One woman took a stand against tribal disenrollment and paid for it

The lingerie photo was Carmen Tageant’s breaking point. Sixteen years earlier, she’d taken a set of boudoir photos as a Valentine’s Day gift for her partner. But as life happened — raising seven children, going back to school, achieving a spot on the Nooksack Tribal Council — she’d all but forgotten about them. So when she checked her Facebook notifications one morning in February 2016, she was shocked.

An image of Tageant posing with her legs in the air had been posted by someone named Keith Williams, and the accompanying text made it clear the post was intended to shame: “We all now know how we got her votes for (sic) in office and has nothing to hide!” It was soon posted to a Nooksack Facebook group by another user. Tribal citizens jumped in with dozens of comments, making it painfully obvious to Tageant that her picture was making the rounds. “Lol she’s shameful,” one person wrote. “Spreading lies and legs,” wrote another. And a third attacked Tageant’s leadership credentials: “Who is going to support a liar … A cheat … I will not support a person like Carmen T and I don’t think our true tribal membership should either.”

https://www.hcn.org/issues/52.2/indigenous-affairs-one-woman-took-a-stand-against-tribal-disenrollment-and-paid-for-it-nooksack