Complex sentence: Both Cornsilk and his father, John Cornsilk, are active in Cherokee Nation and United Keetoowah Band politics and were instrumental in winning citizenship rights for the Cherokee Freedmen as well as equal rights for gay Cherokee citizens.
Split into simpler sentences: Both Cornsilk and his father, John Cornsilk, are active in Cherokee Nation and United Keetoowah Band politics. They helped win citizenship rights for the Cherokee Freedmen as well as equal rights for gay Cherokee citizens.