The Pamunkey Indian tribe soon will know if it will join 566 other American Indian and Alaska Native tribal entities recognized by the federal government. Pamunkey Chief Kevin Brown said the call from Kevin Washburn, assistant secretary of Indian Affairs at the U.S. Department of Interior, could come at any time and possibly change the lives of the 208-member tribe which claims Pocahontas as an ancestor. “It will be historic justice. We met the English and John Smith. Pocahontas was Pamunkey. It’s crazy that we’re not recognized. We should have been the first recognized tribe,” Brown said.
The Pamunkey would be the first tribe in Virginia to be federally recognized, making them eligible for federal money for housing, education and health care. Recognition also would open the door to a casino, but Brown said the tribe has no immediate interest in that. Still, that possibility has greatly alarmed MGM Resorts International, which is building MGM National Harbor, a $1.2 billion gambling complex on the border of Northern Virginia in Maryland.
MGM disputes the BIA’s conclusion that the tribe meets all the required criteria for federal recognition, including showing that the tribe comprises a distinct community and has existed from historical times to the present day; has political influence over its members; has submitted a copy of its governing document; and has demonstrated that current members descend from a historic tribe.
In recently released statement, MGM spokesman Gordon Absher wrote: “Our intent was to urge careful study of all important factors in consideration of new applications. Given the increasingly competitive environment for both tribal and commercial casino gaming, it is important the criteria for acknowledgment follow the same established procedures applied to previous applicants.”
In December 2013, MGM Resorts International Chairman and Chief Executive Jim Murren stated, “Virginia won’t get gaming in my lifetime,” and ,“We think that Virginia and many other surrounding states will never have gaming.”
In addition to MGM, Virginia gas station and convenience store owners are worried they will lose customers if the tribe can sell gas, alcohol, cigarettes and other goods without charging state taxes. Also, U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi and 10 other members of the Congressional Black Caucus oppose Pamunkey recognition because in the past the tribe declared its members could not marry African Americans.
Brown said charges of racial discrimination are baseless. He wrote to U.S. Rep. Marcia Fudge of Ohio, then-chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, “As with many antiquated laws, this ordinance remained on the books beyond its usefulness. This Chief and Tribal Council have not enforced this antiquated law and have admitted tribal members who are married to African Americans.”
