Much of Tulsa, the state’s second-largest city, is located on Muscogee (Creek) land. In a decision being hailed as a win for tribal sovereignty, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a large portion of eastern Oklahoma remains a reservation.In the 5-4 decision, the nation’s highest court said Congress never explicitly “disestablished” the 1866 boundaries of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation.“Today we are asked whether the land these treaties promised remains an Indian reservation for purposes of federal criminal law. Something he compares to one state taking power from another. Free Genealogy Search! “You know, that the court recognized that what happened to us was wrong but it’s time to make it right.”The case has long kept Indian Country in suspense through two Supreme Court terms.John Echohawk, Pawnee and executive director of the Native American Rights Fund, said the tribe endured a long and hard fight to protect their homelands.“In holding the federal government to its treaty obligations, the U.S. Supreme Court put to rest what never should have been at question,” Echohawk said.

While the reservation has been diminished over time, it was never explicitly disestablished.“Yes, promises were made, but the price of keeping them has become too great, so now we should just cast a blind eye. There is also a MCN Community in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (not shown). “It’s routine. “Creek Nation has a long history of working with its local, state, and federal partners to protect the interests of all people in its boundaries and the clarity brought by today’s positions will only enhance that,” he said. But Gorsuch indicated that so far, no signs of major consequences had emerged.In the opinion, Gorsuch wrote that the federal government promised the Muscogee (Creek) Nation a reservation in perpetuity.

We reject that thinking. As the Chief, I very much believe that collaboration between federal, state, and tribal governments is critical and necessary following the Supreme Court’s decision in McGirt. “The State of Oklahoma giving up its right to govern itself to say, Texas, which would be shocking,” Gifford said. “We congratulate the Nation on its success.”Fawn Sharp, Quinault and president of the National Congress of American Indians, joined much of Indian Country in voicing support and congratulations to the tribe for their historic court win. And the fact that they haven’t been doing that for the last 100 years just shows us that a lot of people weren’t following the law, which is not unusual in Indian law.”Anderson added he felt Gorsuch was the swing vote among the nine justices.Anderson added that Gorsuch, with his time served on the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, and Sotomayor, through her own interest and undertaking, are the two justices with the most background and experience in federal Indian law.At the time, Anderson said they most likely would have some sort of influence over their colleagues.“It’s just human nature to defer to somebody to some degree who’s an expert in an area, I would hope, even on the Supreme Court,” Anderson said. A map, from a Supreme Court exhibit, showing the pre-statehood area of present-day Oklahoma, with the eastern portion then called “Indian Territory.” Because Congress has not said otherwise, we hold the government to its word,” according to the majority opinion written by Justice Neil Gorsuch.Gorsuch was joined in the majority by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan.SCOTUS reaffirmed what we’ve always known: Treaties are the supreme Law of the Land.

Custom Service Can Be Reached at 800-937-4451, +1-206-842-0216, or by Mail At YES! The Muscogee Nation cheered the court’s decision. LEGEND Boundary of M(C)N Territory 'N Community Centers Interstate Highway Oklahoma State … Officials say the organization was moving large quantities of methamphetamine and cocaine into Anadarko and Chickasha.OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – Health officials say four more Oklahoma counties have climbed into the ‘moderate’ risk category for the spread of COVID-19 compared to last week.The Oklahoma COVID-19 Alert System is designed to give community members and local officials a method by which they can recognize and communicate COVID-19 risk levels in each county and guide health behaviors. OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – Following a recent decision by the United States Supreme Court regarding tribal land in Oklahoma, there seems to be a back-and-forth battle between tribal and state leaders.On July 9, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that the Muscogee (Creek) reservation was never disestablished. The former Chief of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation was sentenced to 12 months and 1 day in prison for his part in a bribery scheme. If Congress wishes to withdraw its promises, it must say so. “Promises were made,” Justice Gorsuch said in upholding Creek Nation jurisdiction over half of Oklahoma. Roberts filed the dissenting opinion, joined by Alito and Kavanaugh, and Thomas also filed his own.Roberts wrote that the decision is not warranted and took the view that over the years, Congress disestablished the Creek reservation through a series of statutes leading up to Oklahoma statehood.“What has gone unquestioned for a century remains true today: A huge portion of Oklahoma is not a Creek Indian reservation,” Roberts wrote.At the May hearing in the case, several justices raised concerns that a ruling in favor of the tribe could have broad jurisdictional ramifications on things such as taxes and other criminal cases. He is serving a 500-year prison sentence and could potentially be retried in federal court.Ian Gershengorn, one lawyer who argued on behalf of the tribe in the May hearing, said in an emailed statement to “The Supreme Court reaffirmed today that when the United States makes promises, the courts will keep those promises,” Gershengorn said.

With this in mind, Prof. Cathleen D. Cahill, a historian who has written about Native suffragists, joined Prof. Sarah Deer, a scholar of Native law and a citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation… “Congress persuaded the Creek Nation to walk the Trail of Tears with promises of a reservation—and the Court today correctly recognized that this reservation endures.”Robert Anderson, a law professor at the University of Washington School of Law, said in the larger scope of things the biggest changes will come in the future with the application of the Indian Child Welfare Act and the federal government prosecuting more cases.“That’s what [federal prosecutors] do in Indian Country all the time.