Elizabeth Warren Apologizes to Cherokee Nation for Taking DNA Test to Prove Native-American Roots

Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren has apologized to the Cherokee Nation for taking a DNA test to prove she had Native-American ancestry, taking a step to smooth over the lingering controversy as she prepares to formally launch her 2020 presidential campaign.

“Senator Warren has reached out to us and has apologized to the tribe. We are encouraged by this dialogue and understanding that being a Cherokee Nation tribal citizen is rooted in centuries of culture and laws, not through DNA tests,” Cherokee Nation spokeswoman Julie Hubbard said in a statement.

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{snip} But the Times reported Warren privately expressed concern she may have hurt her standing with Native-American groups and her own supporters in her handling of the test.

“We are encouraged by her action and hope that the slurs and mockery of tribal citizens and Indian history and heritage will now come to an end,” Hubbard added.

The move comes just over a week before Warren is expected to formally declare her candidacy for president {snip}.

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The DNA results also fueled claims by Republican critics that she used a trace amount of Native American heritage to advance her academic career.

The test itself revealed strong evidence the Massachusetts senator had a Native-American ancestor dating back six to 10 generations. But that means if Warren’s great-great-great-grandmother were Native American, she would be considered 1/64 Native American. Should Warren’s ancestor date back 10 generations, she would be only 1/1,024 Native American.

The Cherokee Nation slammed Warren at the time, with the tribe’s secretary of state Chuck Hoskin Jr., saying the use of “a DNA test to lay claim to any connection to the Cherokee Nation or any tribal nation, even vaguely, is inappropriate and wrong.”

Warren’s apology appears to be an about-face by the senator, who up until now had repeatedly defended taking the DNA test.

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