The Tribe Has Spoken Poem by John F. McCullagh

When they walked along the trail of tears
The freedmen toted gear.
These blacks, who once were owned as slaves,
would be tribesmen, it appeared.
One hundred and thirty years have passed,
The Cherokee think it time
for a parting of the ways-
voting blacks out of their tribe.
Would Jeff Probst approve of this?
Would Survivor film the vote?
Casino money must be at stake.
It's quite the slippery slope.
Black Cherokees have been deprived
of their slice of change and hope.
Voted out of the tribe,
forced off the reservation
I understand Black Cherokees’
chagrin and consternation.