Mexican Kickapoo

Mexican Kickapoo

Traditional winter home (wickiup) of the Kikapú
Total population
(423 (2010))
Regions with significant populations
Mexico ( Coahuila)( Sonora) ( Durango) and  United States ( Oklahoma)( Texas)
Languages
Kickapoo, Spanish, English
Religion
traditional tribal religion, AnimismDrum religion
Related ethnic groups
other Kickapoo people and Fox, Sauk, and Shawnee people

The Mexican Kickapoo (Tribu Kikapú) are a bi-national indigenous people, some of whom live both in Mexico and in the United States. In Mexico, they were granted land at Hacienda del Nacimiento near the town of Múzquiz in the state of Coahuila in 1850. A few small groups of Kickapoo also live in the states of Sonora and Durango. The Mexican Kickapoo often work as migrants in Texas and move throughout the midwest and the western United States, returning in winter to Mexico. They are affiliated with the federally recognized tribes of the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas, Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma, and Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas.

In 1979 the Mexican Kickapoo who were dual residents requested clarification of their status, as they had no clear legal status in either the United States or Mexico. An Act was passed in 1983 by the United States Congress, which recognized them as a distinct subgroup of the Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma. It also granted federal recognition to the Texas Kickapoo. A 1985 law gave the Texas band the option of selecting Mexican or U.S. citizenship. Some 145 of the tribe members chose to become U.S. citizens and the remaining 500 or so chose to obtain Mexican citizenship.

The hacienda occupied by the Mexican Kickapoo, is located approximately 32 kilometers northeast of the city of Múzquiz and is called by them "El Nacimiento de la Tribu Kikapú" (The Birthplace of the Kickapoo Tribe). Their property contains approximately 17,300 acres of semi-arid land sourced with water from the Río Sabinas.

The Mexican Kickapoo traditionally have a president of the ejido (common lands) who is supported by a council of elders for making business decisions; however, an assembly made up of the heads of families decides all important, tribal political matters. The assembly of the heads of the families chooses the community leadership. They have no representation in local, state or federal Mexican politics.