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The Mashpee Wampanoag Indian Tribal Council, Inc., formerly known as the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, is one of two federally recognized tribes of Wampanoag people in Massachusetts. Recognized in 2007, they are headquartered in Mashpee on Cape Cod. The other tribe is the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) on Martha's Vineyard. In 2014 the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe consists of more than 2600 enrolled members. ==History== During the colonial period, the Mashpee Wampanoag gradually sold their land and lost their autonomy, but many descendants stayed in the area of Mashpee on Cape Cod and maintained a common culture. In the 20th century, they worked to reorganize and be officially recognized as a tribe by the federal government. The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Council was established in 1972 under the leadership of its first president, Russell "Fast Turtle" Peters. In 1974 the Council petitioned the Bureau of Indian Affairs for recognition. In 1976 the tribe sued the Town of Mashpee for the return of ancestral homelands. The land claims case was lost but the tribe continued to pursue federal recognition for three decades. In 2000 the Mashpee Wampanoag Council was headed by chairman Glenn Marshall. Marshall led the group until 2007, when it was disclosed that he had a prior conviction for rape, had lied about having a military record, and was under investigation associated with the tribe's casino lobbying efforts.〔("WampaGate – Glenn Marshall: There is still much to tell" ), ''Cape Cod Times,'' 26 August 2007.〕 Marshall was succeeded by tribal council vice-chair Shawn Hendricks. He held the position until Marshall pled guilty in 2009 to federal charges of embezzling, wire fraud, mail fraud, tax evasion, and election finance law violations. Marshall had steered tens of thousands of dollars in illegal campaign contributions to politicians through the tribe's hired lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who was convicted of numerous charges in a much larger fraud scheme.〔("Former Wampanoag leader sentenced" ), ''Boston Globe,'' May 8, 2009.〕〔("Marshall Timeline" ), ''Cape Cod Times'', August 25, 2007〕 The Mashpee Tribe gained formal federal recognition as a tribe in 2007. Led by its chairman Shawn Hendricks, tribe representatives worked with Abramoff lobbyist colleague Kevin A. Ring to pursue Indian gaming-related interests, as this seemed to promise revenues to help the tribe take care of its people.〔("Cape tribe feels heat from lobbyist scandal" ), ''Cape Cod Times,'' September 11, 2008.〕 Ring was indicted and convicted on corruption charges linked to his work for the Mashpee band.〔 During this period, there was considerable internal tension within the tribe. Tribal elders sought access to the tribal council records detailing the council's involvement in this scandal, filing a complaint in Barnstable Municipal Court. They were formally shunned by the tribal council, which voted to ban these elders from the tribe for seven years. The federal government also sought records from the tribe as part of its investigation into Abramoff and his colleagues.〔("Fed letter demands 8 pages of tribe's letters to Abramoff, others" ), ''Cape Cod Today,'' 9 October 2007.〕 In 2009 the tribe elected council member Cedric Cromwell to the position of council chair and president. Cromwell ran a campaign based on reforms. He worked to distance himself from the previous chairmen, even though he had served as a councilor for the prior six years during which the Marshall and Abramoff scandals took place - and had voted to shun tribal members who tried to investigate.〔("Cedric Cromwell elected chairman" ), ''Cape Cod Times,'' February 2, 2009.〕 A challenge to Cromwell's election by defeated candidates, following allegations of tampering with voting and enrollment records, was filed with the Tribal Court. Cromwell's administration has been hampered by a series of protest by Elders over casino-related finances.〔("Mashpee Wampanoag elders gather outside tribal headquarters yesterday, seeking information about the tribe's finances since Chairman Cedric Cromwell took over" ), ''Cape Cod Times,'' 24 September 2009.〕〔(''Nellie Hicks Ramos v. Patricia Keliinui,'' 2009 Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Election Committee Chair ), Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Court, 17 January 2012.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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