing immigrants to assimilate by speaking English.”

His silly behavior didn’t make me proud to be Cherokee. He didn’t listen to Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore, or Chairman Guy Liebmann, R-Oklahoma City, or read the bill, which “carves out exceptions for tribal languages and language programs and will not impact them.” He let his ego overrun any common sense.

Shockingly, one day later the House and Senate honored this man for throwing a tantrum. Led by House Speaker Chris Benge, R-Tulsa, who sympathizes with Chad and “understands where he’s coming from,” he and other elected lawmakers bowed down to apologize. The Oklahoma House and Senate members are teaching our young Cherokees the only way to get your way is to throw a tantrum.

My mother attended Chilocco Indian School as a young girl. She told me English was the only language any child could speak. Any tribal language was prohibited. That was in the 1940s.

Did Chad attend Chilocco during this time? I think not. Is my mother bitter at the U.S. government?

No, she was smart enough to know to get ahead in this world, you have to read, write and understand English.

If Chad would take time away from his “seed money” to visit Cherokee communities like Dry Creek, he would see and meet young Cherokees from full-blood to a quarter, children who speak Cherokee at home and English at school or at work.

Chad is speaking about himself and the Cherokee he is familiar with, the one carrying an “Indian card” with blood less than one-sixteenth, the ones who never spoke or heard Cherokee until he decided to “teach” his Cherokees and save them from being assimilated. The Cherokees who believe it is their right to get housing, medical and other services from the tribe in exchange for a vote for him.

Billy R. McCoy

Tahlequah

Tribal donations rise

Tribal donations rise
By RANDY KREHBIEL & MICK HINTON
World Staff Writers
3/2/2008

Oklahoma's Indian nations are
increasing their political contributions.

View a spreadsheet detailing tribal donations
to state candidates for 2006 and 2007

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Oklahoma Indian tribes contributed more than $1 million to state politicians, parties and political action committees in 2006 and 2007, according to Oklahoma Ethics Commission reports.

Ninety percent of the money came from just three tribes.

The Chickasaws have given $408,100 since January 2006, the Choctaws have given $282,250 and the Cherokees have given $213,900.

All three tribes have been deeply involved in negotiating tobacco and gambling contracts with the state in recent years.

Energy interests and lawyers still contribute far more than Indian governments do, but tribal giving has grown perhaps as much as five-fold since 2000.

In no other state do tribes account for a bigger share of campaign cash, according to data from the Center for Responsible Politics, a campaign finance watchdog group.

Greg Pyle, the chief of the Choctaw Nation, said it is wise to give contributions to lawmakers.

Pyle said he asked a federal official a few years ago how a tribe could work successfully with state elected officials.

"The question he posed to me was, 'Did you help get them elected?' " the chief said.

Pyle said that in his travels around the country, he has seen that the most successful tribes support political campaigns.

The chief said it is important that when issues come along, Indian leaders "have a seat at the table."

"The lawmakers are busy people; everyone wants to see them, so it is important that they know you, and you can sit down and visit with them," he said. Now if an issue comes up, a lawmaker sometimes will pick up the phone to get the Indian tribe's viewpoint, Pyle said.

Rep. Lisa Billy, a Choctaw/Chickasaw Indian, said it is crucial that the tribes, who have branched into many business ventures besides gambling, work closely with the Legislature. Billy, R-Purcell, has organized an Indian caucus concerned with business endeavors of Indian tribes. About two dozen lawmakers are registered tribal members.

Indian nations have signed numerous compacts with governors over the past several decades. The federal government has held that states must negotiate with tribes on such matters as gambling.

State Ethics Commission records show that Gov. Brad Henry has received $33,750 from Indian tribes since 2006.

Billy said tribes give to both parties.

Democrats and Democratic PACs received $673,850, compared to $345,650 for Republicans and Republican PACs. Nonpartisan candidates and other PACs received $22,800.

In some instances, tribes gave to both candidates in a race. In 2006, the Cherokees gave $5,000 to incumbent state treasurer Scott Meacham, and $3,000 to his opponent, Tulsan Howard Barnett.

Although about two-thirds of the money went to Democrats, the largest recipient of tribal money was the Republican Legal Fund, which received a single $50,000 contribution from the Chickasaw Nation late last year.

Chad Alexander, listed at the Oklahoma Ethics Commission as chairman of the fund, said the money will be used for legal fees, which is all the explanation that current ethics law requires.

Alexander said various entities were asked to give money to the fund, and he is thankful that the Chickasaws decided to contribute. While tribes can only give a maximum $5,000 to an individual, there is no limit on how much it can give to a legal fund.

Chickasaw officials were not available late last week to comment on their contributions.

Among the lawmakers receiving contributions was Rep. Scott BigHorse, D-Pawhuska, who is a registered Osage. He received $32,500 in contributions from Indian tribes since 2006.

Rep. T.W. Shannon of Lawton received the most tribal money of any Republican. Shannon, a Chickasaw citizen, received $17,000 from Indian tribes during the two-year period.

By contrast, Oklahoma tribes contributed very little to congressional campaigns and federal party funds in recent years -- just $18,700, according to the Federal Election Commission.

Randy Krehbiel 581-8365
randy.krehbiel@tulsaworld.com

Mick Hinton (405) 528-2465
mick.hinton@tulsaworld.com