Talk:Guainía Taíno Tribe

Recognition
@User:Yuchitown and @User:CorbieVreccan The article says that this group "was recognized by Governor Albert Bryan of the US Virgin Islands". What does tribal recognition mean in the context of a US territory? Bohemian Baltimore (talk) 00:09, 3 September 2023 (UTC)


 * Looking at this source...Usually proclamations by a government official aren't the same as state or federal recognition. But I'm not familiar with the laws of this jurisdiction. The act/law they cite is the Revised Organic Act of 1954, amended and the text is, "recognized by the Governor "as an indigenous American Indian Tribe of the Virgin Islands, for the purpose of assisting this tribal entity in establishing eligibility for federal health benefits, federal education benefits, housing benefits, job training, land use, and the right to engage in traditional religious practices and ceremonies."
 * And then there's this odd bit in the same source:
 * Phillips, who defines herself also as a Christian, is now sending out a call to others who think they might have Taino ancestry to join the tribe. “We’re having open enrollment in the month of June,” said Phillips. “The first step is to have your DNA tested. I don’t care about the percentage of Taino DNA. Some people only have oral stories.”
 * So are they taking people based on self-id? It's unclear from the sources. The proclamation of Indigenous Peoples' Day just seems to be a standard thing, saying they're descendants of the Taino, so not really useful. I'd look up the specifics of that law. Because right now, there are internal conflicts in these sources. - CorbieVreccan  ☊ ☼ 01:18, 5 September 2023 (UTC)