The Oglala Sioux Tribe, one of the largest tribes in the United States, has decided to leave two national tribal advocacy organizations, asserting those groups no longer represent its interests.

In a statement this week, Oglala Sioux Tribe President Frank Star Comes Out said his tribe had decided to leave the National Congress of American Indians and the Coalition of Large Tribes, which both advocate on behalf of tribes.

“(The tribe) is concerned that NCAI’s structure does not allow for the equitable consideration of the Oglala Sioux Tribe’s interests,” said Star Comes Out. “Until NCAI gives more weight to the population of each Tribe in determining votes, the system cannot be equitable.”

Star Comes Out said NCAI’s unwillingness to change the way it decides which policy positions it takes on behalf of its members prompted his tribe to revoke its membership.

“This inequity has led to NCAI’s advocacy weighing too heavily toward the interests of self-governance Tribes at the expense of Tribes who seek to hold the United States to its obligations under direct services,” he said.

Tribal governments in America can take two approaches to how they handle their affairs. They can either handle their own governance with minimal federal oversight — an approach known as “self-governance” — or they can allow the federal government to administer their programs — an approach known as “direct services.”

The Oglala Sioux Tribe is considered a direct-service tribe and has more than 52,000 enrolled members. Its reservation, Pine Ridge, covers 3,500 square miles in southwestern South Dakota and northwestern Nebraska.

Reached by ICT on Friday evening, NCAI President Mark Macarro expressed his disappointment at the tribe’s decision to leave the organization, which represents more than 300 of the country’s 574 federally recognized tribes.

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