TAHLEQUAH, Ok. —

Wednesday could mark a defining moment in Native American history. John Kowalski, an American-born man of Polish descent, is suing the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma for denying him enrollment based on his ethnic background. Kowalski filed a lawsuit against the tribe in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma on Friday, alleging racial discrimination and violation of federal law under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color and national origin in federally funded programs, according to court documents.

This is not the first dispute over enrollment to the Cherokee Nation. As the Cherokee Nation requires members to have an ancestor on the Dawes Rolls, those who prove Cherokee ancestry without a direct ancestor on the Rolls, even if the ancestor had siblings on the Rolls, are usually denied. A case like Kowalski’s, however, is different, since Kowalski has no Cherokee ancestry at all. Kowalski, who was born in Wisconsin to Polish immigrants, claims that the only reason his application to the Cherokee Nation was rejected was that he is of Polish descent, and not Cherokee. While the Cherokee Nation admitted that this was the reason for his rejection, they argue that since they are not a federally funded program, it does not apply to them.

“The Cherokee Nation, along with all other federally-recognized Native American tribes, has always been about ancestry,” said Cherokee spokesman Daniel “Squatting Bull” Tyner. “I apologize, but a man of purely Polish descent does not qualify.”

“Just because I have no Cherokee ancestry doesn’t mean that I should be excluded from a community exclusively for people with Cherokee ancestry,” said Kowalski.

Kowalski then argued that since all humans descend from common ancestors, his own ancestors are the ancestors of the Cherokee, thereby meaning he is Cherokee.

Whether Wednesday’s decision rules in favor of Kowalski or not, this case will nonetheless prove to be a landmark case in something or other.