Seminole Tribe of Florida

[6][7] In 1975, the Tribe established tax-free smoke shops and a high-stakes bingo operation that became one of the first tribal gaming endeavors in the United States.[10] They distanced themselves increasingly from other Muscogee groups, and expanded and prospered owing to their thriving trade network during Florida's British and second Spanish periods (c.A smaller group – possibly fewer than 500 – refused to leave Florida and moved deep into the Everglades, where they avoided settlers and thrived in pseudo-isolation.This contributed to the depletion of game and other resources by the state's expanding population, reducing the tribal people's ability to live in traditional ways.[20] Construction of the Tamiami Trail across the center of the Everglades,[18] the Civilian Conservation Corps projects from 1933 to 1934,[21] and the eventual opening of the National Park, all served to displace many Seminole families who had lived throughout the area.The trust agreement established by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, on September 12, 1939, required that the tribe elect three trustees to transact the business of the cattle program.They promoted men who knew English and were good at White-Native cooperation, as opposed to allowing the tribe to select those most skilled in animal husbandry.Montsdeoca was extremely influential in making decisions regarding the cattle program and, next to the Indian Affairs official at the reservation, was the most important local White man for the Seminole.Waybright was soon persuaded of the merits of the case and agreed to represent the tribe,[24] signing a contract with his partner John O. Jackson on October 15, 1949.[24] Government delays; tribal reorganization, which caused Waybright to resign from the case; resignation of the female replacement for Waybright, Effie Knowles, who felt the tribe would be happier with male representation; the hiring of Roy Struble of Miami and Charles Bragman of Washington, DC; and the death of attorney John Jackson all contributed to the claim dragging into the 1960s.Few of the Seminole at the time had gained formal education or graduated from high school, and they worried about being able to organize as a tribe in order to deal with the government.He led the Tribe through 1979 in a number of important initiatives that created a new direction for the people, with the assertion of sovereignty, significant revenue generation, and accelerated economic development.He urged acceptance of the US land claims settlement in 1976; the Florida and Oklahoma Seminole negotiated for more than a decade before reaching their final agreement in 1990 as to distribution of trust funds.He initiated negotiations with the state of Florida over water rights at the Seminole reservations, winning legal standing and protecting their resources.[28] Jim Billie, who was re-elected in 2011 with 58.4% of the council vote, after previously serving from 1979 to 2001,[29] led the tribe through a dramatic expansion of operations, with development of new programs and facilities as it invested the revenues generated from gaming and related entertainment.Subsequent changes in federal and state laws have paved the way for dozens of other tribes to increase their revenues through development of gambling casinos, resorts, and related hotels and retail outlets.[34][35] However, on November 23, 2021, D.C. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich held that the compact violated Federal Law, specifically the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA).[39] On December 3, 2021, the District of Columbia appellate court denied the appeal because they failed to demonstrate any irreparable harm resulting from the loss of its state-wide sports betting operation.[42] Other significant parts of their economy are based on production of the citrus groves and cattle farming on the Brighton and Big Cypress reservations, and forestry.They are featuring it in their Hard Rock Cafe and hotels, and intend to market it to other Native American tribes, military installations, restaurants, and grocery stores throughout the country.[43] Tourism, both as related to the casinos and in terms of attracting people to the reservations for hunting, fishing, and guided tours, is also a part of their economy.In February 2012, the Tampa Bay Times reported that the Seminole Tribe employed a total of 12,000 people at its headquarters and six casino operations.In a 1999 interview, Betty Mae Tiger Jumper, chairwoman of the tribe from 1967 to 1971, said that in the late 1920s, Seminole medicine men had threatened to kill her and her brother, then young children, because they were of mixed heritage with a White father.[45] Similarly, former chairman Jim Billie, who also had a White father, recounted that, as an infant, he was threatened in 1944 by tribal men because he was of mixed ancestry; his mother and Betty Mae Tiger, then a young woman, saved his life.[47] The Seminole Tribe currently has six reservations:[31] Additionally, the tribe has purchased a 796-acre (322 ha) tract of land at the edge of the Green Swamp north of Lakeland, Florida, known as the Lakeland Trust Lands, which it intends to turn into a 151-home tribal residential development with facilities for residents' social, cultural, and educational needs.[53] In 1956, Betty Mae Tiger Jumper (later to be elected as chairwoman of the tribe) and Alice Osceola established the first tribal newspaper, the Seminole News, which sold for 10 cents a copy.In 1989, the monthly Seminole Tribune became the first Native American newspaper to win a Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.Their card catalogues have been automated and an Electric Library has been established where patrons can view thousands of books, magazines, and radio and television transcripts.[60] The name was adopted in 1947 after a fan vote; reportedly the new college football team preferred it so much that they stuffed the ballot box in its favor.