One Year Later: The Fight to Enforce Black Creek Citizenship Continues
One year ago, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision affirming what Black Creek Freedmen descendants have argued for generations: under the Treaty of 1866, they are citizens of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation.
The ruling was historic. It recognized that the Nation's exclusion of Black Creek Freedmen descendants had no legal foundation and reaffirmed that the Treaty of 1866 remains the supreme law governing their citizenship rights.
Many believed the decision would finally close a chapter that had lasted decades.
Instead, one year later, the fight has shifted from winning recognition in court to ensuring that the ruling is actually enforced.
A year without compliance
On the one-year anniversary of the landmark decision, plaintiffs Rhonda Grayson and Jeffrey Kennedy filed a federal lawsuit asking the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma to require implementation of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Supreme Court's ruling.
According to the legal team, the lawsuit became necessary after a year of continued delays and the refusal to issue citizenship cards despite the Nation's highest court having already determined that Black Creek Freedmen descendants are entitled to citizenship under the Treaty of 1866.
As attorney Damario Solomon-Simmons explained during the press conference announcing the lawsuit, the federal case is not asking the court to create new rights.
Instead, it asks the federal court to enforce rights that have already been recognized by both the Treaty of 1866 and the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Supreme Court.
How we got here
The history behind this moment stretches back more than 150 years.
Following the Civil War, the Treaty of 1866 abolished slavery within the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and guaranteed citizenship to formerly enslaved Black Creeks and their descendants.
For decades, Black Creek Freedmen lived as citizens of the Nation.
That changed in 1979, when a new Muscogee (Creek) Nation Constitution limited citizenship to individuals classified as "by blood," effectively excluding Black Creek Freedmen descendants from citizenship despite the protections guaranteed by the Treaty of 1866.
For nearly five decades, descendants have challenged that exclusion through advocacy and litigation.
After years of legal proceedings, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation District Court ruled in 2023 that the Treaty of 1866 guarantees Black Creek Freedmen citizenship. One year ago, the Nation's Supreme Court unanimously affirmed that decision, declaring the exclusion unlawful and making clear that the Treaty of 1866 must be fully honored.
What the lawsuit seeks
The new federal lawsuit is about enforcement.
The plaintiffs argue that despite the Supreme Court's ruling, they have still not received citizenship cards and that thousands of eligible Black Creek Freedmen descendants continue to be denied recognition.
The lawsuit asks the federal court to require the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Citizenship Board and Nation officials to carry out the judgment already issued by the Nation's own courts.
As Solomon-Simmons stated during the press conference:
"We're not asking for anything special. We just want the rights guaranteed by our ancestors in 1866."
More than a legal case
For plaintiff Rhonda Grayson, the lawsuit represents more than enforcing a court order.
It is about honoring promises made to generations of Black Creek families.
"It is deeply troubling that on this one-year anniversary of this historic ruling, we are still fighting for compliance with the very decision that affirmed our citizenship," Grayson said during the announcement.
She emphasized that every day without compliance is another day Black Creek Freedmen descendants are denied not only their legal rights but also their identity as citizens.
Co-plaintiff Jeffrey Kennedy reflected on the personal cost of the decades-long fight, remembering relatives and community members who passed away before seeing justice fully realized.
"We just want to come home," Kennedy said.
His words echoed the experience of countless families who have waited generations for their citizenship to be recognized and respected.
Why this matters
This case is about more than two citizenship applications.
It raises a broader question: What happens when a final court judgment is not carried out?
For the plaintiffs, enforcement of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Supreme Court's decision is essential not only for Black Creek Freedmen descendants but for preserving confidence in the rule of law and the continued force of the Treaty of 1866.
Attorney Brenda Golden, an enrolled citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, reminded those gathered that the same Treaty of 1866 celebrated for affirming the Nation's reservation boundaries in the McGirt decision also guarantees citizenship to Black Creek Freedmen descendants.
"We celebrated a treaty," she said, "and yet still won't recognize our brothers and sisters that walked on the Trail of Tears with us."
Looking ahead
The federal lawsuit marks the next chapter in a decades-long effort to ensure that the promises made in the Treaty of 1866 are honored in practice, not only recognized on paper.
For thousands of Black Creek Freedmen descendants, the case represents more than access to citizenship. It is about belonging, identity, and ensuring that the Nation's own laws and highest court decisions are respected.