Malinda Maynor Lowery
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- September 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781469646374
- eISBN:
- 9781469646398
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469646374.003.0008
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
Lumbee advocates believed that Lumbees should harness the full power of self-determination provided by the federal government. Federal recognition does not legitimize a tribe’s identity, but it does ...
More
Lumbee advocates believed that Lumbees should harness the full power of self-determination provided by the federal government. Federal recognition does not legitimize a tribe’s identity, but it does give a tribe’s inherent sovereignty a unique place within the American political system. This chapter outlines the Lumbee fight for federal recognition throughout the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Opposition came from the federal government, Washington political infighting, and other Indian tribes. Despite disappointment at the federal level, Lumbee organizations worked together to create a tribal government and constitution for the Lumbee people, as well as debated with each other about how best to do that. The topic of gaming was particularly controversial. Eventually Lumbees decided on an electoral system of government with representation on a district basis. The Lumbee constitution defined two important aspects of Lumbee identity: kinship and place.Important players in the Lumbee fight for sovereignty included Arlinda Locklear, Julian Pierce, Helen Maynor Schierbeck, and Dalton Brooks.Less
Lumbee advocates believed that Lumbees should harness the full power of self-determination provided by the federal government. Federal recognition does not legitimize a tribe’s identity, but it does give a tribe’s inherent sovereignty a unique place within the American political system. This chapter outlines the Lumbee fight for federal recognition throughout the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Opposition came from the federal government, Washington political infighting, and other Indian tribes. Despite disappointment at the federal level, Lumbee organizations worked together to create a tribal government and constitution for the Lumbee people, as well as debated with each other about how best to do that. The topic of gaming was particularly controversial. Eventually Lumbees decided on an electoral system of government with representation on a district basis. The Lumbee constitution defined two important aspects of Lumbee identity: kinship and place.Important players in the Lumbee fight for sovereignty included Arlinda Locklear, Julian Pierce, Helen Maynor Schierbeck, and Dalton Brooks.
