Subtle History Could Have Lasting Impact

This was recently reported:

A case before the Supreme court has enormous implications for the state of Oklahoma, as a murder case has courts realizing that Congress never, in fact, explicitly disestablished the Creek Nation’s reservation in the years leading up to Oklahoma’s statehood in 1907. In 2017, the Tenth Circuit of Appeals wrote in a 133-page analysis stating that since Congress never actually disestablished the reservation, half the state — some 44 counties and municipal jurisdictions of Oklahoma — is, in fact, under tribal jurisdiction. This reality has enormous implications for criminal justice and taxation. Justice Gorsuch has recused himself, so it would require five of eight justices to overturn the state court’s ruling in favor of the tribes. 

Matt Ford, The New Republic

If you look back, Texas was given the ability to split into five states at its own choosing when given statehood. It could effectively have undue influence, particularly in the US Senate, if it did so by adding 8 additional Senators. If they voted as a bloc, they’d have 10 of 108 votes in the Senate.

I was also reading “The Color of Compromise” by Jemar Tisby and reminded that conscious or subconscious racism led to “white flight”—the ‘migration’ of wealthier whites to the suburbs. This then led to more jobs being created in the suburbs—because of close proximity to the business owners, a majority of whom are white—abandoning talented people in the inner city. This also led to higher commuting costs from the suburbs (and exurbs) to downtown for white collar work, which put pressure on wages, etc. and public subsidy of express bus, light rail and other public transportation modes. But then that sometimes doesn’t work for those companies who move from downtown to a suburb: example, a large bank headquarters moved from downtown to a suburb and lost 80% of its workforce because public transportation wasn’t available in that direction at the appropriate times of the day.