Individuals who are under investigation are contacted first by TAAF to give them an opportunity to clarify or substantiate their American Indian heritage claims.
In March, 2023, TAAF issued a highly publicized report that Heather Rae, known as a leading producer in American Indian circles in Hollywood, had fraudulently claimed to be of Cherokee descent.
In response, Rae stated in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter that she "began to really look into my family’s history in a deeper way" and was "still in that process, so for several years I have identified as an ally.
TAAF produced statements from both tribes saying he wasn't a citizen, as well as a genealogical family tree demonstrating that his ancestors were all white.
[2] In July 2023, TAAF published findings demonstrating that Kent Patrick Blansett, a professor of Indigenous Studies and History at the University of Kansas, had fraudulently claimed to be of Potawatomi, Shawnee, Choctaw, Cherokee, and Muscogee ancestry.
In response, Wurth's literary agent alleged that TAAF employs "tools of manipulation and unwarranted persecution of Native Americans".