Look no further than the current gaming compact dispute between the governor of Oklahoma and the tribes for an example of why it is important for Native people to not only vote, but also truly analyze the candidates that they support at the polls.

For too many Native women, violence is an ever-present threat. Murder is the third leading cause of death among American Indian and Alaska Native women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Our Native sisters experience rates of violence at 10 times the national average. A large majority have been victimized by non-Native perpetrators.

The largest tribal outpatient health facility in America is now open in Tahlequah. We gathered recently to dedicate the 470,000-square-foot facility. It was a transformational moment in the Cherokee Nation’s history.  

Not every hard-working Cherokee Nation citizen who graduates from high school wants to go to college, but they still deserve access to a quality job and a rewarding career. That is why the CN is doubling its funding for Career Tech training from $1 million to $2 million.

Recently, we announced a historic $16 million investment to expand Cherokee Nation’s language initiatives. It is the largest infusion of resources in the history of the Cherokee Nation to preserve and revitalize the Cherokee language.

THE CONVERSATION VIA AP – Increasingly, Columbus Day is giving people pause.

More and more towns and cities across the country are electing to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day as an alternative to – or in addition to – the day intended to honor Columbus’ voyages.

The Cherokee people have spent generations surviving and persevering through a series of federal policies that conspire to destroy our government, break up our families and relegate our people to the pages of history. As most of us know, it has been going on a long time.

In 1835, the Treaty of New Echota led to the forced removal of the Cherokee Nation from our homelands in the southeast to Indian Territory, while at the same time ceding vast amounts of traditional and prosperous homelands. Thankfully our leaders, while at the table negotiating with the federal government, had the foresight to insert into the treaty a long-term provision they knew would serve in our best interest for generations to come. They bargained with the federal government, as mutual sovereigns, for the guaranteed right to have a Cherokee Congressional delegate, so that we would always have a voice in Washington, D.C.

Today, more than 63% of our nearly 380,000 tribal citizens reside outside Cherokee Nation’s legal jurisdiction. One thing we’ve heard loud and clear: Our at-large Cherokees want to be involved with their tribe. To better engage the perspectives of our at-large citizens, the CN has established the At-Large Cherokee Advisory Committee.

When I served as secretary of state, one of my greatest joys was visiting our Cherokee communities and hearing input from our citizens across Oklahoma and throughout the country. And today as principal chief, I remain committed to enhancing civic and cultural engagement between the CN and our at-large CN citizens.

Osiyo.

I am humbled and grateful for your confidence in me to serve our great Cherokee Nation as your principal chief for the next four years. Being elected to this office brings me the unique opportunity to lead our Nation and to work with other leaders, both within and outside our tribe, as I serve the Cherokee people. I look forward to what we can achieve together. Serving as principal chief of the largest tribe in the nation is a great responsibility but also presents a tremendous opportunity to make a positive difference in the lives of my fellow citizens. Our tribal government, along with our businesses, is a conduit for progressive growth for our citizens and communities.

The past eight years have been the pinnacle of my public service career. Nothing has been more important to me than serving the Cherokee people. I had the privilege of working side by side with a man of great moral integrity, Deputy Chief S. Joe Crittenden. It has been the blessing of a lifetime, and I am so proud of the monumental things we achieved. They are not only making life better for Cherokees today, but will be empowering our tribe generations from now.

My grandparents had a saying: If you leave the woodpile a little higher than when you started, it benefits all of us. I think we have done that, left the tribe in a better spot than when we assumed office.

In a recent op-ed, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt called for a renegotiation of the highly successful tribal gaming compacts, government-to-government agreements that have fueled our home state, public education and job creation for more than 15 years. He argued that new compacts should reflect “market conditions for the gaming industry,” which he implied would set tribes’ payments to the state at a much higher percentage of revenues.

Unfortunately, Gov. Stitt’s approach ignores the history of tribes in Oklahoma and the many contributions made by tribes, including the Cherokee Nation, to our state. The ability of tribes in Oklahoma to thrive as sovereign nations is one of the state’s greatest competitive advantages. It would be a serious mistake for our state government to engage with tribes like we were just any another industry, ignoring our unique economic, cultural and governmental contributions.