
Dept. of Interior Reaffirms UKB Jurisdiction on the Oklahoma Cherokee Reservation
U.S. affirms the rights over the Oklahoma Cherokee Reservation once exercised by the historical Cherokee Nation continue today through both the UKB and the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma (CNO), equally.
What is M-Opinion M-37084?
M-37084 was issued on January 17, 2025, by Solicitor Robert Anderson. M-37084 concludes that the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in
Oklahoma is a successor in interest to the historic Cherokee Nation. We
share this status with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and the
Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, which has renamed itself the Cherokee
Nation (which is not to be confused with the historic Cherokee Nation from
which we all derive our status as successors in interest).
The UKB’s status as a successor in interest is vitally important as it clarifies
and confirms what we have been saying for decades: we enjoy all the legal
rights that the historic Cherokee Nation possessed on the Oklahoma
Cherokee reservation, and we do so equally with the Cherokee Nation of
Oklahoma. The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma has asserted, erroneously,
that they somewhere along the way resurrected, and now exclusively
constitute the historic Cherokee Nation. Such claims are degrading to our
ancestors who worked to preserve the historic Cherokee values, and
unfortunately, we bear the economic burden of correcting the false
narratives.

what our leaders are saying
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What is an M-Opinion?The Solicitor is the top lawyer at the United States Department of the Interior. As may be necessary, the Solicitor issues legal opinions, officially called Memorandum Opinions, or M-Opinions for short. They are final legal interpretations of the law and certain factual matters that are binding upon all bureaus and offices within Interior, including the Bureau of Indian Affairs. M-Opinions are assigned a unique identifying number when issued by the Solicitor. The M-Opinion relevant to the UKB today is M-37084.
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What does M-37084 say about the rights of the UKB?M-37084 was issued on January 17, 2025, by Solicitor Robert Anderson. M-37084 concludes that the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma is a successor in interest to the historic Cherokee Nation. We share this status with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, which has renamed itself the Cherokee Nation (which is not to be confused with the historic Cherokee Nation from which we all derive our status as successors in interest). The UKB’s status as a successor in interest is vitally important as it clarifies and confirms what we have been saying for decades: we enjoy all the legal rights that the historic Cherokee Nation possessed on the Oklahoma Cherokee reservation, and we do so equally with the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma has asserted, erroneously, that they somewhere along the way resurrected, and now exclusively constitute the historic Cherokee Nation. Such claims are degrading to our ancestors who worked to preserve the historic Cherokee values, and unfortunately, we bear the economic burden of correcting the false narratives.
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What does M-37084 mean?The importance of M-37084 is that it confirms the legal foundation for the right of the Keetoowah People to engage in the economic development of Indian Gaming, a right that was intentionally interfered with by the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma for more than a decade with the sole purpose of causing harm to the UKB and its People, all the while ensuring it benefits from its gaming monopoly within the Oklahoma Cherokee reservation. We will leave to the Creator the final adjudication of the moral choices and the behavior for the harm done to the Keetoowah people, by the hand of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma elected officials but today we applaud the issuance of M-37084, as it is fully supported by the law and Cherokee history, is correctly reasoned and is morally correct, though long overdue. It properly accounts for the historical role of the Keetoowah Cherokee and does not buy the propaganda that the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma espouses.
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Why was M-37084 issued?In 2012, the Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs decided to accept our 2.03-acre gaming parcel into trust so that we could restore our Indian gaming enterprise to fund programs and services for the Keetoowah People, who were in significant need. The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma aggressively pursued the closure of our gaming facility, once again pressuring federal and state officials to do its bidding. As a result of its campaign to harm the Keetoowah People, the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma continued its legal challenge of the 2012 decision by the Assistant Secretary to accept the UKB’s gaming parcel into trust all the way to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, the federal appeals court just below the United States Supreme Court. While the appeal over the gaming parcel was pending before the Tenth Circuit, the United States Supreme Court decided McGirt v Oklahoma (2020), which held that Indian reservations within the State of Oklahoma were never extinguished. The case did not decide the question of what rights individual Indian Tribes possessed within those intact Oklahoma reservations. However, the McGirt decision being issued while the UKB appeal was pending before the Tenth Circuit made it likely that the Tenth Circuit would be concerned about the potential impact of the intervening McGirt decision, especially as it was not considered as part of the Assistant Secretary’s 2012 decision. Rather than taking unnecessary chances that the Tenth Circuit would remand the appeal back to the Assistant Secretary and a corresponding ruling from the District Court that considered whether McGirt changed the Assistant Secretary’s 2012 analysis, the Assistant Secretary wanted to ensure that its determination to accept gaming lands into trust was fully considered in view of McGirt. So, M-37084 was issued as part of that full consideration. Of course, none of this extraordinary effort would have been necessary had the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma been respectful of the rights and needs of the Keetoowah People.
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Did the CNO oppose the UKB’s rights as part of the M-Opinion process?The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma has routinely opposed the right of the UKB to possess trust land and will likely find some fictitious basis upon which to oppose non-gaming trust acquisitions for the UKB. Sadly, until the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma elected officials include serious people who understand and value the historical truth of the Cherokee People who inhabit the Oklahoma Cherokee reservation, they will continue to challenge our right to have trust land. However, the courts have thus far rejected their challenges, and, at some point, the courts will not entertain repeated losing challenges. The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma had a full opportunity to submit legal and historical materials as part of the process, as did the UKB. The Solicitor had the full benefit of both sets of materials in rendering M-37084. So, the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma cannot honestly complain about the process, or the conclusion reached by the Solicitor. That said, that will not stop its elected officials from doing so. The lack of true Cherokee leadership by Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma’s elected officials on this issue is not surprising and is not limited to the trust land issue. UKB leaders and its Attorney General have made repeated overtures to the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma to seek common ground on matters such as broadband accessibility and basic law enforcement cooperation, but those overtures have been rejected.
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Does M-37084 mean that the Bureau of Indian Affairs has taken our gaming parcel into trust?No, although M-37084 is a binding legal opinion it is not the final decision that the gaming parcel should be accepted into trust. Because it is a gaming parcel, the final fee-to-trust decision will come from the Assistant Secretary—Indian Affairs. Once that decision is issued, if the past is any indication, the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma will seek an injunction in federal court, arguing that it will be harmed if the UKB moves forward with its planned gaming and gaming related activities. It is hard to imagine how the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma could convince any court of that absurd position when, according to media reports a $3 Billion budget, untold reserves, gaming revenue, and other endeavors that have been fueled by its gaming monopoly; most importantly, the real unrecognized harm has been to the Keetoowah People. Nevertheless, the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma will undoubtedly bring that case and will attempt to litigate the case all the way up to the United States Supreme Court. The UKB will do everything within its power to defeat the legal actions brought by the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. Again, if real leadership existed within the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma’s elected official ranks, we would both be able to live and let live and join forces to address issues of mutual concern within the Oklahoma Cherokee reservation. But until that day arrives, we will have to fight to ensure that our rights guaranteed by treaty are fully preserved. M-37084 will help with that effort.
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What can I do to help?The best way you can help is by remaining steadfast and staying informed. Visit www.ukb-nsn.gov and join the UKB mailing list. We will utilize this email list to communicate with UKB members from time to time on a grassroots level about this issue and others as they arise. You can also help by contacting elected officials within the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and register your disapproval of their actions against the UKB. Tell them to withdraw from their challenge to the UKB gaming, our efforts to get land placed into trust, and our federal program dollars. Your message: enough is enough, stop hurting your brothers and sisters, the Keetoowah People! With the number of families in Northeast Oklahoma who have multiple family members who are Cherokee, if this does not resonate with them nothing will. Of course, if your family members who may be enrolled in the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma were to reach out with the same message, that would help.
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