Hi kat:
That is in fact, the nation for which I have the honor of working. At present, their apeal to a negative ruling has been granted, as the State of Ct. has lost much of the records that the state, by law must maintain.
As Okiemockbird points out, the question is hugely complex and politicaly motivated, with the Federal Indian Gaming Act giving both sides incentives. In the case of the Golden Hill Paugeesukq, the Ct. nation to which kat refers, the fact that, as with many whaling tribes, they intermarried with the black community, and the fact that the US has a racialized veiw of native nations, local papers and politicians constantly play the race card in reporting on the Paugeesukqs, and do not with native nations that intermarry into the white community. We tend to loose site of the way international law looks at the racializing of national identity. In the case of the Paugeesukq, being an Iroquoianised culture, they have always practiced a form of naturualization. However, they have maintained a presence on their reservations, and governmental continuity for time in memorial.
SO, to our friend looking for talent, do not overlook naitons not yet recognised, but do take her advice in looking into the way other native nations interact with that community. In the case of the Paugeesukqs, the tribe maintains a host of political conections to the rest of Native America. For example, out courts judges take part in the American Indian Court Judges Association and are active members.
All the best
Larry Otway