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Tribes Offer Membership to Immigrants
| Two unrecognized American Indian tribes are hawking memberships to tens of thousands of illegal immigrants as a means to legalize their status.
Immigration authorities denounce the scheme as a scam and say neither tribe is federally recognized, nor would membership in them protect an illegal alien from arrest and deportation. The immigration service and several states have sued the tribe to block the practice. Some immigrants reportedly paid up to $1,200 to join the Kaweah Indian Nation, which is based in Wichita, Kans. The tribal chief Manuel Urbina said it sold 10,000 memberships for $50 apiece to illegal immigrants. He insists the tribe is operating within the law and the membership provides documentation to illegal immigrants, which can be useful when they are detained. A Florida company is also selling North Dakota-based Pembina Nation Little Shell tribe memberships for $150 apiece. |