For Immediate Release - September 26, 2008
Contact: Bert Hammond 202-2285-7084 Lois Hill Hale 323-965-1422
Reps.
Watson & Conyers to Convene Panel on Cherokee Freedmen at Congressional
Black Caucus Foundation’s Annual Legislative Conference
Washington,
DC—
Representatives Diane Watson (CA-33) and John Conyers (MI-14) will
convene a panel to examine recent attempts by the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma to
expel its citizens of African descent, known as Cherokee Freedmen. The
panel is sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Foundation and will
be held during the CBC’s Annual Legislative Conference on Friday, September
28, 2007, at the Washington, D.C. Convention Center, from 11 AM to 1 PM, in Room
209-C.
The panel will examine the historical, legal, and current status of the Cherokee Freedmen Indians. The list of panelists includes:
Jon Velie, Attorney for Freedmen
Eli Grayson, Freedmen Advocate
Marilyn Vann, Descendants of the Freedmen of the 5 Civilized Tribes
Angela Walton Raji, Author & Genealogist
Chief Joe Byrd, former Principal Chief, Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma
Hilary Shelton, NAACP,
Rusty Brown, Attorney, Member of
Ron
Daniels will serve as the panel’s moderator.
“This
is a rare opportunity for advocates of the Freedmen and Freedmen descendants to
gather and discuss issues of profound importance concerning the Freedmen’s
rightful status as full citizens of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma,” said
Congresswoman Watson.
Congressman Conyers is Chairman of House Judiciary Committee, to which H.R. 2824 has been referred.
Find
out more at the Congresswoman's official website: http://www.house.gov/watson/