editorial and Opinion CPage
Editorially Speaking J
(LRDA and Tribal Council should work toward peaceful I
resolution to the controversy in Indian community I
Somrttmn a ? xxaur lo ?* certain ilunp for I he record TV
M1W>W between LRDA and (he inbal council hat become one of
those lima Some people kcm to base shun memories when H comes
to Ike Carolina Imban Vou Ai lima Ihc Inbal council appears
ipucfuils anps *ah as and tome of them base questioned whether or
mm we mppori the C'eortnalwm On the other hand LRDA has been
spnefadt angrs wnh as for social months because we supposed the
CuuiiMutioa Both tide* base tried, in our opunon to nuke slatemeiiis
abom the Carolina Inimn Voce through Iheir Idlers lo the editor and
pmd p***"-*1 adscniscmcM m Ihc daih newspaper While we do lake
note thai both sides appeal lo warn lo see the ( arolina Indian Voice can
of bmncn we arc mm pmug lo be intimidated into picking sides wben
two ladmu (actum* are puNich attempting todcslrot and discredit each
other We find thetwekenaf name calling innucndos and w hat appears
lobe a power sraptk between the Iwo entities ciifctrrassnig and in oui
opinw. dcirimcMaf to a cohcv\ c cflort toward federal recognition
For the record we support I be Consiitulinn of Ihc I umhet T nbc We
Idoc Km Ihc people hasc a right lo draft, adopt and elect leadership
Will Ihs m^ini I nllhn Const nut ton Goscrnment for the people of
in: people and In the people is an old philosophy and M is a good one
Wcbchevc that (Ik none ofw ho is inbal got eminent for I umbee people
nm fol'cd wnh the adoption of the ( onslittMion and the elect ion of a
Tribal Cbwrman and Tribal Council We do not led that the Gos crnot
?f Ihc State the Attorney (jeneral the Indian ( ommission or am conn
can Icgatmi/r that doenmctM We the soling members of Ihc I umhcc
tnbe certified and Icgaion/cil the dnciimeiM TV' ptmcr is ultimate!*
wnb the people And IV people spoke in l*W4
Our mpnon for tV concept of tribal gmcrnment under Ihc auspices
of the Londxx Coma nut nm is not support for the tribal got eminent to
snpphmt LRDA. a pen ate non-profit corporation w tih mi members We
bchcscihal am moons thai arc set-aside in delis cr sen ices to Indian
people should be administered b\ the I nbal < (Nineil I kit is right and
proper
For months mm the tribal council has gi\ en the appearance of hits ing
one agenda-the destruction of I RD A We cannot support that concept
as act re its to he considered bs our tribal gos crnmera In the first place
there is nothing in t V document that gis a them the .nit home Recent Is
Tribal Cbmnmn DnMon Brooks wrote a letter to the Attorney General
asking bun to imcstigale LRDA s charter There was assiimpnon licit
they had otc-rslcppcd their authority under their slate charier Tins action
bothered ns Again irtbal goscrnment should not be seeking lo rcsoke
the charter of a pns :Mc nonprofit corporal ton If they arc aliased to do
that, then the next lime Ihct get angrs with the ( arolina Indian Voice
they might consider that ahcrnatisc this is not the was lo get people lo
behave im the manner that you w tsh them to II is a faci that if a charier
is revoked, people will be unemployed The problem with LRDA as we
seed, is wifh the Board of Directors cspccialls their exccul is c commit
lev and i he cnccim rv c direcUM These problems should he dealt with Bui
people v\)k>arconl\ cmpkn cesshould nut have to worn about ihcir jobs
I RDA should open I hen hoard up for elections Th;U is the right and
rper linn* lodo The deetstons on I ten board in 0111 opinion should
nude bv the foil buds not tin executive eoniiniucc II we have
pnMcms w ith mdiv tdnal hoard members we shoukl be allorded the
opponumlv to vote for or against litem More important!) we should
have the upponiintiv to run for a seal on that board il we arc so inclined
Rccenth the I umbce Snppoii (irotip with Rev tlnbieird town
serving .is Chairman has beeome activch involved in the upcoming
I VM election Ccrumlv thev have a constitutional right k> involve
themselves in am ekxlion the) choose. Tins Group as we understand
it was ((Mined to supporl Ihc tribal council I 'heir dose association with
lite Trihni ( ouneil in our opinion grv cs the appearance of iiuprapricl)
to our 11thai council Again, mdiv idieil members ol the tribal council
have a const nut MMial nghi tosiippoit an\ eaudMlalclleii Ihcv choose Bill
w lien I lie's appear to be speaking as one bods as thev do w it h the Snppori
(?roup Ihcv again, mour opinion leivc dev talcd from lltcir elected role
as tribal government Wc encourage our ckxlcd tribal council to bvisv
themselves with tiihal govcrnmcni nut cKxImhis to other boards and
entities Wc further cdiionallv call on the seven mimsiere who are
elected to onr trihul conned and our Tribal Chairman who is "also a
minister to work toward a peaceful icsoIuIkhi to the eonlrov ersv that is
do iding the Indian coimiMiiiitv We call on the othci 11 elected council
members lodo like w isc ll appears to us that loo much tunc is hemg spoil
(Mi lakingovcr local agencies (he appearance is lirst of all the tribal
government wrslics to lake over I RDA and now ihcv are working to
takeover' I Rf M4 As an enrolled member of the I iiinhev Tribe wc
wonder w hat oilier of these twoact mmis lias lodo w ith 11 ihal gov eminent
II ihcv indeed aie successful in taking over I.RDA and I M< llie
natural e|i*est hmi is v\ hat nevf We submil to litem Ihal u ihal gov enimeiii
ill it sell is a Iiiim consuming job and if lliev are careliil to enforce the
((institution as ii is written ihcv will do well
One other note on I he Irihal council Di Sam Wvnn who lepreseiils
( umbe r I.md ( ounlv sexnislobcimdcr seruliiiv be some other folks who
live there Thev arc questlomng wholier Dr Wvnn is a resident ol
( iiniberland There is accusations Ihal he has moved to itearbv Moke
( (Mint) We have quest ioiH.-dw hctlier Dr Wvnnconldscrvcoiithcirihal
e(Nincil and Ihc North Carolina Coiiimissron of Indian Affairs Wc base
our question on Ihc prov isioii in llie Cousliluiiou tluii prevents a person
w ho sen cs on a gov crning bod) from being scaled on the tribal council
Public!) wcaskDr Wvnn lodo Ihc ethical thing in this situation Ifhc
is a resident of Moke Counlv wc ask him publiclv to withdraw as a
candidate for re-election to IhcTribal Council representing Cumberland
( ountv Wc ask Dr Wv nn and Ihc Iwcntv other members of Ihc tribal
ixwm.il u> abide b* the document as 11 is wriilcn
Kccciuh I he Allot m\ Gcncr.il wrote a teller lo lire N( t onunisxion
of Imlmn Affairs gixtne an adxisorx opinion refillsc lo iIk question
Docs Ihc- Indian Coniiiussiou luxe the author tlx hi rccogm/c a Inhal
goxci mucin' The alliums gcnci.il stales llial there is nosl.'Huc in North
Carol nu llial fixes Ihc Coniiiussioii lieu atilhonix H.isctl on llus
opinion lhc( omiuission rescinded (heir earlier iihHioii rccoem/mg die
tribal council as Ihc Irihal pox ernnicnl for Ihc Lunihcc Tnhe rhc Idler
stales We rind no andkHilx iii Lixx for Ihc Commission lo serse as a
quasi tudicial loriiin loi llic dclcriiiiiialtoii of Ilk' prevail dispuh hc
Ixxcen Ihc nexx Inhal council and I KDA
flic Idler xtenl furl Iter and slates In die ease of Ihc I iimbcc I nhc
of Noilli Carolina il is ikU clear lhal am tribal poxcrmikiii lets bedt
established in ;k'corduitcc \x nil eonsliliilioiial puaranlccs ol equal protec
tion of the laxxs with dik process afforded lo all Inhal members Ilk. i
liimhcc Tribe of Cfccnm Indians has not been staliilorilx rceogm.cd ,
as a li ihc or group bx Ilk' (icncral AssctnMx of North Carolnia mtr lias
il sought such reeogmlHin Ihroouli csiablislied procedures of lite ( mm
iiiissmhi
flic designation as I lieraxx Indians was pan of Ihc legislation lhal
xxonld luxe gixcn us lederal reeogmlion According lo Ilk. atlornex
general sIdler lliisdcsigiulioucoiildbcnproblciiiforiis II so xxlix mt
ameml pur const il Ml ion and remove dial designation'' Il is somdhing
worth considering and would appear lo us lo be nkire prodiieiixe and in
line Willi Irihal go*cnimeiil llun souk' ol die other dungs ilui seem lo
oecupx die council s lime
We haxc edikiriallx slated om position Again lite aiioine* genei.ii
does ikM luxe Ilk. airtlkiiiix lo led us wild Iter our Irthul goxcrumcni is
legiiiinale We can drall and .klopl a consliliilion as we luxe done and
wceancled n thai ofliculs as we luxe done Wohaxelhai riglu We luxe
cscretacd llul riglil We luxe a Jul* eleeied Iribsil goxcrnmcnl We are
aware of conisc llul lime w ill lake care of sonic of die problems we see
and hx no iik.ms do ?xe xxish lo discourage am oik who is a pari of our
iritxil goxenimeiii Weonlx attempt to gel llk-in lo re-focus on what iltex
xx ere eleeied l?> do
Max uig slated our opinion ?xe now wail lo see how long il lakes both
sides lo once again become spilcTullx angrx While xxe are ma looking
forward lo nkire hack htiing mmiendos and threats from eiilier side
nevertheless we feel llul we wiMild be dereliel in iwr dulx as editor not
lo stale a public opinion on llus eonlroxcrsx We remind both sides llul
oui opinion is on lite issues as we see litem, not on pelsoiuliiics We are
acuK'lx aware however llul nuux of our folks cannot separate ihc two
Be llul as h max we slill belies e in Ihc collective w isdom of die masses
And die people hax c adopted a constitution and eleded iribal officials
Thai is our tribal gox eminent and LRDA remains a prixale non-profit
corporal ion witk no menrfters
Letters to the Editor
Director of Missions publicly
commends Madie Rae Locklear
There arc mam aspects to so
cial mini sin As Director of Mis
tress of the Burnt Swamp Baptist
Association I have had the privi
lege of expanding the social min
istry of UK Association Social
ministry is not a complicated is
sue, it imohes seeing about the
physical needs of people in our
community There is much pov
erty and need in our county Mam
people strangle to meet their
monthly obligations of electric
bills, frod lof their families, medi
cal bills and other essentials The
msmhtr of people in need is aa
loumhng Wc arc called on almost
daily to ami* with ciectnc bills
and other essentials When this
haoocn* wc ire rami red to make
remrmle to other agencies because
wc do not have the funds to meet
the needs of people Daring my
tenure here as Director of Mis
sions, I hove had the privilege of
worlung with some really fine
people m vanons sgiurm in our
county, hlsalwayscncouragiagto
call upon these agencies and be
mrt^d|^''^t^lg'^^|^
ihm Imshiiia nf nimtsilnm lit hi
in onr endeavor to meet the needs
ofhurtug people is the Red Springs
Neighborhood Service Center
That Center aapariafFour Counts
J. ?' ' ' I =
Communis Services. Inc and is
staffed with dedicated and sensi
tive employees The Center is su
pervised by Ms Madic Rac
Lock lea r In the mart) years that I
have found it necessary to call her
for assistance Ms Lock tear has
nev er refused to assist She has
proven herself very knowledge
able of resources that arc available
forlhc needy She has always been
concerned professional and dedi
cated m her efforts to assist. There
are many resources that provide
services, but they arc virtually of
no effect, if people do not know
how to access them Ms Lock lea r
knows how I have witnessed her
commitment to helping others and
her concern for hurting hwnanitv
I have watched as she goes beyond
the call of duly, time and time
again to help others She is knowl
edge^ We concerned committed
and dedicated to meeting the needs
of others She has demonstrated a
personal sensitivity for the elderly
and the physically challenged She
will |o out of her way to assist in
these situations and never expects
or ?k? for compensation
I have been so impressed with
her efforts on behalf of the ddcrty
H t*?f For the past
few months. Ms Lock tear las been
out on leave, yet she has continued
to help others from her home She
is always ready and available any
time that I call on her at home to do
her share She has been instru
mental in assisting our elderly and
disabled in receiving their disabil
ity. food stamps, medical slickers,
home repair hinds for emergency
food and electric bills When the
Lord said "In as much as vou have
done it lo the least of these my
brethren, you hase done it unto
me ' he was speaking about feed
ing the hungry, clothing the naked
and visiting the widows and or
phans Ms Locklcar isa testament
to these words spoken by our Lord
She is willing, able and available
lohelp We at the Baptist Building
are grateful lo the agencies who
assist us and arc particularly grate
ful to Ms Locklcar and the staff at
the Center It is people like Ms
Locklcar who offer hope to others
I am com inced that assisting oth
ers is her special gift from God and
she is one of a few people w ho take
their gift seriously and dedicate
their lives lo doing what God has
commanded us all to do. love one
another She puts her love for oth
ers into action and we salute Ms
Locklcar and her staff and fell a
need to publicly thank her
few. Mike Cmmmimgt,
Director of Mittums
L - ' a
B lumbee
guaraniv
bank
>n Stock OfTering
Lumbee Guaranty Bank hereby announces the availability
of 75.757 shares of Lumbee Guaranty Bank Common Stock
at SI7per foare
For more information, contact Lumbee Guaranty Bank
Stock Transfer Department at 205 West Third Street. Pem
broke, or by phone at 910-521-9707
This offer expires Oct 21,1995 or when afl available shares
Larry R. Charts, PraidtatOO
Lambee Guaranty Beak
* 1 *naiamir
? B
?
Reader believes tribal attorney
-r>
kas-overstepped bounds j
To the Editor
Being a long time advocate for
Indian rights. I thought I had seen
and heard everything there was to
see and hear relative to Indian
politics Recently. I read a letter to
the editor in the Robesoman that
made me stop and wonder ifl knew
anything I refer specifically to a
letter by Arlinda Locklcar of Mary
land. who is supposed to be the
Attorney for the Lurnbee Tribe via
the Tribal Council Ms Locklcar
wrote to us "uneducated .** "illit
erate.** and "non-thinking"
people to tell us who to vote for in
the upcoming EMC election When
she aid so. I fell compelled to re
spond How dare she sit in Mary
land and insult the intelligence of
the Indian people ' She as good as
said in her letter that we who
reside in EMC territory and have
done so for decades, do not know
how to conduct our own business
affairs I resent her inference that
she is the only one who is capable
of making decisions for us Unfor
tunately . some of us were on the
battle field long before Ms
Locklcar was born I say this as
humbh as I know how . we made it
without her We as a people base
accomplished many good and hon
orable things
Maybe I have misunderstood
Ms Locklcar s rok I thought thai
she was retained to advise the tribal
council relative to tribal govern
ment matters Obviously. I was
wrong Apparently, she has de
cided that sne also has to think for
us and instruci us Sep by Sep on
how lo vole and w ho lo vole for
This is unacceptable behav ior from
a tribal attorney I would recom
mend lo the tribal council that thev
sceh another attorney who will stick
to w hat they arc retained to do
I recall recently when one In
dian was running for a county po
sition. Clerk of Court Allhatiimc.
another Indian was running for
SherilToflhccounty against a non
Indian During this crucial elec
tion. that could only benefit all
Indians. Arlinda Lock lea r chose
to remain silent However, when
there is a local. EMC election
(which by the way only allows
EMC members to vote) where three
Indians arc being challenged by
other Indians. Ms LockIcar comes
down from her lofty scat and tdls
us how to vole Number one. she is
not a member of EMC Number
two. she was not bom and raised
here Therefore, the only thing she
knows about the Indian struggle
day by day is what someone tdls
her I resent her interference and
her implication that we cannot
make decisions on our own
One of the problems that we. as
a people, have had is Indians who
do not reside here assuming that
they arc smarter than we arc and
thai they know what is best for us
I'm sorry. Ms Locklcar. you should
stick to your area of expertise. Fed
eral Recognition I can't under
stand why you would cause
dissent ion and division in our In
dian community and then on the
other hand say you arc working Tor
federal recognition You of all
people know that federal recogni
tion will not come while we arc
divided Have you fallen into the
age otd trap by our cncnucs-di\ ide
and conquer' Perhaps you arc re
ceiving monetary compensation
from those who would love to see
us divided0 It makes me wonder if
perhaps LRDA was right in their
assessment of your professional
ism How dare you be condescend
ing and patronizing and pass judge
ment on any of my people (and
your own), especially those that
you have not met0 I am sorry to
inform you. but someone has woe
fully mislead you You arc not a
demigod or a Sav ior I thought at
one time you were a good attorney
now I question that
What arc you doing''Building a
power base0 is it your intention to
eventually move to Robeson County
and become the attorney for EMC'
Is that why you seem lo be building
a power base0 It appears to me that
you have overstepped the bounds
ofprofcssionalismandindoingso 1
you have offended many Indians I
am the only one who will say so
publicly Do us a favor in Robeson
County, stay out of our local poli
tics And I assure you that we will
not send letters to Maryland to tell
you how to vote for you Mayor
Governor, or anv other elected of
ficial
El. IAS IKHiERS
Red Spring*
Madie Roe luxklear has beenanadvocatefor the economically disadvantaged,
especially the elderly and the handicapped. She has a proven record of
dedication and commitment to helping those who are less fortunate than
others. As a wife and a mother, she understands the difficulties that occur in
maintaining a household budget She is the only woman serving on the 12
member board Keep a woman working for you. Re-Elect Madie Roe Locklear
on October J, 1995 at the PSU Performing Arts Center.
Re-Elect
Madie Rae Locklear
To the EMC Board of Directors
At-Large
October 3t 1995
PSU Performing Arts Center
I Registration 6:00p.m-8:00[km. '
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