Warren is part Cherokee, Genealogist Says

May 2, 2012 RSS Feed Print

Just in case anyone was concerned that the did-she-or-didn't-she flap over whether or not Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren used a claim of minority status to advance her career was based on a lie, a Massachusetts genealogist has the answer: it wasn't

According to Christopher Child of the New England Historic and Genealogy Society, a document from 1894 confirms Warren's great-great-great grandmother was a Cherokee. That would make Warren 1/32 American Indian, according to media reports.

Warren is embroiled in a tight Senate race against incumbent Republican Sen. Scott Brown, who's campaign recently insinuated Warren used her minority status to further her career. The Boston Herald recently reported that Harvard University touted Warren as their first female-minority tenured hire to the Harvard Crimson newspaper at a time when the school was being scrutinized for a lack of diversity. Warren says she doesn't remember disclosing her status to the school before she was brought aboard.

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If Elizabeth Warren had even a *single* ancestor listed on the Dawes Roll in 1894, then she's technically a Cherokee. As far as the DNA quantum goes, that's a different issue, one that's irrelevant to the definition of "Cherokee" under both federal and tribal law.
The haters must be tired of hating Obama; they've now started on Warren's ggg-grandmother. The idea that some poor white woman from OK could sit on the Harvard faculty! Bring me my smelling salts!

geistjaeger of CO 12:28PM August 31, 2012

This so-called document that a genealogist says verifies Ms. Warren's heritage was a computer scanned copy of her great great great grandmother's marriage license. They have found the original and it doesn't say she was Cherokee at all. So there still isn't any evidence that this woman has any Native ancestry. Even if it was true, we still don't know if her great great great grandmother was full blooded Indian or mixed blood Cherokee.Many Cherokees and other Native Americans have less than 50% Native blood and are mixed with other ethnicities, particularly white European blood, but are still labeled as Native Americans as long as they are a part of a federal recognized tribe. Genetically, she probably would be much less than even 1/32 Cherokee if she has any Indian blood at all. To me, Ms. Warren is a white woman from Oklahoma who has used family lore and legend to make herself out to be part of an oppressed minority group to gain support for her campaign.

Ghost of TN 10:05PM May 11, 2012

Since most,all, evilutionist agree that the human race as we know it began in Africa,in or around the area of Ethiopia,that would mean we are all part black. Pass them grits and turnip greens brother.

Gruff of CT 8:38AM May 04, 2012

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