tribal sovereignty

The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals has now ruled that eight tribal nations in Oklahoma have never had their reservations disestablished after the landmark McGirt v. Oklahoma ruling in the summer of 2020.

Late last month, the Oklahoma Supreme Court issued a controversial opinion on the federal 1978 Indian Child Welfare Act, which gives the state the authority to intervene in the custody of Indian children, even if they live on a reservation that is not their own.

This Week in Oklahoma Politics discusses a state lawmaker selling her house to the Turnpike Authority at more than $100,000 above the appraisal for the agency's expansion in Newcastle, and Attorney General Gentner Drummond taking over a criminal case against a state lawmaker.

AG Gentner Drummond hopes to reset Oklahoma’s relationship with tribal nations. He says he will make ‘respecting’ tribes a top priority.

An obscure case of illegal hunting in south-central Oklahoma could point to new ways the state is trying to assert jurisdiction inside newly affirmed tribal reservation boundaries.

This episode of Focus: Black Oklahoma features reports on a Tulsa company supporting political candidates who push misinformation, a museum exhibit exploring the history of Cherokee Freedmen and the rural beginnings of DJ LiTEBRiTE.

At issue is whether the the Indian Child Welfare Act — aimed at preventing Native American children from being separated from their tribes — is tribal protection or racial classification.

A case to determine who has the rights to adopt Native children goes before the United States Supreme Court on Wednesday. It’s another challenge of the Indian Child Welfare Act, and if the law is overturned, it could jeopardize other laws protecting tribal sovereignty and water and land rights.

Fourteen percent of Oklahoma's voters identify as Native American, according to the United Indian Nations Council of Oklahoma, which means they’re a voting block that could play a significant role in this election.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt and his Democratic challenger Joy Hofmeister faced off in the only gubernatorial debate leading up to the general election on Nov. 8.