Dear Editor,
Wes Nofire, a Cherokee Tribal Councilor, ran for congress proclaiming tribes could not handle our affairs and that McGirt – which acknowledged our reservations – was the biggest threat facing Oklahomans. While Governor Stitt and his cronies ruthlessly attacked the ability of tribes to keep people safe, Nofire joined these anti-tribal forces, openly boasting about backroom meetings with Stitt to undermine the McGirt decision.
We expect this from our enemies; however, it is particularly painful coming from a Cherokee who swore an oath to protect our Nation. Why would a Cherokee do this? For Nofire, it was a chance to be a United States congressman, a chance to ingratiate himself to “Team Stitt” and those who fight sovereignty.
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Oklahoma could prosecute non-natives who commit crimes against natives on reservations. Yet another assault on sovereignty which defies the very foundations of Indian law and hundreds of years of precedent.
In the 1830s, Samuel Worcester, a non-native, was sentenced to prison because he believed Cherokees could govern themselves. His case, Worcester v. Georgia, was the basis of the Court‚s recognition of sovereignty. Worcester, had no power to fight the state of Georgia, yet was willing to go to prison to support the Cherokee Nation. Nofire, a Cherokee with a powerful platform, sold out his own tribe.
Nofire is a traitor and his actions are treasonous.
No matter how painful the betrayals, Cherokees remember them. Nofire has betrayed the Cherokee Nation. It‚s time for him to resign.
DAWNENA SQUIRREL, ROSE, OKLA.
