About

Currently created and curated for University of Arkansas “Law and Literature” course.

I have chosen the Cherokee people and their land ties because this tale has always generated a special interest for me. I come from one of those Southern families that claim Indian heritage, more specifically Cherokee. My mother tells me her grandfather was half Native American or so; however, I believe the Cherokee part is thrown in there for fun. Many people claim such an ancestor, but I chose to believe my God-fearing mother is telling the truth. So, every year when it became time to tell the tale of the Cherokee in school, I listened intently.

Before this course, I had not thought so extensively upon which land the Cherokee felt to be their home. I knew they must be angry about their forced move and the deadly Trail of Tears. But their march across the South occurred in 1838. A large portion of the Cherokee tribe has lived in Indian Territory/Oklahoma for nearly 175 years. Has that been enough time to resettle, to stretch out, and to claim a cultural bound to a new land? Have those Cherokee laid out a new organic jurisdiction within the parameters of the synthetic jurisdiction laid out for them?

Now living in NW Arkansas with Oklahoma a hop away, I am bombarded with commercials touting the Cherokee and their second homeland as a prime travel destination. I find the commercialization of this tribe by the state of Oklahoma troubling. Oklahoma license plates proudly state ‘Native America’ as if a people forced to live within Oklahoma’s state boundaries give them significant Indian credibility and authenticity. Here is a video (produced by OK Tourism & Recreation) detailing Oklahoma Indian history: OK Native America