The United Keetowah Band is denying that Controversial University of Colorado professor Ward Churchill is a legitimate member of the Oklahoma tribe.

In a statement [UKB website], Chief George Wickliffe said Churchill was granted an honorary "associate membership" in the early 1990s. Churchill has cited his membership as proof of being Indian.

But Wickliffe said the associate membership doesn't mean anything because Churchill never documented his Cherokee heritage. "Mr. Churchill was never able to prove his eligibility in accordance with our membership laws, but was to be honored because of his promise to write our history, and his pledge to help and honor the UKB," the statement said. "To date, Churchill has done nothing in regards to his promise and pledge."

Churchill has submitted his UKB card and a videotape of his UKB induction ceremony to a CU misconduct committee. Churchill showed The Denver Post a 1994 videotape of a UKB council meeting in which his associate membership was debated but apparently not revoked.

Get the Story:
Tribe snubs prof (The Denver Rocky Mountain News 5/18)
Churchill claims proof he's Indian (The Denver Post 5/18)

Churchill's 9/11 Essay:
"Some People Push Back" On the Justice of Roosting Chickens (Pockets of Resistance September 2001)

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