Historic Tribal Ouster at Northern Cheyenne

The Northern Cheyenne people made history this week. After meeting privately for several hours on Thursday, the Cheyenne Chiefs Council in an unprecedented action drafted a declaration calling for the use of traditional tribal law to remove many of the currently elected members of Tribal Council, along with several Staff, and ban them from ever serving again. Since those members had barricaded themselves inside the Littlewolf Capitol Building, the center of Cheyenne tribal government, along with an illegal Security Force, those Chiefs demanded the offices to be opened back up to the public, and the private Security members removed.  The issue came to a head last week after a questionable meeting of the council, where members passed a resolution to urge removal of Cheyenne President Gene Small, in an action that was later disapproved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.  President Small was pressured because he wants to see a forensic audit of some $90 million in federal ARPA and Covid funds.  To explain exactly what happened, Robert McClean called into Voices of Montana on Friday September to talk with Tom Schultz and Taylor Brown on the statewide radio program. Robert McLean, Jr. is not Cheyenne, but a highly respected local community leader trusted by tribal members.  McLean is a former Principal of Lame Deer Elementary School, former Superintendent at Wyola and St. Labre Schools, and more recently the Lay Advocate at Northern Cheyenne Tribal Court.