Cherokee County Gaming II, The Protest

The Cherokee One Feather reported that a protest was filed by both Painttown Rep. Terri Henry and Big Cove Rep. Teresa McCoy in regards to Tribal Council passing legislation to pursue gaming in Cherokee County. The legislation focuses on how the legislation was passed, as an emergency resolution in closed session.
I'm all in favor of gaming in Cherokee County, but there was no need to do it as either an emergency resolution or in closed session. It hardly constituted an emergency. And here's what tribal law says on holding closed sessions: "The Tribal Council is authorized to hold executive sessions closed to the public only for the purpose of discussing issues in which privacy or confidentiality concerns may arise, upon request of one of the involved parties, personnel actions involving Tribal employees, or issues requiring confidentiality to discuss negotiations incident to proposed contractual arrangements, and proposed sale or purchase of property; the receipt of legal advice where the legal advice relates to a pending, threatened, or potential claim, or other matters covered by the attorney-client privilege, settlement of legal claims, or the position of the Tribe or Tribal agency in other adversary situations involving the assertion against the Tribe or Tribal agency of a claim; discussion regarding the development of security, personnel, or devices; sovereignty issues; investigative proceedings regarding allegations of criminal misconduct; discussion of matters relating to the proposed location, expansion, or the provision of services encouraging location or expansion of industries or other businesses in the area served by the Tribe. No final action may be approved or taken by the Council while in executive session. Council may hold an executive session closed to the public only upon a motion duly made and adopted during an open session. Every motion to close a meeting shall cite one or more of the permissible purposes."
No doubt the excuse used would be that this was a legal matter, attorney client privilege (all tribal members are clients of the attorney general's office, whether or not the attorney general will acknowledge that), blah blah blah.
Two things bother me about the way this took place. One is public comment was completely circumvented. Welcome to the Hicks Administration.
The other is doing it this way gives the public the impression that something dirty was going on. There is nothing wrong with this proposal, so it's truly tragic that the public has to get the impression that something is wrong with it.
I don't want the legislation overturned, but it would be nice to see some kind of censure expressing official disapproval over holding what should've been done in public in closed session and completely denying the public any say in it. Some of us Cherokee County residents would've loved to express our opinions on the subject.
Click here to read the protest.

New Apartment Complex Underway, More Tribal Spending

The Cherokee One Feather reports that construction for a new apartment complex is now underway, this in light of hiring freezes and stoppages of travel.
A couple of things come to mind. One is how many tribal families currently waiting for housing will be placed in these units? Bureaucracy, particularly on the part of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, is a huge impediment to dealing with the housing problem in Cherokee, but supposed solutions offered before in the form of condos and townhouse developments have so far resulted in unused units, by at least half. The more tribally-funded housing project units that remain unfilled, the more tribal money will have been wasted.
The other is a comment offered by Principal Chief Michell Hicks, an apparent response to criticism of his administration's spending habits. “As you look at the things happening in Cherokee, it’s not about spending money. It’s about investing in the people of this Tribe.” N.C. Sens. Nesbitt and Snow offered words of praise, pointing to the fact the projects elsewhere in the state have stopped.
Of course neither of these state officials really has a horse in this race, but one has to ask, why have state projects stopped? It's a lack of money. Does the tribe have money in stark contrast to the state? No. That's why there's a hiring freeze, the travel stoppage, and it's why tribal program budgets have had to cut by significant portions.
Investing in the people is all well and good when the money's there. Where is this money coming from? The casino hasn't been the cash cow the tribe has expected it to be, and the reality is the tribe is in the same boat as the rest of the country.
At some point, all the reckless spending being done by tribal government is going to come back and bite them, but it'll be the tribal members who end up paying for it though cuts in services and employee layoffs. Tribal government can take the bull by the horns, or we can lose every piece of china in the shop.

Gaming Opportunities in Cherokee County

Tribal officials have been pursuing an additional gaming facility in Cherokee County for a number of years. On March 2, Tribal Council passed legislation authorizing the Tribal Casino Gaming Enterprise to continue negotiations and seeking and negotiating bank loans to establish the facility.
I look forward to such a facility, provided it isn't near schools, being on tribal land in Cherokee County. The county has been in need of an economic boost for a number of years, but recently the situation has deteriorated with the downturn in real estate, and factory closings that happened years before haven't helped. The county has had the highest unemployment rate in the region. So this project is certainly welcome.

Edwardo Wong's Trial in August

The trial of a man who's accused of shooting and killing a state trooper during a traffic stop in Haywood County has been delayed so one of his attorneys can receive and recover from cancer treatments.
Just a refresher for those who may not remember: the victim, David Shawn Blanton, Jr., was a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. At the time he was callously gunned down, he had a prematurely born son in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in Mission Hospital in Asheville, a son who later died. Because of this action, a grieving widow was forced to grieve the loss of her son without his father.
Edwardo Wong, who faces the death penalty, has an extensive criminal history, including some violent offenses back in Florida. Yet here he was that July night cavorting around western North Carolina. Wong's lawyers have attacked Blanton's character, even suggesting that his stopping Wong (it was a minor traffic infraction) was racially motivated. It was night, and I doubt Blanton could determine Wong's race while patrolling, even if it would have been a factor. It's not as though Blanton hasn't had to deal with racism himself through being Native American.
While I can't fault one of his attorneys for getting treated for cancer and I do wish him well, the Blanton family deserves justice, and I think it's sad that these kind of blame-the-victim tactics have been used. I have no sympathy for Wong, and should a jury conclude he's guilty, I certainly won't be shedding any tears the day he's strapped to a table and a needle is put in his arm.

On The Cherokee One Feather

Occasionally I get asked about my opinion of the One Feather. Being the former editor I don't want to criticize the staff. I will say the paper isn't what it should be, nor is its website. Professional journalists who've looked at the paper haven't had kind words when they've spoken to me. That's not necessarily the undersized staff's fault. It mostly lies with the lack of leadership.
There is no editor, and since Pat Panther-Standingdeer, who was employed there since the early '70s retired, there's no assistant editor either. Two people, a reporter and subscription clerk, are running the whole show under the direction of people with no journalism credentials whatsoever, one of whom is a politician with an interest in self-preservation.
The paper falls under the direction of the tribe's Marketing and Promotions division, a huge conflict of interest for both Marketing and Promotions and the One Feather, and that move was made by Principal Chief Michell Hicks upon taking office in 2003.
Supposedly there's an editorial board established, but who are they, and what are their credentials? The One Feather should list them, along with their contact information. That's a huge responsibility, and each of them should own up to it.
I'm not necessarily saying that I should lead the paper again, but whoever oversees it needs to be someone who knows what they're doing and can rebuild the paper's journalistic reputation. It also needs the independence to do its job, and it won't get that under the direction of people who insist it ignore the cesspool next to the rose garden.

Principal Chief Wilma Mankiller Diagnosed With Pancreatic Cancer

Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Wilma Mankiller was diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer. Unfortunately the outlook for such a diagnosis isn't good. Mankiller has battled cancer in the past, and her survival of those battles has been among of number of things about Mankiller that have made her truly admirable.
Mankiller was the first female chief of the Cherokee Nation. In addition to that, there were a number of traits about her that I have found truly admirable, particularly her leadership on issues like freedom and improving the quality of life for tribal members. I finally got the chance to meet her a few years ago.
I'm sure these words are likely to make a few people gag (particularly a certain Joe Byrd apologizing PR coordinator whose classless response when I mentioned Mankiller in conversation was "f*** Wilma"), but I can't help hoping our band of Cherokee would just attempt to follow the model set by the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, particularly in regards to the rights of its members, access to information and freedom of the press. Those laws for the Eastern Band have thus far proven to be paper tigers under a chief that seems to be following the despotic example set by Chief Byrd.
I know the outlook is bad, but I'll be praying for Mankiller and the Cherokee Nation. God bless you all.