An effort to achieve federal recognition for six Virginia Indian tribes has started to wind its way through Congress again. Supporters in the state have failed to get the legislation passed for decades.
When Virginia was settled more than four hundred years ago, the settlers found the region was already populated with Native Americans. Those tribes aren’t recognized by the US government even though they’re recognized by the British crown, as Virginia Democratic Senator Tim Kaine explains.
“The Virginia tribes - they made peace with their neighbors too soon so all their treaties were with the English by 1677. The Virginia tribes were all in peace treaties with the English so much so when they went to England they were treated with a great deal of respect but because they didn't do treaties with the United States that normal beginning point for federal recognition does not apply in their case.”
The other reason the tribes aren’t recognized today is because of an official state policy that tried to wipe the record of their existence. In 1912 Walter Plecker was charged with overseeing the state’s statistics and Kaine says he destroyed most of the record of the state’s Native American heritage.
“So there was systematic over 40 years effort to change all the records from "we are Virginia Indians" to "we are colored". And the changing of those records has made it very difficult for the Indians to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and entitlement to recognition presumed to that administrative process.”
Senator Kaine and Virginia’s other Democratic Senator Mark Warner are both former governors, which Warner says makes them proud of the state’s rich history while also acutely aware of the black marks on its record.
“There are also things that Virginia has done that, quite honestly, we should be embarrassed about. Part of that was…part of it as well was back in the 20s when the Virginia General Assembly said to people that you can choose to be White or African-American, and gave no ability for folks who are native Americans to even signify their heritage and the records that were kept all were burned down in fire.”
One Virginia tribe is set to find out their status sooner than the rest. The Pamunkey Tribe which hails from the southeastern part of the state boasts Pocahontas as an ancestor. They’ve met all the requirements for federal recognition set by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, but they still face opposition from gambling interests, specifically the MGM casino, which fears gambling in the southern part of Virginia could imperil their casino venture just outside Northern Virginia. The bureau is scheduled to announce the decision on March 30th or 31st. Virginia Republican Congressman Morgan Griffith says MGM shouldn’t have any say.
“I don't know who it is, I don't know if he is a Democrat or Republican, I just read that there's a billionaire casino. Wait a minute, wait a minute - does he live in Virginia? And why is he opposed to it? Well, he's opposed to it because he doesn't want competition. That is not why you should make a decision on whether the tribe ought to be recognized or not.”
The US Senate Indian Affairs Committee has passed the bill to recognize Virginia’s tribes. The problem for the tribes who are fighting for recognition is that the House has already passed the bill in a different Congress, which has House leaders waiting for the Senate to act. Virginia Republican Congressman Rob Wittman is pushing a companion version of the legislation in the lower chamber.
“So I think for it to be able to work is through the Senate for us to be able to make sure that we're matching their efforts -- is a good way to go. It assures that as we go down the road we're not putting a bill out that is going to sit there and limbo for a while.”
That increases pressure on the Senate to act. In the past Oklahoma Republican Senator Tom Coburn held the bill up because he was worried the finite resources allocated to all tribes would be stretched even thinner if the Virginia tribes were recognized. But Wittman says that shouldn’t be a concern.
“But these tribes are so small, this is not about accessing the federal aspects of money that would be available to them. It's really about the recognition. Remember, historically these were first tribes to reach a peace treaty with the western world. So that actually peace treaties with the King of England but because the law says that tribes are only eligible if they reached a peace treaty with the United States. So they were some of the first to reach peace and they get penalized for it.”
Even if the Pamunkey are recognized soon, the other five tribes will still be waiting on Congress.
