Chukchansi Gold Casino Hit with Protests Against Disenrollment

Posted on: October 21, 2024, 06:02h. 

Last updated on: October 22, 2024, 09:11h.

Philip Conneller @casinoorgphilc Read More
Expertise: Gaming Business, Regulation, Tribal Gaming.

Visitors to the Chukchansi Gold Resort & Casino, near Fresno, Calif., on Saturday, witnessed around 100 people outside the premises protesting against its owner, the Picayune Rancheria of Chukchansi Indians.

Chukchansi Gold, Picayune Rancheria of Chukchansi Indians, disenrollment, Coarsegold, California
The Chukchansi Gold Resort & Casino in Coarsegold, Calif., above, was the scene of demonstrations against the tribe’s controversial disenrollment policy. Since the casino opened in 2003, the tribe has excluded more than half of its members. (Image: Chukchansi Gold)

The demonstrators were out in force to oppose the Chukchansi’s practice of disenrollment, YourCentralValley.com reported. They claim the policy is an attack by the tribe on its own people, motivated by greed for casino revenue.

Around 80 of America’s 567 federally recognized tribes are known to have disenrolled members, but the Chukchansi Tribe is one of the worst offenders.

Since the casino opened in 2003, it has excluded more than half of its members, including those with documented ancestry, families descended from tribal founders, and some of the last native speakers of the tribal language.

What is Disenrollment?

The practice strips members and their descendants of their citizenship of a tribal nation, along with the associated benefits, such as housing, healthcare, and their share of casino revenue.

Disenrollment is ostensibly used to correct tribal rolls and preserve the integrity of the tribe, but critics say some tribes wield it as a political or economic weapon.

Protestors who spoke to YourCentralValley.com Saturday claimed that’s the case with the Chukchansi Tribe, which sent notice to 49 members in mid-March to say they would be expelled.

We lost our home because of this,” one man, who preferred to remain anonymous, said. “My kids had to move schools and most importantly my kids are losing their heritage.”

Casino.org reported in 2019 the removal of 60 members from the roll. In many cases, the disenrollments occurred between rival factions jostling for control of the tribal council and its casino wealth.

The casino generates around $43.7 million in revenue each year, according to a 2022 estimate. Since it opened in 2003, the tribe has disenrolled more than half of its members.

“We have provided paper documentation – proving our identity with Chukchansi. Yet they turn a blind eye because they’re trying to increase their per capita payments,” former tribal board member Claudia Gonzales told YourCentralValley.com.

Casino.org approached the tribe for comment but hadn’t heard back at the time of publication.

2014 Armed Takeover

In October 2014, this power struggle spilled into violence when about 20 armed men from a rival faction stormed the casino after a disputed election.

As casino patrons ran for cover, the assailants marched security guards at gunpoint into a secure area of the building where they were handcuffed and reportedly assaulted.

The men claimed they had stormed the casino in search of accounts that were overdue for submission to the National Indian Gaming Commission to avoid receiving a penalty charge for late filing.

A federal judge ordered the casino to close, which it did for over a year, costing the tribe millions.

The leader of the coup, Tex McDonald, was sentenced to 485 days for false imprisonment.