"Constructing" Nations within States: The Quest for Federal Recognition by the Catawba and Lumbee Tribes

Abstract

Creating and in some cases re-creating viable tribal political communities within the construct of the modern nation-state has proven to be a troublesome task for indigenous populations worldwide. The task for indigenous governments in the United States has been further complicated by federalism's divisions of power between the states and the national government. Native American tribes often find themselves waging a twofront battle in which they must resist state encroachments over their lands and their inherent governing authority; while at the same time they must lobby the federal government for of those same lands and powers. History is replete with attempts by the federal government to forcibly remove tribes from their ancestral and treaty-recognized homelands,' to facilitate assimilation using acts of cultural genocide,2 and to sever the federal trust relationship with tribes. These often well-intentioned, but highly destructive policies have taken their toll on tribes' political status, economic resources, and cultural integrity. This is particularly true for many Eastern tribes, especially those in the mid-Atlantic region, that generally were not accorded federal recognition in the form of treaties and thus did not benefit from the accompanying protection of the federal trust relationship.4 In addition, many Eastern tribes never had reservations set aside for them, a major source of geographic security that many Western tribes have enjoyed. Federal recognition is the primary method used by tribes to affirm their existence as distinct political communities within the American system. Federal recognition buffers tribal existence from most jurisdictional encroachments by state and local governments and, ideally, should shield the tribes from federal encroachments as well. It also provides tribes and their members with certain political, legal, and economic benefits. Tribes have been marginalized and have experienced great difficulty sustaining themselves as viable political and cultural entities without federal recognition.