Caddo Nation fight stops tribal government

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BINGER – Even as members of the U.S. Congress continue to fight over the Obama administration’s health care law and a shutdown of the federal government, another nation has seen its government – and the services it provides – grind to a halt.

Just a month after Caddo Nation Chairwoman Brenda Shemayme Edwards began her second term, the tribe’s government came to a complete stop Sept. 7 after council members voted to recall Edwards and remove her from office.

Documents obtained by The Journal Record show that Edwards was notified of a pending recall petition on Aug. 22. Edwards said she turned the petition over to the tribe’s secretary who is required, under the Caddo constitution, to establish validity.

On Aug. 29, Edwards said, she was notified that the petition was not valid. Edwards said she presented the notice to the tribal council at its Sept. 6 meeting. But instead of accepting the notice, Edwards said the council voted 4-2 to remove the Caddo Nation Election Board. At the recall election on Sept. 7, the council voted to remove Edwards from office. 

“There was no documentation or justification provided to warrant this action,” she said.  “The election board was not notified, nor were they given a chance to defend this action.”

Since that time, Edwards said she’s been fighting for her political life.

“Our secretary found that the petition was invalid, but that didn’t matter,” Edwards said Tuesday. “They went ahead and had a meeting with their followers and voted me out of office.”

Because the petition was invalid, she said, the meeting and recall vote were also invalid.

“If we would have had 50 signatures, we would have had a meeting,” Edwards said. “But the secretary said the petition was invalid.”

Emails and handwritten letters show that at least three members of the tribal council called for the Sept. 7 recall membership meeting. At the meeting, 36 members of the tribe attended. Two days later, Edwards was notified in writing by Caddo Nation Vice Chairman Philip Smith that she had been replaced.

“This letter is to inform you, with a quorum present at the recall membership meeting Sept. 7, a majority of the membership present voted to recall you as Caddo chairman, effective immediately,” Smith wrote. “Please call security at the Caddo Nation Complex to make arrangements to pick up your personal belongings before Friday, Sept. 13.”

Smith signed the letter as acting Caddo chairman.

Edwards said Smith, whose email lists him as a deputy sheriff, violated the tribe’s constitution, going so far as to break into tribal headquarters and chain the door shut. Since then, she said the tribe’s entire government and its businesses have stopped functioning.

“We have had no services since last Tuesday,” she said. “There are no social services, tag sales, tribal enrollments, health care services or anything. I’ve contacted the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, but they won’t do anything. No one will help. They say it’s a tribal dispute.”

But one tribal council member countered that Edwards was the one who violated the tribe’s constitution.

Council Member Jennifer Reeder said Edwards has refused to accept the fact that she has been replaced as the tribe’s leader. Edwards, Reeder said, held council meetings without a proper quorum and conducted business without the proper authorization.

“She was recalled because she violated the tribe’s constitution,” Reeder said. “I can’t remember all the charges.”

Reeder also blamed Edwards for shutting down the tribal government.

“She sent a message to employees and told them they were on administrative leave,” Reeder said. “The acting chairman tried to call them in, but few have returned.”

Reeder said some limited health services and the tribe’s Head Start program were operating, but the rest of the tribe’s government had stopped.

 “Things are pretty much at a standstill,” she said.

However, both Edwards and Reeder said tribal funds were protected. Edwards said the tribe’s bank has refused to allow Smith’s administration to have access to the funds until the issue is resolved. She said the tribe’s annual budget was about $5 million.

“The bank still recognizes me as the chairman,” she said. “They’ve tried to get access to the money, but the bank hasn’t budged.”

With the U.S. government facing its own shutdown, Edwards said she hoped the Caddo Nation’s problems don’t last very long. The tribe, she said, can’t take an extended fight.

“Right now I’m at a loss for words,” she said. “No one will help. They say it’s a tribal dispute. But I’m really concerned. I’m concerned about everything we have.”

Considered one of the ancient tribes in Oklahoma, the Caddo people settled in Oklahoma in A.D. 800. One of Oklahoma’s 38 federally recognized tribes, the 5,700-member Caddo Nation ratified a new constitution in 1976.