Oklahoma And Tribal Lands

[tumbling.dice]

On July 9th the US Supreme Court, in a case involving a rape conviction, effectively ruled that about half of the state of Oklahoma is reservation land. The decision doesn't immediately affect private property owners or oil producers but prevents Oklahoma from bringing criminal charges against Native Americans in the eastern part of the state.

Much of what is now Oklahoma had been promised to indigenous people in exchange for them being forced from their homes in the 1830's. The Indian Removal Act affected approximately 60,000 people from the Cherokee, Creek, Seminole, Chickasaw and Choctaw nations, along with their African slaves. The majority opinion said that a promise from Congress had guaranteed the Creek tribe land for a permanent home in what became Oklahoma in exchange for forcing them from their ancestral lands in Georgia and Alabama.

The decision could have regulatory and tax implications for the oil industry; Oklahoma is the 4th largest US crude oil producer. The Five Tribes and the state issued a joint statement on Thursday saying that they were working together on a framework of shared jurisdiction to “support public safety, our economy and private property rights.”



https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/09/us/supreme-court-oklahoma-mcgirt-creek-nation.html

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-oil-court-oklahoma/supreme-court-ruling-on-oklahoma-tribal-land-raises-questions-for-oil-industry-idUSKBN24B2TM

[WritersPanic]

I've tried to figure what the impact of this will be. Since the supreme court is involved it seems like some kind of major national issue, but it's not. It's just a single trial regarding a rape suspect. All this will do is trigger an audit of the land deals that occurred after these treaties went into effect. Probably in the thousands. When all of this happened western and midwestern land was a hot commodity and translated into gold readily.

I've seen all kinds of speculation particularly with regard to US territory. Don't forget, this dispute is also on land from the Louisiana Purchase. And it gets even more sinister when you consider the relocation's purpose was largely to benefit wealthy agricultural interests that exist to this day in Georgia, Florida and Alabama where so many of these people were from.

Some of the yammering heads are suggesting that this will be the mechanism for "finally" dismantling the US and turning it into balkanized nations. A pragmatic plan for the wealthy since they will be able to gobble up all the good property and leave the rest of the US to the serfs. So far only 6% of the land comprising the US is developed. But, a lot of it will likely never see any improvements and will remain natural.

With over 300 reservations in the US, I have to wonder what happened between the designation of these Oklahoma territories as Indian nations, and the formation of the reservations. I say this because the part of Oklahoma in question is not exactly great land for anyone beyond the oil (6th largest reserves in the nation), and the mineral rights were sold off long ago.

Personally, I hope they are successful in taking over every inch of this. Any non-native families who can claim ownership back to the 19th century should be evicted to remove the taint entirely and restore the original promise. The others are another matter. If everyone is evicted, the areas in question will be immediately plunged into an economic depression with little chance of turning it around unless a LOT of Native people decide to move there. Regardless of the plan though the oil companies will continue to be necessary if there's any idea of using the oil to bolster the economy (which is really the only choice unless they plan to go back to living off the land).

But it's not unusual for sovereign nations to hire oil companies to help them reach the reserves. What the Native Americans should be doing right now is keeping an eye on oil production. If the oil companies are spooked, there will be many capped wells opened and emptied while it's all tied up in the courts. It's time for a TRO.

[tumbling.dice]

The thing about court rulings like these is that it opens the door to other litigation. Any Earth-shattering impacts from this may not transpire for decades. But what if the Federal government was eventually held accountable to every single promise ever made to native tribes? I'd love to see it, along with the resulting chaos. I hope they stick it to the man.

[WritersPanic]

The thing about court rulings like these is that it opens the door to other litigation. Any Earth-shattering impacts from this may not transpire for decades. But what if the Federal government was eventually held accountable to every single promise ever made to native tribes? I'd love to see it, along with the resulting chaos. I hope they stick it to the man.

Yea, but they need to be sure to stick it to the right man. Unfortunately, that will become the burden of the taxpayers. We're talking about generations of wealthy families. They'll fight. But if they have bought enough politicians, they won't need to.

[Din Djarin]

Interesting, Tumbling! Thanks for sharing

[Beach Ball Bitch]

Just a point here. By 1820 native people were moved to Oklahoma, eastern and black people were not really heading there until after the civil war. 40,000 left the South to settle in Kansas, Oklahoma and Colorado After the civil war and were offered 160 acres of land I believe in Oklahoma to settle it. Land that was already native land from my understanding.

[Rev J]

Just a point here. By 1820 native people were moved to Oklahoma, eastern and black people were not really heading there until after the civil war. 40,000 left the South to settle in Kansas, Oklahoma and Colorado After the civil war and were offered 160 acres of land I believe in Oklahoma to settle it. Land that was already native land from my understanding.

From what I gathered the original promise of "40 acres and a mule" was actually "40 acres, a mule and your own slave". The slave was to be a Native. The 2 things that weren't counted on in that situation were:

1) The Natives didn't want to be slaves either.

2) The Natives also knew the lay of the land better and had a better chance of not getting caught if they escaped.

C/S,
Rev J