March lends support to shunned tribe members

By ROBERT GOLD

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June 30, 2008

MASHPEE — Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe members held a march and gathering yesterday afternoon in a show of support for shunned tribe members.

More than 20 people showed up for yesterday's event, with about half making the 1½-mile walk from Mashpee town park to the Old Indian Burial Ground at Meetinghouse Road and Route 28. Two Mashpee police cars gave the group an escort.

Tribal member Tiffany Mendes was one of those who decided to make the walk along Great Neck Road North.

"This is just for support," she said.

The four members — Stephanie Tobey-Roderick, Michelle Fernandes, elder Amelia Bingham and her son Steven — were shunned in December 2006 for seven years by the tribal council after they filed suit in Barnstable seeking access to tribe finances. The punishment bars them from tribal benefits and activities, including the annual powwow, which begins July 4.

Tobey-Roderick, Fernandes and Amelia Bingham appeared at yesterday's event.

Last July, the four defied the wishes of the tribal council and attended the annual powwow. The four were issued trespassing citations by Mashpee police, though the complaints were dropped.

With this year's powwow days away, Tobey-Roderick hasn't decided whether she'll try again. The drama and conflict might be too much.

"I don't want to subject myself (and others) to that," she said.

Amelia Bingham also said they plan to appeal a Suffolk Superior Court judge's decision, issued Friday, to dismiss the Binghams' lawsuit against the tribal council. The Binghams claimed the tribal leaders violated their civil rights with the shunning punishment.

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