First CA Driver's Licenses, Now This.

Living in California all of my life (and thereby having more than my fill of "multiculturalism"), I thought I had seen and heard almost every product of political correctness known to humanity. Apparently, one must travel to Nebraska to see the latest in PC absurdity. Two Native American tribes are being investigated for selling tribal membership to illegals, under the auspice of providing legal documentation for these people. Neither of these tribes are recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (so they're kinda like Ward Churchill). Since the tribes are not federally recognized, simply being a member is not enough to prove U.S. citizenship. Two illegals were caught trying to procure passports with their tribal membership documents.

For those of my readers that do not know me personally, I am one-eighth Chippewa. Since I was born outside of the community were my tribe originates, my parents were supposed to fill out registration paperwork for me to be recognized as a tribe member. They didn't realize this, and so the registration period passed. My younger siblings were, however, registered within the allotted time. In spite of the fact that my mother and siblings were tribal members, I was not allowed to register until the tribal government had an "open enrollment" period. I was finally able to register...when I was twenty-five years old!

The fact that I was not registered does not change the fact that I was still of Chippewa descent. It did affect my legal standing as such. Since I was not a registered member of the tribe, I was eligible for neither financial assistance for college, nor health insurance through the tribe. Likewise, paying a membership fee and a laminated card will not make you a Native American. I am sure we will hear Chicano studies majors all over the country saying, "Technically, Mexicans are the descents of Spaniards and Native Americans, so they are members of Native American tribes." Well, they're half-right; they're of Native American descent with regard to tribes found in Mexico (e.g. the Maya and Aztecs). I have blogged previously on why illegal immigration is bad for both law-abiding and the immigrants themselves. Sadly, this is further proof that I was correct.