1TH CAROLINA INDIAN VOICE
j ed each Thursday by First American Publications, Pembroke, NC
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER It, 1997 TWENTY-FIVE CENTS
Rev. G Locklear seeks election
to Lumbee River EMC Board
Rev. Clester Locklear. Evangelist
with the Lumber River Holiness
Methodist Conference, has
announced his bid for election to
the Lumbcc River EMC Board of
Directors. He has filed for one of
the three at-largc scats on thai
Board. ?
Rev. Locklear is a Missionary
Representative to South America
w ith the Lumber River Conference
and also scrvesas alTi liatc pastor at
New Prospect Holiness Methodist
Church. He has been associated
with the Lumbcc River Confer
ence for thirteen years. He has
made several missionary trips to
South America and is presently
involved with a missionary effort
inNewYork. He is dedicated to the
cause of Christ and continues to
share the Gospel with the world.
In making his announcement.
Rev. Locklcar released the following
statement:
"I have been encouraged b>
many people to seek election to the
EMC Board. After much prater
and meditation 1 have decided to
offer the member-consumers of
EMC a choice for the al-largc position
on the EMC Board. If the
consumers are happy with the status
quo. then they should vole for
the board to remain thcsamc. However.
if they arc interested in making
a change. I am available to
serve.
"There arc many problems that
I feel need addressing on that Board
and I would like the opportunity to
address the issues. I know that it is
unrealistic to think that electric
bills will ever be lower than they
are now. But there arc sev eral w ay s
to prevent a steady increase in the
price of electric services.
"The running of an electric cooperative
isbigbusincssand should
be approached as such. I would, if
elected, endeavor to bring sound,
fiscal, business sense to the decisionmaking
process.
r"A.rXv<Tenter the twenty-first
century. we arc in a more advanced
technological age than we have
ever experienced The rapid advancement
of technology is demanding
on our cooperative as wc
strive to provide efficient electrical
serv ice to homes, businesses
and industry With the expansion
and grow th of industry in our service
area, it is necessary for the
EMC to meet these growing demands
for efficient service. ?
"If elected. I will be one of
twelve members of the decisionmaking
body ofEMC. but 1 assure
you that I will be a vocal member
and I w ill make decisions with the
best interest of our membership in
mind
"I leave you with one of my
favorite scriptures. II Timothy 2:7
Consider what I say and may the
f.ord give you understanding in
all things."
i i nni??
Recordings of elders bring
Lumbee history and culture alive
PEMBROKE - The words of
I Lumbee tribal elders have been
saved for future generations.
Acollectionof 35 CDs containing
interviews with numerous
Lumbces elders is now available to
the public at The University of
North Carolina at Pembroke's
Native American Resource Center.
The interviews, conducted by
the late Adolph Dial. Lew Barton.
DcxtcrBrooksand others, arc more
than 25 years old and have been
hailed by scholars as an important
historical, cultural and linguistic
collection.
The announcement was made
by Dr Stan Knick. Native American
Resource Center director and
Dr. Linda Oxcndinc. chair of
UNCP's American Indian Studies
Department, who helped bring the
project home to Pembroke The
recordings and a CD player were
donated by Frank and Mary Doris
Dial-Caplc. Dr Dial's daughter.
Instmmcntal i n bringing the recordings
toUNCPwasNorth Carolina
State University Professor Walt
Wolfram Wolfram's program.
North Carolina Language and Life
Project converted to CD format the
fragile and aging rcel-to-rccl tapes.
The goal of restoring the recordings
of tribal elders is to preserve
the rich heritage of history,
dialect and culture of the Lumbce
people. Approximately 70 people,
many now deceased, were interviewed
for the original project.
Among those interviewed include:
Rev. D.F. Lowry. Mr. James
E. Chavis. Mr. Rand Bullard, Mrs.
Nancy Lowry Revels. Mr. Claude
Lowery. Mr. John Godwin. Mr.
Elisha Dial. Professor Clifton Oxcndinc.
Dr. Dial. Rev. Robert
Mangum and many more. Some 6f
those interviewed were in their
late 80s and 90s.
Dr. Knick said the recordings
arc a good fit into his collection of
Native American art and artifacts.
"The tapes arc no less significant
than the artifacts we find in
the ground." Knick said "These
arc important windows totlic post."
Knick said the tapes will be
used by both descendants and researchers.
"The descendants of these
people will probably be very interested
to hear the recordings." he
said. '"Every one will come to the
listening room with his own reasons
and conceptual frameworkthc
linguist, the anthropologist,
the descendant and the historian."
Dr. Oxendinc agreed, saying
the tapesare another resource available
to scholars in the community
to help provide additional insight
into Lumbcc history and culture
The sound quality of the CDs is
superior to the tapes and some of
the interviews arc transcribed. A
catalogue of the CDs will be available
soon. Dr Oxendinq said.
Dr Knick praised Ms DialCaplc
for her contributions.
"On bchalfofthc Native American
Resource Center and its public.
I want tocxprcss our appreciation
for the gift of the CDs and the
equipment to plav them." he said.
"Mary Doris is carrying on the
traditions of her father - by supporting
this institution and by
making accessible Mr Dial's rcscarch.T...
ThcVecordi ngs may be heard by
the public by appointment. Dr
Knick said Call the Native American
Resource Center at 521-62X2
for more information.
Named to Outstanding
Young Women of America
April L ocklear hasjust recei ved the prestigious honor of Outstanding
Young Woman Of America for 1997-98. Aprihvon this honor for
scholastic achievements and community service. Her community
service is the dedication to helping people with HIV/AIDS and
organizing different HIV/AIDS projects. April is now a member of an
exclusive group that is only made up of I % of eligible young
Americans. Her name and profile of achievements will he listed in the
volumes of Outstanding Young Americans and will be distributed to
different libraries, universities, and corporations nationwide.
April is the daughter of Harry and Harbara Lock tear ofPembroke.
She is a Senior at l/NC Pembroke majoring in Psychology. Sheisalso
a dance student at the School of Ballet in l.umberton under the
direction of Lauren Jolly and a private voice student under the
direction of Matilda Whitfield.
Dr. Linda Oxendine (center) chair of UNCP's American Indian
Studies Department, poses with Dr. wait Wolfram and Dr. Natalie
Schilling-Estes of the North Carolina Language and Life Project. The
project assisted VNCPin acquiring recordings of interviews made 25
years ago with l.umbee Tribal elders with Dr. Adolph Dial, the
recordings mil be housed on campus in the Native American Resources
Center in Old Main.
Revival begins at
Riverside Church
Revival services will begin at
Riverside Independent Baptist
Church on September 14. 1997
and run through September 19th.
Sunday night services will begin at
6:30 p.m. and Monday through
Friday services will begin at 7:30
p m Speakers for the revival will
be Rev. Davey Locklear and Rev.
Mickey Lovvery. The pastor. Rev
Jerry McNeill, and the congregation
extend a cordial invitation to
the public to attend
Open House to be
held at Riverside
Christian Academy
Open House will be held at Riv?3f
Christian Academy a nd Ri vnn
?c. F r!slian Da> Carc Center
R^^i"?5r20aM()a m unl'?^J?,
.bcs?rvcd There will be
basketball and volleyball for children
of all ages. Guest speakers
will include Senator David
Wcinslicn. ShcrilTGlenn Mavnor
and Congressman MikeMcln'lvrc.
as wcllasDr. Dal ton Brooks. Tribal
Chairman and members of the
tribal council
West Robeson
C.M. Church
to hold 10year
Celebration
u. X* Unitcd Methodist
Church will hold their 10 year
anmsvary at the current location
oh September 14. 1997
Hu?TkC P?sfor and thc members or
^SSSSSSSSSS
beginning at 2 pm 88
Submitted b>
Emin Jacobs
Revival Services
at Union Chapel
vices September 14-17.1997
M"nm? Service
The public is welcome
the Pastor* Jimm> S,rickland is
reunion planned
The Steve and Magnolia Maynor
family reunion will be held
Saturday. September 13, 1997 in
the Pembroke Elementary School
Cafeteria at 3:00 p.m. Reservations
should be made bv callino
5214666. 52M27,^r^?-g
Relatives are encouraged to at
ICIIU
A report on the 1997 long session of the North Carolina
General Assembly from Rep. Ron Sutton, District 85
The 1997 long session of the
North Carolina General Assembly
is now history . It was only two days
shorter than the previously longest
session in state history. The session
began with unusual circumstances
due to the political make
up of the: Senate and House.
The Senate had a majority of 30
to 20 in favor of the Democrats.
The House having had a Republic
can majority of68/52 in the 199496
term now had a slimmer majority
of 61/59. The slim Republican
margin fueled speculation of a
deadlocked House that would produce
nothing but gridlock and as
time would tell, that speculation
was far from tnlc This lurried out
to be a most productive long session
In this article I will report on
and analyze some of the major
legislation before the General Assembly
this past year with an emphasis
on specific actions in the
House. In addition. I will give some
insight as to why and how ccrjain
issues and activities were successful
or unsuccessful
The session began with the customary
selection of House leadership.
Prior to the first day of the
session there were numerous behind
the scenes discussions, negotiations,
promises and commitments
as to the Speaker candidate
each of us would support. A vote
alongparty lines, the way one would
generally expect, would have meant
the Republicans would retain the
leadership and have a Republican
Speaker. It is important to note, the
party in power has significant advantages
and controls. They control
House floor seating, office assignments,
committee assignments.
committee chairman assignments
and control of the flow
of bills through the House. Naturally
this is an important function
to have - House leadership.
There are some dissident Republicans
that were reluctant to
support the Republican leadership
slate and gave hope to the 59 Democrats
that they would Vote to select
a Democrat Spcakeiv This would
have meant much more power for
the Democratic party.. Obviously,
there were some Domocrats who
felt they could vote with the Republicans
thus negating any such
move by the dissatisfied Republicans.
The lobbying the last few
days prior to the session convening
was extensive and went late into
the night on several occasions.
There were commitments on
both sides but all the Democratic
commitments fell apart when the
first Democrat left his party cstablishmcnt
and voted for the
Rcpublica Speaker. Assoonasthat
happened, we Democrats knew that
all hopes for a Democratic Speaker
were lost because wc were previously
told by the Republican dissidents
they would not come over to
our side on this critical vote if any
of our Democrats swayed
On the date of the actual vote
three (3) Democrats voted for a
Republics Speaker. The three were .
Rep. Dewey Hill, District 14; Rep
Walter Church, District 47 and
,Rep. James W. Crawford. Jr. of
District 22. Each did so for their
own reasons and were rewarded in
some manner through committee
appointments or other perks.
the session began with several
major issues before us. At a state
wide level some major issues were
the Excellent Schools Act. Smart
Start funding, environmental issues,
campaign reform, tax cuts,
transportation needs, congressional
redisricting, welfare reform, economic
development and the requirement
to develop a balanced
budget for the 97-98 term.
On a local level sonic pressing
concerns were congressional rcdist
ricti ng. economic dc\ clopmcni.
funding for a UNC-P dorm, funds
for the Southeastern Farmers Market
Complex and (he May 12.1997
deadline facing the North Carolina
Indian Cultural Center Board
As a member of the minority
party I was pleasantly surprised
when I received my committee assign
nicnts. The speaker asked each
of us to list by priority our seven
choices. He assigned me to five
committees I listed thereby allowing
me to participate in areas of my
interest.
My committee assignnicntsarc
Appropriations, sub-committccon
transportation; Ethics, Judiciary
II. Congressional Redisricting.
and State Government, sub-committee
on Military, Veterans and
Indian Affairs.
The first major agenda item for
me was getting the NC Indian
Cultural Center some breathing
room for fund raising As has been
explained in previous articles. by
prior legislation the Cultural Center
Board was to raise 4.16 million
dollars by May 12. 1997. A failure
to raise the money meant that title
to all the Cultural Center lands
located near Red Banks, west of
Pembroke in Robeson County,
would revert to the State Of North
Carolina with a fight to do with it
as the slate desired The Cultural
Center Board had not raised that
amount and needed an extension
of time to avoid the reversion.
My bill passed both chambers
and was signed into law b) the
Governor This gave the Cultural
Center Board an additional four
(4) years to raise money but also
reduced the amount to be raised
from 4 16 million to ^ million It
also directed that the NC Indian
Cultural Center Board be completely
reorganized by the end of
this year. The NC Commission of
Indian AfTairs was given oversight
of the activities of the NC Indian
Cultural Center Board and final
authority on appointment of Cultural
Center Board members
This sweeping legislation was a
product of discussions and inputs
front various sources However,
the final product was what I be
licvcd to be in the best interest of
the NC Indian Cultural Center, the
Indian people of NC and the citizens
of this state Throughout the
entire process 1 made it adamantly
clear to all concerned that 1 have a
strong desire to see the NC Indian
Cultural Center a reality and my
position has not wavered from that
posture
My second initial major concern
was that of Congressional
Redisricting Since the US Supreme
Court had declared Congressional
District Twelve(12) unconstitutional.
that meant the General
Assembly had a April I. 1997
deadline to redraw all the congressional
lines to make them conform
to the Court's ruling. Even though
our congressman and congresswoman
serve in Washington. D C
the N C. General Assembly draws
their district lines It would be
impossible to redraw district lines
for one district without affecting
other congressional lines So a
complete redrawing of the lines
was necessary.
Nort h Ca rol i na's Congrcssionn I
Delegation consist of 12 members,
including our own Congressman
Mike Mclntyrc. District 7 and
Congressman Bill Hefner, District
X As a member of the House Congressional
Redisricting Committee.
I had a special commitment to
look out for Robeson and Hoke
Counties I worked closely with
both Congressmen Mclntyrc and
Hefner and their staffs during the
entire process.
It should be stressed that I was
genuinely concerned that as many
as possible of the Indians in and
around Robeson and Hoke Counties
should be in the same voting
district. Naturally 1 knew that there
may be some splitting of counties
in order to get the districts to balance
but every effort was made to
keep Hoke and Robeson Counties
in at least the same posture as
before. Basically that was accomplished
but there were some slight
changes in the two counties between
Districts 7 and 8. However,
for the piost part our two congressional
districts came out in good
shape. You may recall from previous
ncwSarticlcs, hadl not been on
the House Congressional Redisricting
Committee, two of the key
predominately Indian precincts in
Robeson Countv. Oxcndinc and
Prospect, would (ta\ cbccn changed
from District 7 toDistrict 8 Fortunately.
through alertness and
prompt action. 1 was able to forge
a return to the status quo. thereby
keeping most of the greater Indian
voting block together.
Upon concluding these two significant
events. I began to settle
down to other matters. One of the
responsibilities of a member is to
prioritize issues and bills. While
other issues were just as important
as the previous two, they did not
have specific suspense dates as did
Congressional Redisricting and
the NC Indian Cultural Center
matter