On June 3, 2009 the House of Representatives approved the federal recognition bill that gave hope to members of the six Virginia Indian tribes. If the bill passes the Virginia tribes will join the 562 other federally recognized tribes.Approval of the Thomasina E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act of 2009 is closer than ever before. The last session of Congress failed to act upon this bill. Something new this time is a companion bill to grant federal recognition the same day the House approved it introduced by Virginia Senator Jim Webb, and co-sponsor Senator Mark Warner. Congressman Virginia’s tribes signed treaties with the kings of England, not the U.S. federal government.The tribes’ documented history was nearly erased when Virginia officials for nearly 50 years waged a document genocide for the purpose of destroying all state and courthouse records of the American Indians as a result of a 1924 Racial Integrity Act.Webb’s legislation will be reviewed and marked-up by the US Senate Indian Affairs Committee in a hearing before reaching the full Senate body for a final vote, according to his office.
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The 1924 Virignia Racial Integrity Act and its sponsors and supporters did not actively attack the state's Indians. This is a myth. The state records are full of references to Indians and several tribes are rather well documented. In fact, while Walter Plecker and his associates were going after marginal racial groups who were trying to reclassify themselves from black to white or, that failing, Indian,the State was actually upholding treaty rights and the sovereignty of tribes. This is documented.
Nearly all of the groups involved in this process only emerged as "Indians" at the end of the nineteenth century, and were otherwise white or black for the preceeding 100 years or more.
Congressional recognition of these groups is not in the best interest of American Indians or US tax payers.
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