Cook County Commissioner Stanley Moore wants the county to delay a committee vote to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples’ Day until certain tribes acknowledge their own historic racism.
Commissioner Stanley Moore of the 4th District said that before a vote can be taken, the so-called Five Civilized Tribes should “acknowledge their role in the rich history of Black slaves, also known as Freedman.”
Moore, who said he is a direct descendant of a Choctaw Freedman, said tribes are unfairly denying descendants full tribal membership — and so excluding them from such benefits as education and housing assistance and casino profits.
“They are discriminating against us, and if they do not want to recognize the Freedmen and their descendants, they should no longer accept nor receive federal taxpayers’ dollars based upon the census population of the Freedman,” Moore said in a statement.
The Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee [Creek] and Seminole nations were referred to historically as the Five Civilized Tribes, or Five Tribes, by European settlers because they often assimilated into the settlers’ culture, adopting their style of dress and religion, and even owning slaves. Each tribe also has a unique history with Freedmen, whose rights were ultimately spelled out in separate treaties with the U.S.
Today, the Cherokee Nation is the only tribe that fully recognizes the Freedmen as full citizens, a decision that came in 2017 after years of legal wrangling.
Moore said his call to to delay the committee vote is “personal and has nothing to do with Columbus Day.”
“It is hard to understand how Indians, who were also treated harshly, could be so insensitive to the Freedmen and their descendants,” Moore said.
Moore’s great-great-grandfather was Alford Trotter, who, Moore said, was a Black Choctaw whose family were slaves to the Choctaw Nation.
“It’s very hurtful and personal for me that when I look up my great-great-grandfather’s name on the Dawes Roll and see his name with the word ‘denied’ next to it,” Moore said.
The Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations Committee is expected to vote on the name change for Columbus Day during a hearing that begins at 2:30 p.m.
Contributing: AP
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