Digital Scholarship and Initiatives

Explains some of the forces behind the repeated denials of federal recognition of the Lumbee. Begins with a lengthy discussion of various theories of Lumbee origins, focusing most attention on the Lost Colony theory. For this, Padget relies mostly on Dial and Eliades's The only land I know (The Lumbee Indians: an annotated bibliography, item 54) and Dial's The Lumbee (The Lumbee Indians: an annotated bibliography, item 58). Then, Padget discusses details of recent federal recognition procedures and requirements, such as 25 C.F.R. §83. Explains the impact of the 1956 Lumbee Act, which excludes the Lumbee from federal benefits such as hiring preferences, educational assistance, and social services. Discusses problematic aspects of the BIA's federal recognition guidelines as well as benefits that could be afforded by passage of the Indian Federal Recognition Administrative Procedures Act of 1995. Comments on recent Lumbee Congressional efforts at federal recognition, the role of Jesse Helms, the adoption of a tribal constitution, and the Lumbee Tribal Council's lawsuit against the LRDA. The article's usefulness is somewhat diminished by a few instances of poor editing, some misspellings of proper names, and over-reliance on a few selected sources, including some recent newspaper articles.