By Frank Morris
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kcur/local-kcur-570627.mp3
Kansas City, MO – Professor Stacy Leeds directs the University of Kansas' Center for Indigenous Nations Studies. She sat on the Cherokee Tribal Court last year when it ruled that the Cherokee Freedmen, people with ancestral ties to slaves held by Cherokees, had full standing as members of the tribe. Leeds is also the lone candidate challenging the tribe's leader, Principal Chief Chad Smith, in next summer's election. KCUR's Frank Morris spoke to Leeds, who says Indians have long struggled with issues of tribal identity, like those raised by the Freedmen.