Editorial and Opinion Page
Letters to the Editor
A "Million Cheers" For
Rep. Ron Sutton, District 85
To The Editor:
A Musical Melody chimed in M>
Heart when 1 read of Rep. Ronnie
Sutton's Successful Legislative
Achievements, as having an extension
of day and year lor the NC
Indian Cultural Center; also, the reduced
amount of cash to be accumulated
to establish the complete Cultural
Center
House District 85 Voters should
be as Happy as 1 am Jiappv All
people should endeavor to promote
'Fund-Raising' Events for the NC
Indian Cultural Center
Rep Ronnie Sutton. 1 now advise
>ou to become 100% involved and
sponsor Golf Tourna ments w ith olhc r
means of Fund-Raising for the Cultural
Center. This important Mission
will place a Blessed Star upon your
Crown of Success, and you will be
cherished by All People.
Rep Ron Sutton deserves to be
Thanked for the two thousand plus
(2.000+) Voters for Congressional
District 7. "Thank You' Ron
QUESTION Who will Benefit
from the 2.000 Plus Votes''
ANSWER Either The Honorable
Frances McArthur Cummings our
Congressman Mike Mclnluc. or
Someone Else
1 kccp 'Wondcring" when Donald
Bonner will announce that he has
made a step forward to have Robeson
Counts African-American Cultural
Center become the Fullness of the
Dream of the late Rev Joseph Johnson
whose Creative Idea established
the African-American Cultural Center
But Unfortunateh' for us. Rev.
Jo> Johnson is prcsenll> lifeless
Therefore, since Rev Johnson allowed
Democrat Donald Bonner to
be a Member of the Board of Directors
for the Cultural Center. 1 do
believe Bonner should prove how
"Thankful" he is for the combined
support he gained from Res Johnson
and Mrs Omega Johnson
Bonner should continue to keep
Rev. Joy Johnson's Dream Alive b>
having Robeson African-American
Cultural Center be Worths of its
Name Bonner needs to promote
"Fund Raising" Events for the Center
Bonner should try to accomplish
a Good Deed' for his People, so he
canbc remembered to be grateful for
Kindness rendered to him and not to
only be "Known and Remembered"
for the LIES, LIES. LIES he pronounced
form his "Lying Tongue"
as Radio Ads and the Aches and
Pains he caused many people to suffer.
Ron. you continue to do your Utmost
Best for the NC Indian Cultural
Center.
Peace He Unto You. AMEN.
Yvonne Maria l.eon
Congressman Says He Did Not Trade
Indian Precincts for Fort Bragg
To the Editor:
The recent editorial in your newspaper
about redisricting contained
several factual errors and wrong assumptions.
It has always been my
desire for all of Robeson County to be
united and placed in the Seventh
Congressional District.
At minimum. 1 wanted that portion
of Robeson which has bain in
the Seventh District in recent years to
remain in this district, including
Oxendinc and Prospect. I supported
Rep. Sutton's amendment, and I am
glad it passed.
Many of my strongest supporters
are from these two precincts and I
was quite concerned that both the
original Senate plan (proposed b>
Sen. Cooper) and the original House
plan (proposed by Rep. McMnhan)
would have removed these precincts
and several others front the Seventh
District.
1 foaghtjto save these prefctrtcts:
not removq them-as your editorial
stated. I
There was never any "trade off
for Fort Bragg. Fort Bragg was already
in the Seventh District, and it
was a separate issue. Just as I wanted
to retain what was in Robeson, so 1
also wanted to retain what was in
Cumberland, especially because of
my appointment to the National Security
Committec-a position never
held by a congressman from our dis- 1
trict:
Even with Fort Bragg placed in
thcEighth District. I will still bcablc
to represent the interests^our premier
strike force through my position
on the National Security Committee
Asa member of the newly-formed
Native American Caucus in Congress
and as one who historically has
fought for fairness and positive human
relations throughout my life. I
am grateful for the support of the fine
folks in Oxcndinc and Prospect as
well as the other Indian precincts
1 appreciate the confidence g\
pressed by ouf eiti/.ehsas I work for
our ardius concerns in Washington
" Mike McIn tyre
U.S. House of Representatives
[ Reflections
I by Alta Nye Oxendine
^ ^
He is risen!
. He is risen indeed!
This is the way earlier Christians
used to; respond each Easter., One
person would greet another by saying
"He is risen!". .
The second person would answer.
"He is risen indeed!" We
modern day Christians tend to
take Jesus' death and resurrection for
granted. And yet, what could be more
important in our lives than a LOVE
for your and me so great that provision
has been made for ps.to have
NEW, eternal life in spite Ofour sins
of commission and Omission?
Even though Jesus reportedly told
the woman taken in adultery simply
to "Go and sin no more" I believe we
do need to ask for forgiveness.
Religious TV Programs
Didyou see the recent program on
the Smbud of Turin? Lately CBS
seems to be willing to have several
shows dealing with religious faith
ION obr family we appreciate
Touched by an Angel and Promised
Land. I don't believe in angles that
look like hunian beings But the
Christian producer. Martha
Williamson, seems to be keeping
accurate ideas about God as the bottom
line in each episode, with help
from sopic very dedicated, actors 1
was interested to learn that Delia
Reese isjhc pastor of a church in real
lie. v
My "kids." Wanda Kay and Jeff
enjoyed watching "Dr. Quinn Medicine
Woman" so much that they
named their son Byron for Dr
Quinn's husband Byron Sully
> Is. My Face Red?
After critici/.ingand/or condemn
ing others or us so called journalists
for passingon misinformation unfair
to the prisons involved. 1 did the very
same tiling!
In my March 20 column 1 referred
to the "impeachment" of Richard
Nixon. Shows how little attention I
was paying to current events in the
70s.' And how much I've been influenced
by so many people calling him.
i n essence, a good-for-nothing-crook
Nixon and his staff did a lot of
things they should not have done
But it took a question on the Jeopardy
TV program to remind me thai h'c
resigned as president before the impeachment
process could take place
There is a chance that he niighl NOT
have been impeached If what 1 said
was unfair to his memory and his
family glad I didn't indict Richard
Jewell. What happened lohim. mostly
because of the media was horrible,
as far as I am concerned
Our Hyron
Byron is growing up fast I've
been wanting to do updates, but my
time and column space have not permitted
it latch
For several years l'\c enjoyed using
my iicw-lo-nic used computer to
write ihis column When the printer
conked out. I went back to hand
writing
As I started my column this time.
Byron did sonic writing on my paper,
as well as his He walks and runs,
feeds himself, is learning more words
and insists on using my big broom
whenever things get spilled on the
kitchen floor
Hclakcsalotoflimc Bullies the
joy of our lives.
. J " ' >
Tree Planting Helps Build Better Ties to
Town of Pembroke, UNCP Students
PEMBROKE - The University
of North Carolina at Pembroke Student
Government Association broke
new ground March 26 and set new
roots irt the community.
Tree roots, that is The UNCP
SGA has been working with PembrokcTown
Manager McDuflic Cummings
to help beautify Pembroke by
planting trees along Jones Street
Student Senator Channing Jones met
with Cummingson several occasions
to select prc-dctcrmincd sights on
.?!
Jones Street for the planting
The town will provide the trees
and peat moss and the SGA will
supply the people. This project is the
result of the SGA's abdication to
improving relations between the
University and Pembroke. A'l hope
that this can serve as a model for
future coopcrativccndcavorsbctwccn
the SGA and thcTown ofPcmbrokc."
SGA President Trc> Allen said. The
SGA intends to plant additional trees
at other sights in the coming weeks
IV 1> i rl J]\i I yTjlfl 13 IbvDr. Stan KnicH. Director^ I
For thousands of years Native
Americans collected and used the hides
and furs of animals for many things ?
for clothing, shelter and various arts
and crafts. Native people traded furs
and-bides with members of other
groups, depending on which animal
species were locally available.
Sometimes a person would make a
trade in order to get a type of hide he
didn't have, but sometimes hides of
the same type were traded as a way of
cementing alliances between
individuals and groups.
When Europeans came to the
Americas, the fur trade changed
dramatically. Much of Europe had
been over-hunted for its furs and hides,
and European fur traders saw the
Americas as a new source of huge
numbers of furs and hides. At first
only the most unusual furs were sought
by European traders, including mink,
sable and otter. These were made into
expensive coats and other garments
for wealthy people across the Atlantic.
But soon the fur trade expanded
to include other animals ? especially
deer and beaver, but also raccoon,
muskrat, skunk, buffalo, elk, seal,
whale, walrus and others. The beaver
trade was aimed at the production of
high-quality hats for the shops in Paris
and London.
In the beginning, trading furs and
hides for things they wanted from the
Europeans was an acceptable
arrangement for Native Americans.
The new "trade goods" made some
jobs easier for Native people, as in the
case of metal tools (knives, hatchets,
awls, fishhooks). Other items such as
rope, guns, blankets, cooking pots and
glass beads had strong appeal as well.
The groups who were among the
first to be contacted by Europeans
(mainly coastal, riverside and lakeside
people) could always depend on their
upland Native allies for a constant
supply of furs and hides. Thus these
first-contacted groups often became
powerful middle-men in the new
trading scheme. -?t ?
But as European influence spread
increasingly inland, some of these
Native middle-men were gradually cut
out of the exchange. European fur
traders Could get better prices (more
pelts) for their wares by direct trade
inland, and also get first choice of the
pelts. This elimination of Native
middle-men had its consequences,
however, beyond the realm of trading
price and fur quality.
Traditional alliances which had
existed for generations between
Native groups were interrupted,
resulting in new competition and in
I
some cases outright warfare. The
competition between colonizing
countries (the English, French,
Spanish and Dutch) further added to
the troubles experienced by Native fur
traders. For example, many Huron
(who had been trading with the French)
were killed by Five Nations Iroquois
(who were trading with the English
and Dutch) in what was called the
"Iroquois Wars" of the middle 1600s.
Alcohol also played an important
role in the increasing fur trade. It was
customary in many areas for the
trading parties to have a drink of liquor
together before beginning the actual
trading. There can be little doubt that
alcohol consumption influenced the
equity (cm- lack thereof) in many trade
arrangements.
The history^ of European fur trade
in America is inseparable from the
expansion of European culture and
technology among Native American
people. In concert with the spread of
epidemic diseases and Christianity, the
fur trade would result in permanent
changes in the lives of almost all
Native people.
For more information, visit the
Native American Resource Center in
historic Old Main Building, on the
campus of The University of North
Carolina at Pembroke. /?
Cruise, Young People, Cruise
by Dr. Reginald Oxendine
There has been a lol of discussion
about cruising in Pembroke by the
town officials and the citizens of our
great town. There has been several
meetings by our town officials and
the police have been instructed to
write tickets on many occasions 1
say let our "younguns" alone and let
them cruise. They are only keeping
the long and proud tradition of our
forefathers. Pembroke is the Capitol
of our reservation and it only makes
sense Ibr our youth to want to come
to town
Cruising has a long and proud
history in our town. 1 was told by my
elders that Mr Ang Bullard from
Prospect was one of the first Indian
men in our community to have an T
Model Ford Car. 1 was told that he
would come to Pembroke and the
girls would run behind and beside
the car. (This must have been about
the 1930 s) It is my opinion that if
cniising has been going on for more
than five generations, we need to let
the youth of today enjoy the favorite
past time of our forefathers.
The late and honorable Mr. Bernard
Low cry told me that w hen he
was a young boy in the early 191t)'s
lhat the highlight of the week was to
come to Pembroke He and hisbrolhcr
(Mr. Jason Lowcry) would come to
Pembroke on Saturday evening on
the nuilc and wagon and sec all the
pretty girls Thcv also talked and
socialized with the bovs of the Pembroke
Community. You see. they lived
in the Hopewell community and they
would drive lOmilcsonthcmulcand
wagon to come to Pembroke Mr.'
Bernard Lowerv told me that the
most thrilling part ofcoming to towif
was to go to the corner where the
intersection of Pembroke Police Department
is located today The ladies
would cross from one side of the
street to go to the other side. He said
that all the girls and women wore
dresses down to their feet at that
time. However, as they stepped up on
the sidewalk they would pull up their
dress just a little and you could sec
the ankles of their feet (not the legs
but the ankles). This was a great
thrill for young men who had only
seen farm animals for weeks
I am glad to sec our Indian youth
and others come to Pembroke to socialize.
recreate, patronizcand spend
money in our great town: Cruising is
a good, clean and wholesome activity
for our youth It is far better for them
to be in Pembroke than in a night club
in South Carolina or a bar in Favcllcvillc
It is better for them to be
traveling down the streets of Pembroke
than drag racing up and down
our highways Thcv travel about SI
15 miles per hour; therefore, thev arc
not going to hurt each other asthcv
go about lookingand flirtingwilh the
opposite sex You would be surprised
if you knew the hundreds of thousands
of gallonsof gasoline they bu\
with our Pembroke Merchants each
year If I had a convenience store I
would be at every Town Council
Meeting protesting the harassment
that the policemen and city council is
exposing our youth to These young
people have pockets full of money
and our town would be better off
encouraging them to visit our great
town
I know for a fact that every one of
the Town Council Members "of Pembroke
arc past and renowned Pembroke
Cmisers. Mr Milton Hunt use
to have a white 62 Chevy Impala and
he "stayed in Pembroke riding and
looking." Mr. Larry McNeil had a
GTO Pontiac and he "kept the streets
of Pembroke hot ." Mr. Larry Brooks
use to have a fine Green 67 GTO
Pontiac and he "helped the state
pack streets of Pembroke." Mr.
McDuffie Cummings (our town manager)
had a new 1966 GTO and he
and Mrs. Dclora (Revels) Cummings
made a real fine couple as they "paraded
down the streets of Pembroke"
real slow so everyone could see them
Mr. Harry Oxendinc(camc along before
1 had an opportunity to come to
Pembroke v^ofleft but I would bet
my last nickel thathcandMrs. Mablc
Oxendine use to be avid cruisers.
Rev. Steve Jones had the "finest ride
in town" during this time. He had a
brand new 1966 GTO Pontiac Convertible.
The above people cruised
through Pembroke at least 100 times
a week
I use to cruise in Pembroke when
I was a young man and I loved it.
Daddy had a red 1964 Chevrolet
lmpala that he let mc drive one night
a week. I would go to the river and
wash it and clean it up. I would then
spray some cherry air freshener in it
and I thought it was bad 1 would
come to Pembroke and pick up Ms
Peggy and you could not tell mc
anything. Only recently. I have been
known to wash up my old Mercedes
and ride through town to sec who is
uptown. 1 enjoy seeing my old students,
friends and relatives. They
wave. It is alway s nice to sec a welcome
and friendly face.
One excuse that is used to slop
cruising is that rescue vehicles cannot
get through town fast enough
Personally, I would like to sec the
rescue vehicles go slower through
Pembroke I have been looking for
someone to be kit led as these vch iclcs
fly through town. I realize that the
rescue persons want to gel through
town as quickly as possiblcbul everyone
knows about the traffic in Pembroke
on the week end They could
make a slight detour and miss all the
traffic. It might be that the rescue
personnel want to cruise through
Pembroke with their new fancy rescue
trucks with their lights flashing
to be seen. I know for a fact that many
of them come through Pembroke
when other routes would be shorter
and safer .
My daddy got sick on^and wc
called the rescue squad He lived on
the other side of Purncll Swctl High
When wcgot to highway 711 and the
Deep Branch Road, they came
through Pembroke when it would
have been faster, closer and safer to
go down the Deep Branch Road to
the hospital in Lumberton
There is a law named "eminent
domain" which says that the public
good is more important that the individual
good It is not fair to try to slop
10.000 young people from cruising
on the week end because one or two
rescue vehicles may or may not conic
through low n Our young people arc
alw tiys nice enough to pul I over to ihc
side and let them through The operators
of these vehicles might be
better off if they used some forethought
and dctoiircd the town on the
week end
I detour main street every morning
when ihc college and school traffic
is coming, every day at lunch
w hen it is so busy and every evening
when people arc getting off work
Dclouring for our youth on the week
end is a small price to pay if it brings
so much joy. The eyes of my son,
nieces and nephews light up when
they talk about cruising.
New YorkhasitBroadway. Myrtle
Beach has its Boardwalk. Other cities
have their parks and museums
but Pembroke has its cruising. If our
leaders would provide parks, amusement
centers, museums and other
recreational places for our youth they
would not have to spend their time
cruising: But since we do not have
these facilities for them, many older
people condemn and criticize our
youth for riding around and having a
good time. I think that it is great that
they can amuse themselves in this
harmless way. It docs not cost our
citizensanythingbut a little inconvenience
once in a while, iryou are in
a hurry to go to Lumbcrton to spend
Sour money on the week end. take a
ack street and by pass the cruisers
on main street. It may lake .10 seconds
longer but isn't this a small
price to pay in exchange for all the
joy that cruising brings manv of our
young people.
When I was young boy. my daddy
went to Red Springs many limes to
buy our "rations" and other things
1 would go into the drug store on
nia i n si reel to buy a "cone of crca m "
f had to take my ice cream and go out
in the streets to cat it They had nice
booths with chairs and tables for
whites to eat their ice cream but
Indians and blacks had to go in the
yard and streets to cat their food I
(hank God thai those days arc gone.
I also thank God that we have Pembroke.
1 have never experienced any
kind of mistreatment in Pembroke
and I always feel good when I come
to town
1 think that we as businessmen
and leaders of our town need to find
ways to make ou r youth feel welcome
and proud to come to Pembroke
They have a large percentage of the
buying power today and all of the
buying power of tomorrow. We need
to do all we can to instill a sense of
welcome ncss when they think of Pembroke.
Every lime they want to purchase
any product, the first place
they will think of is Pembroke Businesses
If all of our town officials and
businesses had an open arms policy
like Mr Curt Locklcar. our town
would grow and prosper We could
then create more jobs for our children
It is said thatadollarcirculnlcs
seven times before it leaves a community.
If this is true w hen a young
person conies to Pembroke and buys
a lank of gas. goes to Linda's Restaurant
and cats supper with his girl
friend, he may spend Sit), lflhis Sit)
circulates seven fimcs it (urns into
>210 When you multiply the above
cxamplcby thousands ofyoulh spending
money, it is very profitable for
our tow n You sec it only makes good
sense to treat these cruisers with the
utmost respect and gratitude
Every society (civilized and uncivilized)
has a system called a rue
of passage w here the young people
arc presented to society In sonic
cultures, the young men and women
arc brought to town or the village
center and all the voung available
women and men arc lined up and
presented to each other This lets the
families and the youth know who is
available for courtshipand marriage
On our reservation and in Pembroke
we do not have an official rite
of passage However, cruising in
Pembroke allows our youth an opportunity
to meet with people from
all over the county, state and nation.
This is apart of the enculturation of
our youth and to try to deny our
young people something as important
as this socialization process is
inhumane. They love to do it and I am
glad to see them having harmless fun
and recreation. 1 say let them
"younguns ride."
Kids, ask your parents and grandparents
if they ever cruised the streets
of Pembroke. They may tdll you that
they not'orriy cruised iff Pembroke- "
but also to the Cosy Comer a nd to the
Drive Inn in the Prospect Community.
. . ."
Pembroke Middle
School Plans Annual
Parents Night
On Monday, April 21,1997, Pembroke
Middle School will be sponsoring
it's second annual Parent
Night, from 5:30 p.m. until 7:30
p.m., parents and their child(rcn)
will be involved in activities that
express skills and techniques used in
the academic program. Parents may
attend 3 of 60 sessions offered. Sessions
include: Reading. Math. Science.
Social Studies. Health and Fitness.
Fine Arts, and Technology. At
the end of the evening a bag supper
and time for socializing will be provided
Wc would like to invite all parents.
guardians, and interested com- '
munily friends to come out and experience
how our children arc "Soaring
to Success"
Kiwanis
Report
The weekly meeting was held
Tuesday evening at the Town and
Country Restaurant with President
Furnic Lambert presiding. Program
Chairman John Rimbcrg presented
Dr Robert L. Jones, Coordinator for
the new "Community in Schools
Program." Dr. Jones cited the alarming
statistics that 3.0(H) students drop
out of school each day. 600,(HH) students
drop out of school each year
85% of all court cases arc drop outs
82%ofallinmatcsarcdrop outs, and
over 50% of our students will not
graduate
Children dropping out has become
a national concern. Dr. Jones
cited the impact of television on the
drop out rate As television is the
number one activity of students thev
arc continually exposed to crime stories.
sexual impact as schools have
become birth control pill distributors.
Corporate America must stop
sponsoring TV shows which leach
our children to be violent, sexually
active, self-centered, anti-family and
anti God
"The Community in Schools Pror
gram" has proposed a Chartered
School controlled by the local board
of education, final approval by the
Slate Board of Education. The at risk
student will be served by support and
hopefully returned to regular classes
to learn Many community groups
will be involved to prevent the high
drop out rate as a real help to our
students in need of extra help
Invocation-Albert Hunt. Song
Icadcr-EdTccls. Reporter-Ken Johnson