WI: State of Sequoyah is created

[Quickdraw101]

Historically, in the early 1900's, many Native American put forth a proposal for the Oklahoma territory to become their own state, as to preserve their own traditions and under their own governance.
This failed in 1906 when the Oklahoma Enabling Act was passed, and Oklahoma became the 46th American state. But what if it hadn't? Let's assume for some reason congress and the president actually approves this proposal in 1905. With the entirety of the Oklahoma territory now under the governance of the Native American tribes, what effect will this have on both the United States, and the various tribes across the country? Would this lead to improved relations between the tribes and U.S. government?

Spoiler: Map of Sequoyah

 

[Deleted member]

Well, you'd have to prevent the Oklahoma land rush. Also what happens to the Neutral Strip would be almost hilarious (sometimes called Cimarron Territory informally) since who gets it would be a matter of disrupt. Originally Sequoyah was only supposed to be the eastern part of the State, as the other tribes were less organised and their land was more rapidly ceded to white settlers. The fate of Greer County (disputed with Texas and the Oklahoma Territory) would probably see it returned to Texas.

I think the biggest issue is that the population of Native Americans continued declining after the 1870s, so by 1905 it's fairly well bottomed out. The state would have outsized influence through its Senators--and would be about to get very, very rich when oil is struck in Osage territory.

Race relations would be another matter as a relatively large black population would probably develop since whites would shy away from a state divided up among tribes where they couldn't buy land, since only the Unassigned Territory would be available for white purchase without alotment. (well, and maybe the Cherokee Alotment, which was not part of their actual tribal boundaries).

 

[prinCZess]

Spoiler: Sequoyah as proposed

Immediate issue that occurs to me is how much it's going to throw a wrench into US-tribal relations outside Oklahoma/Sequoyah. The government 'ceding' or apportioning a state to some tribes wouldn't go over well with those tribes elsewhere who would be continuing under the auspices of the BIA--the point of 'those tribes get a state, but we don't?' is a very basic concern that'd crop up, especially if the federal government took the same more distant management style over the state as it would in other precedents, and that would contrast heavily with the intrusive to outright destructive management and interference the BIA took part in with tribes elsewhere (and in RL Oklahoma).

Of course, I'd have to wonder how much the federal government would allow the state to function in the clear and in its own spheres in an era where mass assimilation was the prevailing attitude and the whole state reflected a more modern variance on self-determination--or, to take another step back, I also have to wonder how organized the state government would be at all. Trying to create a government made up of representatives of the wide and varying constituencies the various tribes would be seems like it'd be a project itself to say the least, with some pretty heavy influence possible from the Five Civilized Tribes over the state government to the potential detriment of others that could fuel potential problems. It seems like it would require some pretty major balancing-act politics itself by the forming government (and that would invite or inspire all kinds of attempts to help, or 'help', by the feds).

But, presuming it goes through and those matters get ironed out...It would be a curious 'early case' of somewhat more modern relations being given a test-case. If it did follow other states models and wasn't created as an 'exception' by the feds (which I can fully imagine happening), then there'd be strong aspects of local control over schooling, law enforcement, land usage, water rights, and every other of a hundred and one matters that the reservation system tossed into a big heap of federal affairs that tended towards poor or malicious management.
I'm not sure if it'd be worth an optimistic consideration as something that might spearhead relations forward or not, though. There'd have been some major hurdles for the state to overcome to become a 'positive image' of a government dominated by Native representatives for other Americans, and a very real possibility of failure becoming a negative one. Curious to consider, though.

 

[Quickdraw101]

Spoiler: Sequoyah as proposed

Immediate issue that occurs to me is how much it's going to throw a wrench into US-tribal relations outside Oklahoma/Sequoyah. The government 'ceding' or apportioning a state to some tribes wouldn't go over well with those tribes elsewhere who would be continuing under the auspices of the BIA--the point of 'those tribes get a state, but we don't?' is a very basic concern that'd crop up, especially if the federal government took the same more distant management style over the state as it would in other precedents, and that would contrast heavily with the intrusive to outright destructive management and interference the BIA took part in with tribes elsewhere (and in RL Oklahoma).

Of course, I'd have to wonder how much the federal government would allow the state to function in the clear and in its own spheres in an era where mass assimilation was the prevailing attitude and the whole state reflected a more modern variance on self-determination--or, to take another step back, I also have to wonder how organized the state government would be at all. Trying to create a government made up of representatives of the wide and varying constituencies the various tribes would be seems like it'd be a project itself to say the least, with some pretty heavy influence possible from the Five Civilized Tribes over the state government to the potential detriment of others that could fuel potential problems. It seems like it would require some pretty major balancing-act politics itself by the forming government (and that would invite or inspire all kinds of attempts to help, or 'help', by the feds).

But, presuming it goes through and those matters get ironed out...It would be a curious 'early case' of somewhat more modern relations being given a test-case. If it did follow other states models and wasn't created as an 'exception' by the feds (which I can fully imagine happening), then there'd be strong aspects of local control over schooling, law enforcement, land usage, water rights, and every other of a hundred and one matters that the reservation system tossed into a big heap of federal affairs that tended towards poor or malicious management.
I'm not sure if it'd be worth an optimistic consideration as something that might spearhead relations forward or not, though. There'd have been some major hurdles for the state to overcome to become a 'positive image' of a government dominated by Native representatives for other Americans, and a very real possibility of failure becoming a negative one. Curious to consider, though.

Oklahoma was originally intended for the various Native American tribes to own going as far back as the civil war, however that went sideways after the war ended. As for other tribes not getting their own states, could those problems be placated by offering others territory within the state, since it's entirety is bring handed over to native control? And in long the long term, assuming the tribal government could overcome the hurdles associated with being a self governed state, would do you think would be the long term implications, even into the 21st century?

 

[Deleted member]

Oklahoma was originally intended for the various Native American tribes to own going as far back as the civil war, however that went sideways after the war ended. As for other tribes not getting their own states, could those problems be placated by offering others territory within the state, since it's entirety is bring handed over to native control? And in long the long term, assuming the tribal government could overcome the hurdles associated with being a self governed state, would do you think would be the long term implications, even into the 21st century?

I'm honestly not sure if it would increase or decrease dissolutionist tendencies to tribal governments. But I could see increased pressure to get other tribes to move there... But, you know, with climate and terrain being radically different, many still strongly resist. OTOH, if the state itself succeeds, it might create pressure for a second Native Majority state in Alaska to address the coastal peoples.

Another thought: Having racially based states might ultimately lead to radically different demands in the civil rights movement.

 

[Husky_Khan]

The idea of the Sequoyah State having a populist distrust of the government, at least as far as the Wikipedia entry states, is somewhat interesting. Like others mentioned, one of the main drawbacks would be the status of Indians who live beyond the confines of Sequoyah and whether there would be pressure for them to move there, for them to get increased autonomy in their own lands, or other upheavals that this might cause.

But yeah, this could have knock on effects in Alaska and maybe even Hawaii as well. Though this being the 1910's and American Indians always being a vast majority (and even Native Hawaiians being a minority IIRC in Hawaii itself) means any other initiatives beyond this could be squelched if the government and American people by and large desire it.