(The Center Square) – Short of going through the Bureau of Indian Affairs Office in the Office of Federal Acknowledgment, the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina’s long-sought full federal recognition will continue to be fought by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.
In Wednesday’s Senate hearing on Capitol Hill before the Committee on Indian Affairs, Sen. Thom Tillis said the level of unity and support has never been greater. And it’s a fight that began 137 years ago, three years after recognition by the state of North Carolina.
“The Lumbee were among the dozens of victims of the termination era, one of the darkest periods in federal Indian policy,” the second-term Republican said. “In 1956, Congress passed the Lumbee Act. It acknowledged the tribe but cruelly denied them the benefits and the recognition that every other tribe receives. The federal government has since worked to correct the grave injustices of the determination error for nearly every single tribe except for the Lumbee. Time and again, the Lumbee have proven their case.”
From the Qualla Boundary adjacent to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Eastern Band of Cherokees disagree.
“What we heard today from the Lumbee and their supporters were groundless assertions and storytelling – claims for which there is no verifiable historical or genealogical evidence,” Principal Chief Michell Hicks of the Cherokees said in a statement provided to The Center Square. “Evidence is what matters in federal recognition, and evidence is what is missing here. There is a lawful process created for this purpose administered by the Office of Federal Acknowledgment. That is where claims must be reviewed, and where evidence must be tested.
“If there is evidence, submit it to the OFA. If there is a tribe, the process will show it.”
Tillis says a trip to Robeson, Hoke or Scotland counties, or the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, will wipe away doubts. He says more than 235 federally recognized tribes stand with the Lumbees in their quest, including the Alaska Federation of Natives that represents 186 tribes and corporations.
“These days, it’s rare to see Republicans and Democrats come together on anything,” Tillis said. “But when it comes to Lumbee recognition, the support is overwhelming and it’s bipartisan. We’re talking about support from President Donald J. Trump, President Biden, Vice President J.D. Vance, former Vice President Kamala Harris, Governor Josh Stein, the North Carolina General Assembly and nearly every member of our state’s congressional delegation.
“Here in the Senate, nearly two dozen members from both parties have cosponsored the Lumbee Fairness Act.”
That includes Democratic Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii and Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, members of the panel.
“Although there have been changes to the BIA process, we still do not know if it’s going to take 20 to 30 years just like it already does,” testified Lumbee Chairman John Lowery. “I don’t want my people waiting another 30 years to go through the process.”
Plus, he said, possible litigation behind that by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.
Hicks said he doesn’t want recognition legislated or manufactured by Congress.
“For too long, this debate has been driven by politics and emotion, rather than the standards and documentation that protect tribal sovereignty,” he said. “Federal recognition is not symbolic; it is a binding government-to-government agreement based on documented history, documented community, and documented tribal continuity that predates the United States.”
Fellow Republican North Carolina Sen. Ted Budd is a cosponsor for Tillis. In the House of Representatives, Rep. David Rouzer, R-N.C., has sponsored a bill by the same name that since Jan. 16 has been in the Committee on Natural Resources.
