General > Research Needed
Tallige Cherokee of Ohio
William_Graywolf:
Anyone know of the Tallige Cherokee of Ohio? ? I just received an email about this group. ? The person does not want to be known and is afraid of retaliation from the "chief".
[highlight]"Tallige used to be respectable, at one time Oliver was asked to help them with some kind of project, can't remember now. At that point he was a white man running a company with another man. Oliver absconded with the funds and let the other man hang and Olivers wife just about went to prison over it because she was the secretary. Now the attorney that defended her knew some things about it all and I think he got into trouble over what Oliver did. He spoke to xxx around Christmas and told xxx who was a member of Tallige that he wished to speak to him. He was murdered before he could talk to xxxx. A suspicious gas leak to the home which was not investigated.
Well Oliver started taking over things at Tallige slowly and soon announced he had native blood. He was a woods colt and was adopted by the Collins his mother married later on. He might be native by adoption, but who knows what his blood is. He started running things and if people objected he ran them off too. When asked to vote on certain things he excluded the clan mothers who might be against him.
He opened a bingo hall 501 3 C to help support the tribe. Mostly it supported him and his family and he was sure to throw crumbs to the people. At first he seemed honorable with it, later the people got nothing at all except the indebtedness of the building he bought. I could go on and on.
We reported him two or three years ago to the attorney generals office but they did nothing about the Cherokee Bingo Hall or Oliver.
It was his son Mark that died this past spring in Olivers house of an overdose of drugs. Oliver creamated him immediately and asked everyone for money to pay for it, in other words he wanted to make money off his sons death.
Now I am not sure if he is still doing bingo or not, the hall is still there, he got caught cheating the people at bingo last year. He also started letting in anyone into Tallige and tried to make alliances with the Mohawk and several others. He wanted federal recognition but he did not want to do the work it involves to do so.
His state recognition is a piece of paper from a past governor stating thanks for the work they did to save the Bird Mound near Portsmouth. ? Yet he claims state recognition.
xxxx"----- Original Message -----
educatedindian:
Found these, including a statement from Richard Allen.
ETA: There is no evidence of Collins convicted or even charged with misuse of funds.
http://forum.americanindiantribe.com/viewtopic.php?t=1975&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=30&sid=3d40ffbb98b371cf80253234bfb63ba6
----- Original Message -----
From: "Elmer Boggs" <ebbieboggs@msn.com>
To: "Russ Strong Bow Cooper" <CCooperStrongBow@aol.com>; "JeanMcCoard"<jdmccoard@bright.net>; "Ben Music" Benhase71@msn.com>; "Brent D. Palmer" <bpalmer@uky.edu>; "Charla Tootle" ctoo1@earthlink.net>; "Clifford Mault" <ptvwsl@yahoo.com>; "Connie Savage" <Grandmabear7@webtv.net>; "Dave Lucas" <lucasd@ohio.edu>; "David-Blackhawk Cremeans" <cremeans@marshall.edu>; "Deborah Baker" <debrbaker@hotmail.com>; "Elmer (Kanati) Boggs"
<EbbieBoggs@msn.com>; "Gary McNutt" <mcnut724@cs.com>; "Gloria Boggs" GloriaBoggs50@msn.com> "Harold Mullins" <hwmullins@zoomnet.net>; "Logan Sharp" <rssharp@dragonbbs.com>; "Mike Holsinger" <Hholsingerg@wmconnect.com>; "Mobycrow" <Mobycrow@aol.com>; "Norbert Johnson" <cheronhaka@msn.com>; "paul adams" <pauadams@yahoo.com>; "Pat little Cloud" <patlittlecloud@adelphia.net>; "raven_moon11"
<raven_moon11@yahoo.com>; "Richard Ash" <richardash@peoplepc.com>; "Robin"
<Mourningdove7@aol.com>; "Rodney Honaker" <rodney.honaker@verizon.net>; "Sciotowhitewolf" <Sciotowhitewolf@aol.com>; "Seneca Indians" <sni@localnet.com>; "SingingHawks" <SingingHawks@aol.com>; "SoarinOwl" <SoarinOwl@aol.com>; "Yosonda Conley" <quess_who_942@yahoo.com>; "tulanappe9" <tulanappe9@yahoo.com>; "twobears98"
<twobears98@hotmail.com>; "Pat Holley" <pholley68@hotmail.com>; "herbbear1941"
<herbbear1941@alltel.net>; "BADGERWOMAN" <BADGERWOMAN@aol.com> Cc: "Chad Smith" <csmith@cherokee.org>; "Richard Allen" <rallen@cherokee.org>; "Attorney General Tim-Meyers"
<tmyers@ag.state.oh.us>; "Cherokee, North Carolina" <daun@awardvacations.com>; "Cherokee Oklahoma" <cherokeelink@cherokee.org>; "Chief Collins" <oliver.collins@verizon.net>; "County Commissioner Opal Spears" <ospears@sciotocounty.net>; "County Commissioner Thomas Reiser"
<treiser@sciotocounty.net>; "County Commissioner Vernal G. Riffe III" <sriffe@sciotocounty.net>; "Dr. Will (ECSIUT) Goin" <TayGoinRes@aol.com>; "FBI Cincinnati" <colra.cincinnati@fbi.gov>; "Frank Gerlach" <lawyergg@zoomnet.net>; "George Morgan" <sysop@nvi.net>; "Governor.Taft"
<Governor.Taft@das.state.oh.us>; "Office of Auditor of State Ohio" <Webmaster@auditor.state.oh.us>; "Ohio Council of Churches" <rtollefson@ohcouncilchs.org>; "Ohio Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell" <guide@sos.state.oh.us>
Sent: Tuesday, June 28, 2005 10:34 PM
Subject: Rumors
> Osiyo (Greetings) to all,
> If you get this e-mail by mistake and chose not to want it, you are free to > destroy it.
>
> I feel this issue is important enough to inform all Indian People > everywhere.
> The Rumor Mill, along with Greed, is getting a good start! > Now, rumors are going around that the leaders of the Native American > Alliance of Ohio has called a meeting for all Indians in Ohio to
choose > representatives to speak for all the Indians in Ohio on legislative issues. > These people are not qualified to speak for our people.
>
> Let it be known to all, that the Tallige Cherokee Indian People do not > recognize the "Native American Alliance of Ohio" or their so called leaders, Oliver Collins, Barbara Crandall and their membership. They have been trying to be the speaker for all Native Americans in Ohio
for several years.
> I believe and feel very strongly that the lack of leadership in Southern Ohio has been our down fall. What makes these people think they can now speak for all Ohio Indian People?. They are not qualified to speak for our people on any issue.
> They can call for all the meetings they want for the "Native American Alliance of Ohio", but remember what these same people did for the "First Nation of Ohio". They tried to speak for us then and we all lost
everything.
> Do they think the Shawnee will come in and build them a casino? The Shawnee people are not stupid, they know how to run their own business affairs. The Native American Alliance of Ohio will not speak for me and our people. The Indian Centers of Columbus, Ohio would be a better choice.
> Other Rumors;
> Rumors going around; Money being paid under the table to some officials to look the other way.
> Rumors going around; claim that Oliver Collins and Barbara Crandall co-chair the NAAO.
> Rumors going around; claim Oliver Collins claims to be over all Native Americans in Southern Ohio
> Rumors going around; claim Barbara Crandall claims to be over the Newark, Ohio Native Americans
> Rumors going around; Barbara Crandall claims to have been a member of Tallige for several years.
> Rumors going around; Oliver Collins claimed only to be a member of an amateur genealogical society, but later claimed to be the Principal Chief of the Tallige Cherokee Nation.
>
> The following was taken from an e-mail from Dr. Richard L. Allen:
> The Overhill Villages are a creation of the anthropologists/archaeologists to identify groupings of Cherokee and were never acknowledged as such by the Cherokee. It has only been within recent years that individual such as Oliver Collins, Hu Gibbs, Richard Paugh, Barbara Crandall, et al have claimed to be descended from forgotten Cherokees called the Overhill band.
> However, none of these individuals have never been able to establish any legitimate connection to any of the three legitimate Cherokee governments.
>
> It seems that some groups are aggressively appropriating an American Indian identity. Some are attempting to repatriate the bones of our ancestors to gain legitimacy with other non-Indians. In 1987, the Ohio group did conduct a "reburial ceremony" of remains (probably ancient Shawnee remains)
that were turned over to them by officials of the Scioto County government. The group claimed to have conducted a traditional Cherokee reburial ceremony.
A videotape of news reports chronicles the event including the forty-seven, small caskets that are passed down by women, one to another, into a community burial pit. In the center of the pit, a fire has been built "to smudge" the burial area and the remains as explained by Oliver Collins.
> Collins introduced Hugh Gibbs as the Principal Chief of the Etowah Cherokee Tribe (another bogus group) with whom Tallige Fire claims association. Gibbs oversees the re-interment "ceremony." According to Collins, Mr. Gibbs is a fullblood Cherokee medicine man. During this same time and on videotape, Mr. Collins claimed only to be a member of an amateur genealogical society, but now claims to be the Principal Chief of the Tallige Cherokee Tribe.
> Elmer Kanati Boggs
-----
It's not clear where Allen's statement ends, or if part of the end of statement became Boggs's words again.
Also this:
------
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/thecherokeenationofohio/message/323
Osiyo everyone my name is Matthew Jay Collins. I am writting to you because there are some frauds in Ohio. They are saying there the real Tallige Cherokee Nation this is a lie. There saying that there's
another chief this is a lie. Oliver Collins is the real uku and is not up for realection for four more years. The council heads have not asked him to step down this is another lie. I am letting you know this so that Cherokee people in Ohio are not missled or lied to.
Wado and sta-yu be strong.
-----
The message is dated Apr 16 2003.
littlefeatherspiri:
nope but here is some research for ya.
http://www.portsmouthohio.info/new_page_9.htm
The Columbus Dispatch
June 18, 1986
Indians stand their ground in battle for ancestors
By Mike Harden
It is an unlikely site for a battleground, a tiny swatch of Scioto County land ringed with foxtail and vetch, shadowed by hickory and oak. A few miles west of Portsmouth, just above the Ohio River, it is
the former Site of a county old folks home and the future site of a pair of homes for the mentally retarded. But the controversy broiling about that small patch of real estate deals less with what is to be built on the land than what exists beneath it.
?
The Adena Indians were there, perhaps sometime around the birth of Christ. They were followed, quite likely, by the Ft. Ancient. More recently, it is thought that the Shawnee used the site. For years, the land has been
listed on the Ohio Historical Society’s inventory of archaeological sites, and for years it has been conventional wisdom around Portsmouth that it is an area rich in Indian artifacts.
?
AS RECENTLY as May, artifacts and - so some witnesses claim - human remains from the site were displayed at a local exhibit by Indian artifact collectors.
?
That showing did not escape the attention of one Oliver Collins, a 47-year old medical supply salesman from Portsmouth, but more important, the leader of the Tassel Clan of Cherokee descendants. It was Collins' ancestors, known as the Overhill band of Cherokees, who escaped the infamous "Trail of Tears" expulsion to Oklahoma
by fleeing instead to Kentucky.
?
Some 200 Scioto County residents claim blood lineage to the Cherokee and have launched a fight against Portsmouth attorney and amateur archaeologist David Kuhn who, with the blessing of Scioto County commissioners and the Ohio Historical Society,
is conducting a dig on the disputed land.
?
"How would you like it," Collins asks, "if we dug up your
grandfather to find out how tall he was, how short, what kind of molar damage he had because of poor corn grinding, what kind of clothing he had and jewelry? "It would be as if we came up to Greenlawn Cemetery and started digging up graves. They'd throw us in jail."
?
KUHN SEES the matter in a different light. Of the Cherokee group, he contends, "These people cannot show any direct descent or cultural affinity to these people," to the Indians who once inhabited the site.When asked what the site had yielded, Kuhn suggested that it was little
more than arrowheads, bone tools, some artifacts, referring questions on the issue of human remains to Martha Otto, the Ohio Historical Society’s curator of archaeology. It is the society that issues permits for archaeological exploration and which apparently felt compelled to
ally itself with Kuhn after Scioto County commissioners gave him the green light to dig.
?
Otto acknowledged not only that human remains had been taken from the site, remains which are now in the society's possession, but additionally, "There were some taken out before the dig began. "There have been people picking up stuff from that site for years."
?
The Cherokee group wants it halted. Members have written letters to the local paper, launched a petition drive, solicited the aid of the American Indian Cultural Center in Akron. They want the human remains returned to their burial site. Period.
?
Standing in the midst of the dig Site, Collins protested, "You tell me this is an archaeological dig. This is grave robbery, defilement."
?
So far, the protests of Collins and his Cherokee friends have failed to halt the dig, but they may recently have found an ally in one Bill Ogg, chairman of the Scioto County commissioners. ? SAID OGG, "We don't need anymore Indian skulls in your house or my house," indicating that he supports the re-interment of the
remains once they've been removed from the path of the bulldozers that will excavate the construction site.
?
The final resolution of the matter remains to be seen.
?
Critics of the Cherokee group would seem to suggest that these contemporary protesters cannot speak for the Adena and Ft. Ancient, the Shawnee. Such logic, applied to the clergy today would empty the pulpits of ministers whose legitimacy is based on a spiritual affinity with a prophet 2,000 years dead and to whom they would have some
difficulty tracing their lineage. ? As for the Cherokee protesters, it seems to this observer that they are speaking out for their long dead Indian brethren if only because they are among the few living people
TheRebel:
I have decided to put this here in its whole form.
I live in Ohio the tallige group are fraud(s).
There are some other groups this site is missing.
and yes more fraud groups in ohio.
they are :
Alleghenny Nation (Ohio Band)
Shawnee Nation United Remnant Band
Piqua Sept of Ohio Shawnees
N.E. Miami Inter- Tribal Council
Mekoce Shawnee
Munsee Delaware Nation, USA
Munsee Delaware Indian Nation-USA
Tallige Fire Nation
True East Of The River Free Shawnee
True East Of The River Shawnee
Saponi Nation of Ohio
Fraud groups with hippie type leaders.
Creating Identity at Indian Expense: Public Ignorance, Private Gain
Presented by
Richard L. Allen, Ed.D.
Native Stories and Their Keepers: Telling the Public
Sequoyah Research Center Symposium
University of Arkansas at Little Rock November 15-17, 2001
The sovereignty and Jurisdiction of this Government shall extend over the country within the boundaries above described, and the lands therein are, and shall remain, the common property of the Nation…whenever any…citizen or citizens shall remove with their effects out of the limits of this Nation, and become citizens of any other Government, all their rights and privileges as citizens of this Nation shall cease (Constitution of the Cherokee Nation, 1827).
I believe we should have a monthly Sweat Bath and I believe we should purify, all the Blood, in our Nation's citizens to be truly, Native American and Cherokee AND SOON---We must start calling ourselves Cherokees in today's society. It is time to come out of the closet and make ourselves known to the dominant society--OUT IN PUBLIC! In 1990 when the next United States Census is taken, we must say on the forms that we are Cherokee. We must change our Race on all documents, such as, Drivers License, Social Security Number, Birth Certificates, etc. (Tallige Cherokee Nation Newsletter, ca. 1988).
Whites masqueraded as American Indians during the now infamous Boston Tea Party and on other occasion as noted in the following: "In June, 1776, a British fleet…with a large…military force, attacked Charleston, South Carolina, both by land and sea, and simultaneously a body of Cherokee, led by Tories in Indian disguise, came down from the mountains and ravaged the exposed frontier of South Carolina, killing and burning as they went. After a gallant defense by the garrison of Charleston the British were repulsed, whereupon their Indian and Tory allies withdrew (Mooney, 1982)." Therefore, appropriation of an American Indian identity by non-Indians is not a new phenomenon
However, the more recent phenomenon of non-Indian individuals and groups seeking to establish a new tribe of Cherokee is disconcerting and recent efforts seem more aggressive and somewhat bizarre.
Cherokee people are familiar with those innocuous stories from individuals claiming descent from an American Indian. Most of these individuals are content to share this information and seem to have no idea as to how they might have American Indian ancestry in their family background. So they usually reference that nebulous and fertile Cherokee princess grandmother story that we have all come to know and anticipate.
Vine Deloria, Jr., (1969) was confronted with this issue during his tenure as the Executive Director of the National Congress of American Indians. He states, "It was a rare day when some white didn't visit my office and proudly proclaim the he or she was of Indian descent. Cherokee was the most popular tribe…and many people placed Cherokees anywhere from Maine to Washington State . Mohawk, Sioux, and Chippewa were next in popularity…eventually I came to understand their need to identify as partially Indian and…I would confirm their wildest stories about their Indian ancestry and would add a few tales of my own hoping that they would be able to accept themselves someday and leave us alone."
Cherokees, often hear of grandmother's "high cheek bones" or "dark complexion" (meaning grandma was a brunette) in reference to claims about grandmother being an American Indian. These folk offer similar versions of their claim to Cherokee heritage that sounds something like this: "My great-great-grandmother was a Cherokee Princess; or, claims that they are the descendents of Chief John Ross or Sequoyah. Over the years, the "Cherokee princess" story has provided great sport for members of other tribes. It seems that wherever a Cherokee travels, there always "Cherokee relatives" to be found and it would seem that John Ross, Sequoyah and this nebulous but fertile Cherokee Princess Grandmother were the only Cherokees to procreate.
Non-Indian Individuals making overt claims to American Indian heritage are usually labeled as "wannabes" or "newagers." These terms are often used interchangeably to describe these two groupings, but the terms actually refer to two distinctly different behaviors. It seems that newagers are seeking a different manner of defining themselves spiritually and seem to be drawn to the ritual and ceremony associated with American Indian spirituality. Some wannabes are intent and persistent in their attempt to appropriate American Indian identity and to be recognized as such.
Stepping to the beat of a different drum, so to speak, are the hobbyists (derived from the word hobby). Hobbyists give new meaning to the term "weekend warriors." On weekends, one may find hobbyists dancing at a legitimate intertribal dance or at a hobbyist powwow. A hobbyist powwow is one in which there are no American Indians participating. Hobbyists are known to wear authentic and expensive American Indian regalia usually of the Plains Indian design. On rare occasion, one may observe an individual wearing a turban and hunting jacket fashionable in the 19th century among prominent Cherokees. Portraits of Sequoyah, Spring Frog and George Lowery depict them in this mode of dress. American Indians understand that hobbyists are only playing Indian and usually on weekends. The hobbyists are innocuous, although, sometimes offensive but not unlike grownup Boys Scouts.
IDENTITY AND CULTURAL APPROPRIATION
Individuals seeking to re-invent themselves as Cherokees do so in several ways. Ironically, a blatantly white person is perfectly capable of appropriating an American Indian identity, albeit stereotypical, through a concerted effort. First, one must project an aura or a physical image of an American Indian by dressing in buckskins, beads, turquoise, chokers, feathers, and wearing one's (dyed) hair either in braids or pulled back in a ponytail. It is not likely that any of these folks speak a tribal language so they assume an Indian-sounding name such as Richard "Flies High and Eats Pie" Allen. Once the name has been established, a few Cherokee words mixed with some Lakota will do Osiyo and Mitakuye Ayasin. Thereafter, they may affect an accent or an "Indi'n" way of speaking. Actually more an affectation of Hollywood Indian dialogue reminiscent of Tonto and the Lone Ranger, "Ummh, Kemosabe."
To further develop the image, one must be seen doing Indian-oriented activities, such as: making and/or selling "Indian" arts and crafts or selling tapes of Indian stories usually appropriated from an Indian mythology book. Several "storytellers" favor Myths of the Cherokee and Sacred Formulas of the Cherokees by James Mooney. One must also attend or participate in Indian dances (pow-wows) where everyone is welcome. Others conduct "sacred" ceremonies usually "validated" by the burning of "sacred herbs" such as sage, cedar, tobacco or sweetgrass--called smudging.
Thus, a mythical (mystical also works) "American Indian" identity has been appropriated by design through stereotypical dress, affected and exaggerated Hollywood Indian-English language and Indian-oriented activity. Deloria (p.3) suggest that "(w)hites claiming Indian blood…tend to reinforce mythical beliefs about Indians. All but one person I met who claimed Indian blood claimed it on their grandmother's side...A male ancestor has too much of the aura of the savage warrior, the unknown primitive, the instinctive animal, to make him a respectable member of the family tree. But a young Indian princess? Ah, there was royalty for the taking…And royalty has always been an unconscious but all-consuming goal of the European immigrant."
SHAMANISM
In 1979, it appears that Geary Hobson coined a term "white-shaman" to describe a literary device employed by non-Indian authors and poets that assumed an "Indian personae" that seems to have relevance to a different phenomenon. Hobson (p. 102) defines the term "white-shaman" as a "growing number of small-press poets of generally white, Euro-Christian American background, who in their poems assume a persona of the shaman, usually in the guise of an American Indian medicine man."
In an essay exposing New Age Hucksterism, Churchill (1988) states that "scarcely an Indian in the United States has not been confronted by some hippie-like apparition wishing to teach crystal-healing methods to Navajo grandmothers, claiming to be a
pipe-carrier reincarnated from a seventeenth-century Cheyenne warrior, and usually assumed 'Indian name' like 'Pretty Painted Arrow.' Needless to say, this circumstance has in turn spawned a whole new clot of hucksters such as 'Sun Bear' (Napoleon LaDuke, a Chippewa) who--along with his non-Indian consort cum business manager, 'Wabun' (Marlise James)--has been able to make himself wealthy over the past few years by forming (on the basis of suitable 'membership fees') what he calls 'the Bear Tribe, and the selling of ersatz sweatlodge and medicine wheel ceremonies to anyone who wants to play Indian for a day and can afford the price of admission."
Sun Bear passed from this life in 1992 but an internet search for the Sun Bear Medicine Society, finds a site that offers a variety of services and claims that " the Bear Tribe honors the Native tradition from which Sun Bear came, its cross-cultural teachings are based…(on) the philosophies of worldwide earth cultures as they relate to contemporary society, personal vision, personal responsibility, self-reliance, self-generated ceremony…We strive to achieve this through our programs, books and other items. A 1994 catalog lists ceremonial herbs (sage, sweet grass, tobacco, kinickinick and abalone shells for use with your smudge mix), herbal salves and tinctures; T-shirts; calendars; a Medicine Woman Tarot Set or a Native American Tarot Set; books bearing various topical connections to shamanism, medicine men and women, medicine wheel, sacred ceremonies and sites and so forth. The Bear Tribe is specifically oriented toward non-Indians who have a desire to seek or purchase a different sort of spirituality. This has given rise to speculation among some American Indians that our spirituality is the new frontier.
Churchill points to Carlos Casteneda, Ruth Beebe Hill, Lynn Andrews and Jamake Highwater as classic examples of this "New Age Hucksterism." All have authored books on American Indian subject matter of questionable integrity. Highwater (aka, J. Marks) authored several successful books and produced a PBS documentary before being exposed as a non-Indian.
Ironically, Ward Churchill's claim to membership in the Cherokee Nation or the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians is as questionable as those whom he has skewered.
Churchill has written extensively about American Indians and is the author several books on American Indian subject matter. For years, it has been rumored that Churchill, a co-founder of the Colorado American Indian Movement, is not an American Indian. Several years ago, Churchill was an invited speaker at the Symposium on the American Indian at Northeastern State University , Tahlequah , Oklahoma . Reportedly, he attended a United Keetoowah Band Council meeting at that time and was issued an honorary membership that has given rise to his claim to be a Keetoowah. The Registration Department of the Cherokee Nation indicates that Churchill picked up an enrollment packet from them in 1992 but that it was never returned. The Cherokee Nation has contracted many services offered by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the determination of one's degree of Cherokee blood is one of those services.
The Cherokee Nation is responsible for the issuance of the Certificate of Degree of Indian Blood (CDIB). One must be able to provide documentation that one's ancestor(s) was listed on the Dawes Commission roles prior to seeking membership in either the Cherokee Nation or the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians.
Rose (1992) states that one may find these whiteshaman "at bogus 'medicine wheel' gatherings, ersatz sweatlodge ceremonies, and other fad events using vaguely Indian motifs. You will not usually find them around Indians at genuine Indian events. Even Sun Bear...a Chippewa by 'blood,' admitted to Colorado AIM that he never participated in or attended bona fide native activities. Given the nature of his transgressions against the cultural integrity of his people, he felt--undoubtedly accurately--that he'd be 'unwelcome.'"
Contrary to Rose's statement, one may find wannabe shaman at "pow-wows" or other "Indian" gatherings. American Indians identify these charlatans by their tendency to dress in costumes that are easily recognizable such as Tandy-style buckskins and cheap, gaudy beads. In reality, the image is a stereotypical and pitiful attempt to look like an American Indian. Some attend traditional American Indian ceremonies not only to observe, but for validation among other wannabes where they boldly claim to be "pipe-carriers" and wear all the appropriate accoutrements (tobacco pouch and carry a pipe bag). They may burn sage, sweetgrass, tobacco or cedar in a bogus ceremonial activity they call smudging. Many of the ritualistic mannerisms in these ceremonies are the invention of imagination not recognizable to the tribe with whom these individuals claim affiliation.
For example, at 9:00 A.M. , May 21, 1994 , at Tonkawa , Oklahoma , descendents of Chief Joseph's Band represented by the Nez Perce Veterans Society came to Oklahoma to perform a ceremony. The Nez Perce Veterans memorial service was to honor the members of Chief Joseph's Band that were removed to Indian Territory in the 1870's. Oklahoma tribal leaders and American Indian veterans were invited to this ceremony. As a veteran, I was asked to attend this gathering on behalf of Principal Chief Wilma Mankiller. The invitation noted that the memorial would include "a pipe ceremony." When I arrived, I noted an individual sitting at the head table wearing a turban-like headpiece with feathers attached here and there with matching ribbon shirt (somewhat similar to 19th Century Cherokee dress), a tobacco or medicine pouch hanging from his neck onto his chest and a plains-style pipe in front of him on the table. Later, he introduced himself as "Two Rabbits, a Cherokee spiritual leader, pipe-carrier and member of the Bear clan."
After the ceremony, I confronted him about his claim of being a Cherokee spiritual leader, pipe-carrier and member of the Bear clan as not true. He stammered something about being given these rights as a spiritual leader by his great-great grandmother who was from " Alabama or Tennessee or Kentucky , he really wasn't sure." Upon further inquiry, he stated that he was not "referring to membership in the family clans but the 'medicine clan' of the Cherokee." Contrary to "Mr. Two Rabbits" statement, traditional Cherokees come from the various "family clans," there are no special "medicine clans." Cherokee traditionalists do not refer to themselves as "pipe-carriers" nor would a Cherokee carry a plains-style pipe. Incidentally, the pipe he introduced into the ceremony could not be lighted, so it was passed from one American Indian veteran to another until it had completed the circle. Thus, the ceremony to honor the Nez Perce was infiltrated by a white shaman who presented himself as a pipe carrier. (Allen, 1994).
Just about every American Indian tribe has used the sweat lodge for spiritual, ceremonial or social activity at some time or another. Sweat lodge usage would differ from tribe to tribe. The sweat lodge as a contemporary form of therapy in alcohol and substance abuse treatment programs has gained acceptance. Thus, for American Indians seeking either an alternative or to augment the twelve-step program of Alcoholics Anonymous, the sweat lodge serves a very useful purpose. Thereby, the sweat lodge has gained a renewed status as an experiential and spiritual form of therapy among American Indian treatment programs. Sweat lodge activities have appeared on the agenda of several national Indian health conferences and at mental health conferences hosted by non-Indians.
However, as noted earlier, there are those who would conduct ersatz sweat lodge ceremonies for a price and many are non-Indian. Traditional Indians do not conduct spiritual ceremonies for personal profit nor do they train non-Indians to conduct spiritual ceremonies or give them the authority to do so. In other words, American Indian spirituality cannot be purchased nor can rights to conduct such ceremony be delegated.
THE SECOND COMING OF THE NEW INDIAN MEDICINE SHOW
Miscegenation results in offspring of varying shades of skin color and, in America , the diversity of racial and ethnic combinations is a reality. Historically, "passing" refers to the process by which a member of one ethnic community passes (poses) as a member of different ethnic community. It commonly referred to one who identified or accepted identification as a white person although also having a black ancestry. It is also notable that some mixed-blood, tri-racial Indians-Blacks-Whites simply passed for white by claiming to be "black Irish" or "black Dutch." Thus, any features such as dark hair and complexion could be explained away.
However, the recent phenomenon of non-Indians masquerading as American Indians seems not to have its basis in miscegenation It appears that non-Indian people posed as American Indian medicine people as in the "Indian medicine shows" and the vending of "snake oil" in the early nineteenth century. Vogel (1970) states that the "most dramatic promotional stunt in the vending of alleged Indian remedies was the medicine show, which once ranked with the circus and the Chautauqua as a seasonal relief to the monotony of small-town existence....these spectacles toured the country with bands of 'real live Indians'....Audiences were treated to an exhibition of 'war dances' and other sights of the 'wild west,' followed by speeches of glib pitchmen offering for sale 'genuine' native medicines."
Folk medicine developed over the years and endures in most societies. Many of the immigrants brought folk beliefs and medicines to these shores some of which are still employed in America . Vogel (p.127) notes that European "folk practices reveal much that is traceable to medieval witchcraft cults. Moreover, many of the formulas to be recited to ward off bad fortune or bring good luck, or to cure ailments, are simply prayers. So are the sacred formulas of the Cherokee, with the only real difference being in the name of the deity to whom the prayers are addressed."
A news story carried in Indian Country Today (August 21, 1995) underscores the harm that can come from these charlatans pretending to be American Indian healers. In his article, Melmer reports that a Wilkes-Barre , Pennsylvania man who claimed to be a medicine or holy man was convicted of indecent assault and corruption of a minor while performing a ceremony. It seems that "David Two Wolves Smith headed a group that he initiated called the "Eastern Intertribal Alliance of Native Americans." Melmer reports that Smith was convicted of ordering a 12-year-old girl to remove her bathing suit while he performed a cleansing ceremony using sage water Indian Country Today gathered evidence that refuted Smith's claims to be either a medicine or holy man and even to his alleged tribal affiliation.
It seems that some non-Indians do re-invent themselves as American Indians and assume new identities. As mentioned previously, a first step is the assumption of romanticized (Anglicized) versions of American Indian-sounding names such as David "Two Wolves" Smith. Smith admitted to holding the girl during this activity. The tragedy, here, is that this young girl will always believe that she was sexually assaulted by an American Indian medicine man a holy person.
TRIBE, CULT, OR 501 (C) (3) INCORPORATION
The Cherokee Nation receives numerous reports of individuals and groups who claim to be descendants of a "lost band, clan or a whole new tribe of Cherokee." Many claim to be descended from Cherokees who escaped the forced removal and were hidden by sympathetic white people. Here is where they seem to stretch the story a little as they "are just now making this known, publicly." What was once an individual charade has now become a group endeavor and group members identify with a bogus clan or band of the Cherokee. Others re-invent themselves through historic research and make claims to be descended from Cherokees who escaped the trail of tears or that they are a band of Cherokee who removed themselves from the Cherokee country in the early eighteenth century and have been forgotten by all other Cherokees.
A group that identifies as the Southeastern Cherokee Confederacy and has a membership that extends throughout several southeastern states invents new and interesting clans that have never been a part of the Cherokee clan system. Gaile Fee, a Kentucky woman, calls herself "Dark Wind." She claims to be the chief of the Otter Band of the Southeastern Cherokee Confederacy. A witness for David "Two Wolves" Smith identified himself as "Eagle Eye" Ragland and member of the Spotted Pony Band of the Southeastern Cherokee Confederacy.
Although, these individuals and groups attempt to "legitimatize" themselves to gain the recognition of local or state government, seldom do they approach a legitimate tribal government. In rare instances, they may approach a tribal government, but usually in an effort to seek legitimacy by association. The Cherokee Nation has received letters requesting mentoring from such groups; others groups have come to the Cherokee Nation wishing to be introduced in council meetings; and, more recently the internet allows them immediate correspondence with the Cherokee Nation.
A group in Ohio provides an excellent example of how these groups are proceeding to appropriate the identity and culture of American Indians. In a document entitled "A Talking Leaf from the Principal Chief" to members who have called themselves "The Tallige Fire Association, Inc.; "The Tallige Fire Cherokee Nation;" and, now, "The Tallige Cherokee Tribe," their leader states: "We must start calling ourselves Cherokees in today's society. It is time to come out of the closet and make ourselves known to the dominant society--OUT IN PUBLIC! In 1990 when the next United States Census is taken, we must say on the forms that we are Cherokee. We must change our Race on all documents, such as, Drivers License, Social Security Number, Birth Certificates, etc."
Hagan (1993) suspects that the dramatic increase of individuals claiming to be American Indian since the 1960 census is not only the result of self-identification but that "census figures have been inflated by the 'wannabes,' those claiming to be Indian with no apparent justification. Some are motivated by the hope of financial gain, but probably most seek some psychological benefit by identifying with an ethnic group now being portrayed in a favorable manner. Even more of these ersatz Indians will emerge as the success of Dances with Wolves encourages Hollywood to produce more movies romanticizing Native Americans."
It seems that some groups are aggressively appropriating an American Indian identity. Some are attempting to repatriate the bones of our ancestors to gain legitimacy with other non-Indians. In 1987, the Ohio group did conduct a "reburial ceremony" of remains (probably ancient Shawnee remains) that were turned over to them by officials of the Scioto County government. The group claimed to have conducted a traditional Cherokee reburial ceremony. A videotape of news reports chronicles the event including the forty-seven, small caskets that are passed down by women, one to another, into a community burial pit. In the center of the pit, a fire has been built "to smudge" the burial area and the remains as explained by Oliver Collins. Collins introduced Hugh Gibbs as the Principal Chief of the Etowah Cherokee Tribe (another bogus group) with whom Tallige Fire claims association. Gibbs oversees the re-interment "ceremony." According to Collins, Mr. Gibbs is a fullblood Cherokee medicine man. During this same time and on videotape, Mr. Collins claimed only to be a member of an amateur genealogical society, but now claims to be the Principal Chief of the Tallige Cherokee Tribe.
The Cherokee Nation Council Members received a letter dated September 5, 1995 from an Elmer Boggs, Public Relations, of this same Ohio group that call themselves the Tallige Cherokee Tribe. Mr. Boggs' letter is reminiscent of Hollywood dialogue: "Greetings Tribal Council Members and Brothers and Sisters, We come in peace." He explains that there are "some very scandalous rumors... circulating... about our organization...But we, the Cherokee people are the first to be doubted, as our history shows, even from our own people." Boggs included a denial of any affiliation with the "Loyal Shawnee of Oklahoma , The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, or the Cherokee Nation of Cherokee, North Carolina ." He notes that "The Tallige Cherokee Nation was formally started in 1972 with just a handful of people...incorporated in February of 1988 as The Tallige Fire Association, Inc. We are a non-profit 501 (C) (3) organization....One of our goals is Federal recognition."
In 1978, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) published the "Procedure for Establishing That An American Indian Group Exists as an Indian Tribe." The BIA created the Branch of Acknowledgement and Research to implement the regulations. The regulations for the Federal acknowledgement process are codified under 25 CFR Part 83. During the twenty-three years that this process has been in existence, there have been nearly as many hearings to provide oversight of this process. Understandably, Congress wants a tangible outcome for the money invested. In essence, Congress wants to know why more tribes have not been acknowledged than have been. The Federal acknowledgement process places the burden for proving that a group is an Indian tribe is on the petitioning group. The petitioning group has to prove without a doubt that they are a legitimate tribal entity based on the criteria established in 25 CFR Part 83.
Regardless, this Ohio group has created an identity that is bogus and did apply for ANA funds. Jonathan Taylor, former Principal Chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee opposed funding in a letter addressed to the Administration for Native Americans. In this same letter, Taylor repudiated the group calling themselves the Etowah Cherokee Nation for questionable fund-raising activities. Hugh Gibbs claims to be the principal chief of the Etowah Cherokee Nation and is known to have sold membership in his group.
The 1980 census lists 43 individuals claiming to be Etowah Cherokees. Additionally, there were 78 individuals whom were listed as Tuscola Cherokees. Neither of these groups is listed in the 1990 census. However, of particular interest are the 3,591 individuals who sprang from nowhere to become the Echota Cherokees. The group is active in the southeast and particularly in Alabama . The ultimate irony is that even though American Indians do not accept or acknowledge these groups and despise their attempts to emulate real American Indian people, white people readily accept them because they dress and act these stereotypical roles as perpetuated by Hollywood .
Hill and Lujan (1984) discuss the implication of externally imposed stereotypes as perpetuated by Hollywood . "With no single image to draw upon, the dominant culture has often simply stereotyped all tribes. A major contributor to the perpetuation of these stereotypes has been the film industry. Its romanticized versions of the American Indian provide a surrogate identity which, in turn, creates a frustrating dilemma for the individual…In reality, one's tribal affiliation provides a true source of identity, but this may bring the individual into conflict with other tribal identities or create an impression of being something less than a real Indian."
LEGITIMATE CHEROKEE GOVERNMENT
The undersigned Chiefs and Warriors, for themselves and all parts of the Cherokee nation, do acknowledge themselves and the said Cherokee nation, to be under the protection of the said United States of America, and no other sovereign whosoever; and they also stipulate that the said Cherokee nation will not hold any treaty with any foreign power, individual state, or with individuals of any state (Treaty of Holston, 1791).
It is evident that Congress guarded against both foreign and state encroachment and clearly specified that the Cherokee Nation never to "hold any treaty" with any sovereign government but the United States . Clearly the Congress holds plenary power to acknowledge Indian nations & emdash; a power not shared with foreign countries nor delegated to individual states
Cherokee history is well documented. The Cherokee people have a language and cultural attributes that are clearly derived from an ancient ancestry. We know who we are.
The Cherokee people have always had a good laugh when confronted with an individual who claims descent from a Cherokee princess grandmother, what was once laughable is now serious and may constitute an attack on tribal sovereignty. Any claim to being a new band or clan of the Cherokee tribe is met with skepticism and derision. Numerous individuals and groups ranging over 33 states have claimed to be members of some sort of "Cherokee tribe."
The Cherokee Nation was removed into Indian Territory in 1838-39. We know that there were Cherokees who escaped into the mountains of North Carolina and joined with those Cherokees exempted from the removal. They are now organized as the Eastern Band of Cherokee.
The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee derived from within the Cherokee Nation and received federal recognition under the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act of 1936. Thus, there are only three legitimate Cherokee tribal governments in the United States .
These three Cherokee Tribes separated by geography or politics do have a common ancestry, social interaction and history. It has been over one hundred-sixty years since the Cherokees were forcibly removed to Indian Territory . For anyone to believe that any Cherokee group escaped the removal and stayed isolated for that long is ludicrous. There are no "lost Cherokee." One may as well suggest that they have been hiding in the "Lost Valley of Ganges" along with several prehistoric dinosaurs and Richard Boone.
CHEROKEE NATION CITIZENSHIP
On July 12, 1839 , in an Act of Union, the Cherokees re-unite in Indian Territory bringing together those Cherokees (Western Cherokees) who had removed to the Indian Territory under the provisions of the treaties of 1817 and 1819 between the United States and the Cherokee Nation. The Western Cherokee had become a separate community from the main body of the Cherokee Nation (Eastern Cherokees), but the treaties were with the "whole Cherokee Nation" and not separate entities.
The Act of Union states that "Whereas our Fathers have existed, as a separate and distinct Nation, in the possession and exercise of the essential and appropriate attributes of sovereignty, from a period extending into antiquity, beyond the records of memory of man: And WHEREAS these attributes, with the rights and franchises which they involve, remain still in full force and virtue, as do also the national and social relations of the Cherokee people to each other and to the body politic…Therefore, we, the people composing the Eastern and Western Cherokee Nation, in National Convention assembled, by virtue of our original and unalienable rights, do hereby solemnly and mutually agree to form ourselves into one body politic, under the style and title of the Cherokee Nation.
The Constitution of the Cherokee Nation, 1839, adopted in the Indian Territory was formulated on the previous Constitution of 1827 with minor revision. Cherokee citizenship addressed in Section 2 of the Constitution of 1827 was reiterated in the 1839 constitution: The sovereignty and Jurisdiction of this Government shall extend over the country within the boundaries above described, and the lands therein are, and shall remain, the common property of the Nation…whenever any…citizen or citizens shall remove with their effects out of the limits of this Nation, and become citizens of any other Government, all their rights and privileges as citizens of this Nation shall cease (Constitution of the Cherokee Nation, 1827). Thereafter, the Cherokee National Council did pass several legislative acts regarding citizenship within the Cherokee Nation. The Constitution of 1839 served the Cherokee Nation into the turn of the century when the federal government attempted to terminate the Cherokee Nation with the Dawes Severalty Act of 1887 and the Curtis Act of 1898. In other words, the Cherokee are well aware of their own history and form of governance.
On the 13th day of March, 2000, the Cherokee National Council adopted Resolution No 14-00 that establishes the following policy:
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CHEROKEE NATION, that as a matter of policy the Cherokee Nation shall not endorse, acquiesce or support for federal or state recognition any other group, association or club which identify themselves as a separate tribal identity for purpose of having a government to government relationship because of Cherokee ancestry.
Resolution No 14-00 was adopted by the Cherokee National Council to establish policy in response to the numerous individuals and entities claiming to be a new Cherokee tribe, clan or association. Many state that they are "lost clans or tribes" and that they are seeking federal recognition.
CONCLUSION/COMMENTS
American Indians can agree that there has been a significant level of increase in the activities of "wannabes" and "new agers" over the past few years. It does appear that some of those who claim to be "Indian" are aggressively seeking means of authentication. Some of these bogus groups have succeeded in duping non-Indian officials of state government. In fact, the state of Georgia did create three such "Indian tribes" through state legislation. The group in Ohio calling themselves the Tallige Fire Association claim to have been recognized by the Scioto County government as well as a resolution acknowledging this group from the state of Ohio. State recognition opens the door to certain federal funding and/or minority status as "American Indians" in seeking contracts and business ventures.
The state of Georgia was particularly active and successful in getting the United States to enforce the removal of the Cherokee from within its boundaries. It is particularly ironic for the state of Georgia to create (through legislation) new "Cherokee tribes."
State recognition as it is now interpreted and manipulated by groups seeking federal acknowledgement is a subversive attack on the sovereignty of legitimate tribal nations and governments.
REFERENCES
Allen, R. L (May 21, 1994). Personal Experience.
Bear Tribe Catalog (1994), PO Box 1950 , El Prado , New Mexico , 87529
Boggs, Elmer. in letter addressed to the Cherokee Tribal Council Members dated September 5, 1995 .
Churchill, W. (1988). A little matter of genocide: Native American spirituality & new age hucksterism. The Bloomsbury Review, vol. 8, no.5, 23-24.
Hagan, W.T. (1993). American Indians. 3rd Edition. University of Chicago Press: Chicago .
Hill, L. B. & P. Lujan (1984). Symbolicity among Native Americans. Journal of Thought, 19, 109-121.
Hobson, G. (1979). "The rise of the white shaman as the new version of cultural imperialism." In Geary Hobson (Ed.), The Remembered Earth. Red Earth Press: Albuquerque .
Melmer, D. (1995). "Self-declared 'medicine man' convicted of indecent assault." Indian Country Today, August 21, 1995 . Tim Giago, Editor, Rapid City , SD 57701 .
Mooney, J. (1887-90). Myths of the Cherokee and sacred formulas of the Cherokees. Reproduced in 1982 by Elders Publishing: Nashville .
Rose, W. (1992). "The great pretenders: Further reflections on whiteshamanism." In M.A. Jaimes, (Ed.), The State of Native America . South End Press: Boston .
Tallige Cherokee Nation Newsletter, 2023 Scioto Trail, Portsmouth Ohio , 45662 . A Talking Leaf From the Principal Chief.
Taylor, Jonathan L., Principal Chief, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Letter dated October 25, 1989, to Gladdis Addison, Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Native Americans, 200 Independence Ave. SW, HHH Building F Corridor, Washington, DC 20201.
Treaty of Holston , 1791 http://digital.library.okstate.edu/kappler/Vol2/treaties/che0029.htm
U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census--1980 and 1990.
Vogel, V. J. (1970). American Indian medicine. University of Oklahoma Press: Norman .
Appendix 1
ENTITIES IN ARKANSAS SEEKING STATE OR FEDERAL RECOGNITION
Appendix 2
ENTITIES SEEKING FEDERAL RECOGNITION AS CHEROKEE
educatedindian:
Thanks for the article. For the other groups we should start a separate thread for each. Have you or someone you know gone through experiences with these groups?
More comments I found on the Tallige.
http://forum.americanindiantribe.com/viewtopic.php?t=1786&start=0
"somedudenohio: it should say preserve the $$$$$$$$$$$ we make off of somebody's dead relatives we have locked in a box in the basement while the public really believes we reinterned the remains.
bones: plus the spelling."
Pretty serious charge if they're being deceptive about ancestors remains. Does anyone know anything more on this? And could a Cherokee member explain about the spelling?
http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:wRgBQ-Bp_2UJ:terriobrienmenke.efoliomn2.com/vertical/Sites/%257BCF5CDF65-BE8C-4F5B-B41A-3AE593DC9F26%257D/uploads/%257B8B7F7ED5-1E6D-48E7-81F4-6A728A26F52E%257D.DOC+%22tallige+cherokee%22+fraud&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=us
"Elmer Boggs, who “switched his identification after he began to research his genealogy??? is one example:
Ten years ago, Elmer Boggs was white. His birth certificate said so, his military records said so, all the census forms he ever filled out said so. If pressed about ethnicity, he said his family was from Kentucky. Today he is Kanati, Chief of the Panther clan of the Tallige Cherokee Nation, certified on his membership card to have “a C. I. B. D. (certified Indian blood degree of 4/64).??? (PARR Issue, 1992, Winter/Spring, p. 10)"
http://beadermansdealings.blogspot.com/
"Tallige Cherokee Nation History
The Tallige Cherokee Nation was formally started in 1972 and we have been increasing in number since. Incorporated in February 1988 as The Tallige Fire Association, Inc., we are a
non-profit 501(C)(3) organization
We are now recognized by Scioto County and as an Ohio band of Cherokee Indians by the State of Ohio, a copy of the "Resolution" from The Ohio Senate is on file at our office for anyone wishing to view it.
We are best known as the Ohio Cherokee Tribe who in July 1987 reburied the remains of 47 of our ancestors who were dug up from our Sacred Mound at the site of the old County Home here in Scioto County, Ohio. The remains were returned to us by the Scioto County Commissioners.
We do not get any help from the government, such as grants, etc. We are a self determining, self sustaining Organization and rely on our festivals and contributions from our members and interested people from all over. All donations are tax deductible.
Prenipple Chief Olliver Collins is da man in charge,but look at this.
Also included is a Forged Mohawk Council letterhead by William Taylor. Sent to us by the Mohawk Council themselves. Where Taylor was selling Mohawk cards.
Part of the Canadian Newspaper stating the fraud by William Taylor and others, where they turned it over to the FBI in the U.S. is also included here.
I am sure that many of you will recognize the names:
Norbert Johnsons:
Calvin Hall
Oliver Collins
Indeed I recognise all 3 of the names,funny how all 3 wiggle their way into positions here in ohio
Source:http://www.georgiatribeofeasterncherokeeechotafire.com/"
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