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| Named after | Lenape people |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1996,[2] 2001[3][1] |
| Type | nonprofit organization[1] |
| EIN 23-3025630[3] | |
| Purpose | Cultural, Ethnic Awareness (A23)[3] |
| Headquarters | Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.[1] |
| Location |
|
Membership (2021) | 397[4] |
Official language | English |
President | Ann Dapice[2] |
Revenue (2022) | $72,080[1] |
| Expenses (2022) | $64,050[1] |
| Website | lenape-nation |
Formerly called | Eastern Lenape Nation[4] |
The Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania (LNPA) is one of more than a dozen cultural heritage organizations of individuals who identify as descendants of the Lenape people, also known as Lenni-Lenape or Delaware people.[5] They are based in Easton, Pennsylvania.[3][6]
The Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania is an unrecognized tribe.[4] Despite having the word nation in its name, the organization is neither a federally recognized tribe[7] nor a state-recognized tribe.[8][9] Pennsylvania has no federally recognized or state-recognized tribes.[9]
Bill "Whippoorwill" Thompson founded the group in 1998 as the Eastern Lenape Nation.[4]
LNPA Chief of Education and Tribal Storykeeper[10] Adam "Waterbear" DePaul said, "We were quite successful in that endeavor of hiding, and identifying and passing ourselves off as white."[9] He says the tribe is trying to achieve state recognition, but it does not qualify for federal recognition.[9]
Canadian-American linguist K. David Harrison, who partnered with the LNPA on language classes, writes: “some Lenape stayed behind, hid, blended in, intermarried, or assimilated. Remaining in the traditional homeland of the Delaware Valley, their descendants also claim Lenape bloodlines.”[11]
Journalist Samantha Spengler wrote: "Whether or not Lenape people continued to live covertly in Pennsylvania, it’s undisputed that there was no continuous tribal entity in the region."[4] There are three federally recognized Lenape tribes in the United States and two in Canada.[4]
The organization is actively lobbying the Pennsylvania legislature for state recognition.[12]
In 1996[2] and again in 2001, the Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania formed The Lenape Nation, Inc., aka The Lenape Nation of Pa., Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, based in Easton, Pennsylvania.[3]
Its current administration is:
Maurice C. DeMund served as president[3][1] until April 2022.[2] The group has also been based in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.[1]
In 2021, the Claneil Foundation gave them $10,000; PayPal Giving Fund donated $7,646; and the AmazonSmile Foundation gave them $481.[1]
The Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania operates a cultural center in Easton, Pennsylvania.[13] They host an annual powwowatMauch Chunk Lake Park in present-day Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania.[14] Once every four years, they host Rising Nation River Journey along the Delaware River.[9] They also created the Lenape Nation Scholarship Fund.[3]
LNPA member Shelley DePaul and Theodore Fernald launched a Lenape language class at Swarthmore CollegeinSwarthmore, Pennsylvania, beginning in 2009.[11]
The Unitarian Congregation, a church in West Chester, Pennsylvania, decided to pay reparations to the Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania.[12]
