[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 49 (Tuesday, March 21, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S1893]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. KAINE (for himself and Mr. Warner):
  S. 691. A bill to extend Federal recognition to the Chickahominy 
Indian Tribe, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe-Eastern Division, the Upper 
Mattaponi Tribe, the Rappahannock Tribe, Inc., the Monacan Indian 
Nation, and the Nansemond Indian Tribe; to the Committee on Indian 
Affairs.
  Mr. KAINE. Mr. President. I am pleased to reintroduce the Thomasina 
E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act of 2017. 
Indian Affairs previously voted our bill out of committee in the 113th 
Congress and by voice vote in the 114th Congress, and we remain hopeful 
that the full Senate will finally vote to recognize our Tribes in the 
115th Congress.
  This month marks the 400th anniversary of the death of Pocahontas, 
the famous daughter of Chief Powhatan, whose tribes were among the 
first to make contact with English settlers in the 17th century. Today, 
as we introduce this bill, a delegation from the Commonwealth, 
including Chief Stephen Adkins of the Chickahominy, Chief Anne 
Richardson of the Rappahannock, and Chief Emeritus Ken Adams of the 
Upper Mattaponi, is in England to commemorate the anniversary, 
including a presentation and ceremony at St. George's Church, Gravesend 
to honor Pocahontas.
  The ceremony reflects the sovereign recognition that the British 
Government grants to our Virginia tribes, which the United States has 
yet to acknowledge. This legislation is critically important because it 
strives toward reconciling an historic wrong for Virginia and the 
Nation. While the Virginia Tribes have received official recognition 
from the Commonwealth of Virginia, acknowledgement and officially-
recognized status from the Federal Government has been considerably 
more difficult due to their systematic mistreatment over the past 
century.
  More specifically, Virginia's Racial Integrity Act, a State law in 
effect from 1924 to 1967, stripped the identities of the Tribal members 
of Virginia's Indian Tribes. The act changed the racial identifications 
of those who lacked White ancestry to ``colored'' on birth certificates 
during that period. In addition, five of the six courthouses that held 
the vast majority of the Virginia Indian Tribal records were destroyed 
in the Civil War. Those records were crucial for documenting the 
history of the Tribes for recognition by the Bureau of Indian Affairs 
Office of Federal Acknowledgement.
  Furthermore, Virginia Indians made peace too soon when they signed 
the Treaty of Middle Plantation with England in 1677. This predated the 
creation of the United States of America by just short of 100 years, 
and the Founding Fathers of the United States never recognized the 
treaty. Therefore, unlike tribes that received Federal recognition upon 
the signing of a treaty with the United States, the Virginia Tribes did 
not receive Federal recognition because they made peace with England 
prior to the founding of our Nation.
  I am proud of Virginia's recognized Indian Tribes and their 
contributions to our Commonwealth. The Virginia Tribes are not only 
part of our history, but they remain ever present today. We go to 
school together, work together, and serve our Commonwealth and Nation 
together every day. These contributions should be acknowledged, and 
this Federal recognition for Virginia's Native peoples is long overdue.
  Virginia's Indian Tribes contributed to the successful founding of 
our country and continue to help define our national identity. Their 
members have attended our schools, worked next to us, and served in 
every American war since the Revolution, all while maintaining a unique 
identity and culture. I am hopeful the Senate will act upon my 
legislation this year, to give these six Virginia Native American 
Tribes the Federal recognition that is long overdue.
                                 ______