Kimberly Teehee Is the Cherokee Nation's First Delegate to Congress

In December 1835, a minority party of the Cherokee Nation met government officials to sign the Treaty of New Echota, which laid out the terms for the removal of the Cherokee from the nation's ancestral lands in the southeastern United States. Many Cherokee people opposed the treaty, and few willingly departed. So, backed by the formal agreement, U.S. soldiers forced the Cherokee out of their homes and along a 1,200-mile march to Indian territory west of the Mississippi River. It has been estimated that more than 5,000 Cherokee died during the journey, which is known as the Trail of Tears.

Among the compensation promised to the Cherokee as part of the devastating treaty was the right to send a delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives. For nearly 200 years, the position remained unfilled. But last Thursday, the Cherokee Nation’s council approved Kimberly Teehee as its first official representative to Congress.

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