Lumbee chairman upset by introduction of federal recognition bill

Friday, January 7, 2011  

Leaders of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina weren't consulted about a new federal recognition bill, Chairman Purnell Swett said.

Rep. Mike McIntyre (D-North Carolina) introduced H.R.27 on Wednesday, the first day of the 112th Congress. "I will do all I can to pass this important bill," he said in a press release.

But Swett apparently doesn't want McIntyre to push the bill too hard. "While I am appreciative of the congressman's dedication to ... correcting a grave injustice done to the Lumbee people, I was not aware nor consulted about reintroducing this bill," Swett said in a statement to the Fayetteville Observer. "Furthermore, I had not contacted the congressman and requested that this previous bill done by another administration be reintroduced."

Swett said he wants to re-evaluate the tribe's strategy for gaining federal recognition.

Get the Story:
Tribal leaders upset over not being consulted (The Fayetteville Observer 1/7)

Also Today:
Lumbees celebrae reopening of clinic (The Fayetteville Observer 1/7)

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