Nearly 3,500 Cherokee citizens living in Colorado will have a chance to obtain tribal citizenship photo IDs, according to tribal officials, who will give information at community meeting in Denver on July 19.
“Producing a government-issued, photo ID helps to instill a greater sense of pride in our people, and we’re happy to bring this service to our Cherokees living outside of Oklahoma,” said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Bill John Baker, in a statement.
“I’ve presented my photo tribal citizenship card at several major airports, and even to the U.S. Secret Service, and experienced no problems whatsoever.”
With more than 300,000 citizens, the Cherokee Nation is the largest tribal nation in the United States, and has issued more than 42,000 tribal citizenship photo IDs since 2012.
These IDs look much like a driver’s license, with the citizen’s Cherokee Nation registration number and photo, along with the citizen’s signature, the principal chief’s signature, and a distinctive Cherokee Nation hologram seal for validation.
Citizens can also choose to have their official Bureau of Indian Affairs Certificate of Indian Blood on the back of the card.
The meeting will be held on July 19 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Nighthorse Campbell Native American Health Building at the University of Colorado Denver, 13001 E. 17th Place in Aurora.
For more information, contact Tammy Keeter-Miller at 918-207-4950 or the Cherokee Nation registration department at 918-458-6980 or registration@cherokee.org.