Montgomery, AL (Accredited Times): It is with great disappointment that on this day, October 16, 2018, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is forced to classify the Cherokee Nation as a hate group. We have elucidated on the criteria for determining what a hate group is before, but it is worth restating:
The Southern Poverty Law Center defines a hate group as an organization that – based on its official statements or principles, the statements of its leaders, or its activities – has beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics.
In that light, we find that the Cherokee Nation’s recent statement on Senator Warren is in contretemps with the underlying sentiments of the Current Year™, and is deeply unsettling. Here is the body of the text:
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — Cherokee Nation Secretary of State Chuck Hoskin Jr. issued the following statement Monday in response to Senator Elizabeth Warren’s DNA test claiming Native Heritage:
“A DNA test is useless to determine tribal citizenship. Current DNA tests do not even distinguish whether a person’s ancestors were indigenous to North or South America,” Cherokee Nation Secretary of State Chuck Hoskin Jr. said. “Sovereign tribal nations set their own legal requirements for citizenship, and while DNA tests can be used to determine lineage, such as paternity to an individual, it is not evidence for tribal affiliation. Using a DNA test to lay claim to any connection to the Cherokee Nation or any tribal nation, even vaguely, is inappropriate and wrong. It makes a mockery out of DNA tests and its legitimate uses while also dishonoring legitimate tribal governments and their citizens, whose ancestors are well documented and whose heritage is proven. Senator Warren is undermining tribal interests with her continued claims of tribal heritage.”
He Whom Must Not Be Named wasted no time in echoing the Cherokee Nation’s sentiments:
Thank you to the Cherokee Nation for revealing that Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to as Pocahontas, is a complete and total Fraud!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 16, 2018
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Now that her claims of being of Indian heritage have turned out to be a scam and a lie, Elizabeth Warren should apologize for perpetrating this fraud against the American Public. Harvard called her “a person of color” (amazing con), and would not have taken her otherwise!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 16, 2018
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Pocahontas (the bad version), sometimes referred to as Elizabeth Warren, is getting slammed. She took a bogus DNA test and it showed that she may be 1/1024, far less than the average American. Now Cherokee Nation denies her, “DNA test is useless.” Even they don’t want her. Phony!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 16, 2018
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That Der Führer and the Cherokee Nation are essentially in agreement is highly problematic. Taken as a whole, both the Dorito in Chief’s and the Cherokee Nation’s statements are deeply incendiary and marginalizing of those Native Americans who are anywhere from 1/64th to 1/1024th Native American, which, when accounting for margin of error, could represent a swath of fully 63% of the US population. For that reason alone, the Cherokee Nation deserves condemnation.
We will not be addressing, however, the scientific manner in which Senator Warren’s race was determined to such a precise degree by a genetics expert from Stanford University. That this discredits our position of race being a social construct is also of no importance. What matters is that Stanford is an accredited research institution, and that if you think Senator Warren isn’t a Native American, you’re a science denier. See the original report here.
As you can see, Senator Warren is a Native American. Now that we’ve cleared that up with genetic testing, not that we had to do that because race is a social construct, we can move on to preening Senator Warren’s successful Presidential run to unseat Chancellor Tiny Hands.
It’s not just that she got a DNA test, it’s also that CNN and other accredited news outlets have universally interpreted the results as absolutely conclusive. So you have multiple accredited sources all agreeing with each other that Elizabeth Warren is right and that Trump is wrong, ALL AT THE SAME TIME. When does this ever happen? The stars only align like this when someone is definitely telling the truth.
Agreed. Our own Profiles in Courage recipient Chris Cillizza has already supplied the appropriate amount of spin to put this all in perspective, as well as the Huffington Post:
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/senator-elizabeth-warren-dna-test-native-american-ethnicity_us_5bc4b624e4b0bd9ed55c8f48
you are child rapist #exposed
#pedophobic
That’s pretty bigoted against minor attracted persons.
If Mx Koch prefers having relationships with children, then that is his choice. We’re living in a tolerant liberal society.
#loveislove
Wait…they can test race from DNA?
WTF?
How was this even permitted to have been spoken?
It is unacceptable. They didn’t even provide the proper contextualizing to prepare the reader of this report!!!!!
DNA is real, but race isn’t. Race is just an idea – and a very unimportant one too.
Agreed. Egalitarianism is way more important. That’s why I ascribe to the ideas of Milton Friedman!!!
What a hard hitting article ATK. I feel sad for Elizabeth Warren – it’s unbelievable that people would go as far as denying science just to hurt her. Hopefully Snopes can make verification of the facts regarding her Native American heritage a priority.
I’d also like to encourage everyone to give as much as they can to the SPLC – it’s not right that they should be struggling for money 🙁 considering all the good work they do in letting us know what hate groups to hate.
#accredited-times-pick
Yes, the SPLC is an essential watchdog whose endowment of nearly 500 million dollars is far too small for the work they do.
Like the ACLU they have decided to focus on making their donors happy instead of their original mission
It’s great that the SPLC and ADL focus almost exclusively on white nationalists and practically nobody else. Obviously white people existing and keeping what they built is hate.
Only white people can be racist.
Amazing how Trump can provoke an old buzzard like you into such a 360-degrees head-spun, contorted jumble of juxtaposition.
#anti-journalism
Your white documented Hispanic position is a jumbled of juxtaposition… CRUZ!!!!!!
I’ll respond by juxtaposing your name, Ted Cruz, with the word RACIST. Take that!
Let’s hope Beato has bathed for tonight’s debate after having been pummeled by a hundred flush head shots last time. TKO tonite!
You are a homophobic bigot!
Wow nice badge, Aestas. I also support this mad idea that we can all just get along! (while I attack white people constantly).
I use it when I identify as straight, or rather, when I generally feel more attracted to those who identify as female. This is subject to change, however, as I regularly also identify as non binary and bi and trans.
Yes they are. But white Native Americans that are anywhere between 1/64th and 1/1024th Native American are not because genetics have proven they are not white, just like in the case of Elizabeth Warren. What the implications of that for race being a social construct are is an entirely different matter.
Horseface Harris?
I just got my DNA results back yesterday, apparently I’m 1/4 Flathead Indian, 1/4 Mongoloid, 1/4 Baboon, 1/4 Egyptian and 1/4 Irish…
What an exciting result BFM – isn’t it fantastic what science can tell us about our identity.
My DNA got stolen in the MyHeritage leak 🙁 I can’t imagine that it’ll be any use to anyone though – genetically I’m mostly just European.