Mashpee Wampanoag Reservation To Be 'Disestablished': Tribe

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe was told on Friday by the Bureau of Indian Affairs that their reservation will be disestablished and their land taken out of trust. The order comes from the secretary of the interior, according to tribe Chairman Cedric Cromwell.

Cromwell announced the order on the tribe's website on Saturday.

"Today's action was cruel and it was unnecessary. The Secretary is under no court order to take our land out of trust. He is fully aware that litigation to uphold our status as a tribe eligible for the benefits of the Indian Reorganization Act is ongoing."

Cromwell highlighted that the news comes as the country and the tribe are in the midst of dealing with the new coronavirus. "On the very day that the United States has reached a record 100,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and our Tribe is desperately struggling with responding to this devastating pandemic," Cromwell said.

According to WBUR, Conner Swanson, a spokesperson from the Department of the Interior, said the tribe is still federally recognized he added that a court decision mandating the department's action was present.

Cromwell ended his message with a promise that the tribe will continue it's efforts to maintain the reservation's confirmed status. "We will not rest until we are treated equally with other federally recognized tribes and the status of our reservation is confirmed," Cromwell said.

Read more about this story at WBUR.