One Year After Historic Citizenship Victory, Black Creek Freedmen File New Legal Action to Enforce Supreme Court Ruling
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (July 23, 2026) — One year after the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Supreme Court unanimously affirmed that Black Creek Freedmen are full citizens of the Nation under the Treaty of 1866, Plaintiffs Rhonda K. Grayson and Jeffrey D. Kennedy have filed a new legal action seeking declaratory and injunctive relief against Principal Chief David Hill, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Citizenship Board, and its individual board members.
The complaint alleges that despite the Court's July 23, 2025 ruling, Nation officials have failed to implement the decision by refusing to issue citizenship cards to eligible Black Creek Freedmen. The lawsuit seeks to enforce the Nation's highest court ruling and prevent continued violations of the Treaty of 1866.
The filing marks the next chapter in a generations-long effort by Black Creek Freedmen descendants to secure the rights guaranteed under the Treaty of 1866 and affirmed by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Supreme Court.
"One year ago, our families celebrated what we believed would be the beginning of a new chapter," said Rhonda Grayson, Board Chairwoman and Band Leader of the Muscogee Creek Indian Freedmen Band and Black Creek Indian. "Instead, we find ourselves still waiting for the rights the Court unanimously affirmed. This case is about making sure that victory becomes reality for every Black Creek Freedmen family."
Jeffrey D. Kennedy, Vice-Chair of the Muscogee Creek Indian Freedmen Band and Black Creek Indian, said the case is about future generations as much as it is about those who brought it.
"Our ancestors endured generations of exclusion, but they never stopped believing that justice was possible," Kennedy said. "We carry that responsibility today. This fight is about ensuring that our children and grandchildren inherit not another promise, but the citizenship that has already been recognized."
According to the complaint, the Court settled the question of citizenship in 2025. The present action seeks to enforce that judgment after months of alleged noncompliance.
"This is no longer a case about whether Black Creek Freedmen are citizens," said Attorney Damario Solomon-Simmons, M.Ed., President and Chief Legal Counsel of Justice For Greenwood and Black Creek Indian. "The Nation's highest court answered that question unanimously one year ago. This case is about whether a final judgment of the Supreme Court will be implemented. In any system governed by the rule of law, court orders must mean something."
Attorney Jana Knott of Bass Law said the lawsuit asks the Court to ensure that its judgment is carried out.
"When a court issues a final decision, the expectation is compliance," Knott said. "This filing seeks to protect the integrity of the judicial process by ensuring that the Court's ruling is fully implemented."
Attorney Lauren Briggerman of Squire Patton Boggs said the legal team remains committed to seeing the case through until the Court's decision is honored.
"Our clients prevailed before the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Supreme Court," Briggerman said. "They should not have to continue fighting for recognition that has already been affirmed. We will continue pursuing every available legal remedy until the Court's judgment is fully enforced."
The plaintiffs and their legal team will discuss the filing during a press conference on July 23, the one-year anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court decision.
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Greenwood, most revered for “Black Wall Street” was co-founded by Black Creeks—it became one of the most prosperous, organized, and successful Black communities in United States history, and a place for Black people to escape the political, economic, and social oppression of southern lawmakers post-civil war.
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