Sketch Indian "Chief" to show support Cherokee Indians

This sketch in watercolors, and charcoals is one of my original sketches that the public has never seen before, because I just finished it yesterday. The purpose of adding it here is two-fold. To show that I Gloria Poole am the same woman who writes her name as gloria0817 on the web [as well as gloriapoole, and other variations of my name]; and who has websites with it written that way; and to show support for the Cherokee Indians of Oklahoma who are in today's news on yahoo.com news section as saying they won't be dictated to by the US gov't Bureau of Indian Affairs about who is a Cherokee Indian.  I am not saying this sketch is a Cherokee Indian, but merely an Indian. 

 However I did meet a couple of real indians by birth who lived on a reservation when I resided in Colorado for years Oct 2002-Oct 2009.And I heard their life stories. There is an inherent tragedy for them that no one can deny. They were forced to march from northern Georgia on what is called the 'trail of tears' to what was then largely undeveloped land in Oklahoma, as part of a treaty. They are considered a sovereign nation by that treaty, able to make their own rules and elect their own leaders, but must stay on reservations. Now, it seems that the US gov't is trying to make them declare those not Indian as Indian for the sake of tribal privilege of voting rights, benefits, etc. This is an issue certainly the Jews [and any ethnic group]  could relate too, as jewishness is defined by the jewish law [Talmud?? Torah???] and not by the US government. Yet the government is trying to force the Cherokee to allow blacks not born Cherokee to be declared Cherokee in some situations. I am a white woman not an Indian, not a black woman; but I understand that the Cherokee want to keep their bloodlines pure and I understand why; and why they are trying to define themselves instead of allowing the US federal gov't agency to do that for them.

 Cherokee, this entry is to show my support of your cause in this matter. 

Gloria Poole of Missouri; 14-Sept-2011;11:21am;