Academic

Shinnecocks Succeed in Federal Recognition Battle

By Kevin Maillard

The Shinnecock Indian Nation ended its 30 year battle for federal recognition yesterday, with the Bureau of Indian Affairs approving the Long Island tribe's petition.   The small tribe of 1,066 people is located in Southampton, in the midst of wealthy beach communities.

This comes as a great victory for the Shinnecocks, who are one of the very few tribes who have emerged successful from the recognition process.  Currently, there are 564 federally recognized tribes, and only 8 percent of these tribes have ever been individually recognized since 1960.  Poor tribes with limited resources have trouble hiring lawyers, lobbyists, and consultants to guide them successfully through the process.  The Shinnecocks paid at least $1.74 million since 2005 in their recognition effort.

The process is incredibly rigorous, with recognition standards often tautologically excluding groups whose conception of "tribe" differs from the federal governments. Many tribes, often Northeastern ones, do not fulfill requirements of "significant rates of marriage within the group" and relative isolation from nontribal members.  Tribes historically situated near urban areas and those who have incorporated others as family have not been approved, most notably the Mashpee of Cape Cod. 

Recognition criteria, as stated in 25 CFR 83.7, can be found here.

(Picture: Shinnecock oyster farming taken by Gordon Grant for the NYT.)

Full post as published by The Faculty Lounge on December 16, 2009 (boomark / email).