Cherokee angles for Virginia casino project

Casino gaming is under serious discussion in the Virginia legislature this year, and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is hoping to get in on the ground floor with a recently announced proposal to build a casino near Bristol, Virginia. 

House approves bill to grant Cherokee land in Tennessee

For the second year running, the U.S. House of Representatives has passed a bill that would return 76 culturally significant acres in Tennessee to Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians ownership.

Tribe continues recovery from cyber attack

Update: In a Dec. 14, 2023, opinion, the Cherokee Supreme Court vacated a lower court's conviction of Benjamin Cody Long for misusuing tribal property related to the cyber attack. "After careful review, we hold that under the Cherokee Code, evidence of an unauthorized login, without more, is insufficient to convict for the misuse of Tribal property," the opinion reads. "Because the Tribe failed to provide evidence of appropriation of Tribal property for Defendant's own use or use of another, as required by the Cherokee Code, we vacate Defendant's conviction."

A month has passed since the Dec. 7 cyber attack that loaded ransomware on the tribal computer network, but the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is still working to restore its operations to normal.   

Cherokee chief testifies against Lumbee recognition

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is the only federally recognized Native American tribe in North Carolina, but that could change if a bill currently making its way through Congress meets success. The Lumbee Recognition Act, also known as H.R. 1964, would extend federal recognition to the 55,000-member Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, ending a 131-year effort to obtain it. 

WCU student working to translate Cherokee language from native newspaper

Constance Owl’s master’s degree thesis is more than a means to a graduate degree in American history. It’s a portal to understanding, and perhaps saving, a disappearing language.

Tribal employees to see 7 percent raise

Christmas will be extra sweet this year for tribal employees following Tribal Council’s vote to enact a 7 percent cost-of-living raise retroactive to the start of the fiscal year Oct. 1. Employees will start receiving their new salary as well as retroactive pay at the next payday Dec. 20.

Two Sparrows: Town WCU renames renovated collections facility in honor of Cherokee past

Long before the creation of Western Carolina University, the state of North Carolina or the U.S. Constitution, the valley now known as Cullowhee bore the name Tali Tsisgwayahi — in Cherokee, it meant “Two Sparrows Town.”

Now, that name has returned to a portion of the 600-acre campus with the formal dedication of the Two Sparrows Town Archeological Collections Curation Facility, held Thursday, Dec. 6, at the facility on the ground floor of McKee Building. 

Cyber attack causes tribal computer network shutdown

Computer systems at the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians are down this week after a tribal employee allegedly attacked the network with ransomware on Saturday, Dec. 7. 

Tribal Council kills resort proposal

A $30 million deal to bring a story-themed resort to Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians-owned land in Sevier County, Tennessee, will not go forward following a unanimous vote from Tribal Council Dec. 5 to kill a resolution Principal Chief Richard Sneed submitted in October. 

New hires to speed child custody cases in Cherokee

Tribal Council voted unanimously last month to expand the tribe’s roster of attorneys in hopes of moving child custody cases through the courts more efficiently. The cases often take multiple months to reach resolution, prompting complaints from community members. 

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