Barbara Barrow speaks with Russell Peters, President of the Mashpee Tribal Council, about the history of the Mashpee District in Massachusetts.
Creation of the Mashpee District in 1685. Program focuses on the August, 1976 lawsuit filed by the Wampanoag Indians of Massachusetts against the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, in an effort to reclaim lands sold from 1763 to 1870 without Congressional approval. Host Barbara Barrow speaks with guest Russell Peters, President of the Mashpee Tribal Council, about the problems the council is having regaining tribal lands, when was the lands were taken, when the council decided to file suit, how Peters feels about the claim that Wampanoag marriages with Black and white Americans has diluted their culture and claim to lands, if Mashpee becoming a town gave Native Americans the power to sell their own land (as they did willingly, according to Barrow), and what will happen to the people who are living in Mashpee who feel they own their land and houses. Additional segments include the 'Say Brother News' with reporters Leah Fletcher, Eric Sampedro, Justina Chu, and WNAC TV arts critic Tanya Hart, the 'Third World Connection' (which discusses the intermarriage of African Americans and Native Americans, and their historical bond, is discussed), and the 'Community Calendar.' Produced by Barbara Barrow. Directed by Conrad White.
Attorney Ann Gilmore, Co-council for the Mashpee Tribal Council in their lawsuit against the Commonwealth of Massachusetts regarding the illegal seizure of land, compares the issues in the Regents of the University of California V. Bakke case to that of the Council's case.
