Native Americans-Seminoles

http://www.semtribe.com/

Their website includes a lot of the history involving the whites and Native Seminoles. They too opened their first smoke shop in 1977. They were the first to open a bingo hall in Hollywood, FL creating great wealth for them. From this they have been able to open two new reservations meaning they now account for over 90,000 acres of land. They have also invested in a hotel, a school, safari and museum, from this most are able to afford modern housing and health care. They come across as a sentimental and gentle tribe dedicating much of their website to the culture of the tribe such as art, basketry, beadwork and clothes. They have even been given recognised acclaim by showing Noah Billie, a Seminole painters’ work in the St. Petersburg Museum of History. The website really shows the want to educate people in their culture and history, for example providing recipes for people to experience and taste their cultural cuisine. They also have a section of FAQs where a lot of questions for me were answered such as most surprising for me the idea of the black Seminole. Another point I found very surprising was the idea of them having a “Seminole Tribe of Florida Constitution” and their own governing bodies. They are able to live within the USA but without little or any contact from federal or state control, however they do pay $3.5 million in federal payroll taxes which I feel helps to justify the privileges they are entitled to.