Eastern Band of Cherokee Historic Lands Reacquisition Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. FLEISCHMANN. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of my bill, H.R. 2088, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Historic Lands Reacquisition Act.

The great State of Tennessee, my home State, gets its name from the historic Overhill Cherokee village site called Tanasi located in present-day Monroe County, Tennessee. Tanasi served as the capital of the Cherokee people from as early as 1721.

Unfortunately, as a result of misguided Federal policies, the Cherokee people were forcibly removed from their homes in Tennessee and surrounding States. This tragic period in American history led to the Trail of Tears, a journey on which the United States forcibly marched 15,000 Cherokees to the Indian territory.

My bill, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Historic Lands Reacquisition Act, returns important historical sites back to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, the Tribal Nation comprised of descendants of those Cherokees who resisted removal in the Great Smoky Mountains.

It is on these same lands where the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians have for decades honored the birthplace of Sequoyah, whose likeness we have all had the opportunity to pass as we make our way from the rotunda of our Capitol to this House floor.

H.R. 2088 would return 76.1 acres of TVA land back to the Eastern Band of Cherokees in trust and grant two permanent easements over TVA property to be held in trust for the Tribe for creating recreational trails between the sites.

The Tribe is committed to improving the educational resources of the Sequoyah Birthplace Museum and to providing a means for economic development for the local community through cultural tourism.

The Cherokee Nation has a rich history in the Third District of Tennessee, and I am grateful to be engaged in the process to safeguard their story.

This exact piece of legislation has easily passed the House with broad bipartisan support for the last two Congresses. I strongly urge Members of the United States Senate to understand the importance of Cherokee Tribal land preservation and to support H.R. 2088 so that it may be brought to President Biden's desk in an accelerated manner.

November serves as Indigenous People's Month, and I encourage all of my colleagues in both Chambers to join in passing this momentous piece of legislation.

Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ.

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