Chuck Hoskin

I think the Framers of this treaty plainly were concerned about the governmental interests of the Cherokee Nation having a place in this body.

these actions have made the Cherokee Nation a better nation for having recognized full and equal citizenship of Freedmen descendants.

Cherokee Nation citizenship is equal. ... There are no distinctions between Cherokee citizens of Freedmen descent or Cherokees by blood descent.

It would be difficult for me, Senator, to come to this Committee and press for treaty rights if I could not say to myself, we are living up to all of our obligations.

We have to look in the mirror, and we have to recognize that we have done the same.

These actions have made the Cherokee Nation a better nation for having recognized full and equal citizenship of Freedmen descendants.

I urge the committee to swiftly move forward with a bipartisan reauthorization bill that can pass the Senate and be signed into law.

I think that interruption of many, many decades really arrested the development of the Cherokee Nation.

In Cherokee Nation, we are focused on building paths to homeownership.

All Freedmen and their descendants shall have all of the rights of Native Cherokees.

Great Nations, like great men, should keep their promises.

I offer both an apology on behalf of the Cherokee Nation for these actions, and more importantly, Mr. Chairman, I offer a commitment to reconciliation.

It is a moral imperative that I be here, and that the Cherokee Nation recognize equality.

Those programs have proven successful so far, and as we go into our next fiscal year, we are determined to commit even more resources to those types of opportunities for homeownership.

The direct funding of NAHASDA and the ability to craft Indian Housing Plans has been indispensable for the Cherokee Nation.

we have to make sure that any barriers that might have existed, historically, to access are knocked down.

If we allow our language to perish, all our accomplishments--what we have done in health care, education, and economic development--will be for naught as these things can only be fully achieved when we save our language.

Preserving the Cherokee language is preserving Cherokee identity, as the heritage and traditions of the tribe are rooted in our language.

Today, our enemy is the passage of time and the fragility of human life.

Preserving our language is preserving our Cherokee identity, what makes us unique as a people.

Our goal is to create a language campus, a language village, that will be our best tool in saving the Cherokee language.

This is not something we can fail at, and it is not something we can wait to do.

Durbin Feeling was a great man. I knew Durbin Feeling. He was a patriot of the United States, serving the Country, and he was a savior of the Cherokee language.

It is in our oath of office that we will do all within our power to preserve the culture, heritage and traditions of the Cherokee Nation.