July 16, 1998
The Part-Cherokee President
By RICHARD WILLIAMS
DENVER - In a televised panel discussion on race last week,
President Clinton announced that he is part Cherokee -- his
grandmother was a quarter Indian. That makes him one-sixteenth Indian.
The news was as much a surprise to the two million Native Americans as it
must have been to the Federal prosecutors who thought they knew
everything about Clinton's personal life. Did we elect the first American
Indian President and not even know it?
Under some enrollment rules of the nation's 554 tribes, Clinton might qualify
for membership. Of course, it's more complicated than that. Being an
American Indian in the 1990's is always complicated.
I believe President Clinton means well. Indeed, he said the nation must "fess
up" to its history of mistreating Indians and do something about it. In fact,
change is already under way in Indian country. Far from dying out, Indians
are among the nation's fastest-growing populations. So long as the
Government honors its commitments, tribes will determine their destinies
like never before. In the past 30 years, for example, Indians have founded
30 colleges to provide renewal for the Americans who need it most.
Now, if President Clinton, like many citizens, wishes to restore his Indian
heritage, he should consult the Cherokee tribes -- the Eastern Band in
North Carolina and the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma. Each has its own
rules for membership based mostly on tracing the tribal status of ancestors.
Belonging to a tribe, however, is about much more than a fraction of blood.
(The Government actually forced this standard upon tribes.) It is about
keeping traditions alive and being responsible for our people. The needs are
so great that members cannot be "part Indian." That would be like my
telling my children that I'm a part-time father.
My tribe, the Oglala Lakota Sioux, describes our shared responsibility with
the words "mitakuye oyasin." It means "we are all related." If Clinton would
like to consider himself fully an Indian, we will open our arms and look
forward to what our new relative can do for Indian America.
Richard Williams is executive director of the American Indian College
Fund.
nytimes.com
What next? Will be claim to be an Indian chief? Do you think he just can't help but lie?
Didn't someone post that Clinton's atrributed father could not have been his actual father, making him a genuine "bastard"? Do you have that reference? |
