The Delaware Tribe of Oklahoma is an American Indian tribe currently incorporated as part of the larger Cherokee Nation. Originally from the Hudson and Delaware River valleys, the Delawares are neither socially nor historically related to the Cherokees and were incorporated with them simply because they were forced to move to the Cherokee Nation in 1867. The Delawares never assimilated into Cherokee society and culture and today seek federal recognition as a separate tribe to protect their particular cultural and political identity. However, Delaware efforts to achieve federal recognition are...