Wednesday, June 23, 2010
After struggling for three decades to win recognition, the Shinnecock Indians last week were officially declared a federally-sanctioned tribe by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The legal status means the relatively impoverished tribe of 1,292 members can now join the ranks of other Native Americans and build a lucrative casino.
But it’s uncertain they will be able to establish a Class II gambling operation—with video slots machines, but no table games like poker, blackjack or roulette—in the Hamptons, where the Shinnecock own 800 acres of property. Local officials are afraid a casino in South Hampton would only create more gridlock on Long Island’s congested roads.
New York officials are willing to help the tribe locate its casino somewhere else in the state, perhaps either in New York City or its suburbs. Such a move, though, “would mean plunging into a thicket of complex federal law, court rulings and political considerations,” according to The New York Times.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
U.S. Recognizes an Indian Tribe on Long Island, Clearing the Way for a Casino (by Danny Hakim, New York Times)
Shinnecocks Hold Economic Cards, and Suitors Are Needy (by Peter Applebome, New York Times)
Long Island Indians Near Recognition (and a Casino) after 30-Year Court Case (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
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