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Today I’m featuring Cherokee Indian news. Please jump the fold for links and discussion. I put that image on top out of kindness. You’re welcome.
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Cherokee One Feather, 6/17/2022
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — Eleven Cherokee bicyclists who were part of the 2022 Remember the Removal Bike Ride finalized their 950-mile journey on Friday, June 17 with a homecoming ceremony in the capital city of the Cherokee Nation.
During the trek, cyclists from the Cherokee Nation and Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina retraced the northern route of the Trail of Tears in honor of their ancestors who were forcefully removed from their homelands in the southeast more than 180 years ago.
The cyclists began the memorial ride in New Echota, Ga., on May 30 and pedaled through Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma before they were welcomed back at the Cherokee National Peace Pavilion in downtown Tahlequah on Friday.
“Two centuries ago, the Cherokee people were facing tremendous obstacles, erosion of our way of life, threats to our land and resources and things we held dear. But the Cherokee people did not simply go away. We resisted mightily, we joined together as a people, but ultimately, we were removed in a manner that was quite simply, brutal. Along the Trail of Tears, we lost a quarter of our population because the government of the United States thought the answer was to wipe us away. And yet, in the wake of that we came here and we rebuilt the great Cherokee democracy, our great institutions. We had a rebirth of the Cherokee people right here,” said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. “I am convinced there’s nothing the Cherokee Nation can’t face down and overcome when we stand together united. Nothing we do embodies that more than the Remember the Removal ride. These cyclists witnessed the places our ancestors perished, the spot where they looked back one last time to their beloved homelands. I love the Remember the Removal ride and the stories of strength and growth by the riders. All of these riders represent the future of the Cherokee people and I believe they will take our great nation to heights we have never seen – not in spite of our obstacles, but because of them, and I could not be more proud.”
Mountain Express, Edwin Arnaudin, 6/16/2022
For many young Americans across generations, an introduction to Indigenous history often begins with the landing of the Mayflower on Plymouth Rock in 1620. According to the tale, the Pilgrims and Indians formed initial bonds over a meal of thanksgiving.
“But the stories of flourishing friendships and untouched wilderness are told through the lens of settlers and are harmful myths,” says Sarah Stacke, a Brooklyn-based photojournalist and archive investigator. “[Christopher] Columbus landed in 1492 carrying disease, death, enslavement and displacement. By 1650 — just 30 years after the Mayflower — an estimated 90% of Native people had died from European diseases.”
In 2020, using the Mayflower’s 400-year anniversary as inspiration, Stacke helped launch The 400 Years Project to create an online platform that provides a narrative of Native empowerment, while recognizing the devastating effects of colonization. Cherokee-based Winnebago/Irish/Norwegian bead artist Sheena Brings Plenty and Anchorage, Alaska-based photographer Brian Adams were also involved in the initial launch and remain active in the ongoing project.
Today, the three continue to seek work by Native photographers from across the medium’s history as they build on an already rich digital library of photo essays. And if the founders’ recent efforts in Cherokee are any indication, the project will continue to flourish.
Cherokee One Feather, Scott McKie B.P., 6/16/2022
For thousands of years, the area in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park called Clingman’s Dome was known to Cherokee people as Kuwahi (“mulberry place”). Two Cherokee women are starting the process to change the name back to its roots.
Lavita Hill and Mary “Missy” Crowe, both members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI), have drafted legislation in the hopes of getting Tribal Council and EBCI Executive Office support for this idea. The resolution has been submitted, and it is expected to be discussed during the July Tribal Council session.
For thousands of years, the area in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park called Clingman’s Dome was known to Cherokee people as Kuwahi (“mulberry place”). Two Cherokee women are starting the process to change the name back to its roots. (Photo by Thom McManus, NPS Flickr)
The resolution describes the area, “Kuwahi or ‘mulberry place’, is the highest point in our area and has significance to us as Cherokees as it was visited by medicine people who prayed and sought guidance from the Creator regarding important matters facing our people, and then returned to our towns to give guidance and advice.”
The Qualla Boundary – The Original Home of the Cherokee
The Qualla Boundary is the home of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Cherokee people do not live on a reservation, which is land given to a native American tribe by the federal government. Instead, in the 1800’s, the tribal members purchased 57,000 acres of property. This land, called the Qualla Boundary, is owned by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and kept in trust by the federal government. Qualla Boundary encompasses untouched mountains, rivers, and forests and is located next to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
How the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Formed
The Cherokee have a rich and storied history. In the early 1800’s, the Cherokee adapted the tribal governing structure to include a written constitution. Cherokee courts and schools were established and, in 1821, a Cherokee scholar named Sequoyah invented a written Cherokee language. In 1828, just 7 years later, a Cherokee language newspaper began publishing. Unfortunately, despite the Cherokee’s efforts to adapt to European culture, the federal government of the United States decided it was no longer important to maintain a strong allied relationship with the Cherokee nation. In 1838 the desire for more land and Georgia gold gave the government an excuse to forcefully remove Cherokee in the Southeast. More than 16,000 native people were marched on what would historically become known as the Trail of Tears and relocated to Oklahoma. Between 25% and 50% of the Cherokee tribe died on the Trail of Tears.
The Connection between the North Carolina and Oklahoma Tribes
Some members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians living in modern day WNC are descendants of Trail of Tears survivors, some of whom made it to Oklahoma and then walked back home. Others are descended from Cherokee who managed to keep land they owned and did not march West. Under the 1819 treaty some Cherokee had taken land and were allowed to remain. Others hid in the mountains and refused to be relocated. In 1850 the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians numbered approximately 1,000. Presently, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is a sovereign nation with over 14,000 members.
OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT WEBSITE OF THE EASTERN BAND OF CHEROKEE EASTERN BAND OF CHEROKEE INDIANS
Cherokee is a sovereign nation, meaning it has its own laws, elections, government, institutions, and the like. Though it certainly has relationships with the United States federal government and the North Carolina state government that are vitally important, students and the general population may be interested to know that the Cherokees are self-governed and autonomous.
Located in Cherokee, North Carolina, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians were once part of a much larger Cherokee Nation population. However, when the Trail of Tears was mandated, and forced removal and relocation were directed by the US government and then President Andrew Jackson, the Cherokee Tribe became divided into what is known today as the Cherokee Nation and United Kituwah Band, located in Oklahoma, and the Eastern Band, made up of those who remained and rebuilt within North Carolina’s Qualla Boundary (sometimes called the Cherokee Indian Reservation).
Thanks for reading and contributing, I hope your weekend is safe.