Muscogee Nation Citizenship Board
Coverage of Muscogee Nation Citizenship Board in the Nexus archive.
- Black members of Oklahoma Native American tribe file federal lawsuit to gain citizenship rights
Black descendants of enslaved people within the Muscogee Nation are suing tribal leaders in federal court over citizenship rights, challenging a refusal to issue citizenship cards despite a 2025 tribal court ruling. The lawsuit claims violations of an 1866 treaty that granted citizenship to Freedmen, with the tribe citing constitutional restrictions on membership to blood descendants listed on the Dawes Rolls.
- Black members of Oklahoma Native American tribe file federal lawsuit to gain citizenship rights
Black descendants of the Muscogee Nation in Oklahoma, Rhonda Grayson and Jeffrey Kennedy, filed a federal lawsuit against tribal leaders, including Principal Chief David Hill, to enforce a 2025 tribal court ruling granting them citizenship. The lawsuit alleges violations of an 1866 treaty requiring the tribe to recognize Black Creek Freedmen as citizens, as the Muscogee Nation Citizenship Board has refused to issue citizenship cards despite the ruling.
- Black members of Oklahoma Native American tribe file federal lawsuit to gain citizenship rights
Two Black descendants of enslaved people, Rhonda Grayson and Jeffrey Kennedy, are suing the Muscogee Nation to enforce a 2025 tribal court ruling that ordered citizenship cards under an 1866 treaty. Tribal leaders, including Principal Chief David Hill, have refused to issue the cards, citing constitutional changes, despite the court affirming the plaintiffs' entitlement to citizenship as Freedmen descendants.